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In less than a century, the flickering blue-grey light of the television screen has become a cultural icon. What do the images transmitted by that screen tell us about power, authority, gender stereotypes, and ideology in the United States? Television, History, and American Culture addresses this ...

In less than a century, the flickering blue-grey light of the television screen has become a cultural icon. What do the images transmitted by that screen tell us about power, authority, gender stereotypes, and ideology in the United States? Television, History, and American Culture addresses this question by illuminating how television both reflects and influences American culture and identity.The essays collected here focus on women in front of, behind, and on the TV screen, as producers, viewers, and characters. Using feminist and historical criticism, the contributors investigate how television has shaped our understanding of gender, power, race, ethnicity, and sexuality from the 1950s to the present. The topics range from the role that women broadcasters played in radio and early television to the attempts of Desilu Productions to present acceptable images of Hispanic identity, from the impact of TV talk shows on public discourse and the politics of offering viewers positive images of fat women to the negotiation of civil rights, feminism, and abortion rights on news programs and shows such as I Spy and Peyton Place.Innovative and accessible, this book will appeal to those interested in women's studies, American studies, and popular culture and the critical study of television.Contributors. Julie D'Acci, Mary Desjardins, Jane Feuer, Mary Beth Haralovich, Michele Hilmes, Moya Luckett, Lauren Rabinovitz, Jane M. Shattuc, Mark Williams

Television, long regarded as mere entertainment, is now being seriously considered for its significance in all our lives. The crusading "60 Minutes" has become the archetype of the news program acting in the public interest; the irreverent zaniness of "Monty Python's Flying Circus" has permanently ...

Television, long regarded as mere entertainment, is now being seriously considered for its significance in all our lives. The crusading "60 Minutes" has become the archetype of the news program acting in the public interest; the irreverent zaniness of "Monty Python's Flying Circus" has permanently changed our view of the world--if only our view of how silly it can be; and MTV has irrevocably altered the popular music scene. Of course, C-SPAN revolutionized the public view of Congress, and without CNN the Gulf War would have been a far different experience--indeed, without the close-up coverage of the war in Vietnam, our opinions about war itself would be far different. Now, in Television: An International History, the first illustrated history of our most influential cultural phenomenon, readers will find an invaluable resource that covers the whole expanse of the medium, from Africa to Australia, from Burbank to Bangkok, covering news, sports, drama, comedy, and more. Written by a distinguished team of specialists, Television describes the history of T.V. from its technical conception in the nineteenth century right through the bewildering multimedia developments of the present. Alongside this historical account, chapters provide an important discussion of the central debates affecting television worldwide, from technological developments to programming (how it differs around the world, and how it has evolved over the years), and from television's impact on society (including questions of violence and social standards) to television's relationship to terrorism. Television has been seen as simply yet another market, and as a social tool; it has been condemned, controlled, and (rarely) praised as a social good. Yet, in many ways, television has shaped modern culture, and social life now revolves around entertainment in the home in a way unthinkable sixty years ago, forcing us to examine such questions as: How have viewing practices affected our homes? How do we arrive at fair standards of taste and decency? And how does government influence television? For example, will the role of public service broadcasting drastically change, or altogether disappear, as Congress considers slashing its funding? Vividly illustrated and accessibly written, Television is a major exploration of the world's most dominant and defining medium. It will intrigue anyone interested in its early beginnings, its impact on our society, and its not-so-distant future.

For half a century, television spies have been trained professionals, reluctant heroes, housewives, businessmen, criminals, and comedians. They have by turns been glamorous, campy, reflective, sexy, and aloof. This is the first book-length treatment of one of TV's oldest and most fascinating genres ...

For half a century, television spies have been trained professionals, reluctant heroes, housewives, businessmen, criminals, and comedians. They have by turns been glamorous, campy, reflective, sexy, and aloof. This is the first book-length treatment of one of TV's oldest and most fascinating genres. Britton's comprehensive guide provides readers, from casual viewers to die-hard fans, with behind-the-scenes stories to this notable segment of television entertainment.

What does a country's television programming say about its deep character, beliefs, dreams, and fears? In Demon in the Box, Tasha G. Oren recounts the volatile history of Israeli television and thereby reveals the history of the nation itself. Initially rejected as a corrupting influence on "the ...

What does a country's television programming say about its deep character, beliefs, dreams, and fears? In Demon in the Box, Tasha G. Oren recounts the volatile history of Israeli television and thereby reveals the history of the nation itself. Initially rejected as a corrupting influence on "the people of the book," television became the object of fantasies and anxieties that went to the heart of Israel's most pressing concerns: Arab-Israeli relations, immigration, and the forgoing of a modern Israeli culture. Television broadcasting was aimed toward external relations--the flow of messages across borders, Arab-Israeli conflict, and the shaping of public opinion worldwide--as much as it was toward internal needs and interests. Through archival research and analysis of public scandals and early programs, Oren traces Israeli television's transformation from a feared agent of decadence to a powerful national communication tool, and eventually, to a vastly popular entertainment medium.

This book offers an interpretation of the myths that shape television images and reinforce this culture's dominant ideology. It provides histories of all television genres and connects developments within each genre to political, social, and cultural shifts in the larger society. This new Second ...

This book offers an interpretation of the myths that shape television images and reinforce this culture's dominant ideology. It provides histories of all television genres and connects developments within each genre to political, social, and cultural shifts in the larger society. This new Second Edition updates the previous edition's close textual analysis of representative series and serials to mid-1993, reflecting the significant changes that have occurred in both the business of television in the United States and in the larger society's dominant ideology. The Second Edition also reflects significant advances in critical theory related to the study of television that have occurred over the past decade, and it incorporates both the structuralist critical position (dominant in the first edition) and a post-structuralist position which moves away from a determinist textual analysis of ideology to a consideration of possible multiple decodings.