Browsing by Subject "Television"
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Item Blurring the line : television advertainment in the 1950s and present(2011-12) Hernandez, Carolina, M.A.; Kackman, Michael; Staiger, JanetWith the rise in product placement and integration on television in recent years, much of the popular press has discussed it as being a new phenomenon, one that has come about as a result of shifts in how audiences view television. As audiences change their viewing practices due to modern technologies such as DVRs and online streaming, product placement has increased in the industry's attempts at still reaching audiences with commercial messages. This thesis seeks to prove that instead of the common current assumption that this increase in product placement on television is a new phenomenon, this surge in blurring the line between advertising and entertainment is actually part of a long history of doing so in American commercial television. Historically, it was very common in the 1950s to have fictional television characters promoting products or to have the product featured as part of the story line in an episode. In fact, I believe the instances are common enough to establish generic expectations from audiences and industry alike. By understanding product placement and other forms of television advertising as part of a genre, it allows for shows like 30 Rock to employ parodic techniques that make their instances of product integration obvious to their viewers. Both the history of advertainment and its generic conventions create a base for current shows to riff off of, thus allowing them to combine entertainment and advertising to please the networks, but acknowledging to their viewers what they are doing and parodying it so as not to alienate them.Item Bodies, identities, and voices on American idol(2010-08) Boyd, Maria Suzanne; Staiger, Janet; Fuller, JenniferThis thesis examines the ways in which American Idol producers rely on the white, Christian, heterosexual, middle-class, Americanness of contestants’ bodies and identities to advance the show’s American Dream narrative. When contestants do not meet all four of the components of Americaness, producers highlight some aspects of the contestants’ identities while hiding other truths about who they are. Additionally, those contestants who are able to adhere simultaneously to their producer-constructed personas while also asserting their individuality tend to fair best in the competition.Item The boob tube : television, object relations, and the rhetoric of projective identification(2015-08) Mack, Robert Loren; Gunn, Joshua, 1973-; Brummett, Barry; Cloud, Dana; Stroud, Natalie; Staiger, JanetMuch of the existing scholarship on the popular appeal of television emphasizes the role of content over any of the medium’s other elements. Work within the cultural studies tradition, for example, often centers the importance of specific television programs when discussing the small screen’s allure for discerning viewers. Other analyses that proclaim explicit concern for “the rhetoric of television” as a whole nevertheless tend to limit their focus to specific, recognizable elements within broadcast programming. As a result, there exists no strong theoretical perspective that helps account for an attraction to television as a medium, despite that fact that many people are familiar with instances of television reception that appear to have nothing to do with the specificity of broadcast content (i.e. collapsing in front of “the box” after a long day and watching whatever happens to be on—sometimes for hours at a time). The present study remedies this absence by proposing a rhetorical mode for the medium of television based on the psychoanalytic concept of “projective identification.” Originating in the object relations work of Melanie Klein, projective identification names a primary mechanism by which individuals manage unconscious anxieties that attend modern subjectivity. This study asserts that specific elements of the televisual apparatus in combination invite unconscious acts of projective identification from viewers. Because this invitation relieves viewers of primal anxieties and increases their attraction to the medium itself, it is appropriate to interpret projective identification in this context as an inherently rhetorical concern. This study progresses in three basic sections. The first two chapters review relevant literature in the fields of rhetoric, media, and psychoanalysis in order to propose “the rhetoric of projective identification” as a mode of address inherent to the medium of television through the second half of the 20th century. The middle three chapters then validate and extend this mode by considering three elements of the televisual medium in even greater depth: Intimacy, flow, and instances of audience activism. Finally, the conclusion of the study considers the continued utility of the proposed mode in a contemporary era marked by media convergence and technological implosion.Item Class negotiations : poverty, welfare policy, and American television(2014-08) Murphy, Nicole Lynn; Beltrán, MaryTelevision impacts the shape of our common culture by depicting our societal fears, myths and hopes in a constantly shifting and negotiated manner. There is a glaring lack of research regarding media representations of children/adolescents in poverty. The study of this intersection is critically important for understanding societal discourse around education, healthcare, government assistance programs and even the opinions and practices of teachers and administrators. Children under 18 years of age represent 24 percent of the population, but they comprise 34 percent of all people in poverty in the United States. Among all children, 45 percent live in low-income families and approximately one in every five (22 percent) live in poor families. In this thesis, I trace discourse in the mainstream news and popular culture regarding children and poverty through welfare debates and policy changes in the U.S. from the 1990s and 2000s through the Clinton, Bush, and Obama administrations. Subsequently, I analyze the construction of this discourse on narrative television in the shows My So Called Life (ABC, 1994-1995) The O.C. (FOX, 2003-2007) and Shameless (Showtime, 2011-). Through this mapping, I examine how gender, sexuality, race, and age are mobilized in constructing televisual representations of poverty; as well as how shifting discourses and depictions make transparent society’s anxieties regarding poverty.Item The construction of Honolulu(2014-12) Warren, Nathan David; Kelban, Stuart; Ramirez-Berg, CharlesWithin this report is an examination of the influences, ideas, and historical references that were instrumental in writing the pilot episode of Honolulu. This report will also chronicle the development of the story from its initial inception to its hopeful future. Special attention is given to obstacles in the story that were overcome by unconventional, or counter-intuitive writing measures.Item Crafting digital cinema : cinematographers in contemporary Hollywood(2011-08) Lucas, Robert Christopher; Schatz, Thomas, 1948-; Strover, Sharon; Schiesari, Nancy; Hunt, Bruce; Hay, JamesIn the late 1990s, motion picture and television production began a process of rapid digitalization with profound implications for cinematographers in Hollywood, as new tools for “digital cinematography” became part of the traditional production process. This transition came in three waves, starting with a post-production technique, the digital intermediate, then the use of high-definition video and digital production cameras, and finally digital exhibition. This dissertation shows how cinematographers responded to the technical and aesthetic challenges presented by digital production tools as they replaced elements of the film-based, photochemical workflow. Using trade publications, mainstream press sources, and in-depth interviews with cinematographers and filmmakers, I chronicle this transition between 1998 and 2005, analyzing how cinematographers’ responded to and utilized these new digital technologies. I analyze demonstration texts, promotional videos, and feature films, including Pleasantville, O Brother Where Art Thou, Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, The Anniversary Party, Personal Velocity, and Collateral, all of which played a role in establishing a discourse and practice of digital cinematography among cinematographers, producers and directors. The challenges presented by new collaborators such as the colorist and digital imaging technician are also examined. I discuss cinematographers’ work with standards-setting groups such as the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and the studio consortium Digital Cinema Initiatives, describing it as an effort to protect “film-look” and establish look-management as a prominent feature of their craft practice. In an era when digitalization has made motion pictures more malleable and mobile than ever before, this study shows how cinematographers attempted to preserve their historical, craft-based sense of masterful cinematography and a structure of authority that privileges the cinematographer as “guardian of the image."Item Create to live : perceptions of contemporary art in reality TV(2016-05) Macknight, Lauren; Bolin, Paul Erik, 1954-; Bain, ChristinaWithin the field of art education, there has been little to no research into the knowledge afforded by discourses around popular culture, especially those specific to reality television, into how the public conceptualizes contemporary art and artists. This kind of foundational knowledge is critical to our own development and evolution as a field as we learn how to most effectively reach our students and advocate best for the value of arts in education. Through an investigation of the television program Work of Art: The Next Great Artist, I asked: is the perception of contemporary art and practice altered by the lens of popular culture and, specifically, the reality television format? Is this an entryway to a broader dialogue about art’s value in the 21st century and to young individuals’ lives and careers? Results from this study were threefold. First, results pointed to a pattern of progressively nuanced insight and descriptive talk, indicated alternative access to art’s interpretability through the lens of popular culture. Talk in the focus groups functioned as a way for participants to perform access to interpretive authority over subjects of contemporary art to varying degrees of success, whether that meant adopting art terminology or modeling the language of judges and artist-contestants. Secondly, analysis displayed the discursive work involved in the meaning-making around understanding the artist as a figure, as a myth, and as a profession. Participants’ interactional speech performed a balancing act between critically examining the competing discourses of the artist—as contestant and creative laborer—and an understanding of who they are and their own identity in relation to the character of the artist. Lastly, analysis uncovered situated meaning of art and its value, where participants conducted a critical negotiation of what is and what was not art unfettered by lack of art historical knowledge of access to art’s interpretability.Item Egypt is mother of the world : transnational television and national identity(2010-08) Elseewi, Tarik Ahmed; Kumar, Shanti; Kackman, Michael; Wilkins, Karin G.; Straubhaar, Joe; Kraidy, MarwanThis dissertation is about the production of national identity in the transnational age. Focusing on the specific example of Egyptian television, this dissertation argues that new production imperatives, mainly in satellite television and internet, have changed the way that television is produced in the Arabic speaking Middle East, most significantly away from direct state control. The changes in production accompany changes in distribution and consumption of electronic media and are significantly rewriting the ways that shared cultural identities in the Middle East, including nationalism, religious, and other significant identities, are produced, consumed and replicated. This dissertation approaches these topics by relating two specific televisual texts, the Ramadan serials Malek Farouq and Gamal Abdel Nasser, to larger changes in Arab and Egyptian television production.Item Fat Camp : the development of a half hour series(2015-08) Mahoney, Chelsea Taylor; Kelban, Stuart; Lewis, RichardThis report describes the journey of Chelsea Mahoney as a writer, along with the development and evolution of the half hour series Fat Camp. It analyzes the start of the writer's development, to her time at the University of Texas, and the teachers that impacted her strongly. The writer investigates her insecurities and their impact on her writing. Additionally, the paper examines the initial concept of Fat Camp, the process of re-writing the script, as well as the finished product.Item GLBTQ representation on children's television : an analysis of news coverage and cultural conservatism(2015-05) Mayer, Christopher John; Tyner, Kathleen R.; Fuller-Seeley, KathrynThe invisibility of GLBTQ characters on children's television stands in stark contrast to trends in adolescent and adult television over the past decade. A deep cultural ambivalence exists as to whether or not sexual identities are appropriate topics for young children on preschool television programming. For example, a marriage between Sesame Street characters Bert and Ernie has been the topic of many petitions, political debates, and academic studies over the years. This analysis seeks to reconcile the cultural ambivalence through analysis of news coverage over the most prominent children's shows associated with latent and/or manifest GLBTQ content. New stories that make up the research sample are analyzed for "Anti-GLBTQ" logics, and placed in a broader discourse analysis of societal expectations for children’s television, and what is considered to be appropriate content. The goal of this study is to draw greater attention to debates over how to best serve the educational needs of young children, and posits that the increasing numbers of children living under same-sex parented households are underserved by the children's television industry. The ambivalence by the industry seems suspect given prior, and well established efforts, of children’s shows, such as Sesame Street, and the ability of educational programming to bridge cultural, class, and racial divides. This study represents a preliminary effort to extend the conversations about children’s television content to be more inclusive of GLBTQ identities.Item (In)valuable (in)visibility : black leading ladies and the performance of dissenting discourse(2015-12) Martin, Nicole L.; Jones, Omi Osun Joni L., 1955-; Canning, Charlotte; Gross, Kali N.; Paredez, Deborah; Thompson, Lisa B.(In)Valuable (In)Visibility investigates the emerging persona of the black leading lady as a visible and celebrated image of contemporary black womanhood. This dissertation draws from performance studies, black studies, and black feminist studies, and argues that black women have experienced heightened acclaim in mainstream public spaces since 2008. Throughout this dissertation, the black leading lady is positioned as an embodied convergence between black women’s historical degradation and their current increased popularity. The chapters of this dissertation offer focused case studies on three contemporary black leading ladies: a public figure, Michelle Obama; a fictional television character, Olivia Pope; and, a theatrical character machination, Vera Stark. The varied subjects of each chapter are explored to determine the performative consistencies of the black leading lady across setting. Each chapter works to index to the sociopolitical and sociocultural climate that makes space for her emergence. This dissertation is thematically driven to expound on the issues that are considered most pressing to contemporary black womanhood. Chapter One explores issues of black women’s citizenship through First Lady Michelle Obama. In this chapter, I argue Michelle Obama enacts a performance of archetypal black female citizenship to demonstrate how the black leading lady achieves State recognition while simultaneously exposing and critiquing the boundaries of normative citizenship that have long excluded marginalized others. Chapter Two shifts focus to the character Olivia Pope on ABC’s Scandal. This chapter introduces the concept of the sexual script, held in tandem with the sexual scenario, to demonstrate how the black leading lady’s sexual subjectivity is made legible in mainstream television. Chapter Three explores the archival manipulation of the character Vera Stark in Lynn Nottage’s play, By The Way, Meet Vera Stark. In this chapter, I reveal how the black leading lady is made to manifest in an archive that would otherwise seek her erasure. In summary, my dissertation argues the black leading lady is a critical site for asserting the vitality and vibrancy of contemporary black women.Item Individual differences in processing emotional television: The role of Liberalism and Conservatism(2011-08) Moya, Leslie; Bradley, Samuel D.; Smith, Jessica E.Research has shown that media effects vary among individuals, and individual differences play an important role in predicting media effects. The current study investigates the role that individual differences play in processing emotional television. It specifically looks at how Liberals and Conservatives process emotional television messages differently. This study uses psychophysiological measures to examine differences in systems associated with the appetitive and aversive motivational systems, and to examine resource allocation to emotional stimuli. Participants also participated in a signal detection task to test recognition sensitivity for the television messages. A pretest was conducted in which 70 participants rated each stimulus clip based on their experienced arousal, experienced valence, and experienced dominance during the clip. Clips that best fit the experimental conditions; highly arousing pleasant, moderately arousing pleasant, highly arousing unpleasant, and moderately arousing unpleasant. Seventy-nine participants enrolled in Mass Communications classes or belonging student organizations participated in the final experiment. This study found that activation of the appetitive and aversive motivational systems vary among liberals and conservatives, such that participants high in liberalism responded most strongly to unpleasant clips and participants high in conservatism responded most strongly to pleasant clips.Item It’s not the Internet; it’s television : deciphering the path for new narrative in an electronic world(2010-12) Gray, Jessica, 1977-; Kelban, Stuart; Thorne, BeauIt’s not the Internet; it’s television: deciphering the path for new narrative in an electronic world evaluates the changing processes and product of narrative on the Internet and in television through the revision of Jessica Gray’s pilot "Small town werewolves" and the FRINGE spec, "Three blind mice."Item “More than just film” : rebranding independence on IFC(2013-08) Trimble, Jessica Lynn; Schatz, Thomas, 1948-In 2010, IFC (formerly Independent Film Channel) underwent a major rebrand campaign, which included a redesigned logo, tagline, and channel name; a transition to ad-supported programming and airing films with commercial interruptions; a reliance on original scripted comedy series; an emphasis on so-called 'blockbuster' indies over lesser-known films; and a general de-emphasis of independent film as the core of the brand identity. The features of the rebrand closely mirrored actions already taken by other film-based cable channels, most notably IFC's current parent channel, AMC (formerly American Movie Classics). In refashioning the IFC brand identity, IFC executives seized upon the instability of the term independent within existing discourses around independent film and music production and constructed a looser definition -- one that was no longer rooted in independent film and also hailed a very specific gendered, raced, and classed audience in order to attract new advertisers. This project contextualizes IFC's pre- and post-rebrand brand identity within the American independent film and music movements that began in the late 1980s and continued into the 1990s before analyzing the paratextual means through which the post-2010 IFC brand identity has been constructed, including upfront presentations, trade press coverage, press releases, on-air promotional spots, materials for prospective advertisers, images from graphic design agency portfolios, and IFC employee instructional guides on the use of language and image following the rebrand. Finally, this project examines how IFC has constructed its niche cable viewership following the rebrand in order to deliver the traditional commodity audience to its advertisers. Together, these analyses form a compelling look at the shifting discourses of independent cultural production and how independent-ness is situated within IFC's construction of a niche cable brand identity.Item News media roles in bridging communities: consensus function of agenda-setting(2009-12) Higgins, Vanessa de Macedo; McCombs, Maxwell E.Technological, political and economical developments have fostered the spread of transnational media since the latter part of the 20th century. Despite that, most studies of media effects are still nationally bound. This dissertation discusses some of the effects that both national and transnational news media can have on people’s thoughts and feelings. It explores the particular effect of consensus building as a consequence of second level agenda-setting. The main focus of this dissertation is how national and transnational news media can bring different demographic groups closer in their perceptions of major topics in the news. This dissertation analyzes consensus building effects through the European Union’s reaction to the attacks of September 11, 2001 in the United States. It analyzes how the use of national and transnational media brought EU demographic groups in closer agreement regarding the attributes of the terrorism issue and of the Muslim and Arab communities, as they related to the events of 9-11 and its aftermaths for the EU community. This study is based on a secondary data analysis of a survey conducted in the close aftermath of 9-11. It is an extensive replication of Shaw and Martin’s (1992) consensus model based on a cross-national analysis of 15 European Union nations and their patterns of national and transnational news media use among four demographic groups in relation to the substantive and affective dimensions of attribute agendas regarding the aftermath of 9-11. This study found evidence that national media bring the segments of society to closer agreement regarding the attributes of terrorism and the attributes of the Muslim and Arab communities. This was especially true for those indicating they used national television. Transnational media also have some potential for similar effects, though less than for national media. Borders still matter but it will be interesting in the future to see if the increasing availability of transnational media translates into increased influence as well.Item The niche network : gender, genre, and the CW brand(2013-05) Lausch, Kayti Adaire; Beltrán, MaryIn 2006, the merger of the WB and UPN broadcast networks created a new network, the CW. As the fifth major broadcast network, the CW occupies an interesting, hybrid space within the television industry. The CW behaves like a cable channel, yet it usually receives the coverage of a broadcast network. Its target audience is women ages 18 to 34, an extremely small target demographic by any standards. Despite its unique status with the television industry, the CW remains woefully under-studied. This project aims first to provide a context for the CW moment and compare the network's trajectory with that of its predecessors in order to illuminate the myriad of changes that have occurred in the media industries. This project considers how the CW's branding strategies shape perceptions of the network, how the CW brand is produced and how the network's branding practices demonstrate an investment in postfeminism. In order to analyze the CW's branding, this paper examines the network's promotional materials and other paratexts, focusing primarily on print ads, since they are the most circulated. This project also asks how the CW constructs its audience in this age of postfeminism. In order to expose the contradictions and assumptions that underpin the network's project of audience construction, this paper considers both statements from network executives and the network's penchant for reviving 1990s programs with nostalgic appeal. Finally, this paper considers how the category of the "CW show" functions as a genre, and, through textual and narrative analysis, how that genre works to limit the possibilities for female representation on the network. This analysis draws attention to the complicated ways that postfeminist ideas are integrated into young women's programming today, and how conversations about female audiences have changed in the last twenty years. This project draws attention to an as-yet-unstudied site dominated by what Rosalind Gill calls the "postfeminist sensibility" (148).Item Nielsen versus Nielsen: A usability analysis of television homepages(2006-08) McDermand, Amanda; Youngblood, Norman E.; Callison, Coy; Gallagher, Amanda H.Several studies explore the design and usability of homepages, but none have investigated both in the context of local television Web sites. A content analysis of 173 local and eight national television homepages stratified by Designated Market Area (DMA) rank and station rating within a DMA provide insight into how these homepages follow recommended usability guidelines proposed by Jakob Nielsen. Additionally, this research seeks to discover major design trends found on local television homepages based on a high or low DMA rank. This study revealed through a correlation analysis that DMA rank does not correlate with usability score; however, station rating within a DMA and usability score are correlated. Furthermore, DMA rank and station rating within a DMA are correlated with homepage traffic and the number of interactivity features found on a homepage. These findings suggest usability standards may need revisions based on the rapid growth and adoption of the Web.Item Nielsen versus Nielsen: a usability analysis of television homepages(Texas Tech University, 2006-08) McDermand, Amanda; Youngblood, Norman E.; Gallagher, Amanda H.; Callison, CoySeveral studies explore the design and usability of homepages, but none have investigated both in the context of local television Web sites. A content analysis of 173 local and eight national television homepages stratified by Designated Market Area (DMA) rank and station rating within a DMA provide insight into how these homepages follow recommended usability guidelines proposed by Jakob Nielsen. Additionally, this research seeks to discover major design trends found on local television homepages based on a high or low DMA rank. This study revealed through a correlation analysis that DMA rank does not correlate with usability score; however, station rating within a DMA and usability score are correlated. Furthermore, DMA rank and station rating within a DMA are correlated with homepage traffic and the number of interactivity features found on a homepage. These findings suggest usability standards may need revisions based on the rapid growth and adoption of the Web.Item “Nothing’s been the same since New York” : the Marvel Cinematic Universe's engagement with 9/11 and the War on Terror(2015-05) Bograd, Natalie Kate; Perren, Alisa; Schatz, ThomasThis thesis explores how the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has engaged with 9/11 and the War on Terror since its inception in 2008. This thesis examines industrial and cultural factors affecting the way these post-9/11 superhero films engage with contemporary sociopolitical concerns and argues that the Marvel Studios films both attempt to engage with said concerns and also sanitize and rework references to terrorism, war, torture, and destruction in order to remain palatable for the widest possible audience (including a family audience and a growing international market). In contrast to other superhero franchises, several of which intentionally play on post-9/11 feelings of vulnerability and terror, the MCU films and television series use a combination of humor, a brightly colored comic book aesthetic, and impressive visual spectacles in order to ensure that the primary focus is on entertainment. This thesis provides a detailed analysis of the characters, ideological content, and visual elements of the MCU as they relate to 9/11 and the War on Terror.Item Performing 21st-century girlhood : girls, postfeminist discourse, and the Disney star machine(2013-08) Blue, Morgan Genevieve; Kearney, Mary Celeste, 1962-"Performing 21st-Century Girlhood: Girls, Postfeminist Discourse, and the Disney Star Machine," explores the economic and discursive functions of contemporary girlhood within Disney Channel's talent-driven transmedia franchises. Ideological, discursive, and narrative textual analyses of Disney Channel programs and paratexts are augmented by examination of the corporate motives and dominant discourses reproduced by Disney personnel in annual reports and in popular and trade publications referencing Disney's stars and girl-driven franchises. This exploration of girls' visibility as Disney performers, media producers, and public citizens brings several disciplines into conversation with one another, addressing issues in girls' cultural studies, media industries scholarship, celebrity studies, and theories of postfeminism. I take an intersectional feminist and critical cultural studies approach to media texts and meaning-making, with particular attention to power relations and cultural contexts. The political and economic aspects of this research demand that I also work to illuminate the significance of media industry logics within the production and distribution of media for girl audiences. I argue that the Walt Disney Company has a vested interest in reproducing certain postfeminist and subjectifying discourses of girlhood, which have become integral to its success in an ever-expanding web of media and consumer markets. While Disney Channel's girl-driven franchises constitute the case studies, my analysis reaches beyond the clear focus on gender and age to theorize girls' increasing visibility in the context of contemporary consumer culture and issues of postracism, citizenship, subjectification, and agency--issues that require continued interrogation as Disney distributes and expands its franchise properties globally.