Television Criticism PDF
Preview Television Criticism
THIRD EDITION Television CRITICISM 2 SAGE was founded in 1965 by Sara Miller McCune to support the dissemination of usable knowledge by publishing innovative and high- quality research and teaching content. Today, we publish over 900 journals, including those of more than 400 learned societies, more than 800 new books per year, and a growing range of library products including archives, data, case studies, reports, and video. SAGE remains majority- owned by our founder, and after Sara’s lifetime will become owned by a charitable trust that secures our continued independence. 3 THIRD EDITION Television CRITICISM Victoria O’Donnell Montana State University Los Angeles London New Delhi Singapore Washington DC 4 Copyright © 2017 by SAGE Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. FOR INFORMATION: SAGE Publications, Inc. 2455 Teller Road Thousand Oaks, California 91320 E-mail: [email protected] SAGE Publications Ltd. 1 Oliver’s Yard 55 City Road London EC1Y 1SP United Kingdom SAGE Publications India Pvt. Ltd. B 1/I 1 Mohan Cooperative Industrial Area Mathura Road, New Delhi 110 044 India SAGE Publications Asia-Pacific Pte. Ltd. 3 Church Street #10-04 Samsung Hub 5 Singapore 049483 Acquisitions Editor: Matthew Byrnie Editorial Assistants: Janae Masnovi, Georgia McLaughlin Production Editor: Tracy Buyan Copy Editor: Katharine Blankenship Typesetter: Hurix Systems (P) Ltd. Proofreader: Lawrence W. Baker Indexer: Nancy Fulton Cover Designer: Janet Kiesel Marketing Manager: Ashlee Blunk Printed in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: O’Donnell, Victoria, author. Title: Television criticism / Victoria O’Donnell. Description: Third edition. | Thousand Oaks : SAGE, [2016] | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2015039532 | ISBN 9781483377681 (pbk. : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: Television criticism. | Television criticism—United States. Classification: LCC PN1992.8.C7 O33 2016 | DDC 791.45—dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015039532 This book is printed on acid-free paper. 16 17 18 19 20 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 6 Brief Contents 1. Preface 2. Acknowledgments 3. Introduction 4. PART I: ORIENTATION 1. 1. The Work of the Critic 2. 2. Demystifying the Business of Television 5. PART II: FORMAL ASPECTS OF TELEVISION 1. 3. Production Techniques and Television Style 2. 4. Television, the Nation’s Storyteller 3. 5. Television Genres 6. PART III: THEORETICAL APPROACHES TO TELEVISION CRITICISM 1. 6. Rhetoric and Culture 2. 7. Representation and Its Audience 3. 8. Postmodernism 7. PART IV: CRITICAL APPLICATIONS 1. 9. Guidelines for Television Criticism 2. 10. Sample Criticism of a Television Program: The Big Bang Theory—Season 8, Episode 824, “The Commitment Determination” 8. Glossary 9. References 10. Index 11. About the Author 7 Detailed Contents Preface Acknowledgments Introduction PART I: ORIENTATION 1 The Work of the Critic Introduction The Ends of Criticism Journalistic Television Criticism The Critical Stance Criticism and Culture Narrative and Contextual Reality Critical Categories and Critical Choices The Familiar and the Unfamiliar in Television Critical Orientation Summary Exercises Suggested Readings 2 Demystifying the Business of Television Introduction The Impact of the Internet and the Role of Advertising, Schedules, and Ratings The Impact of the Internet Advertising The Strategies of Television Advertising Product Promotion Within Television Programs Product Placement Scheduling and Advertising Noncommercial Channels Ratings Categories of Ratings Demographics Public Television and Ratings Ratings and the Cost of Advertising The Sweeps Why Television Shows Get Renewed or Canceled Ratings in the Summer 8 The Production of a Television Show Production Houses Pilots and the “Pitch” The Production Team The Producer Writers The Writer’s Treatment Directors Casting Putting a Show Into Production Sets Summary Exercises Suggested Readings PART II: FORMAL ASPECTS OF TELEVISION 3 Production Techniques and Television Style Introduction Length of Shot and Framing Multi-Camera Production Reaction Shots Lighting Production on Film Versus Digital Video Style, Reception, and Digital Video Practices Camera Choice Follows Function Television Sound and Editing Production Styles Art Direction The Split Screen Directors Actors Summary Exercises Suggested Readings 4 Television, the Nation’s Storyteller Introduction Storytelling and the Human Condition The Nature of Narrative Narrative Theories Aristotle’s Narrative Theory Propp’s Narrative Theory 9 Barthes’s Narrative Theory Fairy Tales Narrative Structure Intertextuality Characters Archetypes Myth Summary Exercises Suggested Readings 5 Television Genres Introduction Television Genre, Production, and Scheduling The Rules for Classifying Genres Genre and Television Criticism Comedy Situation Comedy Animated Situation Comedy Variety Comedy Talk Shows Nighttime Talk Shows Daytime Talk Shows Information Talk Shows News National and World News Local News News-Talk 24-Hour News Magazine Shows News-Talk-Entertainment Investigative or Public Affairs Celebrity News Drama Crime Shows (Detective, Police, FBI, and Forensic Science) Workplace Drama Family Drama Hybrid Drama Teleplays and Telefilms Docudrama 10
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