Sea of Thought Submerged in Radio Waves: Enzensberger and Haruhiko Hagimoto's Vision (1970)

Sea of Thought Submerged in Radio Waves: Enzensberger and Haruhiko Hagimoto's Vision (1970)

The German poet and thinker Hans Magnus Enzensberger's statement, "The information industry is a tool for the exploitation of consciousness in order to maintain the current system," was more than an alarming indictment of the television industry in 1970. In the midst of rapid economic growth, televisions permeated households and programming dissolved into the daily waves of consumption. On the other hand, there was Haruhiko Hagimoto, a former employee of TBS, who had been imbued with an acute awareness of issues in his films. In programs such as "You Are..." and "Now Let's Talk About the World's Youth," he expressed the chaos of live broadcasting as it was and provoked the system. But now, as president of TV Man Union, his figure is buried in quiz and travel programs, and his former fighting spirit has faded into the background.

One of the writers exclaimed, "Your programs have no ideology. Does your program have an ideology? One of the writers exclaimed, "Does your program have a thought? Tired of commercialism and competition for ratings, producers have begun to make programs that "sell" rather than express themselves. Enzensberger's point was spot on. Television is now functioning as a device to make viewers "unthinkable. In those days, there was anger on television. There was ridicule, questions, and struggle. Now, however, the screen is flattened and the waves are asleep. Ideas are submerged in the airwaves, and only a film of light and sound quietly envelops the viewer.