Interesting links, questions and discussions

Subject: television’s digital rejuvenation

Television still occupies a dominant position in our media use. What is interesting in the era of new media cultures is to determine how television has adapted to the changes that digitalization have brought to its audiences (and now former audiences). There is no question that the television industry is in a state of dramatic flux – and much of that flux has been the development of competing forms of media use and what we have described as the integration of the will-to-produce that is perhaps more embedded in the technologies of games or the internet. Here are some key tropes to follow and research in the rejuvenation of television:

The Long History of Audience Control/Audience ‘Interactivity’

Choice has long been television’s response to its perceived lack of quality. The expansion in the number of channels permitted the development of new dimensions of choice; it also was contemporaneous with the development of the remote control and the emergence of recording technology that could be employed for time shifting. Television both as a technology and as an industry was regularly developing new strategies of inclusion of the audience through new techniques of use.

But Then Again – The Look of the Industry

The production of choice by television must be understood as being limited by the ownership developments of the last 20 years. Looking at NewsCorp and its stable of television networks connected to the Fox brand can be a sobering experience if choice is to be understood through ownership diversity.

Similarly, take a look at Viacom’s holdings and the vast array of channels is in this particular broadcasting stable.

To go further into a political economic critique of choice, it is worth looking at cross-ownership patterns and the general decline in public broadcasters in this same 20-year period. Take back the media charts the chroniclers of media ownership on their site.

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Creative Developments in Television: Lifestyle Programmes and Reality Television

Programmers and production houses have moved in a different direction in their efforts to capture the audiences that live immersed in forms of new media culture. Lifestyle and reality programmes for instance, are two broad categories that are part of television’s strategy of audience interactivity and inclusion. Significantly, all television programmes have associated websites.

In terms of reality television, a number of books have recently appeared that give a sense of how to approach their new media qualities. Refer to the New Media Cultures’ bibliography for more details. Some key names include, Susan Murray, Mark Andrechuck, Sam Brenton and Reuben Cohen – Shooting People, and Mark Andrejevic. Here is a list of sites for online work and crossovers with existing reality television programmes.

General:

Reality News online

A selection of official show sites:

American Idol – or perhaps you would prefer Canadian Idol
The Bachelor
Big Brother
Real World
Survivor
The Swan

The new generation of lifestyle programs are a celebration of production – albeit in the vein of home renovation. To start researching this development it is worthwhile reading Frances Bonner’s Ordinary Television (2003). There are other researchers are exploring this area too, look for new book length edited collections in the coming years.

Extreme Makeover
Faking It – or here is the American version
GroundForce – or perhaps you would rather the Australian version
Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
Trading Spaces

Some innovative techniques have been employed to support some dramatic programmes as well. Dawson’s Creek, which was one of the most inventive in the use of its website in support of the programme.

Merging Technologies: Tivo, Replay Television and On-Demand Television

Jason Mittell’s paper is a good place to begin researching the technology of Tivo. On Tivo’s website there is a location which shows their industry partners. Also, William Boddy’s article in the The New Media Book is excellent.

On Demand television is how the cable companies are matching the services of replay television by allowing you to watch particular programmes on your leisure rather than those of the networks and cable/satellite channels. These movements are reflections of a move to personalize television; together with replay television they may prove to be a threat to advertising-supported television.

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Questions and Discussions:

Television’s strength has been its capacity to ‘represent’ the public sphere. Is television still fulfilling that role in society? In what ways has the public sphere transformed into pluralities in the era of digital television? What are the implications of this less coherent public sphere for contemporary politics and culture?

Debate the ‘value’ of different formats of television. What is the pleasure of watching narrative television? How is that part of reality television and also how has reality television intensified different kinds of interests and investments?

What is the future of television? Will it be sustained as an advertising-supported medium? Is there are larger process of convergence that will make the different technologies indistinguishable?