On The Media: The Susan Boyle Effect

If you didn't see Susan Boyle's performance on Britain's Got Talent, you might wonder why everyone in America is talking about it. It made every cable 24-hr network in the United States- but why? Why would an American audience care about a performance on a British talent show, especially when there are more pressing issues in the world.

This what is called a soft news story, or a human interest story. If you ever saw the movie Anchorman, it's exactly the story that Veronica is assigned early on in the film. The purpose of these stories, especially on days where the majority of the broadcast is violent and depressing, is to catch people's interest and be a fun, easy story to tell.

Whenever anyone pitches an idea for a story on broadcast or print news, his or her editor will ask, "Well, why should we care?" That is the question that tests the strength of the story, and even the soft must sustain it. I'll explain why this one did.

First of all, Britain's Got Talent is the parent of American Idol, both judged by the callous Simon Cowell. This is the first part of the "why we care"- Americans love to see the arrogant rebuked. Cowell is arrogant, cruel even, to those who have put blood, sweat, and tears into performing for him. For pop stars he seems this barrier necessary to cross to reach fame. American audiences cheered when Jennifer Hudson received an Oscar nod after Cowell had told her she just wasn't good enough to be a star.

The second part of "why we care" is Susan herself. She's not an American 18-year-old beauty, the kind that wins on American Idol. She's a 47-year-old woman, called "plain-looking" by one of the hosts on Britain's Got Talent. She says in her introduction on the show that she's not ever been married, or even kissed. She's not someone pegged to win.

But she has dreams. She wants to be like Elaine Paige, and furthermore (Americans love this part) she's got sass. She has a confidence. When Simon asks her how old she is she rolls her hips and says, "I'm 47- and that's just one side of me!" even as he rolls his eyes. She embodies that American spirit, reaching for that seemingly unachievable dream despite her odds.

We all love an underdog. It's a part of American culture dating back to winning our independence from Britain. So when she delivered "I Dreamed a Dream" Simon's jaw dropped and news was made. Even the teen-pop winners of American Idol never won him over so easily, and Americans fell quickly in love with the woman who toppled that staunch British critic.

There have been rumors that Susan was a plant on the show, someone who the producers knew could sing well and had her play the part of the dumpy woman. I don't think that's true. I think the producers recognized in her audition that this woman had the potential to connect with an audience in Britain and abroad. That's part of broadcasting- seeing the story in front of you.

Her sensation may not last past the week, but she got our attention for one day.