It’s fascinating to observe how television’s portrayal of the Paralympics has transformed over the years. Channel 4’s latest trailer for the Paris 2024 Paralympics, titled ‘Considering What?’, has just been released and is generating significant discussion. You can view it here: https://lnkd.in/eicRyJXM.
The core concept of this new campaign is compelling: Paralympic athletes, in their pursuit of sporting excellence, confront the same fundamental forces as any other athlete – friction, gravity, heat, and time. Sport, therefore, is indifferent to disability, focusing solely on these universal challenges faced by all of humanity. This perspective encourages viewers to appreciate and judge Paralympians’ remarkable achievements based on these objective athletic criteria.
Prior to 2008, the BBC held the broadcasting rights to the Paralympics but their coverage was generally considered uninspired. When Channel 4 took over for the London 2012 Games, they injected a much-needed jolt of energy and innovation into the presentation. The iconic ‘Meet the Superhumans’ trailer, directed by Tom Tagholm at 4Creative (watch it here: https://lnkd.in/eaJFBa_T), became the emblem of this revitalized approach. Channel 4 successfully transformed the perception of the Paralympics, making it appear dynamic, competitive, and genuinely “cool” in a way never before achieved. They dramatically increased the hours of broadcast coverage and adopted a characteristically bold and cheeky promotional strategy. Posters declaring “Thanks for the warm-up” to the highly successful 2012 Olympics playfully bridged the gap between the two events, fostering a sense of parity and shared excitement.
Channel 4 faced a significant challenge in surpassing the impact of the ‘Meet the Superhumans’ campaign for the Rio 2016 Paralympics. Their subsequent effort, ‘We’re the Superhumans’ (view here: https://lnkd.in/eWnye4YN), while ambitious, arguably became overly elaborate and creatively complex – a possible case of “second album syndrome.”
This year’s trailer for Paris 2024 marks a distinct departure in tone. It is surprising, darker, more grotesque, surreal, and deliberately jarring. This shift in approach is reportedly partly a response to criticisms that the “Superhumans” concept inadvertently objectified Paralympians, reducing them to “Victorian freaks.” However, this justification seems somewhat unconvincing when considering the overwhelmingly positive and empowering feelings that ‘Meet the Superhumans’ evoked. That earlier campaign included powerful imagery, such as the memorable shot of a female swimmer under a poolside shower turning to face the camera with an expression of utter defiance, conveying, “I don’t care what you think – I am the best.” Sprinter Johnny Peacock also emerged as a genuine contemporary star through this campaign.
‘Considering What?’ offers a stark contrast to these previous campaigns, yet it is undeniably thought-provoking and provocative, which aligns perfectly with Channel 4’s remit as a public service broadcaster. Crucially, Channel 4 has elevated the Paralympics to a new level of public consciousness, instigating a profound and enduring shift in how Paralympic athletes are perceived by the British public and beyond. This stands as a testament to the power of television and public service broadcasting at its most effective.
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