Indonesian political talkshows get hotter

Indonesian political talkshows get hotter

By Agni Amorita

JAKARTA (JP): In a country like Indonesia where the credo
"silence is gold" is still prevalent, with Vice President
Megawati Soekarnoputri as its faithful follower, having an open,
spontaneous and dynamic talk show used to be a rare luxury.
People talked behind your back instead of discussing the real
problems comprehensively. There was even a cynical expression
debat kusir (debate of the coachmen) directed towards those who
embarked on heated discussion. In a still feudalistic society,
horsecart drivers are considered uneducated people who debate
without any supporting arguments. For about three decades, people
have been deprived of their freedom of speech in almost all
public mediums. Including local television.

The only talkshow allowed to be shown was in the form of a
boring guided conversation which was very predictable and mostly
silly. That was why people reacted positively when Ishadi SK, who
was then chairman of state television TVRI Yogyakarta, introduced
his spontaneous and modern teen talkshow Tanah Merdeka (Land of
Liberty) in the 1980s. Due to the huge support from its viewers,
Tanah Merdeka was soon being aired nationally from Yogyakarta.
But Ishadi was left alone because nobody else had dared to create
such an impressive and smart program. In 1994 Wimar Witoelar came
out with his phenomenal program Perspektif (The Perspective), on
SCTV.

It was in December 1993 when Wimar Witoelar, known as the
President Director of management consulting company PT
Intermatrix, talked to Djoko B. Soemantri, one of SCTV's
principals. He said SCTV would be seen as an Indonesian CNN if it
had its own Larry King Live. "And who will be its host?" Djoko
asked. Wimar volunteered himself. "Half joking and half
dreaming," Wimar recalled that moment in his book Perspektif
Bersama Wimar Witoelar (Yayasan Obor Indonesia, 1995). Then the
dream came true. The show was a big hit because it introduced a
new approach to Indonesian audiences; it was friendly,
spontaneous, smart and never treated the viewers as if they were
too uneducated to receive such a comprehensive show. Interview
transcripts from the show were printed in newspapers and later in
the book mentioned previously and an audio version was also
broadcasted on various radio stations.

From the very beginning, Wimar has been receiving letters of
support from his viewers. His appreciation towards the viewers
and their letters is another cause for his success. People would
always remember the moment in one of Perspektif's early episodes
when Wimar Witoelar sat at his modest desk, without his famous
tailored suit. Before starting the show he said to the viewers,
"Thanks for your letters, and now I am doing one of those things
that was suggested. I will no longer be wearing a suit in order
to get closer to the viewers and establish a more friendly
situation."

With a variety of guests, from now Coordinating Minister of
Economics Rizal Ramli to feminist Julia Suryakusuma, Wimar gave
his audience a very important new perspective. And the result was
amazing. Wimar -- thanks to that letter -- is now more often seen
in his checkered shirt and almost never wears his forgotten
tailored suit. And he has gained a loyal audience. They followed
his talkshow when it was banned by the Soeharto regime and had to
be changed to an audio program. Then Wimar launched numerous live
shows in separate places all over the archipelago. Perspektif was
given a new name, Perspektif Baru (A New Perspective), and was
then aired by Indosiar for two years, having just ended recently.

"The reception was quite good," explained Gufroni Sakaril,
Public Relations Manager of Indosiar. "Of course the talkshow has
less viewers than the family programs such as the local soap
operas but the show is very segmented and has potential, so it is
not difficult to get ads," he added.

Following the success, Indosiar decided to broaden its
political talkshow program with three other weekly programs
namely Saksi (Witness), Gardu (Post) with Yogyakarta's artist
Emha Ainun Nadjib as its host and Dinamika (Dynamics) which
discusses newspaper headlines, hosted by a young scholar from the
Bandung Institute of Technology, Fajrul Rochmad.

"Since the reform era, there is a high demand for political
talkshows," explained Gufroni, whose station also airs
infotainment talkshows such as Talk Life and Kiss.

The same opinion is stated by Budi Dharmawan, PR Manager of
SCTV whose station is famous for its frequent unscheduled
talkshows. "The political turmoil lately has led some Indonesian
viewers to show more concern about our social political issues,"
Budi said. "We used to believe that talkshows had a limited
audience because public debate is not a familiar thing here."

To attract the viewers, SCTV also produces fully entertaining
talkshows such as Dunia Bintang (The World of Stars) and Ngobras
(Ngobrol Bareng Indra Safera- Chatting With Indra Safera).

ANTeve also has more serious talkshows hosted by Ekky
Syachrudin for the weekly program and a monthly version hosted by
former minister Fahmy Idris. The latest is Siasat (Tactics) by
Hermawan Kertajaya.

Discussing economics with various Indonesian business
personalities, Hermawan successfully combines the art of talkshow
with lessons in management. It has to be admitted that Siasat is
one of the best interactive talkshows around. Unfortunately, its
promotion and the program's packaging is still in a poor
condition.

RCTI as the first state-owned TV station still airs its Aneka
Dialog (Various Dialogs) talkshow every Monday evening. TPI can
not be ignored because it has the Jaya Suprana Show, which has
conducted exclusive interviews with the palace members. Jaya has
appeared five times with the first family as its guests since the
day President Wahid was elected. TPI also has its reform-spirited
talkshows: Pro & Contra hosted by Tiurmaida Tampubolon and
Partai-Partai (The Parties) with Harris Jauhari.

With so many hard topics on serious talkshows, some shows
seems to have gone in another direction. Last month, TPI
introduced Midnight Affair, a talkshow about love lives with a
paranormal as host. RCTI also launched Angin Malam (The Night
Breeze) which airs every Saturday night.