Australian public broadcaster SBS has had its biggest ratings result of the year with the first episode of a three-part reality-cum-documentary series ‘Go Back to Where You Came From', The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
The series features six Australian-born people with strong views on immigration (only one is in what might be called the ''pro-refugee'' camp) as they retrace in reverse the journeys of asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat.
In last night's second episode, the participants visited Malaysia, where they spent time with 50 Chin refugees from Myanmar living in a four-bedroom apartment and joined a police raid on illegal immigrant workers.
The show was watched by an average of 524,000 people on Tuesday night in the five mainland capitals. Typically, SBS would expect to attract about 300,000 to its prime-time offerings. A further 206,000 people in regional Australia also watched the show.
The programme has resonated with audiences beyond the small screen and beyond Australian shores, too.
It was the top-trending topic on Twitter worldwide as it screened, and remained in the top 10 in Australia all day yesterday. There was media interest from the BBC and Korea, and The New York Times and the International Herald Tribune ran long stories on the programme.
The interest in the show was evidence that SBS was fulfilling its charter as a multicultural broadcaster, Managing Director Michael Ebeid said.
''Our ambition is to be the catalyst for the nation's conversation about multiculturalism and social inclusion."
The series features six Australian-born people with strong views on immigration (only one is in what might be called the ''pro-refugee'' camp) as they retrace in reverse the journeys of asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat.
In last night's second episode, the participants visited Malaysia, where they spent time with 50 Chin refugees from Myanmar living in a four-bedroom apartment and joined a police raid on illegal immigrant workers.
The show was watched by an average of 524,000 people on Tuesday night in the five mainland capitals. Typically, SBS would expect to attract about 300,000 to its prime-time offerings. A further 206,000 people in regional Australia also watched the show.
The programme has resonated with audiences beyond the small screen and beyond Australian shores, too.
It was the top-trending topic on Twitter worldwide as it screened, and remained in the top 10 in Australia all day yesterday. There was media interest from the BBC and Korea, and The New York Times and the International Herald Tribune ran long stories on the programme.
The interest in the show was evidence that SBS was fulfilling its charter as a multicultural broadcaster, Managing Director Michael Ebeid said.
''Our ambition is to be the catalyst for the nation's conversation about multiculturalism and social inclusion."
(Source : Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union)
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