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SINGAPORE : Here's a quick pop quiz: What do Gurmit Singh, Adrian Pang, Fiona Xie, Michelles Chia and Chong, Andrea Fonseka, Utt, Aaron Aziz and Jas Arora have in common?
If you don't know, you're obviously not watching enough TV. Suffice it to say, these are the nine faces of Channel 5 who are tasked with spearheading the channel's latest re-branding exercise, which aims to put more home-grown talent on air.
Their faces certainly are familiar enough: Gurmit is a 13-year Channel 5 stalwart; you could say that Adrian has been in almost every drama, variety, comedy and game show; Andrea became TV's "it" girl just after one season on Deal Or No Deal; Fiona and Michelle Chia have successfully crossed over from Channel 8; Michelle Chong is known for her comic turns on TV; Utt's perennial hosting duties have given him a wider demographic; while Aaron and Jas had impressive outings on Heartlanders and Achar!, respectively.
So why then?
IN THE STATION'S IMAGE
Many of them have already been tagged to the Channel 5 brand before; and would it not have been better to have opted for newer faces in this re-branding exercise?
Not quite, said Kenneth Liang, executive vice-president of Channel 5 TV programming and production, because it's "not just about new faces on 5". According to him, all you avid TV viewers still do get to see fresh new talent it's just that these "evergreen iconic faces" are the tip of the iceberg as they fit the channel's "image."
"With this associating-the-artiste-with-the channel, people can 'come home' to the same familiar faces constantly in all branding interstitials and programmes, every time they tune in to Channel 5," he added.
In other words, think of it as a new and improved formula that retains its familiar wholesome goodness.
Said actor Aaron Aziz: "It's like a makeover with a retro look faces that people can actually connect with and the channel doesn't have to waste time testing the market to see if they will watch these artistes and their shows."
Detractors will at this point pipe up about the viability of this course of action since Utt and Jas aren't even in the MediaCorp fold. They may even suggest that this is an attempt to win over viewers who might have migrated to cable TV instead.
But Liang pooh-poohs the idea. "We haven't lost anyone," he asserted. "Viewing habits have just changed, with young people watching programmes on their computers, IPTV (Internet Protocol Television), mobile phones, et cetera. What we aim to do is increase the total cumulative viewership on all different platforms. We cannot just think of television anymore."
YAY! NAY!
This is where the formation of the public feedback panel, which promises to serve as a sounding board for both new and ongoing shows, comes in. Viewers are invited to take part in this panel to give their "yays" and "nays" on TV programming.
"If we don't have this, it'll always be what we think the audience wants," explained Liang. "So, to get a better feel for what they really like, we are going to directly interact with them and listen to them."
Armed with this information, Channel 5 can then make better decisions on whether programmes should be nurtured or neutered.
"But what's more important is not to make assumptions based on the performance of the first season," warned Liang. "Phua Chu Kang was a failure in its first season! We take the reactions and tweak it to address all the concerns in the second season. Our policy is never to kill a (programme) if it's average, unless it's so obviously bad. Sometimes, it also takes more than one season for the chemistry of the cast to come together."
Regular viewer Manoj Sitaram welcomed the re-branding exercise. "It's about time because the last revamp was quite a while ago. I think branding it with faces like Utt, Fiona Xie and Andrea Fonseka is a good idea, because they appeal more to me and my friends," said the 30-year-old engineer.
But Mr Sitaram added that it's going to take more than just a pretty face to draw more viewers in. "The standard of local programmes have improved in the past years, but we still have a long way to go. Using faces to brand a channel will definitely be more effective if local programming standards improve."
It may be a long haul before Channel 5 can please all of the people all of the time, but far from being daunted by the task to be "brand ambassadors" for Channel 5, the nine say they're raring to go.
"I think it's about time!" enthused popular TV host Utt, who's also an MTV host. "I've been doing quite a bit with Channel 5 and now I feel like I have a second home."
Concurred Michelle Chia: "I have a lot of Malay and Indian audience members who come up to me and say: 'I'm so glad that you're finally doing a makan show in English. When you were on Channel 8, it was so hard to understand what you were saying because there were no English subtitles. Now I can!'"
Her namesake, Michelle Chong, puts it differently. "I feel very honoured and happy to be chosen ... because this means I will be seen in all the programmes on Channel 5. They have to use me now!" she joked.
Oh well, as they say, it takes all kinds to make the world go round, we suppose. Kind of like Channel 5, wot? - TODAY/ar
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