Alligator hunters, raccoon wranglers and crawfish catchers in Louisiana’s critter-filled swamps and bayous are increasingly common on television.
Since the introduction of the History channel’s wildly popular “Swamp People” in 2010, roughly a dozen other Louisiana-based reality shows have made their television debuts, among them the Travel Channel’s “Girls, Guns and Gators,” A&E’s “Billy The Exterminator,” the History channel’s “Cajun Pawn Stars” and the Discovery Channel’s “Ragin’ Cajuns.”
The reason for the recent boom in Louisiana-based reality TV is two-fold, said Louisiana Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne. Not only do reality shows filmed in Louisiana take advantage of the state’s TV and film tax credit program, but Louisiana has a rich culture that makes for great entertainment, he said.
“There’s no question it’s a combination of the two,” said Dardenne, who sponsored the original 2002 bill granting tax credits for television and film production in Louisiana.
While some reality shows are far-fetched or have little to do with Louisiana, some are actually good for the state’s image, Dardenne said. Shows such as “Swamp People” and “Ragin’ Cajuns” feature aspects of Louisiana life not found in any other state. They also educate people on issues including coastal erosion and conservation, Dardenne said.
“It captures this interesting, fascinating, very unique aspect of Louisiana life with its beautiful landscape and a strong streak of adventure,” Dardenne said. “It’s not something you’re going to find anywhere else. It’s indigenous to Louisiana.”
Other reality shows filmed in the state in recent years include MTV’s “The Real World”, A&E’s “Steven Seagal: Lawman” and TLC’s “Trashmen” about a New Orleans garbage collection company. Recently, “Bayou Billionaires” and “My Big Redneck Vacation” premiered on CMT, featuring families from north Louisiana.
History channel spokesman Chris Meador said authentic storytelling is an important component in its programming and one reason for the success of “Swamp People.” Last season the show drew in more than 4 million viewers, making it one of the network’s most watched shows.
News coverage of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the BP oil spill in 2010 has actually increased people’s interest in the Gulf Coast region, priming audiences for Louisiana-based programming, Meador said.
“No matter what they go through down there they come back better and come back stronger,” Meador said. “While everything that happened happened, they’re continuing with the lives that they’ve always led, that their parents led. I think it’s an amazing story and symbolic of the American story. It’s the great American success story.”
With the premiere of the third season of “Swamp People” set for Feb. 9, History is building a swamp in New York’s Chelsea Market this week. It will include alligators, turtles and dozens of 15-foot-tall cypress trees draped in Spanish moss. A wooden dock has been constructed to jut out over the roughly 6,500 gallons of water containing the swamp critters.
Dardenne is traveling to the promotion using BP oil spill funds acquired by the state to help promote Louisiana. Dardenne arranged to bring along a Louisiana woodcarver, a basket weaver, a man who makes paint from Louisiana soil, a Cajun band and a naturalist to talk about the state’s unique and fragile ecosystem.
Dardenne said Louisiana is spending roughly $50,000 of the BP oil spill funds to supplement the swamp at Chelsea Market. It will be open to the public from Thursday through Feb. 12.
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More