a_silver_story | If there isn't an update later, blame the BBC

How did this:

Thanks for your e-mail regarding 'Torchwood - Children of Earth'.

We appreciate that you were unhappy that Ianto Jones was killed off.

It is rightly heartbreaking for Ianto to die in this season of 'Torchwood'. We had established that its characters are involved in dangerous, life threatening work and that the myth of 'Torchwood' is that its people 'die young'. Ianto's death is particularly poignant and right for the story because it puts great pressure on the character of Captain Jack. Captain Jack has to pay the ultimate price, given the sins of the past and his own tragic immortality.

We do acknowledge your concerns, however, and we'd like to assure you that we've registered your complaint on our audience log. This is a daily report of audience feedback that's circulated to many BBC staff, including members of the BBC Executive Board, channel controllers and other senior managers.

The audience logs are seen as important documents that can help shape decisions about future programming and content.

Thanks again for taking the time to contact us.

Regards

BBC Complaints

In any way equate to this:

Dear BBC,

I sent a complaint over two weeks ago and never received a reply, despite indicating via the drop down menu that I required one.

My complaint addressed issues of homophobia and misinformation regarding the recent BBC miniseries ‘Torchwood: Children of Earth’, mainly the insinuation that sexuality has its own unique ‘scent’ (Day Three; the character of Clem apparently ‘smells’ that another character is in a homosexual relationship) and the omission of other such complaints from the monthly complaint report published by the BBC on the main website.

I am disappointed by this lack of response and consideration by the BBC, particularly as they are a non-optional public service who draw large audiences to their programming and content. It concerns me that this comment regarding homosexuality having a ‘scent’ has not only gone unexplained, but was also actually aired on prime time television as well as my complaint about it being evidently ignored.

I hope you can provide me with an acceptable explanation for the omission of such complaints from the monthly reports, as well as informing me what it is about homosexuals or bisexuals that smells different from heterosexual people that would justify the use of this ridiculous idea.

Yours,

If you don't get a fic update later, it's the BBC's fault. I shall send them another message, and keep sending them until I get an informed response.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Even worse than a standard reply that has nothing to do with your original e-mail, it's not exactly endearing itself to the fanbase at all.

We appreciate that you were unhappy that Ianto Jones was killed off.

Good idea, sound like you're happy that the fan is unhappy about something. Yes, that's the way to set a positive tone for the rest of the e-mail! *Facepalm*

And, honestly, implying that Ianto was killed because Jack deserves to lose him because he made a itty-bitty mistake in the past? That's all kinds of stupid and irrelevant (we all know Ianto was killed off because he dared to be more popular than RTD's pet project).

You try to put forward a valid point, and get a brick wall of ignorance in response. I've had dates like that.

*hugs*

You're right. Appreciating our unhappiness just makes me think of smug men in smoking jackets with pipes, leatherbound books and a stag head mounted on the wall, laughing about the misfortune of peasants.

RTD is one of them ....

Do you have MSN by any chance? :D

I'm a_silver_story@hotmail.co.uk

I don't, actually! At least, not on this computer...which is a bit odd, really.

I'll put installing on here on my to-do list, along with actually remembering my MSN log-in details and that pesky act of sleeping at night.

I'm in *no* way defending them. But the 'appreciate' here is simply 'acknowledge/(claim to) understand', with no connotation of 'being specifically pleased by/happy about'. It's a different usage of the word than 'I appreciate your support,' or etc.

Cf:
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/appreciate

ap-pre-ci-ate (-prsh-t)
v. ap-pre-ci-at-ed, ap-pre-ci-at-ing, ap-pre-ci-ates
v.tr.

1. To recognize the quality, significance, or magnitude of : appreciated their freedom.
2. To be fully aware of or sensitive to; realize : I appreciate your problems.

As opposed to:
3. To be thankful or show gratitude for: I really appreciate your help.
4. To admire greatly; value.
5. To raise in value or price, especially over time.
v.intr.
To increase in value or price, especially over time.

I'm not *that* silly. I know what they meant ... I just wanted to poke fun at them :-P

Never thought you were. I was more having a "with-hyphen" moment, largely sleep-dep-induced, and had thought (not for you, but for some of the others on the thread) that there might be a Brit/Anglish discrepancy. Again, just not enough sleep. I think it was just - I'm upset over what they're doing too re: the auto-replies, and so it was something besides that that I wanted to pick on them for. A-la zsazsa4168 's post later on this thread:
http://a-silver-story.livejournal.com/86580.html?thread=1554484#t1554484

Anyhow. No insult intended. Sincerely sorry. I'd also been - half-teasing- too. Hence my emoticons. It's hard to get tone right in text, especially on sleep-dep.
And now I've waaay over-posted :/

G'night. Or G'morning.

I wasn't insulted! No apology necessary. It's nice to know there's some people out there as sleep deprived as I am too ;)

Ha! Of course that's what they meant to say, I just enjoy twisting their words around for my own amusement using that aforementioned etymology...I knew what I was doing for once. It was a nice opportunity for a silly break. :)

But, honestly, they could have used the word "acknowledge" rather than the more ambiguous "appreciate." Wouldn't have been half as much fun to poke at, though. ;)

Sleep deprivation isn't a bad thing...more time to poke fun at these people. Yay!

If there isn't an update later, blame the BBC

How did this:

In any way equate to this:

Mini Rant

Re: Mini Rant

Re: Mini Rant

Re: Mini Rant - etymology... :p

Re: Mini Rant - etymology... :p

Re: Mini Rant - etymology... :p

Re: Mini Rant - etymology... :p

Re: Mini Rant - etymology... :p