This was going to start out as a very straightforward and simple explanation of why I think soaps are on the decline.

This is easier said than done.

In going over what I wanted my points to cover I realized that the ratings decline of soaps can not be attributed to one particular thing. The fact that soaps are declining is due to an all encompassing happening that the soap world has, for some years now, struggled to keep up with.

That, my delusional reader, is CHANGE, and their inability to deal with it in a balanced way.

What kind of change you say?

Take your pick.

I would pick the change of the times, the change of the viewer, and the change of television overall to name a few.

To try and write an article dealing with all these topics would be too long. And well, with the new age of media and gadgets- my attention span is too short. And I bet- so is yours. So let’s take it piece by piece shall we?

First up- The Diversity Campaign or Lack Thereof

I know jokes are made here on Delusional Truth about it, but that’s mainly because this “diversity campaign” is just that.

A joke.

Why is it that, in the year 2009, a majority of Americans can vote for a person of color to be leader of the free friggin’ world YET television executives of a genre that caters to only about ten million viewers don’t seem to think blacks, Latinos, and Asians are all that great for “who’s the daddy” storylines?

Is it because the powers that be (TPTB) are blatantly RACIST??

Not so much, (okay maybe a few), at the end of the day money talks- and the only color that matters to those higher ups is GREEN.

They go with what they think is bankable.

And to them color DON’T MAKE BANK.

How do they process what makes bank? Well it’s pretty simple in television. The sponsors write the check. The sponsors are those people that pay thousands of dollars to have their thirty to sixty second ad showed during a commercial break of the show you watch.

The more viewers a show brings in the more money the sponsors are willing to pay.

Sounds easy right?

You’re probably asking what that has to do with the lack of diversity.

Well, sponsors want to buy airtime to particular shows with good ratings BUT each sponsor also has a particular audience that it would like to sell to. They’re not just putting the ad out for their health- they want people to see it who they think have the money to buy.

Ahhhh- there’s the rub.

Who has the money?

What viewers do TPTB think they need to keep watching (or bring in) in order to have the sponsors willing to pay for slots?

Middle America.

Thing is, TPTB aren’t quite convinced, (despite those pesky statistics that say otherwise), that Middle America have a significant amount of people of color in it. They also aren’t very convinced that those who are white in Middle America care to see anyone who doesn’t look like them in an engaging storyline.

So what a majority of you voted for a black President, TPTB still KNOW you won’t DARE have the fictional character Dwayne be the fictional character Susan’s baby daddy.

No. No. THAT’S going TOO FAR. (:Insert sarcasm here:)

Of course this thinking is outdated and hardly applicable to this day and age. Yet, it seems that despite giving lip service to it, TPTB have yet to make good on their campaign.

Sure, we get the solo black heroine every so often. For Young and the Restless it was Drusilla (she went over a cliff) and now Lily (forever stuck in Fluff vision). For One Life to Live it was Evangeline Williamson (she’s in a coma). For General Hospital it was…was it ever anyone?

You even get an ethnic family every so often. Young and the Restless have the ever so isolated Winters (I don’t think they go out.). One Life to Live has the ever shrinking Vegas (I think only Antonio and Christian are left. I hear Antonio is supposed to be killed soon though…oh well). General Hospital has the now non-existent Ward family (I STILL don’t know where Keesha went? She left on a business trip and NEVER CAME BACK).

But I digress.

The question is, are these token characters and families enough?

No.

Does this lack of diversity affect the soap genre?

Yes.

It affects their ability to keep viewers who are tired of the same ol’ same ol’. Especially faithful viewers of color who are a bit tired of the way characters of color are lacking or getting the short end of the stick. Despite what they try to tell you- a large amount of soap viewers are black middle aged women.

It also affects soaps ability to get new viewers as well. The new generation that is coming along, (black, white, Latino, etc), KNOW it’s unrealistic and unnecessary when a show lacks people of color or diversity overall.

Don’t let “Gossip Girl” fool you. Not everyone is drinking the kool-aid. That show wouldn’t survive on a network where it had to bring in the numbers those diverse shows like “Lost” and “Grey’s Anatomy” does.

I mean, soaps isn’t the only genre that needs some help, (CW crappy teen shows I’m looking at y’all), but for a genre that has been around for decades with the breadth of history it has- to not be on top of this, seems a bit lazy.

Do yourself a favor TPTB- ADD SOME BLACK PEOPLE.

And not just Tyrone the orderly or Lashanda the one line intern.

And while you’re at it, add some other races as well in significant storylines.

Last time I checked Asians, Indians, Latinos, and others did exist.

But don’t mind me- it’s only my delusion.

Next Time: When Newbies run AMOCK!!