Fan TV: revolution or just a vehicle for venting attention-grabbing fury? | Paul MacInnes


Channels such as Arsenal Fan TV claim they give supporters the chance to have their say but are viewers just hoping to watch a car-crash moment?

It was freezing outside the Emirates Stadium but that had not stopped the crowd. Small children were hoisted on the shoulders of their parents and one adult was holding a sign that read “#no bad energy”. All in all there must have been at least 200 people craning to hear a chartered accountant share his views on a hum-drum victory against Hull City. And they were all standing in absolute silence.

This was the scene as Arsenal Fan TV recorded their latest instalment on Saturday. 22 latest instalments, to be accurate, each filmed, cut and uploaded to YouTube by the channel’s founder, Robbie Lyle. Now often described as “infamous”, Arsenal Fan TV is just the most prominent example of a genre of home-made video content that claims to give overdue exposure to the views of long‑suffering supporters. Are they a revolution in the making?

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