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Airdate: Gruen Planet

What was the Dalai Lama doing on MasterChef? Does Tiger cut it anymore as a business? Gruen Planet wants to know.

What was the Dalai Lama doing on MasterChef? Does Tiger cut it anymore as a business?

These are some of the questions that Gruen Planet will tackle in its debut season, set to follow on as soon as The Gruen Transfer has finished.

The new show will cast its net wider, but retains Wil Anderson, Todd Sampson and Russel Howcroft, along with communications experts.

Four seasons into The Gruen Transfer and what have we learned? That most of us can be bought or sold. And that sometimes, it actually feels good. We’re all coerced and serenaded by advertising, an industry devoted to changing our minds and our behaviour.

But advertising is not the only industry that wants to get inside our heads and move the furniture around. Which brings us to spin, branding, and image control. Along with advertising, they form the nervous system of 21st century life. They’re the levers pulled behind most news stories, the silent partners in public debates.

Gruen thinks it’s time to look at these dark arts as well. Because everyone is on the sell. Tyrants. Sports stars. Actors. Criminals. Politicians. Deities. Charities. Entire nations. They’re all trying to persuade us to think, buy or do things that we weren’t thinking, buying or doing yesterday.

Gruen Planet, our latest show -in advertising they call it a brand extension- will run an x ray across the world each week, unpicking the stories that affect us all. How do you protect an unstable government when a backbencher goes feral? Does Tiger cut it anymore as a business? How has the Arab uprising been turned into Western profit? What was the Dalai Lama doing on Masterchef? Who do you turn to when your family name is your brand and it’s become toxic?

Each week, host Wil Anderson will be joined by regulars Todd Sampson and Russel Howcroft, along with some of Australia’s smartest communications experts. They will take us inside the persuasion business and explain why the world appears, not as it really is, but as others want us to see it. Why everything is spin, branding, advertising and image control.

9pm Wednesday, 28 September on ABC1.

10 Responses

  1. “Coerced and serenaded by advertising”. Thank God somebody out there is trying to seduce me! Love Gruen, and the sparring between hot Todd and Russ is exceptional this season. More the merrier. Gruen. How all Aussie TV should be.

  2. Only found Gruen Transfer this year, done a backstep to get up to date, totally addicted and ROFL. Now can’t wait to see “GP” as the spinners out there are growing faster than the board they are playing on – bring it on GT team.

  3. Pleasseeee … Make Gruen longer – at least 40 minutes Even an hour. It is wonderful to hear everyone sharing their knowledge on how things work – and Will is fantastic in keeping things light and poignant. Bravo all concerned.

  4. THis is going to be sweeeeeeet. I absolutely enjoyed the political spin-off Gruen Nation and i know that i will enjoy this. Will watch thats for sure. Educational and entertaining.

  5. Speaking of The Gruen Transfer, the program will make its Asian debut on ABC’s satellite service Australia Network at the end of this month. Not sure if it will be the first season or the second season.

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