Author Description
Why Is Talk About Television Forbidden At Certain Schools? Why Does A Mother Feel Guilty About Watching Star Trek In Front Of Her Four-year-old Child? Why Would Retired Men Turn To Daytime Soap Operas For Entertainment? Cliches About Television Mask The Complexity Of Our Relationship To Media Technologies. Through Case Studies, The Author Explains What Audience Research Tells Us About The Uses Of Technologies In The Domestic Sphere And The Classroom, The Relationship Between Gender And Genre, And The Varied Interpretation Of Media Technologies And Media Forms. Television And New Media Audiences Reviews The Most Important Research On Television Audiences And Recommends The Use Of Ethnographic, Longitudinal Methods For The Study Of Media Consumption And Computer Use At Home As Well As In The Workplace. The Book Discusses Reactions Of Audiences To Many Internationally Known Television Programmes Including The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Street Fighter, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, X-men, Sesame Street, Dallas, Star Trek, The Cosby Show, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, National Geographic, Etc.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This book investigates the complex, often contradictory ways that audiences engage with television and new media technologies within domestic and educational environments. Ellen Seiter, a scholar in media and cultural studies, utilizes a synthesis of existing audience research and ethnographic methodology to challenge common cliches regarding media consumption. She argues that understanding these relationships requires moving beyond surface-level assumptions to examine how gender, social context, and personal history shape the interpretation of media content.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- Analysis of media consumption patterns in the home, classroom, and workplace.
- Examination of the intersection between gender roles and specific television genres.
- Case studies involving popular programs such as Star Trek, Dallas, and various children's animated series.
- Methodological recommendations for longitudinal ethnographic research in media studies.
Scope Limits
- The text focuses primarily on television and early new media, potentially lacking coverage of contemporary social media or streaming-exclusive platforms.
- It does not provide a comprehensive history of television production, focusing instead on the reception side of the medium.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars and students of media studies frequently cite this work as a foundational text for understanding the ethnographic approach to audience research. Readers often note the clarity with which Seiter bridges the gap between academic theory and the everyday domestic experience of media consumption.
Page Count:
170
Publication Date:
1998-01-01
Publisher:
Clarendon Press
ISBN-10:
0191584290
ISBN-13:
9780191584299
Sociology
Communication
Technology
Television
Media Studies