Former general director of Ostankino Sagalaev: modern “blue lights” – a parody of Soviet
Photo: Alexey Kudenko / RIA Novosti
Eduard Sagalaev, President of the National Association of Television and Radio Broadcasters and former Director General of the Ostankino television and radio company, criticized the modern “blue lights” on television. In a conversation with URA.Ru, he noted that today the same artists are participating in New Year's concerts as in the 80s. Sagalaev also called the festive “lights” of our time a parody of Soviet New Year programs.
“I have nothing against [Valery] Leontyev or [Sofia] Rotaru. But when they sang in 1988 on the New Year's light, and the same performers are singing now, it is, of course, a little funny, a little sad. This suggests that the tastes of our public have changed little, ”Sagalaev said. He also noted that the “blue lights” on central TV channels are designed for viewers aged 60 and over.
The ex-general director of Ostankino said that Channel One, the Russia-1 TV channel and NTV are competing in the fight for an audience on New Year's. “It’s funny for me to watch them pull the same stars over to them. At the same time, you can see [Philip] Kirkorov singing on different channels, ”he added.
In addition, Sagalaev compared the modern “blue lights” with similar programs from the times of the USSR. In his opinion, the current New Year's concerts are inferior to the Soviet ones. “[Cosmonaut] Yuri Gagarin and [People's Artist of the USSR] Yuri Nikulin came there. All celebrities felt at home there. (…) There was a different atmosphere, which was created by both the presenters and the participants. What is happening now on the New Year is a parody of that New Year, “summed up the former general director of Ostankino.
In January 2020, Natalya Poklonskaya, the former Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, spoke negatively about the program schedule on Russian television during the New Year holidays. In her opinion, people “are tired of watching Blue Lights and other outdated shows for days.” She also drew attention to the fact that the same celebrities are participating in the New Year programs.
Music producer Joseph Prigogine then responded to the criticism of Poklonskaya. He said that TV channels are trying to come up with new decorations for New Year's shows, but drastic changes are dangerous, since experiments can affect ratings.
