Transcript Television

Television
Unit 5
TV Programming
Television programming
From
is based on borrowing
radio (in the case of early TV)
From old program ideas (like the police drama, or the
hospital drama)
From other programmers (like how American Idol and
The Office are based on shows from Britain)
TV’s Good and Evil
Provides a
common
ground for the
populace to
“experience” cultural
events (like the 9/11
crisis)
May
be responsible
for contributing to
society’s ills:
Teen
pregnancy
Criminal violence
Historical Data
1948
1% of all households have a TV
1953 50+%
Early 1960’s 90+%
The Science
Broadcast TV
signals travel through the airwaves,
like radio signals do, so only a limited number of
stations can exist in any one market.
Cable assigns stations in a wired system
VHF
The FCC
(Federal Communications Commission)
set aside thirteen channels for “very high
frequency” black and white TV transmission
Result: Regional stations fought for rights to one
of the thirteen; the FCC “froze” licensing
FCC’s Effect
Cities w/
no stations saw increased attendance at
movie theaters (Portland, Oregon and Little Rock,
Arkansas, for example)
Cities w/ many TV stations
Decreased
movie attendance
Decreased taxi and nightclub receipts
Decreased library book circulation
UHF
FCC
ends freeze, adds seventy “ultra-high
frequency” stations above 13
NOTE: For almost twelve years, the FCC didn’t
require TV manufacturers to include UHF
capability, so UHF stations struggled
More History
By
the mid-50’s, after the freeze, there were
about 400 TV stations in operation
That is 400% higher than the pre-FCC freeze!
Today, more
than 1,700 broadcast stations are in
operation across the U.S., including 300+
nonprofits
Sponsorship
Early
shows were usually conceived, produced,
and supported by a single sponsor:
The
Buick Circus Hour
The Camel News Caravan
The Colgate Comedy Hour
DOWNSIDE: All
control over programming is in
the hands of the advertiser/sponsor
Sponsorship Declines
 Show
length increased from 15 to 30 minutes,
significantly raising ad and sponsorship costs
 Shows were aired daily rather than weekly. The
“magazine” show, like the Today show, which had news,
talk, comedy, music, etc., and ran daily, made the costs
for advertisers out of reach
 Stations would buy “specials” and sell ad space to
multiple corporations. (Like a Christmas special hosted
by Bing Crosby or Frank Sinatra)
Scandals End Sponsorship
 Quiz
shows – cheap to produce w/ simple sets and nonactors as guests; one sponsor (see paragraph 2, pg 167)
 To get rid of non-interesting guests, the more appealing
contestants were rehearsed and given answers
 The “rigging” of the shows became a scandal, as
everyone realized they might be watching “fake” games
TV News
Since the
60’s, polls have shown that people
“trust” the TV news more than newspapers or
radio news
The news “anchor” is the one personality who
delivers the news, usually from a desk
Famous news anchors include David Brinkley,
Walter Cronkite, and Tom Brokaw
TV News, cont’d.
A central broadcast is
often taped then aired on
affiliate stations – independently owned stations
that sign contracts w/ a network and carry its
programs
TV newsmagazines draw viewers:
Usually
only a few stories, covered equally:
 Hard-hitting,
investigative story (like corruption)
 Soft, entertainment-focused story
 Soft, “homey” story of an “average Joe”
Televised Comedies
Sketch comedy
– small skits and performances
fill the programming time; similar to a Vaudeville
stage performance on screen; expensive!
Milton
Berle
Sid Ceasar
Red Skelton
Famous writers: Mel Brooks, Woody Allen
Televised Comedies, cont’d
Situation comedy
– recurring cast; establishes a
situation, complicates it, develops increasing
confusion among characters, then finally
alleviates (solves) the complication
I
Love Lucy, Beverly Hillbillies, Happy Days, Seinfeld,
Will & Grace, The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Television Comedies, cont’d
Domestic comedy
– a spin-off of situation;
typically a family crisis or personal problem;
focuses more on character development and
setting
All
in the Family, Leave It To Beaver, Everybody
Loves Raymond, Just Shoot Me, Spin City, Frasier
Television Drama
In
early 50’s TV served a wealthier audience (like
cable TV did in the 80’s)
Live, dramatic theater – actors play out a script
Expensive to produce
Often presented stories that confronted complex
problems not easy to resolve = not a formula for
popularity!
Anthology Drama’s Pitfalls
Expensive to
produce
Often presented stories that confronted complex
problems not easy to resolve = controversial
The seriousness of the subjects clashed with the
perfect, happy world of the advertisements
Only supported by a limited, wealthier audience
Episodic Series
Main
characters continue from week to week
Sets and locales remain static
Characters remain the same = audience can
identify easily with them
Types of Episodic Series
Chapter
shows – self-contained shows that
feature a problem, a series of conflicts, then a
resolution
Gunsmoke
(1955-1975)
Little House on the Prairie (1974-1982)
Dragnet (1951-1959, 1967-1970)
C.S.I. (2000- )
The X-Files (1993-2002)
Types of Episodic Series
Serial
programs – open-ended shows where
story lines continue from episode to episode
Cliff-hanger
story lines, intimate close-up shots
Reflect the open-ended rhythms of our lives
All soap operas are serials
Syndication
When a
station purchases the rights to air a show
that has already been seen on another station or
network
Shows in syndication are “stripped” – episodes
can be shown five days a week in any order
Serials can’t be “stripped” b/c they must be
watched in order
Miniseries
A serial
that runs over a two-day to two-week
period, usually on consecutive nights
Roots
(based on the Alex Haley novel)
Miniseries success resulted in
serials:
Dallas
(1978-1991)
Dynasty (1981-1989)
weekly prime-time
“Hybrid” Series
 Mixes
comic situations and serious plots
 Many characters
 Like an open-ended soap opera – not all
crimes/situations solved in one episode
 Characters die, new ones arrive
 Hill
Street Blues (1981-1987), NYPD Blue (1993-2005)
 ER, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, West Wing, Alias, House
The Networks
The Networks’ control over
content was strongest
from the late 1950’s to the late 70’s
ABC, NBC, and CBS dictated all trends in
broadcast programming
Network Decline
1963
– Networks account for 95% of prime-time
viewing
2005 – Networks account for only 45% of primetime viewing
Network Decline
FCC
ruling that removed barriers to cable TV
Independent stations like Ted Turner’s WTBS in
Atlanta aired Braves and Hawks games, old TV
reruns, and wrestling for free via satellite/cable.
(Later charged fees)
VHS and VCRs
Enable
viewers to tape-record TV programs to
play back later – called time-shifting
Movie rental market booms
Advertisers formerly on TV get nervous! WHY?
People can FF>> through the ads!
DVRs
Digital
Video Recorders
Enable
users to record onto the computer memory
rather than on bulky tapes
Can seek out specific shows and record them – say,
search for all C.S.I. episodes and record them all
New ones allow you to make DVD collections of your
favorite shows
Government Limits Networks
 FCC
gave the 7:30-8:00pm time slot to local stations
 Result:
Most aired infotainment programs like P.M. Magazine;
Entertainment Tonight and sold ad time to local businesses
 “Fin-Syn”
rules reduced the amount networks could
charge for local stations to air syndicated programs
 Limited the networks’ production of non-news shows to
only a few hours/week
Mega-Deals
1987: Rupert
Murdoch of News Corp. launches
Fox, buys several TV stations, and purchases the
film studio Twentieth-Century Fox
Result: A major
1995: Disney
Result:
new threat to the “big-three” networks
buys ABC
Disney uses its resources to develop new
shows, pushing out independent producers
Fox’s Key to Success
 With
its limited stations, Fox airs shows for the youth and
minority markets, building a viewer base:
 The
Simpsons
 Beverly Hills 90210
 In Living Color
 Martin
 Roc
 Melrose Place
New Players in 1995 Paramount
(Viacom) starts UPN, and Time Warner starts
WB
 Similar strategy: target the young and minorities
 Moesha,
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Felicity, Dawson’s
Creek, Charmed, Smallville, Girlfriends, Gilmore Girls
 B/c
of lack of success, they are now merged as “The
CW” – top show? “America’s Next Top Model”