Ego: Live Lessons

Millions of eyes are riveted to their faces, the whole country knows their names. As soon as a person appears on a television screen, he immediately becomes an object of increased interest. We want to know everything about him in detail: with whom and where he lives, what car he drives and what clothes he wears. Perhaps this is because we really want to be in his place? Or because we need role models? One way or another, we need these people. But they also need our interest and … become dependent on their popularity.

“They invariably fall into this trap. Everything – practically from the very first shooting, ”says 37-year-old Mikhail (names, at the request of our interlocutors, have been changed). For the last nine years he has been working as an assistant director of information programs on one of the TV channels. Mikhail has seen more than once how TV presenters gradually lost their journalistic enthusiasm, starting to admire themselves, enjoy their fame, and in fact fell into dependence on it. “At first, a person gets worried, worries, memorizes the text, is interested in the impression of others about how he spent the broadcast,” says Mikhail. But gradually he feels more and more confident. At some point, not only his attitude to the profession changes, but also the style of behavior: arrogance appears in his eyes, in his speech – mentoring notes.

“Publicity changes the way of life of any person,” says psychotherapist Margarita Zhamkochyan. – At one point, he finds himself under the eyes of millions of viewers, including critical ones. He lives in a situation of constant stress: his inner world and personal life become available to other people. But at the same time, a feeling of power arises, because the host is constantly present in our house, determines what we worry about and what we laugh at. “This distorts the idea of ​​one’s own importance,” continues Margarita Zhamkochyan. – The person seems to be influential, recognized. And he unconsciously begins to identify himself with this power. When asked who the audience really loves – me or my screen image, he would rather answer: me. Many do not withstand such an emotional burden.

Delight in front of the mirror

“At some point, most presenters seem to lose the ability to critically evaluate themselves,” agrees Zhanna, 41, who has been working as a make-up artist on television for almost 14 years. “Perhaps it’s really hard for them to resist such a temptation, because they see … themselves all the time. And not only on the TV screen. A person cannot run in from the street and immediately record the transmission. Before shooting begins, a whole staff of employees is working on his appearance: a stylist, a hairdresser, a makeup artist. “Hair styling, manicure, makeup, choosing a suit sometimes take several hours,” Zhanna continues. “Everyone revolves around them, courting them, and they constantly see themselves in the mirror.”

In the studio comes the turn of the operator, sound engineer, who are looking for the best angle and sound. From time to time, they run up to the presenter to correct makeup, powder his forehead, remove a strand that has come out of his hair … And after the shooting, the work continues: often the presenters participate in the editing process of the program. In a word, at all stages of work without exception, the TV star constantly looks at himself. “Sometimes, after a few years, a person seems to fall in love with his reflection and only notices a pimple on his nose or the color of his tie,” says Zhanna.

The peculiarity of the presenter’s work is that he is in the center of attention of many people who are obliged to make a “television picture” out of him. That is why they create royal conditions for him. In some cases, he really begins to behave like a king: he may lose contact with reality, believing that in everyday life everyone around him should fulfill his whims. “This does not happen because a person suddenly becomes worse than he was,” says psychoanalyst Marina Harutyunyan. – Changes in his feelings and behavior arise under the influence of a new, higher social status. It is he who gives an incomparable feeling of his own omnipotence. However, it cannot be said that such changes occur only with TV stars. People of any profession can be affected by it – many of us often revel in their power just as passionately. The reaction to changing circumstances depends primarily on the characteristics of the character. So television in itself does not lead to “star disease”, it only puts a person in a situation that allows the qualities that he already had to manifest themselves.

Ethereal Creatures

“And yet, the influence of the specifics of working on television cannot be underestimated,” Margarita Zhamkochyan clarifies. What are these conditions that change the behavior and character of stars? First of all, it is a feeling of colossal responsibility and a constant experience of stress. “Live is sometimes scary,” admits Andrey Dobrov, host of the analytical program “Main Topic” on Channel Three. – Once, during a live broadcast, the editor warned me into the earpiece: “We did not have time to edit the plot, you will have a” hole “in seven minutes.” And I realized with horror that I would have to say something in the frame in order to fill this time. It was a tough test.”

The hosts of talk shows, thematic programs have their own specifics of work: long preparation for the broadcast, memorization of texts, preliminary rehearsals and recording, as a rule, of several programs at once (in addition to emotional stress, one has to withstand the high temperature in the studio – it is illuminated by powerful spotlights) . It is not easy to cope with such a rhythm and load and look calm and confident on the air. That is why they try to create the most comfortable conditions for the TV presenter before and during filming, to protect them from everyday everyday problems. There are special people in the film crew who are obliged to provide him with everything he may need. “If he suddenly wants to not just drink coffee, but eat sushi or some exotic fruit before recording the program, they will be brought to the studio,” says Mikhail. – The assistant director satisfies all his whims. And it’s nice, you quickly get used to it.

Dependence on television is also associated with social and material privileges. The more “promoted” the face of the presenter, the more opportunities he has to receive income from external sources, for example, for hosting a concert or corporate party. For such a “side job” the stars are paid from several thousand to several tens of thousands of dollars. In addition, popularity frees them from many everyday problems: it is easier for them to get an appointment with a doctor, they are issued a passport or visa faster, it is easier for them to arrange a child for school or kindergarten … Many people are happy to provide services to a “famous person”. “At such a moment, it is very important to fix your reactions and feelings, trying to realize new sensations, even negative ones,” says Margarita Zhamkochyan. – Such inner work allows you to “separate” yourself from your image and makes it possible not to become dependent on publicity. New experiences become part of a new identity. Then a person ceases to depend on his status, he loses his power over him.

Leaders are not born

When a TV presenter becomes recognizable and popular, others often notice changes in his intonation, look, and communication style. But he himself may well not be aware that his behavior has become different. Moreover, many stars claim that they have remained the same as before. “When the changes in life are too great, we need to feel that something has remained unchanged in our life: we feel the need to maintain the stability of our own “I”, our deepest essence, explains Margarita Zhamkochyan. – By asserting that nothing changes in our behavior or style of communication with others, we spontaneously try to maintain the image of ourselves that we have long developed. Otherwise, we will have to question the foundations of our identity, and we are not ready for this.” In addition, in Russian culture there are common myths that “success corrupts”, “fame (like money) cripples the soul.” “These cultural messages give rise to an unconscious conflict in us: we strive for success and feel guilty or ashamed when we achieve it,” continues Margarita Zhamkochyan. “This conflict makes us unconsciously defensive and refuse to acknowledge the changes that have happened to us.”

Silence Trial

“Television is not an art that remains for centuries. If a person is not shown for six months, no one will remember him, ”says Pyotr Tolstoy, host of the information and analytical program Sunday Vremya on Channel One. Many TV stars who remained without air admitted that at that moment they lost a sense of the intensity of life, lost their emotions … They found themselves alone with themselves when no one else recognized them on the street. Describing their feelings, many of them talked about emptiness, depression, depression. “In such a situation, a person can often feel that he no longer exists, due to the fact that he loses the feeling of power over people, loses the opportunity to be reflected in a million mirrors as a recognized, extraordinary figure,” explains Marina Arutyunyan. “But besides this, he is left without his favorite job, in which he could show his abilities, realize himself as a professional.”

Not every one of us can get the chance to become a TV star. But any of us can lose our favorite job, lose the status that gives us a sense of self-confidence. What to do in such a situation? “When it is no longer possible to return to the point where you felt good,” says Marina Harutyunyan, “it is necessary to reconsider the system of your own “I” and try to understand why you can exist only in the conditions that were taken from you. This inner work, of course, is not easy and painful. But sooner or later we will have to build our “I” on some new foundations.