Considering the safe, unadventurous, dull-as-dust programming the CBC normally toils in — we’re looking at you Arctic Air, Heartland, Republic of Doyle, Murdoch Mysteries, Cross Country Checkup, Tom Power et al — it’s been an exciting if disturbing week for our national broadcaster.
As you’re probably well aware, the CBC fired its golden boy Jian Ghomeshi on Sunday. The Q radio host promptly responded with a $50-million lawsuit against his former employer and a widely read Facebook post/PR crisis control strategy revealing a startling assortment a details pertaining to his sexual proclivities (S&M, role play, rough consensual sex) and portraying the oncoming scandal as the work of a jilted ex. The following day, the Toronto Star published an article detailing allegations from three women, who claim Ghomeshi was “physically violent to them without their consent during sexual encounters or in the lead-up to sexual encounters.”
Regardless of one’s opinion on the matter or where allegiances lie, it’s an ugly situation to say the least. And it puts the normally glib, sarcastic minds at K&K in a conundrum. If there hadn’t been allegations that Ghomeshi assaulted women, we would’ve had a field day speculating on Ghomeshi’s safe words (“Vinyl Café”? “Hi There”? “Strombo”?). We would have likely made disparaging remarks about Ghomeshi’s former band Moxy Fruvous, who tortured our ears without consent for much of the ’90s. We would have stolen our co-worker’s idea of coming up with new CBC programs for Ghomeshi to host (Behind the Mask, Whip at My Back, Little S&M on the Prairie, Kinks in the Hall, The Unfriendly Jiant). And undoubtedly we would have imagined a watered down, CBC-produced, PC-version of 50 Shades of Grey… starring Megan Follows and P.J. Stock.
But we can’t do that. Because the allegations against Ghomeshi are creepy and disturbing in a way that makes it hard to joke about without seeming insensitive. Plus there’s not a lot to say that hasn’t already be said. In fact, what some have lazily dubbed “Ghomeshi-gate” has generated more articles, opinions, water cooler discussions, tweets and Facebook comments in the last three days than actual important things that impact our lives. Climate change, the growing inequality between rich and poor, the upcoming municipal election, Prime Minister Harper’s plans to toughen up Canadian security laws, the on-ice chemistry between Radim Vrabata and the Sedins.
Of course, none of these topics are particularly titillating or sexy. But put a gimp mask and a few nipple clamps on him, and our prime minister’s primal urges to use a national tragedy to increase the powers of CSIS and the RCMP suddenly become worth discussing with the depth and critical thinking they deserve.
