Ismira Lutfia – Political satire may generate poor ratings on Indonesian television, but social analysts say more such shows are needed to better inform public opinion.

Lukas Ispandriarno, dean of the School of Social and Political Sciences at Atma Jaya Yogyakarta University, said political satire shows could prove very useful in channeling public indignation toward the political elites deemed to have failed to live up to public expectations on resolving the scandals in which they were mired.

"It's good because it serves as a critical voice against the elites, but is presented in a humorous and entertaining manner," Lukas said on Monday.

There are three political satire shows – "Sentilan Sentilun," "Provocative Proactive" and "Democrazy" – broadcast regularly on news channel Metro TV, which pioneered the genre in Indonesia with the now discontinued "Republik Mimpi."

Iwel Sastra, the man behind "Democrazy," acknowledged satire was not an appealing option for other broadcasters focused on increasing their ratings.

"Satire shows use a format that is unfamiliar for Indonesian viewers," he said. "It isn't pure comedy, nor is it a talk show. Therefore it would require the full support of the television station on which it appears [to keep it going]."

Iwel, along with political communications expert Effendi Gazali, was part of the team that made "Republik Mimpi" one of the most popular shows between 2006 and 2008.

The show featured lookalikes of leading political figures, including President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, former presidents B.J. Habibie, Suharto and Abdurrahman Wahid, and then-Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

However, "Republik Mimpi" came to an abrupt end in 2008 when one of its key performers, Sujarwo, who played the Kalla spoof Jarwo Kwat, was implicated in a fraud case.

Despite its high ratings, the show was suspended while Sujarwo underwent a police investigation. The actor was later cleared, but by then other factors came into play to prevent the show going back on Metro TV's airwaves.

Iwel chose to leave the "Republik Mimpi" troupe and stayed with Metro TV, which offered him a stab at a new satire show, "Democrazy."

He said the show, which has been on the air for three years now, had been able to meet and exceed the expected ratings to keep it going, "unless there's a live foreign football match being broadcast at the same time."

Sociologist Radhar Panca Dahana said the lack of similar shows on other stations could be attributed solely to the issue of ratings.

"If a [good] show has bad ratings, it gets dropped," he said. "By contrast, if a show has poor content but high ratings, it will remain on the air."

He added that while other broadcasters preferred to play it safe and steer clear from meddling in political issues in a bid to maintain their commercial interests, Metro TV was only willing to host such shows in an effort to keep up its image of being a critical voice.

Radhar said it went without saying that Indonesian television viewers needed to see more of these shows, which he deemed enlightening and which "nurture their good, common sense."

He also said the current flock of TV programming, including music shows, gossip and soap operas, "betrayed the basic idea of why the mass communication medium exists in the first place."

That primary purpose, he said, was "to disseminate news and information that could boost the audience's spirit and nurture their hopes." Iwel conceded viewers sometimes objected to particular episodes of "Democrazy" where the criticism was aimed at political figures they supported.

"We're always cautious about writing the script for the show and we don't want to address our criticism in a rude way," he said. "Instead, we try to temper any sharp criticism with a polite manner."

He added he and the "Democrazy" team did not want their brand of criticism sparking its own criticism.

"It's supposed to a humorous parody and not to provoke the angst of those criticized," he said. "We intend to make them glad that we lambasted them, and therefore willing to accept our criticism."

However, Lukas said channeling criticism directly should not be an obstacle for a satire show.

"Without satire shows, the government and politicians are already the targets of direct criticism," he said. "The fact is we need more of it, and not just on television."