Normal Death on Television: Balancing Privacy and Voyeurism

Authors

• Outi Hakola University of Helsinki

Abstract

The television series My Last Words (Viimeiset sanani) is the first reality-based programme in Finland to concentrate on death and dying. The programme was broadcast by the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) from April to June 2013. The topic raised a great deal of discussion of sensationalism, voyeurism, and the limits of television programming. However, the critical discussion largely took place before the broadcast; the viewing audience considered the series non-voyeuristic, tactful, and emotionally touching. In this article I will address the questions of voyeurism mainly at the level of television programme content, and I will analyse the narrative solutions that the series uses both to encourage and to discourage voyeuristic interpretations. An analysis of media coverage and audience reception of the show supports this analysis by providing the cultural context for the debate on the ways in which death and dying are socially acceptable subjects for television.