Psychologists worried about Moscow TV blackout

Psychologists worried about Moscow TV blackout
REUTERS

MOSCOW, AUG 28: Muscovites faced blank screens on Monday after the fire knocked out broadcasts from the Ostankino Television tower and said they felt part of their lives had been switched off.

People questioned on the streets of Moscow said they had little idea of how they would manage without their favourite pastime and psychologists said they were bracing for an upsurge in the number of cases of nervous disorders.

``It will be hard without television, especially for older people,'' said Anna, a 77-year-old pensioner. ``For us, it is a way into some sort of oblivion, a means to forget about all the disasters that hit Russia and weigh so heavily on people.

``I feel something is missing in my life.''

A psychologist at Moscow's Ambrumova stress relief hotline said the tension would build up as days went by and people were deprived of their daily routine.

``The feeling of anxiety, the feeling of fear... will only become more pronounced,'' he said, adding that psychologists were preparing to deal with an increased number of calls.

``There are many people, especially pensioners, who live from one soap opera to another... and now it has been taken away from them. Naturally, there is a deep feeling of frustration.''

Television, for many years a dull catalogue of the `achievements' of the Soviet system, has enjoyed a boom in capitalist Russia with people spending up to five hours a day before the screen.

Until Sunday, it also proved the most reliable, staying on air even during great political upheavals.

A hardline Communist coup in 1991 did not end programming and an armed assault by left-wing extremists on the television production centre in 1993 did not put it off the air. Imported soap operas, thrillers and leisure programmes, which flooded the screens after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, have won a massive and stable audience, especially among low-income Russians, unable to afford other entertainment.

At some points in the tumultuous post-Soviet history regional armed conflicts were suspended during hit serials.

A fire which erupted on Sunday at the Ostankino televisiontower, Europe's tallest building, which transmits television signals to about 10 million Moscow residents and many areas outside the city, has left most screens black.

Officials say it may be weeks if not months before regular broadcasting can be restored. An emergency solution is to pipe in the three biggest national channels through a limited cable network which operates in some parts of the capital.

The popular daily Moskovsky Komsomolets said the accident might force people back to the pre-television era when they spent more time reading, listening to the radio and chatting on the playgrounds in front of Moscow's trademark apartment blocks.

But Muscovites were sceptical as to whether the television blackout could revive old habits.

``Do you read books? I don't and I won't," said Andrei (33) adding that he would now tune to cable to get as many national broadcasts as possible and rent more videos.

A newspaper vendor in central Moscow said he had not noticed any pickup in demand since Sunday's fire.

``Nothing can replace television. Whenever I am free I watch it. I do not know with what else to kill time,'' said Valentina (40), selling confectionery in the street.

Elena (18) said her father, whom she described as a `TV couch potato', was very upset he had already missed two thrillers on Sunday, including the 1989 US horror movie The Abyss by Titanic director James Cameron.

Olga (14) said she would now be using the Internet more often to keep up with the news. But some saw a positive side to the television downfall.

``I am very glad,'' said Tatyana (53). ``This brainwashing stopped, maybe people will have more time to think.''