Oh Boy, SBS Has Announced Another Season Of ‘Struggle Street’
This should be interesting.
After it provoked enormous controversy and received an incredibly divided critical reception last year, it’s just been announced that Struggle Street will be coming back for a second season on SBS. This time around, the show will be doubled in length to a six-part documentary that “shines a light on social and economic disadvantage” and its scope will be expanded to areas in both Queensland and Victoria. The series will air some time late next year.
“At the heart of SBS is a commitment to contributing to a cohesive society,” said SBS TV and Online Content Director Marshall Heard. “Struggle Street will seek to raise awareness and deepen our understanding of those of us in the community facing social and economic hardship through an honest reflection of what it’s like to be doing it tough in Australia today.”
In many ways, this is what the show’s first season achieved. The series premiere attracted a record-breaking 1.31 million viewers and provided a number of intimate first-person accounts from those struggling with homelessness, drug addiction and systemic poverty. This in turn led to an undeniably important national discussion about government cuts to welfare, education and crucial community programs in disadvantaged areas.
However, with its myopic focus on the area of Mt Druitt and a portrayal of its subjects some labelled as exploitative, many instead saw the series as “poverty porn” — an ultimately unhelpful exercise which may have provided more stigma than compassion. Let’s be real, no matter which position you take, that terrible voiceover wasn’t helping anyone.
Keo Films, the producers of the first season, are back on board for the second instalment so hopefully they’ve learned from the experience. Late last year there were rumours they were shooting footage in the Melbourne suburb of Sunshine. This was met with cautious optimism from representatives of the local government.
“If it’s a genuine attempt to portray the real community and not focus on the negatives… then come to Sunshine,” said Brimbank Council chairman John Watson. “It certainly was a working class area with many families from lower socio-economic backgrounds and very multicultural. It’s something to be proud of — that’s our heritage.”
Time will tell if he’ll be blockading the SBS studios with garbage trucks in 12 months time but, even if he does, it’s not as if there’s a shortage of places to find Australians who are struggling.
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Related: SBS Has Made A Fascinating Interactive Map Highlighting Australia’s Most Disadvantaged Areas