2025. It’s been a year.
The Eurovision light that has shone so brightly over many decades has dimmed.
What started as a curious mix of technical experimentation in national and international broadcasting in 1956 became the largest shared program of the Eurovision Network, reaching across borders and cultures in a yearly pageant that held a mirror to society. Even when the Song Content was cancelled in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic, the EBU and its members brought “Love Shine A Light” to the world; a special broadcast in May, bringing everyone together in a torrid time.
That light will once more shine in May, as millions tune in to watch twenty-six performances live from Vienna. No doubt the lavish production celebrating the Contest’s 70th Anniversary will be heralded as a cultural moment once more bringing people together and to show, somehow, that “a different world is possible”
How bright is the path to that different world?
The Community Guiding The Community
The intensity of light is measured in candlepower. If you could gather enough people, each holding up a candle, you could match the strength and intensity of any light in the world. One candle on its own can light the way. One candle joined by many others can light the way for others to follow. One candle joined by many more can bring comfort, hope, and joy to millions.
One candle turning away in May and being put out may not be noticeable in the intensity of the Viennese light, but those around it will notice and ask why. One darkened candle, joined by many, will produce small pinpricks of darkness in intensity. One unlit candle joined by many more will lead to darkness spreading, and that beacon no longer offers comfort, safety, or hope.
Candles can go out for many reasons. Sometimes they melt away, their energy exhausted. Sometimes the prevailing winds blow them out, with no chance of relighting. The saddest case is when someone holding the candle decides they no longer want their light to shine and puts the candle out themselves. Could they light it again? Perhaps. Will they?
Keeping The Flame Alight
Whatever the reason, candles need to be replaced by the people who want to shine a light. Many in the community have decided they can no longer follow the Song Contest year-round. They have put out their candles, and the Contest would need to see radical change for these people to come back.
Without that year-round support, the Contest is not only less visible online, but also the community spirit is diminished. Why would a younger generation choose to follow the Contest today?
If each voice in the community has one candle, then the light from the Contest has darkened in 2025. And the community is left wondering whether a new year will bring a brighter future or more candles going out.