Why is Fuwa-chan so powerful? The reason why we don’t see YouTubers on TV anymore
What is the "big misunderstanding by TV people" behind this and what is the "essential difference" between YouTubers and celebrities?
At one time, YouTubers appeared frequently on TV, and it was said that YouTubers would finally surpass TV celebrities and take over the TV industry. The only YouTuber I still see on TV every now and then is Hwa-chan.
Why do YouTubers not appear on TV much anymore? And why is Hwa-chan the only one who survived? There is actually a very clear reason. Let me explain it to you as a working TV man.
The negative image of TV people
One of the most common topics of conversation among TV professionals these days is “YouTubers can’t talk much, can they? Even popular YouTubers who have many fans on their own YouTube channels and generate a lot of views are surprisingly unable to talk when invited to sit on the dais as guests on variety shows.
They don’t have anything interesting to say, and they can’t get into the studio talk with other guests. “In many cases, people say, “I thought it was pretty interesting when I saw it on YouTube, but I was disappointed.
In addition, I thought that inviting YouTubers as guests would increase viewership because many of their fans would watch the program, but this is not the case. In addition, the fees for popular YouTubers are quite high. If you’re a popular YouTuber, you’ll be paid more than a bad celebrity.
“In a sense, there are three things you can’t expect from a YouTuber: they ‘re not that funny, they don’t generate that many numbers, and they cost a lot of money. “I’m tired of being a YouTuber. I’m tired of being a YouTuber.” “I’m not that good, after all,” “I can’t compete with TV personalities,” TV people began to whisper in whispers.
In the age of individual viewership ratings, there was a “YouTuber casting boom” because people thought that in order to get their core target audience, the younger generation, to watch their shows, they could get away with having YouTubers who were popular with the younger generation appear on their shows. There may have been a big backlash. The image of ” YouTubers who can’t improvise and can’t talk with others” has spread among TV professionals.
However, I have recently started to do a fair amount of YouTube production work, and I have learned something. It’s a big mistake to say that YouTubers can’t talk as well as celebrities. I’ve come to believe that TV people have a big misunderstanding.
The “essence” of YouTubers is similar to “battlefield journalists.
The biggest misunderstanding that TV people have is that they see YouTubers as celebrities. They are not celebrities. Essentially, they are very different. In fact, I think it would be more correct to think of YouTubers as “reporters” or “journalists” rather than as celebrities.
Talents are people who read scripts and progress charts, have meetings with directors, follow instructions written on paper, and “faithfully act out the content of the program” according to the producer’s intentions. “In other words, they are professionals who understand that “this program was created for this kind of target audience, so my role is required,” and can “accurately deliver the lines that the director wants me to say.
YouTubers, on the other hand, are their own creators. They plan, compose, perform, film, and edit their own videos. Since they produce the information they want to transmit by themselves while appearing in the video, isn’t this almost the same as a reporter or journalist reporting from the field, filming, and editing the video by themselves?
In the same way that battlefield journalists report on the realities of battlefields around the world, YouTubers report on the realities of their genre from their own perspective. I think this “YouTuber perspective” is the main factor that makes them so popular.
It is only natural that they are not good at following the script written by the director. It may be too much to ask them to follow it. It’s not their specialty to “say the required lines” according to the structure created by others, and in fact, if they do so, it may destroy their “perspective as a YouTuber” that they have created through self-branding. For them, “becoming a celebrity has a hundred harms and no benefits.
Hwa-chan was a rare existence.
In such a situation, Fuwa-chan is in the perfect position of being a YouTuber who is also a professional talent. As a talent who originally belonged to Watabe Entertainment and became a YouTuber after quitting Watabe, he can ride on scripts written by others and can also work as a producer. “I think she was successful because she is one of those rare people who can be a YouTuber and also talk to the chicks according to the intentions of the TV people.
She once appeared on a TV program that I was involved in producing, and she said, “I want to think in a unified way until I come on, so please don’t come backstage. She then “bounced” her way into the show. He was very sensitive, understood our intentions, and “played” the role required of a TV personality.
At first glance, she may seem bold and unconventional, but Hwa-chan is a wonderful talent who does her job with great care and precision. I think that’s why Fuwa is the only YouTuber I’ve noticed who continues to be active on TV.
By the way, if I were to ask a popular YouTuber to appear on TV in the future, I suddenly think it would be better to do a news or wide show instead of a variety show. I’m wondering if it would be possible to have YouTubers act as “reporters” or “journalists” and report on various “hot topics” or “news” from their point of view, and produce a whole corner or special VTR. I’m thinking about it.
Text: Hiromichi Chinmoku / TV producer and writer
Joined TV Asahi in 1992. After covering the Great Hanshin Earthquake and Aum Shinrikyo as a reporter in the Social Affairs Department, he worked as a director for Super J Channel, Super Morning, and News Station before becoming a producer. After working as a director of Super J Channel, Super Morning, and News Station, he became a producer. He has been involved in many overseas projects, including coverage of China, the Korean Peninsula, and the terrorist attacks in the United States. In August 2019, he became an independent producer and has been active not only in broadcasting but also in various media. He is also a part-time lecturer at the Department of Newspapers, Faculty of Letters, Sophia University. As a member of the Society for Public Communication, she has studied regional media, and has researched and written articles on face-hame-panels as her life's work. His recent publications include "Dramatically Increase Access and Registration! "(Nihon Jitsugyo Shuppansha).
Photo: Photo: Yohei Nagata/Afro