Youth Culture in TV

The representation of youth culture and the people involved in it has

changed dramatically in recent history. It has gone from popular media
being devoid of young people to specific TV shows and channels
dedicated to youth culture. Young people have until recently been
presented mostly as unruly and a threat to the social norms, such is
Cohens interpretation of the moral panic that ensued during the early
years of teenagers.
Youth culture on British TV began with shows such as Grange Hill. First
aired in 1978, Grange Hill was unprecedented in that it portrayed young
people from their own perspective, rather than adults. It was also a
programme for young people, and so therefore did not serve to alienate
teenagers as its predecessors would have done. However, it was very
controversial and did in fact create a moral panic. Adults (especially ones
of a higher social class) were up in arms about the way in which young
people were portrayed in this TV series; the realism and honesty was seen
as vulgar and inappropriate for its tea time slot. Issues such as drugs, sex
and violence were portrayed, as well as black people being art of the main
cast. In todays standards this show would seem extremely tame, but the
show fits in perfectly with Cohens 1972 theory When youths try to
express themselves in a way that adults have not seen before they try
and stop it by showing a negative aspect.
Another TV show that caused a stir within the hegemony was the 1989
series Byker Grove. Set in Byker, Newcastle, this series told the stories of
young people at a local youth club. Byker Grove was able to be more
explicit than Grange Hill in the issues it dealt with due to the time;
however it still dealt with very controversial and taboo subjects such as
sex, drugs, violence and even rape. This series presented working class
youths as the protagonists, going against Gramsci and Philos theories on
youth culture, and goes with Hebdiges idea that the media representation
of youth is limited, as this was one of the only shows of its kind at the
time.
Contemporary examples of youth culture in television are extremely
common; every TV network has at least one series portraying young
people. Some Girls is a BBC 3 shows portraying teenage girls at school.
This show supports Hebdiges theory that youth in media are shown as
being either trouble or fun and nothing in between. The four main
characters are very stereotypical, as if they have been crafted to be a
group that represents the different teenage girl stereotypes. This is
because they almost certainly have been for the very reason that they

want to capture a wide audience that can relate to the plot lines.
However, the show is extremely stylised and in my opinion it is very
unrealistic, conforming to Hebdiges theory further that the
representations of youth in media are not realistic. This is undoubtedly a
series that has been created by adults in a board room, trying desperately
to appeal to the typical teenage girl. Although the characters
occasionally face real life problems, the world in which they live is very
much an ideological one, and therefore the show is an inaccurate view of
teenage life that has been tailored for a more sensitive, younger teenage
audience. Compare this to a series like Channel 4s Misfits and you can
see that even though Misfits is about youths with super powers it seems
more realistic and relatable that Some Girls.
In contrast to Some Girls, Youngers is a Channel 4 show about young
people growing up in working class London. The story lines are complex
and cover many aspects of teenage life, making Some Girls seem even
simpler. The show goes against the stereotypes that people have of
working class black people, and tackles issues such as demanding parents
and failing at school, along with the usual aspects of youth culture drama.
This creates a very realistic and relatable story, contrasting further with
Some Girls dressed-up childish ideology. Youngers rejects Greg Philos
theory that if you are not middle class then you are shown as a hoodie,
with the main character growing up on the estates but winning a
scholarship to a prestigious college. There he meets with a lot of
animosity from the middle class people who pay to be there, showing how
there is still a huge social divide between the working and middle classs
attitudes.
The shows Some Girls and Youngers demonstrate the very different
attitudes towards youth culture on TV, with one being stylised and
stereotypical, and the other rejecting stereotypes in favour of realism. This
shows the different attitudes between the BBC and Channel 4, with the
BBC being traditionally associated with the hegemony, creating a show
that conforms to the stereotypes that the hegemony has. Channel 4,
traditionally choosing independent and controversial shows in contrast to
the BBC, has created a series that rejects the theories of Greg Philo and
goes against the hegemonys view on working class youth culture.