Will the controversy end?
The first episode of Top Gear was aired in 1997, and at that time it was known as a conventional motoring magazine show. Following the 2002 relaunch, the television show made a tremendous transformation, with its format developing over time to focus on a more quirky, humorous and controversial style of presentation. With over 300 million viewers in 170 different countries per week, Top Gear is a clear example on how media can be used to inform, humour and persuade their audience with information from both motor-related and non-motor related areas. Top Gear is famous for their three iconic presenters (whom have now retired), Richard Hammond, James May and Jeremy Clarkson, who utilise their power of speech in a obnoxious manner as they speak their minds without regards to whom or how it may offend their audience. Overtime the television show has faced problems with offending racial groups, religions and genders through their comments. They use these comments and take them to the extreme in order to provoke controversy and debate, or which gives greater publicity to their show.
The most frequent type of ‘humour’ on the show is racist comments, while the presenters stereotype and alienate certain groups in our community they use their ignorance to only further insult races from all over the world. From Americans to Germans to even their local British community, these comments have caused high levels of controversy and debate. There are several episodes on Top Gear where the trio travels to new destinations and take on rival spin-off motoring shows. An example of this is when instead of presenting the news of the new Mexican Mastretta sports car Jeremy Clarkson takes a direct blow at the Mexican community by stereotyping and mocking them. By asking the question ‘Who would want a Mexican car’ only to answer with the statement, ‘Mexican cars are just going to be lazy, freckles, flaulent oaf with a moustache, leaning against a fence asleep, looking at a cactus with a blanket in the middle of a coat’. The mocking did not end there as the follow up statement was also aired in the episode, ‘I’m sorry but imagine waking up and remembering your Mexican’ all being said with a smirk on his face. What shocked many of the shows viewers was when the distaste for his comment became very clear by the pubic at large, he cemented his prior comments by saying he was ‘confident he would not receive any complaints about their comments because the Mexican ambassador would be asleep’. There is a difference between light hearted and satirical, but the fact they pushed it beyond that line is what causes the public outrage. Where do you draw the line between being funny by poking fun under the guise of humour verses insulting and condescending?
The racist comments however did not end there, but continued to surface due to their patriotism and Britain’s history with other countries. It appears that the Top Gear trio are living in the past as the dwell on conflict between England and Germany (dating all the way back to the second World War) by holding a position of superiority and prejudice. Throughout numerous episodes Top Gear has taken away German accomplishments by covering them with claims of plagiarism whilst also trying to one-up each other. In one episode Top Gear announced that Germans made a Mini-Cooper to be quintessentially British, this was backfired when the German public responded saying that ‘to become British you need to have an addiction of a tea set’. But of course this did not end here Jeremy Clarkson needed to have the final word. ‘We should Mae a car that is quintessentially German, with indicators that preform the Nazi Salute and to compliment that a Sat-Nav that only goes to Poland’. It is more than evident that these comments are directly related to Hitler and reference to German’s motives in the war. These comments gained a huge flow of negative attention from both the German and British news media. The comments were over-generalising German people as narrow minded Nazi’s, implying that the influence of the Nazi party are still highly present in modern day Germany.
But remember racial comments and stereotypes are not the only issue displayed on Top Gear, gender stereotypes are also explored quite heavily within the program. With all three of the presenters being male, all of which are very outspoken which results in very minimal female influence. Cars, watches, tech and racing are still seen as boy’s toys and business’ marketing strategises are organised accordingly. The choice of TV shows in relation to their presenters is not accidental, so following stereotypes even the remote idea of cars is not within the female domain. So we then must presume that women would have difficulty discussing ideas related to the automotive industry?.
It is not only the issue of the non-existent representation of females within the industry but the remarks and comments aired within Top Gear. For example, James May ‘joked’ about how “embarrassing it is to be sat in a car whilst a woman is driving” this was then followed with a statement from other presenter Jeremy Clarkson, “woman’s attitude would be ‘you’ve given me the kids, now get in the back’. This is stereotyping woman as incapable of driving but also bound to their house duties (looking after the kids). Another example is when Top Gear assigned a model as a co-driver in a car rally. The model was not only portrayed as little minded, incapable of driving but was also made out to be only used for her body - through numerous up-close shots of her body and female regions to ‘titilate the male viewer’.
Top Gear is a successful and widely viewed television programme for its comedic and entertainment value. However the extent of the comments made to be ‘humorous’ are out of control, ranging from racism to sexism. So now with another relaunch we can pose the question, will the new presenters be as obnoxious and inconsiderate to the audience?