Program Genres Research Articles

Emergence of the viewing public: Does social television viewing transform individual viewers into a viewing public?

This study wanted to find out whether social viewing, the act of exchanging ideas through online media while watching television programs, can turn an audience member into a viewing public. This study proposed nine variables that represent attributes of viewing pubic and content analyzed social viewing discussions based on those variables. The results showed that more than half of the discussions reflected negotiated reading and independent reading of the television texts. A factor analysis of the nine indicators of social viewing resulted in three factors – issue viewing, network viewing and critical viewing. The comparison of three factors across four programs showed that social viewing is sensitive to genres of programs. As expected, the documentary, a non-fiction genre, caused viewers to be engaged in issue related discussions with critical perspectives. The drama genre, on the other hand, was less successful in transforming an audience into public. The study also found that the quality of program did not influence the social viewers’ discussions.

Orange Is the New Black: the popularization of lesbian sexuality and heterosexual modes of viewing

ABSTRACTThe Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black (OITNB) is ushering in an identifiable genre of crossover television programming through its popularization of queer content. One of the noteworthy elements about this programme is the extent to which it invites female viewers who self-identify as heterosexual to interact with forms of queer media that they would not necessarily seek out otherwise. This paper explores the invitational structure of OITNB, alongside the new structures of distribution for television content, to address how straight-identified women are invited to watch and engage with lesbian sexuality. It examines and critiques how the character Piper Chapman is constituted as a heterosexual proxy for straight-identified women’s entry into the world of queer sexuality within the fictional Litchfield Penitentiary.

The changing dynamics of religious authority on Pakistani religious television

This paper analyses the production, ownership and control of Pakistani religious talk shows, which have emerged as a popular genre of religious programming, subsequent to the liberalisation of Pakistani media in 2002. Much scholarship has implicated the nexus between Islam and televisual media in enabling the fragmentation of religious authority, by altering ‘lay’ engagements with Islam and thereby eliciting wider participation in religious discourse. In contrast, this paper focuses on the changing terms of asserting religious authority in the newly liberalised media context. Based on an analysis of the innovative formats and modes of editorial control characterising contemporary religious shows, I posit the significance of religious talk shows in both altering the nature of scholarly participation in religious public debate, and subjecting featured scholars to non-scholarly interests and agendas. I argue that the latter two insights into the nature of religious authority on television are only accessible from a production-based perspective, which is crucial for evaluating the wider implications of broadcast media for religious authority.

Talk vs chat-based radio: A case for distinction

Abstract This article considers the differences between talk radio and chat-based radio as specific genres of radio programming in an attempt to address the very broad use of the term ‘talk/talkback’ radio in radio research. Chat-based programming is a term devised by Tolson in relation to television, but this article argues that the definition as applied to television is relevant to radio, particularly in a contemporary media environment where media boundaries are increasingly blurred. It examines the key concepts that define ‘chat-based’ programming as they apply to radio, which are an orientation to personal topics, the use of humour, and potential for transgression. The format is increasingly popular, particularly on commercial radio. This article investigates three key questions: (1) Is there a difference between chat-based and talk radio programming?; (2) Why does genre matter in radio studies?; and (3) What are the implications for defining an alternative genre of talk? It argues that talk radio and chat-based radio are distinct formats, but that chat-based programming can and does incorporate issue-based ‘segments’ to engage listeners. In arguing for the distinction, this article lays some foundations and raises questions for consideration in future analyses of radio talk.

TV Diversity after Introduction of the Comprehensive Programming Channels: Program Genre Diversity and Viewers’ Exposure Diversity in Prime Time(2011～2015)

TV Diversity after Introduction of the Comprehensive Programming Channels: Program Genre Diversity and Viewers’ Exposure Diversity in Prime Time(2011～2015)

A corpus-based multivariate analysis of linguistic norm-adherence in audiovisual and written translation

The present paper investigates linguistic norm-adherence in Belgian Dutch written and audiovisual translation. More particularly, it is measured to what extent language use in subtitles, in comparison to regular written translations and non-translations, conforms to explicit linguistic norms. Additionally, we analyze which effect different contextual parameters have on the extent of norm-adherence in Belgian Dutch subtitles. We use the Dutch Parallel Corpus and the SoNaR Corpus, and we analyze the data by means of profile-based correspondence analysis, yielding a visualization of norm-adherence distances between the different translation modes and non-translations. The results reveal that the parameters speaker type and source language significantly affect the degree of linguistic normadherence, whereas program genre has no influence. It is also shown that norm-adherence in subtitles holds a middle position between written translations and non-translations, which is explained in terms of target audience and communicative risk.

중국 방송사들의 프로그램 자원의존 전략에 관한 연구 -CCTV1, 후난 위성방송, 강소 위성방송의 편성행위 분석을 중심으로-

The purpose of this study is to analyze the change of programming strategies of chinese broadcasting as competitions intensify in the niche dimension. Specifically, the niche breadth which indicates the diversity of program genre and way of program production, the niche overlap which indicates the degree of competition among the channels, are investigated. The results show, as the competition has intensified, three chinese television pursued different programming strategies; CCTV1 maintained programming strategy without big change, while Hunan and Gangso pursued change of programming strategy. However the change of programming strategies of Hunan and Gangso showed different direction; Hunan has tended narrows niche breadth of program genre and the way of progrm production, while Gangso broadens niche breadth. In overall, Chinese broadcastings have found the way of co-exist pursuing different programming strategy. And the programming strategy of Gangso satellite broadcasting which broadens niche breadth has showed better performance in rating and advertising revenue.

Transformative pan-Arab TV: National and cultural expression on reality TV programmes

Abstract This article analyses season two of the Arab reality TV programme titled Arab Idol, a TV series broadcast on the Saudi satellite channel MBC between 8 March and 22 June 2013. Through analysing this case study of Arab Idol, this article explores the rapid success of this genre on pan-Arab TV and attempts to decipher its audience’s interaction both online and on TV. It also seeks to unpack issues relating to the way identity, culture and nationalism are represented and debated. These programmes have been critically analysed following Fowler’s (1991) and Fairclough’s (2003) seminal texts. Results of this study reveal that the development of such a genre of TV programming in the region has opened up a new era not only for unusual entertainment but also for audience participation and engagement. As much as it can be perceived as a space for virtual democratic practice and free debates on nationalism and identity, this programme can also be considered as a unifying sphere that consolidates not only the feeling of national belonging but also the pan-Arab collective sense of the Ummah (global community).

Creencias sobre series de ficción televisiva: el caso de Velvet

Las series de televisión son un género de ficción muy atractivo tanto para los espectadores como para las cadenas que las emiten. Dados sus altos costes de producción, deben atraer al público desde el primer momento. Hay estudios sobre los factores que determinan el éxito de una película de cine pero se ha realizado escasa investigación sobre estos factores en series de televisión. En este trabajo se analizan las creencias de los espectadores sobre un conjunto de factores objetivos de la serie de televisión Velvet, emitida por Antena 3. Dado que estas creencias determinarán la posterior actitud hacia la serie, se profundiza en una serie de factores (sociodemográficas y de preferencias o gustos personales) para determinar si las diferencias en la valoración de la serie se ven influidas por estas variables (sexo, edad, consumo de televisión y preferencia por géneros). Los resultados indican que existen diferencias en las creencias que los espectadores tienen sobre Velvet que están influidas por los factores propuestos.

Logics of Lifestyle and the Rise of Scripps Networks, 1994–2010

This article examines the “turn to lifestyle” in the longstanding genres of how-to and domestic advice programming, which began in 1994 with the launch of Home & Garden Television (HGTV) and the Food Network. It frames lifestyle's spread across the growing cable television system in the late 1990s and 2000s as the result of industrial conditions that favored the growth and consolidation of cable networks, as well as growing cultural interest in “lifestyle” as a consumerist form of identity. In this context, a turn to lifestyle in programming offered the new networks HGTV and Food Network a way to broaden the appeal of their programs in an increasingly competitive niche cable environment, as well as to secure upscale audiences for advertisers. The article examines a range of HGTV and Food Network programs that utilized lifestyle's logic, including Emeril Live!, Paula's Home Cooking, Barefoot Contessa, Divine Design with Candice Olson, Design on a Dime, and Small Space, Big Style. In such programs, lifestyle became codified in a set of televisual logics that departed from those found on how-to programs: they articulated middle-class fantasies of ordinariness, had an attenuated focus on instruction in favor of the more diffuse and aspirational concept of “inspiration,” and posited small-scale domestic gatherings as the ideal mode of social engagement in a period of diminishing wealth and income security.

Strategi Komunikasi Badan Kependudukan dan Keluarga Berencana Nasional (BKKBN)

This study aims to determine communication strategy of Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) Special Region of Yogyakarta in disseminating Generation Program Planning (GenRe). The study uses descriptive qualitative method. The result shows that communication strategy undertaken by BKKBN Yogyakarta Province in disseminating the program GenRe is through Student Ambassador Selection genre, GenRe Goes To School and GenRe Goes To Campus, Genre Comedy Competition, Poster Competition genre, and Competition NGE - rap genre. BKKBN also uses mass media as a medium of socialization such as Public Service Announcements on television and radio, internet media by creating a website, blog, facebook, and twitter, as well as the use of billboards appeal board. BKKBN also works with schools and colleges to form the Youth Information and Counseling Center / Student (PIK R/M) to get closer to teenagers and college students.

Actual circumstances of suicides and related factors according to newspaper coverage of television programs

This study investigated the actual circumstances of suicides and related factors based on TV program pages in newspapers. Information was extracted from the television schedule columns of one major newspaper introducing programs from 2004 to June 2009. During information extraction, reliability was maintained by having 2 researchers specializing in mental health make determinations independently. We examined the column for program names and introductions of 6 broadcast TV channels within the television schedule for data analysis. After information was extracted using the established selection criteria regarding suicide and related information, information extraction was performed for sub-themes in the TV programs. Information was also classified with regard to specialization and program genre or other related context as well as the presence or absence of an experiential narrative. In addition to carrying out the qualitative classification of these collected information data, we compared the numbers and proportion (%) in chronological order and context. Moreover, programs dealing repeatedly with one case were analyzed for trends in the contents of program introductions and in the media. Depending on the season, some programs constantly broadcast about suicides, mainly in spring and autumn. Most of these programs air on Tuesday and Wednesday. We also analyzed programs that repeatedly discussed the same case and identified eight cases repeatedly discussed by more than ten different programs. We also considered bullying, homicide, and depression, which appeared most frequently as subthemes of suicide. An unprofessional approach was observed in 504 programs (81%), whereas only 47 (7.6%) showed expertise. Depending on the season and day of the week, suicide is constantly broadcasted on TV programs. We also considered mental health because bullying was a common subtheme in this context. An unprofessional approach was seen in most programs. We also studied programs that repeatedly discussed the same case because overexposure of offenders in programs can lead to secondary suicides.

Lens Considerations for Digital Cinematography

Lenses have historically garnered higher attention within the motion picture film world than in television production. The cine lens has long been recognized as the central image creator and primary arbiter of the special look sought for different program genres. A broad lingua franca has emerged in attempts to describe such looks. Directors of photography and assistant camera operator speak of the personality of a cine lens. This discussion has intensified in the digital cinematography era. Four next-generation cine zoom lenses and six prime lenses are central to the first phase of the Canon Cinema electro-optical system (EOS) digital cinematography system. This paper focuses specifically on the primary considerations in the new cine zoom lens designs. All of the lenses have been designed to meet optical specifications that conform to contemporary 4K-resolution digital production standards. Reducing size and weight were prime design imperatives, which escalated the optical design challenges. The contemporary cine lens is bound up in complex technologies. The multidimensional performance aspects of the optical image projected by the lens onto the camera image sensor are inextricably tied to the multiple variables inherent to these remarkably complex optical systems. The paper describes contributions of separate optical performance parameters to the personality of the cine zoom lenses in the context of attempting to meet, to the degree possible, recommendations of international directors of photography for a cinematic aesthetic. The introduction of unusual optical design strategies to achieve these requests is outlined. Recognition of the growing application of high-performance cine zoom lenses as variable prime lenses became a central imperative to the design of the four cine zoom lenses—in terms of both their collective focal ranges and the unusually high-performance goals set for each.

ソーシャル機能を持つビデオ・オン・デマンドサービスにおけるユーザの視聴・コミュケーション行動間の関係分析

The spread of Video on Demand (VOD) services is driving the creation of video viewing environments in which users can watch whatever they like, whenever they like. The recent appearance of social networking services (SNSs), moreover, is bringing big changes to the world of media by enabling anyone to become a disseminator of information. We are studying a platform that combines VOD and SNS to create ``horizontal links'' between program viewers, and to facilitate encounters with new programs. To investigate user behaviors on this platform, we built an SNS site called ``teleda,'' that enables program viewing by VOD, and conducted a large-scale, three-month verification trial with about 1000 participants. In this paper, we report on the relational analysis of teleda users' viewing and communication behaviors. In order to clarify how the users' communication structures relate to the viewing and posting behaviors on this system, we described the communication structures in terms of network structures, and ran a correlation analysis of network indicators and user behavior indicators such as viewing and posting. As a result, we revealed that relationships between the users' communication structures, viewing behaviors, and posting actions are characteristics of each program's genre.

Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things: Disability in <em>Game of Thrones</em>

Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things: Disability in <em>Game of Thrones</em>

‘A dog, if you point at something, will only look at your finger’: travelling television

This paper introduces, and considers how best to write about, a genre of Australian television programming that I call ‘travelling television’, a genre that stretches from (before) the Leyland Brothers to Steve Irwin, and from Australian Walkabout (1958) to Bush Tucker Man (1988–1990) and beyond. The long history of this genre makes it a useful form through which to ask some very basic questions about broadcast television. I do that here by taking up some suggestions about the changing nature of television by the novelist and essayist, David Foster Wallace, focusing in particular on questions of representation, referentiality and ontology that, in the end, may offer a useful contribution to television scholarship from offshore.

Media Portrayals of Romantic Relationship Maintenance: A Content Analysis of Relational Maintenance Behaviors on Prime-Time Television

Maintenance behaviors play an important role in sustaining relational states, especially within committed romantic relationships. Limited research, however, has considered media portrayals of these behaviors. From the framework of social cognitive theory, this content analysis examined relational maintenance behaviors portrayed by committed romantic couples (heterosexual, gay, and lesbian) on prime-time network television. The frequency of maintenance behaviors (positivity, understanding, self-disclosure, assurances, relationships talks, tasks, and networks) varied by type, valence, program genre, and couple type (married/civil union or cohabitating). Results indicated that comedies featured more frequent relationship maintenance behaviors than dramas. In addition, comedies exhibited more frequent negative maintenance behaviors than dramas. Differences also existed between couple regarding the types of maintenance behavior exhibited. No sex differences in maintenance behaviors were observed between male and female characters.

Christmas in the 1960s:A Charlie Brown Christmas, Religion, and the Conventions of the Television Genre

Abstract:This study of Christmas television programming from the 1960s is prompted by the repeated assertion that A Charlie Brown Christmas was an aberration within the television medium because its creator, Charles Schulz, dared to include religious content in the mainstream title. Grounded by historical/archival research, this article presents a content analysis of Christmas titles from the 1960s formative decade-of-change in order to substantiate the claim of television’s secularity. The findings demonstrate that even in the genre of Christmas programming, mainstream television has abided by a public/private split from this early era, embracing a model of secularity that resists references to religious belief. A Charlie Brown Christmas and its contemporaries are also analyzed to determine the conventions of the genre that may at times afford such religious aberration when otherwise followed.

Motivations for the complementary use of text-based media during linear TV viewing: An exploratory study

The phenomenon of complementary use of text-based media, such as social media or instant messaging (IM), during linear TV viewing has been growing. This represents a new pattern of TV consumption, and is worth studying from a business as well as an academic perspective. In this paper, we present our findings from an exploratory study of 66 users who were interviewed to determine their motivations for the complementary use of text-based media during linear TV viewing. Five major use motivations were identified: communication about the impressions of a broadcast; information sharing and seeking; feelings of coviewing; curiosity about others’ opinions; and program recommendations. We classified use motivations according to program genre, and also conducted a comparative analysis on how use motivations differ when using KakaoTalk (a form of instant messaging) and Facebook. Our work clarifies the use motivations of text-based media during TV consumption, which has not been addressed in previous studies, and provides insights into implementing text-based media that is complementary to linear TV viewing. Most interviewees in this study, however, were KakaoTalk users; future studies should explore users of more diverse types of text-based media.

A network and visual quality aware N-screen content recommender system using joint matrix factorization.

We propose a network and visual quality aware N-Screen content recommender system. N-Screen provides more ways than ever before to access multimedia content through multiple devices and heterogeneous access networks. The heterogeneity of devices and access networks present new questions of QoS (quality of service) in the realm of user experience with content. We propose, a recommender system that ensures a better visual quality on user's N-screen devices and the efficient utilization of available access network bandwidth with user preferences. The proposed system estimates the available bandwidth and visual quality on users N-Screen devices and integrates it with users preferences and contents genre information to personalize his N-Screen content. The objective is to recommend content that the user's N-Screen device and access network are capable of displaying and streaming with the user preferences that have not been supported in existing systems. Furthermore, we suggest a joint matrix factorization approach to jointly factorize the users rating matrix with the users N-Screen device similarity and program genres similarity. Finally, the experimental results show that we also enhance the prediction and recommendation accuracy, sparsity, and cold start issues.