How to Watch Television, Second Edition

Published by New York University Press 2020

How to Watch Television, Second Edition

Edited by: Ethan Thompson and Jason Mittell

Volume 3 in the series User's Guides to Popular Culture

https://doi.org/10.18574/nyu/9781479890668.001.0001

Overview
Contents

About this book

A new edition that brings the ways we watch and think about television up to the present

We all have opinions about the television shows we watch, but television criticism is about much more than simply evaluating the merits of a particular show and deeming it “good” or “bad.” Rather, criticism uses the close examination of a television program to explore that program’s cultural significance, creative strategies, and its place in a broader social context.

How to Watch Television, Second Edition brings together forty original essays—more than half of which are new to this edition—from today’s leading scholars on television culture, who write about the programs they care (and think) the most about. Each essay focuses on a single television show, demonstrating one way to read the program and, through it, our media culture. From fashioning blackness in Empire to representation in Orange is the New Black and from the role of the reboot in Gilmore Girls to the function of changing political atmospheres in Roseanne, these essays model how to practice media criticism in accessible language, providing critical insights through analysis—suggesting a way of looking at TV that students and interested viewers might emulate. The contributors discuss a wide range of television programs past and present, covering many formats and genres, spanning fiction and non-fiction, broadcast, streaming, and cable. Addressing shows from TV’s earliest days to contemporary online transformations of the medium, How to Watch Television, Second Edition is designed to engender classroom discussion among television critics of all backgrounds.

To access additional essays from the first edition, visit the "links" tab at nyupress.org/9781479898817/how-to-watch-television-second-edition/.

Author / Editor information

Thompson Ethan :

Ethan Thompson is Professor of Media Arts at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. He is the author of Parody and Taste in Postwar American Television Culture and co-editor of Television History, the Peabody Archive, and Cultural Memory and Satire TV: Politics and Comedy in the Post-Network Era. He directed the documentary TV Family about a forgotten forerunner to reality television.Mittell Jason :

Jason Mittell is Professor of Film & Media Culture at Middlebury College. His books include Genre & Television: From Cop Shows to Cartoons in American Culture, Television & American Culture, and Complex Television: The Poetics of Contemporary Television Storytelling, and Narrative Theory and Adaptation. He is project manager for [in]Transition: Journal of Videographic Film & Moving Image Studies, and author of numerous video essays.

Ethan Thompson is Professor of Media Arts at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. He is the author of Parody and Taste in Postwar American Television Culture and co-editor of Television History, the Peabody Archive, and Cultural Memory and Satire TV: Politics and Comedy in the Post-Network Era. He directed the documentary TV Family about a forgotten forerunner to reality television.

Jason Mittell is Professor of Film & Media Culture at Middlebury College. His books include Genre & Television: From Cop Shows to Cartoons in American Culture, Television & American Culture, and Complex Television: The Poetics of Contemporary Television Storytelling, and Narrative Theory and Adaptation. He is project manager for [in]Transition: Journal of Videographic Film & Moving Image Studies, and author of numerous video essays.

Reviews

This second edition ensures that this title will remain a staple of television studies courses, and the accessible style welcomes students and general readers to explore these essays and see their favorite television shows in new ways.

Geoff Lealand, CST Online:
[I]t is a damn good collection, featuring 40 different contributions from American scholars, plus Matt Hills from Aberystwyth and Roberta Pearson from Nottingham. Their contributions are organised under five main themes: Aesthetics and Style;TV Representations: Social Identity and Cultural Politics;TV Politics: Democracy, Nation, and the Public Interest;TV Industry: Industrial Practices and Structures; and TV Practices: Medium, Technology, and Everyday Life. As with television schedules, it is easy to flick and pick and read. Indeed, the editors in their Introduction actively encourage & readers to go straight to a particular program or approach that interests them.

Kathleen Collins, Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly:
With their urging in the introduction about how the essays serve as models for writing your own criticism, the editors seem to be addressing media studies students. But because of its well-commissioned and well-balanced tone and diversity/specificity of texts, it is just as instructive for a wide range of burgeoning or established TV scholars as well as inquisitive fans of the various programs. The collection manages to be potentially enjoyable and useful to scholars and TV fans alike.

S. Pepper, Choice:
What happens when you give 40 smart television scholars ten pages each to write about a television show that interests them? You get a delightful book that is sure to become a favorite of television scholars and students alike. Thompson and Mittell have brought together authors who provide thoughtful criticism in an engaging style and cover just about every genre, historical period, and lens of analysis. Each essay's combination of brevity and detailed analysis makes the book likely to work well as both a course reader for undergraduates in television studies and a reference resource for those wanting to dive into research on individual shows. Though every essay adds something valuable to the collection, essays on Mad Men, Glee, M*A*S*H, I Love Lucy, Modern Family, NYPD Blue, The Twilight Zone, and The Walking Dead are worth the price of this fun, informative, and useful book, even for seasoned television scholars.Summing Up: Highly recommended.

Jose Solis, Popmatters:
There's not a single dull page in this book.

Journal of American Culture:
This book, unlike the manual that comes with your TV set, is utterly readable, highly engaging, and worth referring back to, long after you've switched on your favorite channel. . . . Regardless of which essay one chooses to tune in to, How to Watch Television is an accessible and impressive group of essays by a powerhouse cast of television scholars.

Michael Curtin, co-author of The American Television Industry:
Ask anyone in Hollywood and they'll tell you the movies are dead. TV is where its at, and this book will show you why. Thompson and Mittell offer an essential guide to television today, featuring the most insightful critics writing about the most creative and engaging shows. Whether student, fan, or TV professional, it belongs on your bookshelf.

Greg M. Smith, author of Beautiful TV: The Art and Argument of Ally McBeal:
There's quite simply no book out there that can match this in scope and quality. The contributors are a 'Who's Who' of contemporary television studies, and the prose is engaging and highly readable. If you're looking for models of how to think about television from a range of perspectives, you need look no further.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	v
Preface to the Second Edition Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
Introduction: An Owner’s Manual for Television Ethan Thompson and Jason Mittell Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
I TV Form: Aesthetics and Style
1 Better Call Saul: The Prestige Spinoff Jason Mittell Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	13
2 Empire: Fashioning Blackness Racquel Gates Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	23
3 House: Narrative Complexity Amanda D. Lotz Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	32
4 Looking: Smartphone Aesthetics Hunter Hargraves Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	41
5 Mad Men: Visual Style Jeremy G. Butler Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	51
6 Nip/Tuck: Popular Music Ben Aslinger Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	61
7 One Life to Live: Soap Opera Storytelling Abigail De Kosnik Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	70
8 The Sopranos: Episodic Storytelling Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	79
II TV Representation: Social Identity and Cultural Politics
9 24 Challenging Stereotypes Evelyn Alsultany Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	91
10 Bala Loca: Producing Representations David Miranda Hardy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	99
11 Being Mary Jane: Cultural Specificity Kristen J. Warner Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	108
12 Buckwild: Performing Whiteness Amanda Ann Klein Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	117
13 Glee/House Hunters International: Gay Narratives Ron Becker Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	126
14 Grey’s Anatomy: Feminism Elana Levine Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	135
15 Master of None: Negotiated Decoding Ritesh Mehta Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	144
16 Orange Is the New Black: Intersectional Analysis Mary Celeste Kearney Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	153
III TV Politics Democracy, Nation, and the Public Interest
17 The Amazing Race: Global Othering Jonathan Gray Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	165
18 America’s Next Top Model: Neoliberal Labor Laurie Ouellette Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	174
19 East Los High: Televised Empowerment Mary Beltrán Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	183
20 The Eurovision Song Contest: Queer Nationalism Anikó Imre Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	193
21 Fox & Friends: Political Talk Jeffrey P. Jones Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	203
22 Full Frontal with Samantha Bee: Feminist Comedy Amber Day Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	213
23 The Hunt with John Walsh: True Crime Storytelling Amanda Keeler Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	221
24 Parks and Recreation: The Cultural Forum Heather ersh Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	230
IV TV Industry: Industrial Practices and Structures
25 The Ernie Kovacs Show: Historicizing Comedy Ethan Thompson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	241
26 Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life: TV Revivals Myles McNutt Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	250
27 I Love Lucy: The Writer- Producer Miranda J. Banks Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	260
28 Modern Family: Product Placement Kevin Sandler Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	269
29 The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills: Franchising Femininity Suzanne Leonard Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	278
30 Roseanne: Programming Flow Taylor Cole Miller Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	287
31 Tales from the Crypt: Content Regulation Luke Stadel Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	297
32 The Toy Box: Transmedia and Transgenerational Marketing Derek Johnson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	307
V TV Practices: Medium, Technology, and Everyday Life
33 Battlestar Galactica: Fans and Ancillary Content Suzanne Scott Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	319
34 Everyday Italian: Cultivating Taste Michael Z. Newman Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	329
35 Gossip Girl: Transmedia Technologies Louisa Stein Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	337
36 High Maintenance and The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl: Indie TV Aymar Jean Christian Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	346
37 Monty Python’s Flying Circus: Layered Comedy Philip ansk Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	355
38 NFL Broadcasts: Interpretive Communities Melissa A. Click, Holly Willson Holladay and Amanda Nell Edgar Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	363
39 Pardon the Interruption: Sports Debate Ethan Tussey Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	372
40 The Walking Dead: Adapting Comics Henry Jenkins Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	382
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	391
About the Contributors Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	393
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	401