Struggle Street

Struggle Street is an Australian documentary series that first aired on SBS One on 6 May 2015.[1] The second series began airing on 28 November 2017.[2] The third series began airing on 9 October 2019.[3]

Struggle Street
GenreDocumentary
Directed by
  • Stuart O'Rourke
  • Brad Cone
  • Timothy Joel Green
  • Dan Schist
  • Ronan Sharkey
  • Dani Vos
  • Mark Hooper
Narrated byDavid Field
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes9
Production
Executive producersDavid Galloway
Leonie Lowe
ProducersMarc Radomsky
Ash Davies
Production locations
EditorsPaul Watling
Alexis Lodge
Running time52 minutes.
Production companiesScreen Australia
KEO Films Australia
DistributorSBS
Release
Original networkSBS One
Audio formatDolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Original release6 May 2015 (2015-05-06) –
30 October 2019 (2019-10-30)

Premise

The series sheds light on the struggles and aspirations of residents in public housing areas around Western Sydney; areas which have been commonly associated with high unemployment, drug use and problems with the law.

KEO Films, the production company behind the project stated on their website:[4]

In this proposed 3-part observational documentary series, to be filmed over a 6-month period, we'll feature the voices and stories of people living on the outskirts of Sydney, in some of our most socially-disadvantaged communities.

We'll highlight the enormous challenges they face being born into generational disadvantage, and then being blamed by the system for their lack of progress.

...And rather than being an exercise in voyeurism, or a fleeting judgmental report, this extended insight into the lives of our subjects will - we hope - provoke not just a change in public perception, but a debate about the direction of public policy as well

Series overview
Season Episodes Originally aired
Season Premiere Season Final
1 3[5] 6 May 2015 13 May 2015
2 6[6] 28 November 2017 7 December 2017
3 4 9 October 2019 30 October 2019

Reception

The series received strong criticism from local governments, with the Mayor of Blacktown, Stephen Bali labelling it as 'poverty porn'.[7] Locals attempted to boycott the series by establishing a blockade of garbage trucks outside the SBS headquarters in Artarmon.[8] The series aired as planned, winning its timeslot nationally and was the most watched program on television that night in Sydney, with the controversy claimed for the record ratings.

Western Sydney locals are contemplating legal action against the producers to seek damages for defamation.[9]

SBS chief content officer Helen Kellie defended the program, stating that "We are confident that Struggle Street is a fair and accurate portrayal of events that occurred during filming...further, we believe the series fairly reflects the program description contained in participant release forms".[10]

Several television critics and journalists viewed the show in a positive light, arguing that the outrage and controversy over the program was grossly overstated, and praised the show for bringing light to stories that otherwise wouldn't be told in the public domain.[11]

Second Season

A second season of the show was filmed in Queensland and Victoria, and aired on 28 November 2017.[12]

Ratings

Season One (2015)
Episode Original airdate Overnight Viewers Consolidated Viewers Total Viewers Ref
Viewers Rank Viewers Rank
1 "Episode 1" 6 May 2015 935,000 7 206,000 1 1,141,000 [13][14]
2 "Episode 2" 13 May 2015 828,000 8 190,000 5 1,018,000 [15][16]
3 "Episode 3"

Season Two (2017)
Episode Original airdate Overnight Viewers Consolidated Viewers Total Viewers Ref
Viewers Rank Viewers Rank
1 "Episode 1" 28 November 2017 304,000 N/A 304,000 [17]
2 "Episode 2" 29 November 2017 285,000 N/A 285,000 [18]
3 "Episode 3" 30 November 2017 265,000 N/A 55,000 20 320,000 [19][20]
4 "Episode 4" 5 December 2017 220,000 N/A 220,000 [21]
5 "Episode 5" 6 December 2017 317,000 17 50,000 20 367,000 [22][23]
6 "Episode 6" 7 December 2017 264,000 N/A 264,000 [24]

References
  1. "Airdate: Struggle Street". tvtonight.com.au. 12 April 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  2. "Returning: Struggle Street". tvtonight.com.au. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  3. "Returning: Struggle Street S3". tvtonight.com.au. 2 September 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  4. "Struggle Street". keofilms.com.au. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  5. "Struggle Street Series 1". screenaustralia.gov.au. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  6. "Struggle Street Series 2". screenaustralia.gov.au. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  7. Aubusson, Kate. "Mt Druitt community leaders hurt, angry and feeling sick after Struggle Street documentary". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  8. "Struggle Street: Garbage truck protest against SBS 'poverty porn' documentary". ABC. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  9. Auerbach, Taylor. "Struggle Street: Featured Western Sydney locals set to sue SBS over their portrayal". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  10. Koziol, Michael. "SBS investigates allegations over Struggle Street documentary". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  11. Galvin, Nick. "SBS show Struggle Street: Why you should watch tonight". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  12. "SBS to air second season of 'Struggle Street' series".
  13. Knox, David (7 May 2015). "Wednesday 6 May 2015". Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  14. Knox, David (14 May 2015). "Timeshifted: Wednesday 6 May 2015". Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  15. Knox, David (14 May 2015). "Wednesday 13 May 2015". Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  16. Knox, David (26 May 2015). "Timeshifted: Wednesday 13 May 2015". Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  17. Knox, David (29 November 2017). "The Good Doctor upstages ARIAs, Struggle Street". Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  18. Knox, David (30 November 2017). "Ratings quirks on a quiet Wednesday". Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  19. Knox, David (1 December 2017). "TV on Struggle Street". Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  20. Knox, David (13 December 2017). "Timeshifted: Thursday 30 November 2017". Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  21. Manning, James (6 December 2017). "TV Ratings Dec 5: Late night cricket again a winner for Nine". Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  22. Knox, David (7 December 2017). "Wednesday 6 December 2017". Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  23. Knox, David (15 December 2017). "Timeshifted: Wednesday 6 December 2017". Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  24. Manning, James (8 December 2017). "TV Ratings Dec 7: Summer Bay and Deadliest Weather keep Seven in top spot". Retrieved 17 December 2017.
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