Russell: remember that Top Gear episode where they tried to destroy a Toyota Hilux? Sank it in the sea, smashed it with a wrecking ball, set it on fire—thing just wouldn’t die.
Rory: Aye, grand bit of telly. Smashed it but it still ran.
Russell: A metaphor for disruption in the televsion industry perhaps?
Rory: Reality TV was meant to ruin it. Like dropping the Hilux into the ocean. They said scripted drama was done for, but it just adapted.
Russell: Then came YouTube, TikTok, participatory media—swinging at TV like that wrecking ball. "Who needs professionally made content when the masses can make their own?" they said.
Rory: And then what happened? Instead of dying, TV swallowed it whole. Now half the shows on telly are based on viral trends. Even the news is presented like a reality show.
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Voice-over
Like Schumpeter’s “creative destruction” — old industries don’t just vanish, they’re torn apart and reborn in new forms. Television isn’t dying; it’s just shedding its old skin, adapting to new formats, new technologies, and new audiences. Just like the Hilux, battered but still running. TV doesn’t die—it evolves. Social media gave birth to Netflix's interactive shows. AI? Well, give it time; TV will find a way to make it work.
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