From http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/07/23/letter-we-need-more-039sinetron039.html

Letter: We need more than 'sinetron'

Reader's Forum

Television has become part of our daily life. Whether we realize it or not, television shows encourage certain behavior in their audiences, positive or negative.

Many people assume they can avoid TV's negative impact because they think they can control which programs they watch with the remote in their hands.

The problem is not so simple as many broadcasters do not consider how their programs affect their viewers. They only think about whether their programs are in demand.

I recently realized what one private TV station was constantly showing. Each time I tuned in to this station, I found only sinetron (soap operas) or reality shows about teen love.

This station starts its programming day with sinetron, fills most time slots with sinetron and ends the day with sinetron.

Since so many TV stations prefer to air sinetron, I am concerned about the mental development of our young people who consume these programs, which tend to convey the fantasy of luxurious living.

The wealthy settings in most soap operas idealize an upper-class teenager's life, especially an urban lifestyle. The question is, do the majority of our young generation come from this kind of background?

In conclusion, as someone who loves good TV shows, I hope TV stations will stop focusing so much of their programming time on sinetron. Indonesia needs a greater variety of programming to encourage viewers to love science, general knowledge and technology.

DIHER FREESOUL
Jakarta

Indonesian TV needs 'naked lesbian sinetron'. And more repeats of Warkop DKI films.