UK may force Top Gear to diversify cast
04-30-2009, 08:58 AM
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UK may force Top Gear to diversify cast
UK may force Top Gear to diversify cast
This past Monday, the UK's Labour deputy leader, Harriet Harman, unveiled the so-called "Equity Bill" which requires state-funded organizations (like the BBC) to increase the amount of female, black and gay staff to better reflect the diversified population of the island. If the reforms go through, everyone's favorite motoring show might need to kill off one of its presenters Stig-style and add a female cast member to the trio.
Naturally, the controversial reform is bound to have consequences beyond Top Gear, but much of the Daily Mail's coverage of the bill revolves around Clarkson, Hammond and May, along with some particularly quotable academics. Take, for instance, Dr. Louise Livesey, a tutor in sociology and women's studies at the Ruskin College in Oxford, who said the show is "entrenched, institutional sexism." No... really. One of Livesey's colleagues was kind enough to add that Top Gear should be more "female-friendly," which struck us as odd, considering our significant others (wives and girlfriends, since the Autoblog staff is primarily composed of auto-obsessed males, much like Top Gear's) enjoy the program as much as we do. Why? Because it's great entertainment and – shockingly – women like cars too!
Thankfully, Top Gear's producer Andy Wilman released a statement in response, calling out the mandate and its supporting egg-heads by saying "our regular viewers know, on account of them normally having more common sense than politicians or academics, Top Gear is a male show, in that it revolves around three males enjoying their love of cars." Wilman went on to say, "this sort of claptrap is very patronizing to women, because it assumes women can't enjoy a show's presenters on merit, but can only appreciate a program if spoken to by one of their own sex." We won't bombard you with the rest of Wilman's insightful critiques on the measure.
This past Monday, the UK's Labour deputy leader, Harriet Harman, unveiled the so-called "Equity Bill" which requires state-funded organizations (like the BBC) to increase the amount of female, black and gay staff to better reflect the diversified population of the island. If the reforms go through, everyone's favorite motoring show might need to kill off one of its presenters Stig-style and add a female cast member to the trio.
Naturally, the controversial reform is bound to have consequences beyond Top Gear, but much of the Daily Mail's coverage of the bill revolves around Clarkson, Hammond and May, along with some particularly quotable academics. Take, for instance, Dr. Louise Livesey, a tutor in sociology and women's studies at the Ruskin College in Oxford, who said the show is "entrenched, institutional sexism." No... really. One of Livesey's colleagues was kind enough to add that Top Gear should be more "female-friendly," which struck us as odd, considering our significant others (wives and girlfriends, since the Autoblog staff is primarily composed of auto-obsessed males, much like Top Gear's) enjoy the program as much as we do. Why? Because it's great entertainment and – shockingly – women like cars too!
Thankfully, Top Gear's producer Andy Wilman released a statement in response, calling out the mandate and its supporting egg-heads by saying "our regular viewers know, on account of them normally having more common sense than politicians or academics, Top Gear is a male show, in that it revolves around three males enjoying their love of cars." Wilman went on to say, "this sort of claptrap is very patronizing to women, because it assumes women can't enjoy a show's presenters on merit, but can only appreciate a program if spoken to by one of their own sex." We won't bombard you with the rest of Wilman's insightful critiques on the measure.
