Analysis: Yle’s money series shows how young people want to stand out with money – parents can’t stand that someone else is doing better

“In the world there is only one religion to which all other religions bow, and that is money.”

The funny quote comes from Yle’s documentary Investors-series, which follows four young adults interested in investing. One has taken ten tons of consumer credit to invest in cryptocurrency, another is enthusiastic about apartment flipping, the third invests in start-up companies and tries to turn himself into a successful brand at the same time.

The fourth main character, Vili Värtinen24, has achieved the life situation others aspire to, i.e. financial independence through cryptocurrency trading. He goes to work at a watch shop to get routine in his life.

However, questions about Värtinen’s wealth and tax payment have also been raised in Ilta-Sanomi’s October in the article.

In the documentary series, the main characters talk with enthusiasm and passion about making money and the profits that loom in the future. Money is a key measure of success and success.

The program In Värtinen’s opinion, the picture given is quite different from what he imagined.

“I was told that I could inspire young people and talk about these topics of mine.”

Värtienen’s topics are long-term investing, steady accumulation of capital and saving. We don’t hear much about them in the series.

“There was more focus on money and the flex culture. They wanted to show nice cars, lots of money, watches. Of course it’s sexier in the media, I understand that.”

To the program however, participation is not regretted.

“Overall, all the feedback has been positive,” he says.

Värtinen has been praised for his courage and for giving a voice to the young generation.

The trend was much more negative a couple of years ago, when Värtinen turned around Dealin the series.

Investors is by no means the only money-focused series currently running. More of them have appeared recently.

There is, for example The rich and the pennilesswhere people belonging to the extremes of the income classes change their places for a week, as well as Money repairwhere people who have run into financial problems are helped to manage their finances. They are based on foreign formats and represent traditional reality entertainment.

Värti has experience as well Rich and pennilessin which he participated in its most recent season.

money-grubbing showing up in droves right now is no accident, says the PhD student at Tampere University Laura Tarkiainen. According to him, there has been no desire to make similar format purchases in the past, because they have been considered culturally so implausible in our country. It has been thought that there would be no wealth differences or a class society in Finland, for example.

So something has changed.

According to the social scientist, the proliferation of series focusing on money is a sign of a social transition. They reflect the intensifying economic discourse that permeates the entire Finnish society.

But what are these series actually talking about when they talk about money?

At least according to Tarkiainen, in all of the aforementioned money is presented as a skill: how money should be handled and how it is made.

Rich and penniless mixed In money repair scripted reality format brings its own touch. In countless programs, homes, bodies, food relationships or, for example, style have been renovated. Now the channel for transformation is money.

Tarkiainen sees a strong moral pedagogy in the background.

“We think that people living in poverty are the ones who should be guided.”

At the same time, poverty appears as a very undesirable phenomenon.

“That, in turn, justifies monitoring and motivating the poor. The programs have often cast entrepreneur-minded poor role models who seek change and access to a better life through money and consumerism.”

Tarkiainen has studied poverty and, for example, poverty talk. According to him, another kind of message also stands out in research interviews. People say that they have, for example, tried to break away from money, and are not pursuing a life of luxury or wealth.

“But this talk of poverty doesn’t really travel to reality TV entertainment.”

In investors money is also presented in a negative light: it is an addiction and something that makes you feel bad and is reflected in human relationships. .

”

The young generation is distinguished by money.

Similar framing is missing from other series. Could it somehow be affected by the fact that To investors have representatives of the younger generation been selected?

At least some cultural change has taken place in that the younger generation differentiates itself with money, Tarkiainen thinks.

“Some of them weren’t even alive during the 1990s recession. It is also a generation that has lived in a media image that focuses on the rich.”

Today wide life is widely presented on social platforms, for example, and role models for young people can be wealthy people from around the world.

Värtinen says he noticed the same. He himself has acted as a mentor to younger people about getting rich.

“The young generation wants to get along. They become interested, excited and motivated.”

“The older generation is more upset that someone else is doing better than themselves.”

Investors TV2, Rikkaat ja rarahitam Nelonen, Rahararemontti Nelonen.

Helsingin Sanomat and Nelonen, which presents the programs Rikkaat ja rahattomat and Rahararemontti, belong to the Sanoma group.