On Television

Some amusing comparisons of American Idol and Candian Idol.

This diminishing of things Canadian, translating to diminishing of citizenship in this country, should not be taken lightly. My niece thinks American Idol is superior to Canadian Idol. She puts down her own fellow citizens in favour of citizens of a foreign country, yet both shows are franchises of the British Pop Idol. They have the same graphics, the same theme, similar staging, the same format. They differ only in the judges (predictable and cliched in the American Idol, more entertaining in the Canadian one) and talent (overall better talent in Canadian Idol, some of the Americans make you want to hide your ears) and attitude, all of which is a reflection of our cultures. Yet she thinks the entire American version is better than the Canadian one. She isn't tone deaf, so the only explanation is that she has already got the filters in place that says things Canadian are never as good as things American -- or in Conrad's case, things British. Those filters morph reality to meet this fantasy. The sad thing is that my niece is just reflecting many Canadians' views.