The lessons learned on 'Chamloey Rak'
The politicians may have been on television furiously bickering about the government's new policy proposals last Monday, but most of Thailand was over at Channel 3 watching the final episode of hit soap opera "Chamloey Rak" ("Defendant of Love")
Many of my colleagues left the office early so they could tune in at home, and afterwards a fan of the soap suggested in one of the Pantip.com chatrooms that the show deserved an award.
He reasoned that "Chamloey Rak" had finally weaned Thais away from their addiction to series from South Korea, that it encouraged producers to invest more in better programming, and that it got Thais laughing again, even with all the tense politics.
There were quite a few replies to the comment, many pointing out that the main theme of "Chamloey Rak" was revenge and that it featured a rape scene. One critic asked how a woman could fall in love with her rapist, as happened on the show.
Yet the critics also admitted they were fans of the series.
Regardless of this show's merits and drawbacks, the feedback demonstrated that, no matter how many foreign series are imported, Thais are ready to support homegrown programmes, especially if they have uniquely Thai aspects to them.
But all of this raises a question: What is the new Thai Public Broadcasting Service (TPBS) supposed to do when viewers' tastes don't seem to be changing? We still love our escapist television, with all of its imaginary characters.
Back on the air since February 15, TPBS has lost touch with the public. Aside from the noon news, which is a copy of TITV's, complete with a similar sequencing, the daytime programmes are not exactly enchanting. As I write, TPBS is airing a show on which viewers' questions are answered. Needless to say, it's just like TITV's "Ruam Duay Chuay Kan", only much less colourful.
Without advertising - which can be boring, but also funny or thought-provoking - and without programmes as good as those on cable TV, TPBS will have to work doubly hard to earn an audience.
Even if TPBS blows most of its budget bringing CNN and BBC to the non-paying public, how many people will watch regularly? It's boring watching "informative" shows around the clock, even with the global news updates on those channels.
Anyway, the "Chamloey Rak" phenomenon proves that popularity requires many things, not just good intentions. Hopefully, TPBS will do better than I expect and actually spur a wave of new thinking in our society.
I'm feeling a little overwhelmed because, sad to say, this is my last column. The Nation's new format and the arrival of XPress mean that "Small Screen" is making way for other interesting articles.
I'd like to take the opportunity to thank all of the readers who have joined in on lucky draws and sent me their comments.
Credit ; e-nang ,
The Nation 
