Local TV stations slaves to 'idolatry'
Tony Ryanto, Contributor, Jakarta
It's not exactly the battle of the Titans but starting April 9, Indosiar has had to compete fiercely with RCTI, the number two TV network, in searching for an "idol" for Indonesia.
RCTI has the Demam Indonesian Idol (Indonesian Idol Fever) and Indonesian Idol programs aired respectively at 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. every Friday. After the elimination rounds, Demam will be held daily from Monday to Friday and the Indonesian Idol shows will be extended to 90 minutes.
Only a few months ago, RCTI had to change the slot for its most popular soap, Kecil Kecil Jadi Manten (The Green Bride), as it wished to counter the popularity of Indosiar's all-powerful AFI, short for Akademi Fantasi Indosiar, which won top ratings for a couple of consecutive weeks.
For about two years now, both networks have alternately occupied the first and second positions in terms of audience share percentage.
But what makes RCTI think it get the better of Indosiar's AFI? Because it is the first Asian network to hold the American Idol franchise.
Just like its Idol sister, in Indonesian Idol, a panel of judges selects 10 semi-finalists out of 21,000 superstar aspirants from throughout Indonesia, according to RCTI's spokesman Nanang Gani.
AFI is patterned after the popular La Academia, which is presented by Azteca TV in Mexico. The Malaysian version, named Akademi Fantasiana and transmitted by Astro, is similarly very successful and currently in its fourth season.
In Singapore, American Idol is as popular as AFI in Indonesia and Akademi Fantasiana in Malaysia. Gani said India, Malaysia and Singapore were pondering plans to be Asia's next American Idol franchisees. The Philippines hasn't come up with a concrete decision yet.
It is hoped that Indonesia will send one idol to the World Idol competition to be held at the turn of the year.
In 2003, a Norwegian plumber Kurt Nilsen was the surprise winner of World Idol 2003-2004, showing that it was indeed the talent and personality, not merely the looks and money, that is likely to make one an idol, at least by Western standards nowadays.
Nilsen beat contestants from 30 or so American Idol franchise holders.
William Hung, 21, a U.C. Berkeley engineering student with an unusual, once-seen-never-to-be-forgotten face was not a favorite of the American Idol judges but fans like him tremendously and perhaps for this reason he signed a deal with Fuse Music Network and Loch Records. Hung's case clearly indicates the immense impact American Idol can have on one's dreams of becoming a star.
In the U.S., American Idol is still the number one TV attraction. A Nielsen Media Research report says 25.48 million viewers saw the program, which started as the TV phenomenon Pop Idol in the UK, in the March 1 to March 7, 2004, period.
Number two on the list is Survivor: All Stars (CBS, 23.3 million) followed by CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) (CBS, 22.74 million), The Apprentice (NBC, 20.22 million) and CSI: Miami (CBS, 19.9 million) respectively.
Local contestants
In Indonesia, it was actually Trans TV that started the Idol look-alike program. It was called Popstars but was unfortunately short-lived.
TPI's Bakal Beken (Would be Famous) has scored slightly better but is dwarfed by AFI, whose weekly contests every Saturday night are bolstered almost every day by Diari AFI shows.
AFI fever rages throughout the country, including rural areas. Viewers idolize AFI champ Veri Affandi, and second and third runners-up Petrus Kia Suban and Mawar Dhimas Febra Purwanti.
At one stage, RCTI was also airing American Idol, but it did little for the station's ratings, and had nothing to offer that could equal AFI.
Indonesian Idol, though, has definite promise because, like AFI, it involves Indonesian youngsters.
In Singapore and many other countries, the principal attraction of American Idol is Simon Cowell, one of its judges. A multi-hit record producer and head of A&R at BMG Records, the wooden-faced Mel Gibson look-alike is best known (or most hated?) for his biting and sarcastic criticism that frequently brings contestants, mostly female, to tears.
At the same time, nobody can dismiss the fact that Cowell has huge talent-scouting power. Other judges are Paula Abdul, music superstar and choreographer, and Randy Jackson, a producer and Grammy recipient.
What is it that makes AFI so popular? Not the severe judges, but the ever-strong relationship, primarily based on emotion, between the contestants and viewers.
Now, is there a difference between AFI and Indonesian Idol?
The answer is "yes". AFI, so some people say, puts top priority on popularity. An AFI champion, therefore, must be extremely popular, which means that contestants with huge talent and good voices do not automatically become winners.
Believe it or not, a number of female students at two private universities said Kia was a better singer than Veri.
If Indonesian Idol were to follow American Idol's criteria, which it should, popularity is not the order of the day. This means that an Idol champ must be a great vocalist.
Once again, Hung's success is not because he is an American Idol champion but because he is a popular contestant, so popular that the audience idolize him.
Talent vs popularity
A considerably large number of Indonesian families have welcomed the AFI and Indonesian Idol programs, which people say are the quickest way of gaining fame. The motto is "from zero to hero" in only a few weeks or a couple of months.
A lecturer at the Pertiwi Tourism Academy, Nuraini Kusuma Wardani, says she wouldn't mind her children participating in an Idol program. "That is to say, if the programs are well organized, are in good hands and have constructive objectives.
"If I were to choose between talent and popularity, I would prefer the former because it is lasting, while the latter is not."
Daisy Sutjipto, another lecturer at a private university in Jakarta, shared Nuraini's view.
"I wouldn't like to see my kids taking part in either the AFI or Indonesian Idol programs. But if they feel they are talented and stand a chance of winning, I wouldn't prevent them," she said.
Osmena Suryoputro from the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) said that the programs could be educational if they were hosted by professional musicians and people with musical backgrounds.
"What is of great importance is that both programs are in good hands, meaning that the contestants are guided by professionals who are themselves loving parents to their own children. This is my personal view," said Osmena, a secretary at the MUI's Food, Medicine and Cosmetics Assessment Section.
What Osmena, Daisy and Nuraini consider of great importance are ways to ward off the adverse consequences of instant fame and riches. Personality changes might lead to alienation and ostracism.
The bottomline: In the past, parents wanted their children to be doctors, engineers, lawyers or economists. With the passing of time and the advance of technology, however, more and more fathers and mothers do not mind their offspring becoming idols, actors or vocalists.