Globalization, regional television and national identity: The case of Vaya Semanita/What a Week

Abstract

This article looks at Vaya Semanita/What a Week, a sketch programme on Euskal Telebista 2 (ETB2), the Spanish-language channel of Basque Television, as a case study for illustrating the complex relationships between regional, national and global television cultures, and between local television and its audiences. It will consider some reasons for the programme’s popularity through textual analysis (with particular attention to its representation of Basque national/cultural identity, and to how the sketch format is used for that purpose) and contextual study (the programme’s location within its media environment and the socio-historical circumstances of its production, dissemination and consumption). The discussion will be situated within the debates regarding the principles of public service broadcasting and television globalization and within the history of a public broadcasting institution with a mission to express and strengthen national identity. The show can be examined for the insights it offers into Basque national identity and its changes through time.