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Nervous Laughter examines 40 years of situation comedy, decade by decade, providing the first truly panoramic view of TV's most popular dramatic form. Within this context, Hamamoto traces what he describes as the dominant liberal democratic ideology implicit within situation comedy and explains its ...

Nervous Laughter examines 40 years of situation comedy, decade by decade, providing the first truly panoramic view of TV's most popular dramatic form. Within this context, Hamamoto traces what he describes as the dominant liberal democratic ideology implicit within situation comedy and explains its enduring popularity. "Critically analyzing four decades of television situation comedies from The Honeymooners to The Bill Cosby Show, Hamamoto shows how the sitcom reflects, explains, legitimates, and challenges the society in which it is grounded, illuminating the power of laughter both to reaffirm and to question existing social structures. . . . Hamamoto offers a well-researched and refreshingly lucid study, immensely readable for its astute scholarship. Indispensable for students and scholars of television, popular culture, and comedy." Choice

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

This second edition of a trend-setting volume provides an updated examination of the interaction between families and the most pervasive mass medium: television. Charting the dynamic developments of the American family and television over the past decade, this volume provides a comprehensive ...

This second edition of a trend-setting volume provides an updated examination of the interaction between families and the most pervasive mass medium: television. Charting the dynamic developments of the American family and television over the past decade, this volume provides a comprehensive representation of programmatic research into family and television and examines extensively the uses families make of television, how extensions of television affect usage, families' evolving attitudes toward television, the ways families have been and are portrayed on television, the effects television has on families, and the ways in which families can mediate its impact on their lives. The volume is an invaluable resource for scholars and students in the areas of media and society, children and media, and family studies.

PART I: Housewives, Heroines, Feminists 1. Everyday Life, Michelle Mattelart 2. The Search for Tomorrow in Today's Soap Operas, Tania Modleski 3. Affirmation and Denial: Construction of Feminity on Indian Television (excerpts), Prabha Krishnan and Anita Digh 4. Roseanne: Unruly Woman as ...

PART I: Housewives, Heroines, Feminists 1. Everyday Life, Michelle Mattelart 2. The Search for Tomorrow in Today's Soap Operas, Tania Modleski 3. Affirmation and Denial: Construction of Feminity on Indian Television (excerpts), Prabha Krishnan and Anita Digh 4. Roseanne: Unruly Woman as Domestic Goddess, Kathleen Rowe 5. L.A. Law and Prime-Time Feminism, Judith Mayne 6. Empowering Women? The Oprah Winfrey Show, Corrine Squire 7. Identity in Feminist Television Criticism, Charlotte Brunsdon 8. New Traditionalism and Post-Feminism: TV Does the Home, Elspeth Probyn PART TWO: Audiences and Reception Contexts 9. Women's Genres, Annette Kuhn 10. Melodramatic Identifications: Television Fiction and Women's Fantasy, Ien Ang 11. Black Feminism and Media Criticism: The Women of Brewster Place, Jacqeline Bobo and Ellen Seiter 12. In Love with Inspecter Morse, Lyn Thomas 13. Fruitful Investigations: The Case of the Successful Lesbian Text, Hilary Hinds 14. the Suburban Home Companion: Television and the Neighborhood Ideal in Postwar America, Lynn Spigel 15. Behind Closed Doors: Video Recorders in the Home, Ann Gray PART THREE: Private Bodies, Public Figures 16. Television Tales and a Woman's Rage: A Nationalist Recasting of Draupidi's Disrobing, Purnima Mankekar 17. Abortion Discourse and 1970s Television Documentary, Julie D'Acci 18. The Ideology of Freshness in Feminine Hygiene Commericials, Kate Kane 19. Never Trust a Big Butt and a Smile, Tricia Rose 20. The Gorgeous Lesbian in L.A. Law: The Present Absence?, Rosanne Kennedy 21. Reproducing Reality: Murphy Brown and Illegitimate Politics, Rebecca Walkowitz 22. Representation Wars: Malaysia, Embassy, and Australia's Corps Diplomatique, Suvendrini Perera

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.