The screens around you have just devised another reason to stay on. A niche new genre of shows referred to as “ambient TV” offer soothing tones, calming images… and little else. Sometimes, there’s no script. Other times, it’s a slow, monotonous drone of simple facts.
The sounds are the primary attraction. They draw on cascading waterfalls, ocean life, a gentle wind in a wheat field. Turn to the screen and one sees snowy peaks, sun-soaked farms, coral reefs teeming with life. The idea is to offer a background score as someone, often someone alone at home, goes about their chores, answer texts, scrolls, doodles, maybe even takes a quick nap.
National Geographic’s Earth Moods (2021) streaming on Disney+ Hotstar offers lush visuals of deserts, sea creatures, rivers, set to ambient music. There is no plot.
Zenimation (2020-) by Disney is a melange of beloved scenes and picturesque landscapes from animated films such as The Lion King, Pinocchio, Frozen and Moana.
The Netflix series Moving Art (2014-) lets the camera float alongside stingrays and humpback whales, seeking art in the patterns and rhythms of Nature.
“Ambient TV shows are like mental chewing gum,” says family counsellor Gouri Dange. “You are consuming it, allowing a little information to filter in, but it doesn’t really serve much purpose.”
During the lockdowns of 2020, she adds, she had a client who spent about eight hours a day watching a show that was just a series of baby animals toddling about. The sense of order and simplicity it presented “was so far-removed from her own uncertainty-filled life that it felt like a warm, fuzzy blanket that cocooned her from the harsh realities of life,” Dange says.
That’s certainly the aim. The term “ambient TV” was coined by the writer Kyle Chayka, who covers technology and internet culture for The New Yorker. He defined it as “a product of the technological and social forces of our time”. In a piece published in The New Yorker in November 2020, Chayka wrote about how passive engagement through ambient TV was propelling binge culture, as people sat before screens now engaging with what could classify as B-roll.
Power down
But how calming is it really? Certainly more calming than the over-stimulating scrolls on Twitter and Instagram, says habit coach Ashdin Doctor. Particularly in the altered world of the pandemic, “ambient TV helps fight off the silence of loneliness,” he adds. “And does it in a way that is comforting and predictable rather than jarring or cerebral.”
But it’s also a perfect example of the “three-screen dilemma”, where one is constantly juggling the television, laptop and smartphone, Doctor adds. “In many ways, the attention economy is ruining our consciousness by commodifying mindfulness as well. Vegetating in front of the television is misconstrued as a relaxing activity, even though it eliminates the possibility of disengagement.”
In the same vein, “digital resting stops” on social media platforms keep one hooked while offering rather ironic messages reminding the viewer to rest and pause. These too offer soothing clips and nature scenes: crashing waves, rhythmic raindrops, swaying palm trees. They’re presented as necessary respite from the information overload of social media.
“Digital leisure activities, as trendy, convenient and comforting as they sound, can be counterproductive if you are really exhausted or burnt-out,” says Dr Manoj Sharma, professor of clinical psychology with the SHUT clinic (Service for Healthy Use of Technology) of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS). “You may stop scrolling or watch relaxing audio-visual content, but you are still straining yourself on a cognitive level,” he adds.
On a physiological level, Dr Manvir Bhatia, founder of the Neurology and Sleep Centre in Delhi, adds that ambient TV could interfere with restful sleep. “Research shows how exposure to blue light from digital devices inhibits melatonin production and alters brain waves that inhibit deep sleep,” she adds.
If one is really looking to relax, get into the habit of doing nothing for a few moments at a time. “Multitasking might just lead to multi-failing,” says Dange. “Your ability to focus will eventually be compromised, so it’s better to take it slow, just one activity at a time.”
Steady Vision
Ambient TV could be said to have roots in a Slow TV movement that emerged in Norway in 2009. It started when the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) released a seven-hour video of a train ride from Bergen to Oslo, broadcast in real time.
The programme was a huge hit, registering 1.2 million viewers (20% of Norway’s population at the time). The corporation went on to broadcast a series of such shows, all tracking mundane activities. A 134-hour broadcast of a cruise liner’s journey along the coast in 2011 even won them a Guinness world record for longest live TV documentary.
Not all the Slow TV shows were travel-themed. In 2013, NRK released a 12-hour wood-burning programme, National Firewood Night, which was just footage of a live fireplace.
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