Laugh to "crowing"! Why are the middle-aged and elderly "hard-core blind dates" so popular that they "out of the circle"?
"It's not my dish, I'm so frank!" "Unreliable uncles are no less than unreliable guys" "If you want to look good, you still want to look for you? It's less than 1.7 meters, three thousand yuan is enough. What?"...These words are not from online jokes or funny quotations, but from the aunts in the middle-aged and elderly blind date shows. Netizens have expressed "stunned".
Over the past few months, a number of middle-aged and elderly dating shows have become popular all over the Internet, and some have even become banquet dramas for young netizens.
The uncomfortable attitudes and frank and sharp verbal confrontation of the uncles and aunts have become hot topics of discussion among many young people.
The Banyuetan reporter's survey found that, while "out of the circle", this type of program not only allows people to see the needs of contemporary elderly people for emotional life, but also triggers society's thinking on the issue of aging.
1
Blind date shows for middle-aged and elderly people are "out of circle" phenomenon
Recently, several middle-aged and elderly dating programs in Northeast China have become popular all over the Internet, including "Blind Date in the Countryside" and "It's Not Late" in Jilin, "The Choice of Love" in Liaoning, and "Dear and Love" in Heilongjiang.
#中少年相亲电视的多好笑##中少年硬核相亲# and many other topics, the cumulative broadcast volume on the Douyin platform quickly exceeded 100 million.
"Middle-aged and elderly blind dates are the social ceiling" and other topics frequently appear on Weibo's hot searches.
The rapid "out of the circle" of middle-aged and elderly blind date shows seems to be accidental, but it is inevitable of the times.
According to data from the seventh national census, the population of our country aged 60 and above has exceeded 264 million, accounting for 18.70%.
The expansion of the elderly population has boosted the inflow of capital. All walks of life are actively embracing this trillion-level industrial market, and the entertainment industry has given birth to many silver hair and wealth creation myths.
AgeClub, an industry media that focuses on business innovation and venture capital incubation in the elderly industry, has estimated that "elderly + middle-aged people" have more than 50 million users who have actual needs for marriage and love.
The huge market demand has prompted the emergence of middle-aged and elderly blind date programs.
A few years ago, a number of TV stations had begun to produce dating programs for middle-aged and elderly people.
For example, “It’s not too late” from Jiangsu, “Peach Blossoms Blooming” on Hubei Economic Channel, and “Happiness Knocks on the Door” from Hunan Economic TV Station.
According to incomplete statistics, there are more than 10 TV programs focusing on middle-aged and elderly blind dates.
The Banyuetan reporter found in the survey that with economic and social development, society is more tolerant of remarriage of middle-aged and elderly people.
A few years ago, elderly people participated in blind date shows and had to "talk about love" with people they had never met on TV. This was not a small challenge for their children, and even a huge mental pressure.
Many elderly interviewed said that although they have the idea of remarrying, they would give up the idea to take care of their children.
Gao Fei, the producer of "Blind Dates in the Countryside", said that at the beginning of the program, people around him were motivated to look around for the elderly to participate in the program. Now they are all actively signing up. Sometimes the phone calls for registration are not available, and many of them are children’s help. The old man’s name.
The program has been on the air for more than 2 years, and there are already thousands of senior citizens in the database.
To some extent, the middle-aged and elderly blind date programs provide more opportunities and possibilities for the elderly who need to remarry.
In the past, the elderly usually revolved around the family, children, and pots, and rarely had their own life and space. However, the elderly who lost their spouse had the concern of their children, but they lacked the companionship of their partners psychologically. There are very few ways to remarry during the whole life, most of them are "acquaintance introduction", "acquaintances for the elderly" and so on.
Uncle Gong, a 58-year-old citizen of Harbin, said that he had participated in three blind date shows and even held hands successfully once.
"I succeeded in holding hands before, and after living together for less than half a year, they broke up because of disagreements and opposition from their children." Uncle Gong said.
I always help take care of my grandson, and I don't have much contact with people outside, and no one introduces him.
"I think it's easier to find a wife on TV. The host can help with communication. We are not very good at talking when we are older, and sometimes we can't save face." Uncle Gong said that he would consider participating in the blind date show again.
Nowadays, many young people also realize that family affection can hardly replace the relationship of their partners.
"At present, many elderly people feel very lonely because their children are not around. Many program guests have experienced the ups and downs of their lives. Death is approaching." said Zhang Xiaoju, editor in charge of the column "It's not too late".
2
Northeast Middle-aged and Elderly Blind Date Program
"Hardcore Funny" Introduces Thoughts Behind
During the investigation, the Banyuetan reporter found that dating programs for middle-aged and elderly people are extremely popular in the Northeast, and the ratings are among the best. This is inseparable from the Northeast people's humor, witty, talkative, and daring personality.
"In a sense, compared to the southern region, Northeastern dialect is closer to Mandarin, and has certain advantages in dissemination. The humorous expressions in Northeast China greatly increase the topicality of the program and make it more explosive. Click', it is easier to spread on the Internet." said You Jie, a professor at the School of Drama, Film and Television of Communication University of China.
From the perspective of programs, middle-aged and elderly blind date programs are output in the reverse direction, which is easy to attract attention.
Prior to this, young people’s marriage and dating programs represented by "If You Are the One" have frequently seen hits and hit the screen.
It seems that in people's traditional concept, only young people can enjoy romantic love, while the life of the elderly is to play chess, play cards, drink tea and walk their dogs after retirement.
"Many elderly people in today's society have richer material lives, but emotional loneliness is easy to be ignored. In fact, after being widowed or divorced, the elderly also hope to find a close partner and spend the rest of their lives together. The ratings of similar programs provide guarantee. The reverse output creates a bright spot for middle-aged and elderly blind date programs." said Zheng Jun, a professor at the School of Media Science of Northeast Normal University.
The view of marriage and love among middle-aged and elderly people is very different from that of young people.
In people's traditional impression, dating and love should be a private, shy, and even conservative behavior.
Young people have time and are willing to enjoy the process of pursuing and being pursued, but older people are direct and frank, and sometimes feel rushed and unkind.
"Most of the guests on the show have been through most of their lives. They know exactly what they want from their spouse. In other words, they are less tolerant than young people, and have less time for fault tolerance and trial and error in their relationships. It's more direct, and only choose whatever suits you what you want," said Gao Pengju, the producer of "It's not too late".
The advent of the Internet era provides a platform and opportunity for middle-aged and elderly dating programs to "out of the circle".
A number of interviewed experts said that behind the "out of the circle" of such programs in the Northeast, they actually reflect the current situation of my country's social pension issues that deserve attention.
“China has now entered an aging society. Many elderly people are repelled by institutions for the elderly and have traditional dependence on home-based elderly care. This also makes the current demand for marriage and love among the elderly huge.” said Tian Yipeng, dean of the School of Philosophy and Social Sciences of Jilin University.
According to statistics from the program "Blind Date in the Countryside", in cities, women’s needs for the other half are concentrated in the form of "accompaniment" and "love", while men are "accompaniment" and "cooking"; The demand is much higher than that of the city, and the needs of men are concentrated in the two aspects of "watching the house" and "cooking".
"Some elderly people are eager to have love again, and some people just want to find someone who can live with them so that their old age will not be lonely. This is exactly the meaning of the term'wife's son'." Assistant of Jilin Provincial Academy of Social Sciences Researcher Han Jiajun said.
Aunt Zhang, 55, is a retired employee from a company in Harbin. Aunt Zhang lived alone after her spouse died of illness in 2018.
Her children are already married and they are very busy at work, so they can only visit during Chinese New Year.
"I am getting older and older, and my children worry that I will live alone and no one will take care of them, so they persuaded me to find a wife." Aunt Zhang said that when she saw a blind date show, many people who found their wives, the son helped her report it. Named.
3
Based on program service positioning
Beware of content grandstanding
Blind date programs for middle-aged and elderly people are broadcast nationwide, providing channels for helping middle-aged and elderly people to remarry and seek life partners and play an active role.
Take the two middle-aged and elderly blind date programs broadcasted in Jilin area, "Blind Date in the Countryside" and "It’s Not Late" as an example. About 70%." Zhang Xiaoju said.
The success rate of "Blind Date in the Countryside" program also exceeded 50%.
However, some of the guest's words in the program were edited by netizens into "classic quotations" and spread on the Internet, and some even became "golden sentences" for people to discuss after dinner.
The Banyue Tan reporter conducted an in-depth investigation of the column team and found that some of the "classic quotations" edited by netizens created entertainment and communication effects, but to a certain extent they misunderstood the intentions of the program guests.
"Some guests who participated in the show said that they were under a lot of pressure from public opinion and caused trouble to their own lives. This is contrary to the original intention of our show. Sometimes we feel helpless when we see it." Gao Pengju said.
For example, Zhang Zifu, who is quite controversial on the Internet, became popular because of the phrase "you must serve me".
After communicating with Zhang Zifu, the program team discovered that what he said about "serving" was not the behavior of "finding a nanny", "male chauvinism" or "male chauvinism" misunderstood by netizens, but referring to mutual care.
"It turns out that when my wife was sick, I was busy in front of the bed and looked after. I just wanted to find someone who can take care of each other." Zhang Zifu said.
“Older people’s love and marriage should not only appear in people’s vision as funny videos. At present, more and more middle-aged and elderly people are immersed in a whirlpool of loneliness. In the Internet age, their emotional appeals often become a neglected part. Accompanying' The topic of “out of the circle” comes from the attention of all sectors of society to their emotional appeals, rather than excessive consumption, interpretation, or even misinterpretation of fragments of discourse.” said Zhang Sining, a researcher at the Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences.
"Middle-aged and elderly blind date programs existed before. The program is essentially a service program for the common people. It is still necessary to provide services based on their own positioning so that people with genuine emotional needs can trust the program. Beware of the content of the program to avoid sensationalism and avoid motivating people. Ugliness." You Jie said.
"It is understandable that a program can bring joy and laughter to the audience, but at the same time of entertainment, outputting correct values and showing regional culture is the secret to maintaining long-term vitality." Zheng Jun said.
At present, many TV programs are also leveraging the power of new media to expand their program dissemination space through WeChat, the Internet and other channels to provide middle-aged and elderly friends with more flexible and free dating channels.
Some experts interviewed also suggested that TV programs can also enhance communication with the community and civil affairs departments, and regularly organize community dating activities to benefit more middle-aged and elderly friends.
Source: Ban Yue Tan
Half-month talk reporter: Li Dianding Feibai Wang He; video reporter: Wang He | Editor: Zheng Xuejing