Why are bad talent shows such hot business on TV? “Who’s to blame for those gladiatorial talent shows if not the millions of people who ring in to register their votes? Light entertainment is now a slave to the users of mobile phones, which allows you to understand why phone companies are falling over themselves to sponsor these shows and raise their profits. It’s a fake new democracy: people get to vote for their favourite bad singer and feel they’re involved in creating an entertainment phenomenon, while raising their own personal connection to the processes of fame.”