Racism and Eurovision

[RainyWoods]

Don't know where the best place to put this is so i'll try the General Chat Forum.

An article from the Daily Mail tying the UK's recent bad luck at Eurovision to racism.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...UKs-lack-success-Eurovision-Song-Contest.html

Whilst I don't for one minute doubt that racism exists in many European, infact scratch that, EVERY country in Europe.. I don't think our generally low placings in the past ten years is down to the race of the singers we send.

Andy Abraham had one of the most embarrassing songs we have ever sent to Eurovision and we certainly deserved our last place that year. I remember being soo mad at our choice to send him that year. Aww he came 2nd on X Factor, lets send him and his gawd awful song to Eurovision out of pity. I saw our last place a mile off. Javine's entry was very "Me to!" in terms of jumping on the bandwagon and her voice was off on the night due to illness. Jade Ewen did incredibly well and Blue actually came 5th with the supposedly racist public.

Loreen showed us all this year that the colour of your skin will not hold you back in Eurovision providing you enter with a song thats actually half good. I love how my country always whines and moans about our lack of success in recent years at the contest. It's like we should be handed our win on a silver platter or something. I find this whole article to be abit stupid really. Racism and Homophobia is still very strong in this world and yes, it's a problem (You only have to read the comments box of a video on youtube to see an overflow of hateful racist/homophobic remarks) but we shouldnt drop out of things using it as an excuse. However I think that jury members shouldnt be allowed to hold these views. Thats something I think should be checked and I wouldnt be surprised if it already is checked.

 

[Stargazer]

The point the writer is trying to make becomes kind of void when it says that "Sweden's Loreen, left, won this year's contest, while right, Anglo-Indian singer Engelbert Humperdinck came a dismal twenty-fifth". Because Loreen is oh such a blonde and blue-eyed Swede who doesn't have Moroccan heritage.

Why would ethnicity matter to voters in a contest with entries from all corners of Europe, with a gazillion different ethnic backrounds?! According to this line of thinking the writer is putting forward, you should have done smashingly well when you sent caucasian performers like Jemini, James Fox, Daz, Scooch and Josh Dubovie. But oh wait you didn't. The only reason the UK hasn't scored that well the past 10 years (apart from Jade) is simply down to bad songs, bad out of tune performers or both.

 

[MyHeartIsYours]

I've always thought that this was a load of bull, but Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber has just know put his view across on the issue; he believes that racism is the reason for the United Kingdom's poor results in Eurovision.
"I don't think there's any point beating around the bush. Did you see the Eurovision Song Contest this year? Well, if you had seen it, you might have noticed one thing - I don't think there was one black face on the programme."
He continued: "At the press conference in Moscow, I was asked, 'Why have you brought a black artist?'
"I said, 'Because she is the most talented artist that we had and I think she's a major, major star'. I think we would have come second but there's a problem when you go further east."
Lloyd Webber added: "It doesn't mean that we would necessarily have won that year but we could have come second."
"If you're talking about Western Europe - Germany, fine; France, fine; Spain, fine; Greece, fine; Scandinavian countries, fine. But Ukraine? Not so good."

During the interview with Radio Times, he also criticised the BBC's talent show, The Voice UK.

 

[Yamarus]

Typical Daily Fail article. I laughed at the emphasis on Engelbert's "Anglo-Indian" ethnicity coupled with no mention whatsoever of Loreen's obviously NOT Swedish ethnicity.

 

[MyHeartIsYours]

Well it's not from the Daily Mail, it's from the Radio Times and with the words of the Lord himself .

 

[AdelAdel]

Engelbert is half-Indian?
Never would've figured it out, serious overreacting on Daily Mail's side. If there was racism, then Estonia 2001 wouldn't have won also.

 

[MyHeartIsYours]

Where the hell have you's got the Daily Mail from lol?
And aye, he was born in India but in the good old days when it was British .

 

[AdelAdel]

Where the hell have you's got the Daily Mail from lol?
And aye, he was born in India but in the good old days when it was British .

British Empire Nationalist Mode - START
That's what you activated right now
I bet decolonization was the worst thing that happened to the UK for you :?

 

[MyHeartIsYours]

Well my opinions on the British Empire dont matter here, the question is whether or not there is racism in Eurovision... Andrew Lloyd Webber says there is!

 

[AdelAdel]

Well my opinions on the British Empire dont matter here, the question is whether or not there is racism in Eurovision... Andrew Lloyd Webber says there is!

They do, because you started it yourself, saying 'good old days' :?
Anyway, there's no racism in Eurovision, many black singers received high positions (Estonia 2001, UK 2009, Netherlands 1998, etc.)

 

[SpZ]

And this peace of news just made it into estonian mainstream yellow news

 

[MyHeartIsYours]

They do, because you started it yourself, saying 'good old days' :?
Anyway, there's no racism in Eurovision, many black singers received high positions (Estonia 2001, UK 2009, Netherlands 1998, etc.)

And I was telling you that he was born in British India, and yes, definitely the 'good old days' then - less poverty, richer, better infrastructure .
I still dont think personally that racism affects results, but who knows.

 

[demonl]

Not racism but i think many racial minority entrants have been selected for tokenism rather than ability. I.e "positive discrimination" has led to mediocrity. UK has plenty of artists of quality that are various different races, so to many others. Eventually a good one will get selection.