Soap Opera Research Articles

Wer Viewership and Queer Imag(in)ing: Thai Soap Opera Shadow of Love and Boys Love Media

Abstract This article brings film/media theory into Southeast Asian research through a revisionist queer approach. It contains two goals: addressing some recent developments about queer imag(in)ing in Thai media whilst reappraising the fundamental question of spectatorship via screen theory. Taking into account the more general issue of media specificity and the particular textual device of identity/gender-switch in several recent Thai television serials, we propose the notion of wer viewership: a mode of viewing practice that features viewer-text interaction through the perceptual-cognitive processes, and is characterised by wer/excessive aesthetics, multiple meanings, and diverse pleasures. Resonant with camp reading, wer viewership underlines how the viewer actively makes sense of the ambiguities about gender, particularly those along the extra-/diegetic interface. We use Thai soap opera Shadow of Love to illuminate the wer/excessive aesthetics rendered through its identity/gender play bordering on the extra-/diegetic divide, and the enhanced pleasures and meanings thus available to its extradiegetic active viewers. We stress, though, the expanded queer imag(in)ing in Shadow is not of total free interpretation, but is animated in relation to both the evolving discourses about gender/sexuality in Thailand, and the popularising homoerotic Boys Love (BL) media across Asia in recent years.

‘The Patriarchy Is Finished’: Broadcasting Women’s Emancipation on RIAS Berlin

Abstract This article examines a sudden shift in women’s radio programming in the late 1950s at RIAS Berlin (Radio in the American Sector Berlin). The American-led propaganda radio station had been established in 1946 to support democracy in West Berlin and then also to combat Communism in East Germany. From its initial broadcast day, RIAS targeted female audiences with a mix of household tips and political analysis that highlighted the ways the Communist regime worked against women. However, in 1957 the women’s division began to critique conservative gender norms in arguing for female equality in West Germany. RIAS introduced a new program, the soap opera Gaby and Franz, that modelled a more companionate form of marriage. At the same time, its established women’s programs, including Can You Spare 5 Minutes?, highlighted obstacles to the full realization of legal reforms such as the Law for the Protection of Mothers of 1952 and the Equal Rights Law of 1957. To promote women’s rights in the Federal Republic, the women’s division adapted the presentation style designed to fight East German Communism. Drawing upon scripts held by Deutschlandfunk Kultur, the successor station to RIAS, the article argues that radio offered an ideal medium for women to press for gender equality at the micro level of the home and the macro level of policy well before the women’s rights movement of the late 1960s.

An Examination of the Effects of 2M Channel Airing Turkish Soap Operas on Moroccan Audiences: 2009-2019

This paper attempts to shed light on the media effects of the 2M channel on Moroccan audiences viewing dubbed Turkish soap operas (TSO). In particular, the study limits its scope to 2009-2019 period of broadcasting. It is noted that the viewing process is a prerequisite for social change and media effects. This consideration of direct exposure hastens the effects and influences in the audiences’ lives. Not all media effects of TSO are detrimental to the Moroccan audience and government. No sooner had the audience finished a dubbed Turkish serial than the 2M started broadcasting a new one. Additionally, to examine this decade, the paper invests structured interviews and mail surveys to collect data. The study treats the research findings with content analysis and discourse analysis. Presumably, it is noticeable that females are the majority of viewers. Accordingly, the research findings are manifold. The study’s research findings seriously alert the media analysts and Moroccan cultural authorities concerned with Moroccan audiences susceptible to the TSO increasing dangers and insidious menaces. These foreign influences are disseminated through the ignorance, recipient, and Moroccan female lifestyles. Therefore, the result discussion necessitates an awakening paradigm shift in Moroccan cultural policy. In conclusion, the paper calls for an invigorating Moroccan public screen. Moroccan soap opera alternative likely replaces Turkish soap opera since Moroccan audience counts in millions alongside religious diplomacy as a form of soft power.

Soap ’n’ AI

Abstract It’s less than a year since OpenAI’s board voted to fire Sam Altman as CEO, in a palace coup that lasted just a weekend before Altman was reinstated. That weekend and subsequent events in OpenAI’s storyline provide all the ingredients for a soap opera. So, just in case Netflix is interested, here’s a stab at a synopsis of what might be just the first of many seasons of ‘The Generative AI Wars’.

The Urgency of Actors' Presence on Trending Hashtags on Twitter's New Media in the Frame of Social Network Analysis

The phenomenon of using social media as a new media to meet the needs of information in the community is the result of the rapid development of the internet. Now the needs of the community are easily met, because various things have been contained in it. This can be analyzed based on the phenomenon of trending topics through hashtags on social media twitter using Social Network Analysis (SNA). The purpose of writing this research article is that with so many soap operas in Indonesia that last more than one year on the Indonesian screen, it becomes an interesting thing, but it is not only in the real world, but has become a conversation in cyberspace, Twitter in particular. Using mixed method research methods with actor and network analysis techniques in the quantitative and technical domains of observation, record and descriptive analysis techniques, with Bruno Latour's network study approach. The subjects of the study were the network of actors and the flow of information on the hashtag #IkatanCintaEp1012. The use of Twitter social media as a new media can show networks and actors that make the spread of information and connectivity between fans in the virtual world increasingly stronger and faster in a hashtag network.

Implementasi Strategi Komunikasi Surya Citra Media pada Tiktok @indosiar_sports

Surya Citra Televisi is a national private television station in Indonesia founded on August 24, 1990, in Surabaya, later moved to Jakarta. PT INDOSIAR VISUAL MANDIRI is known to all Indonesians for its flagship programs such as soap operas, infotainment, sports, and special events. Social media Sports Indosiar is an essential aspect in promoting the programs at INDOSIAR. The presence of INDOSIAR social media creates interactions between the @indosiar_sports account and TikTok users, influencing engagement on the account. To achieve engagement targets, content is crucial for increasing the engagement of the TikTok @indosiar_sports account. This research aims to provide insight into the selection and content creation process to offer broad reach to TikTok users, especially followers of @indosiar_sports. The theoretical basis includes Communication Strategy, Marketing Communication, Social Media Content, The Circular Model of SoMe, TikTok, and Engagement. The data collection methods used are quantitative and qualitative, observation, and documentation.

Strategi Perancangan Konten Media Sosial Tiktok dalam Acara SCTV Awards 2023

Surya Citra Televisi or SCTV Surya Citra Televisi or SCTV is a television station that has superior programs such as soap operas, FTV, Infotainment, and special events that aim to appreciate community figures who have worked on the SCTV screen. SCTV's social media is an essential aspect of promoting the programs on SCTV. The presence of SCTV social media creates interaction between the @sctv_ account and TikTok users, influencing engagement on the account. Content is essential to increase engagement and achieve target engagement on the Tiktok @sctv_ account. The TikTok account @sctv_ uploads various content to promote programs and gain engagement. One of the content is about the 2023 SCTV Awards program. In designing this work, the author wants to provide insight into the selection and process of creating content to provide a broad reach for TikTok users, especially followers @ sctv_. The theoretical basis used to discuss the design of this work is Marketing Communication, Content, Social Media, The Circular Model of SoMe, TikTok, and Engagement. The data collection methods that the author uses are numbers and narratives, observation, and documentation.

Face Value in Conversational Closings: Insights from Desperate Housewives

This study investigates face value in conversational closings in American soap opera Desperate Housewives. Using qualitative method combined with quantitative method, we collected altogether 52 scripted conversation excerpts among the five leading characters and analyzed them within the thoeretical framework of face and politeness theory (Brown & Levinson, 1987). Analyses of the scripted conversations showed that conversational closings in Desperate Housewives consist of three main patterns, closing, pre-closing (+insertion) + closing (+after-close), and leave-taking. Most pre-closing and closing strategies involve face consideration, with the most frequently used ones being “giving reasons”, “mentioning a future relationship”, “discourse markers”, and “apology for leaving”. These strategies are deployed to save either the positive face or the negative face of the other party. Some conversations end with one party’s walking away due to anger or pique, consequently threatening the other’s face, but it occurs in irregular situations for dramatic effects. The findings suggest that closing a conversation can threaten both the positive face and negative face of the other party, and that in doing so, even familiar people or friends are concerned about interlocutors’ “face” or “face-saving” by deploying some strategies.This study contributes to both the conversational closings study and face and politeness study.

Chinese Soap Operas in the Reform Era

This article aims to investigate the impact of the emergence of television soap operas during the 1980s and 1990s in the People’s Republic of China, with an emphasis on Yearnings (渴望, 1990) and Year after Year (一年又一年, 1998). This period comprises the first two decades of “reform and opening up” (Gaige kaifang 改革开放), when the country underwent a series of radical changes leading to market economy. As I will discuss, both soap operas employ a similar structure by presenting family sagas as a vehicle for the articulation of China’s transformations through decades of history – including the introduction of television and other media.

LAS CONFIGURACIONES DE LA MEMORIA EN LA NOVELA INDIGENISTA LA SERPIENTE DE ORO

The present work has the purpose of planting the configurations of memory in the novel La Serpiente de Oro, by the Peruvian author Ciro Alegría, considering the Latin American indigenist movement, its context and importance, especially in Peru, seeking to highlight primarily the changes in the political scenario and social development of Latinoamérica, and the more active participation of indigenous peoples in Latin American society during the 19th century. In this way, with the aim of understanding the field of the literary production of the indigenist movement, Indigenism, the investigation is based on conjectures of anthropologists and historians such as Menezes (2015), who in the light of Baud (2003) support the conjecture of that Indigenism was a political and literary movement. In addition, this investigation analyzes the memorialistic questions in the previously mentioned narrative, considering, for example, the assumptions of Maurice Halbwachs in “A Memoria Coletiva” (2006). The literary critic manifests the idea that memory, when at a certain moment it is lost in new societies, the only way to keep them safe is through a narrative. In this sense, the indigenist soap operas, as well as the (authentic) indigenist movement, had the function of keeping indigenous memories safe, because it considers the reality of the indigenous person, as a man of the land.

Marketing religious programs on television as a nonfavorite program: a study in Indonesia

PurposeThis study aims to examine the strategy of TV9 Nusantara, one of the local televisions in Indonesia, marketing its religious programs when soap operas are the most popular television programs in Indonesia.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a descriptive qualitative method by collecting data using in-depth interviews, observation and documentation.FindingsTV9 Nusantara used a counter-programming strategy to seize viewers from the competing television stations; the prime time is also set differently from other televisions as well as implements a head-sterling strategy to make the audiences loyal to watching TV9 Nusantara programs and not switch the channels.Research limitations/implicationsIn Indonesia, three types of television stations are broadcast nationally, publicly or government-owned, central and regional and local television. This study only focused on local television stations whose main program is religious, especially Islam.Practical implicationsThe results of this study can underline the importance of establishing segmentation, targets, differentiation and market positioning as well as efforts to create products, prices, places and promotions for journalistic products, especially TV broadcast products and production processes that follow Sharia principles.Social implicationsThis study can inform the public regarding TV Broadcasting products and production processes following Sharia principles.Originality/valueThis study examined the implementation of marketing strategies and the marketing mix on local television, especially television that broadcasts programs that are not the favorites of most viewers.

The Representation of the Placemaking Process of Urban Religious and Secular Turkish Identities: The Case of Kizilcik Şerbeti (One Love) Soap Opera

During a 2-year period, the depictions of religious figures and their interactions with secular individuals in urban daily life became an integral feature of Turkish soap operas that gained popularity in the world after the 1990s. While previous studies have explored the portrayal of various actors in them in terms of age, gender, socio-economic status, and historical perspectives, there is a lack of analysis regarding the interaction between secular and religious urban representations. This research aims to investigate the differences in everyday cosmopolitan perspectives in terms of spatiality and temporality between the two groups. To examine this, the soap opera Kızılcık Şerbeti (One Love) was analysed. Research has shown that when two groups develop their identities in opposition to one another, it leads to the emergence of different temporal and spatial dimensions within the same urban setting. While it seems unfeasible to reconcile the daily routines of both groups in the same place, age, gender, education, and class make negotiation possible in shared spaces. This draws attention to the intersectional approach rather than the binary positions of identities in the placemaking process. The main contribution of this research is to integrate religion, which has been forgotten in human geography, into geographical and sociological discussions by focusing on an intersectional approach in an urban context.

Let us play something else: Thoughts on ‘games are different’ and game scholarship in the Trump era

This piece takes its cue from a pair of incidents – a not unfamiliar theme in game studies – relating to game scholarship and its engagement with right-wing politics. In the first case, well-known game scholar Bonnie ‘Bo’ Ruberg called on editors and reviewers to stop insisting that scholars include a reference to a certain online campaign of harassment, doxing and threats of physical violence. In the second case, I had a reviewer insist that I had to include a reference to the ‘Fortnite to alt-right pipeline’ because clearly games were causing alt-right lunacy. To be sure, these both constitute genre criticism – among others – at its most reductive and cynical, deciding what the institutional and audience expectations entail based on an assumption of the industrial ones. Then, biographical criticism and assertions about authorial intent or the necessary ‘touchstones’ began to appear. There seems to be a consistent and persistent insistence that somehow even the best and most accomplished scholars should forget decades of scholarship because ‘games are different’ and this tendency has been conditioned and shaped by reading games through the ‘lens’ of the Trump presidency. This is important because it confirms that essays about games still tend to fit into one of the two boxes Ruberg ticks: game scholars who are not necessarily adept at the specific content area or specialists in a given field who are not really game scholars. It is telling and symptomatic of the centripetal and centrifugal movements in game studies; that is, from within and without. Admittedly, games are different, but not so different that we should forget or ignore decades of scholarship or worse, do not bother to find out if it exists at all. Not only are many of these positions ahistorical – ignoring the fact that, as some much maligned games quite cleverly point out repeatedly within, the same things have been said about the corrupting power of soap operas, romance novels, comic books, wrestling, rap and hip hop, backwards masking in heavy metal and plain old rock ‘n’ roll – the positions are also tacitly or unwittingly ageist, classist and/or occasionally racist, homophobic and transphobic even as the author purports to be concerned with inequitable representations. Moreover, there are peculiarly US American concerns that are transposed onto ostensibly universal ones. These reveal that even the most ‘woke’ of the American left can be a cultural imperialist and that American exceptionalism is inescapable if not ineluctable.

Telenovela (Spanish Soap Opera) Interventions on Latino Health: A Scoping Review.

Introduction: The use of telenovelas shows promise as a mode of education that could enhance Latino people's ability to prevent or manage different health conditions. This scoping review examined the available evidence about telenovela interventions on Latino health. Methods: A scoping review was conducted by searching five peer-reviewed databases for articles published on any date in English or Spanish. The methods of this review were guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews recommendations. Results: A total of 431 articles were identified, and 22 articles published between 1999 and 2022 were included in the final scoping review. Nineteen telenovela interventions were described in the literature. Most studies included telenovela interventions without other elements (n = 15; 68%), and 91% were conducted in the U.S. (n = 20). Studies were qualitative (n = 8; 36%), quantitative (n = 8; 36%), and mixed methods (n = 6; 27%), and most telenovela interventions were developed and/or tested in Spanish (n = 10; 53%). The most common topics for the telenovela interventions were substance use/risky sexual health behaviors, cardiovascular disease, and mental health. Conclusions: This scoping review may serve to continue empirical and theoretical work on telenovela-style entertainment interventions on Latino health and future implementation in real-life settings.

Tobacco, e-cigarette and alcohol content in popular UK soap operas: a content analysis to explore changes in social norms and scene location

Background Exposure to tobacco and alcohol on-screen promotes use and despite regulations and policies to limit impact, these behaviours remain common. We report a longitudinal analysis of tobacco, e-cigarette and alcohol content in three popular UK television soap operas, to examine changing social norms between 2002 and 2022. Methods We used one-minute interval coding to measure content in programmes in two one-week periods in three years (2002, 2012 and 2022). Change in the probability of actual and implied use of tobacco, e-cigarette and alcohol over time was examined using logistic regression. Results We coded 2505 intervals from 78 episodes. Tobacco content occurred in 22% of episodes and significantly decreased from 2002 to 2022 (OR 0.15 95% CI 0.06–0.40). Tobacco use changed over time with decreasing use indoors and increasing use outdoors. No e-cigarette use was identified. Alcohol content was found in 88% of episodes and while it also significantly decreased over time (OR 0.78 95% CI 0.61–0.99) it featured in 20% of broadcast minutes in 2022. Alcohol use in homes increased over time. Conclusion While tobacco imagery is increasingly rare in these three UK soap operas, alcohol content has remained common. Tightening the UK Ofcom regulations would help to reduce young people’s exposure to these harmful behaviours and their potential influence on social norms now and in the future.

Cenas de um Brasil sem saída: imagens do neossujeito na telenovela Pantanal

The study addresses the Brazilian soap opera Pantanal (2022) from the perspective in which the narrative presents the character Madeleine. The reiteration of aesthetic arrangements made up of elements such as water and checkered domestic environments place the character in images of anesthetic landscapes, making it possible to infer the figurativeness of the neo-subject. Considering the analysis frames of the chapters shown between March 31, 2022 and May 21, 2022 – from the first appearance of the character until the moment of the plane crash that ends the girl’s trajectory in the plot –, it is possible to assume that the investigated scenes, in terms of the produced meaning effects, function as a metaphor and metonymy of a neoliberal apparatus, allowing the audience to perceive itself housed, eventually, in places similar to those that are framed by the telenovela and occupied by the character.

Beyond Words

Beyond Words

The Influence of Euphoria on Generation Z Youngster

Euphoria, a high-profile American TV series, has not only captivated viewers globally but has also given rise to a distinctive cultural phenomenon within the entertainment industry. This paper delves into the impact of Euphoria from four pivotal perspectives: The Gen Z Aesthetic, Social Issues, the Revolution of Teen Soap Operas, and Commercial Values. By conducting thorough text analysis and research encompassing the plot intricacies, character developments, and thematic exploration, the study aims to ascertain whether the series can generate unexpected influences, sparking extensive discussions on teenage life, societal challenges, and artistic expression. The findings underscore the show's profound impact, highlighting its ability to transcend traditional storytelling norms, initiate meaningful dialogues, and reshape the commercial landscape. First and foremost, the impact of Euphoria on the aesthetics of Generation Z. Secondly, as a series that aggressively explores modern social concerns, Euphoria stands out as providing a raw and uncensored take on the challenges confronting todays adolescents. Third, Euphoria TV shows are a new sort of entertainment and a new awareness of TV shows. Finally, the financial worth of the Euphoria TV series extends far beyond standard ratings measures. As Euphoria continues to push boundaries, it catalyzes change, fostering a global discourse that extends beyond conventional television narratives.

Vicarious punishment of moral violations in naturalistic drama narratives predicts cortical synchronization

Punishment of moral norm violators is instrumental for human cooperation. Yet, social and affective neuroscience research has primarily focused on second- and third-party norm enforcement, neglecting the neural architecture underlying observed (vicarious) punishment of moral wrongdoers. We used naturalistic television drama as a sampling space for observing outcomes of morally-relevant behaviors to assess how individuals cognitively process dynamically evolving moral actions and their consequences. Drawing on Affective Disposition Theory, we derived hypotheses linking character morality with viewers’ neural processing of characters’ rewards and punishments. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine neural responses of 28 female participants while free-viewing 15 short story summary video clips of episodes from a popular US television soap opera. Each summary included a complete narrative structure, fully crossing main character behaviors (moral/immoral) and the consequences (reward/punishment) characters faced for their actions. Narrative engagement was examined via intersubject correlation and representational similarity analysis. Highest cortical synchronization in 9 specifically selected regions previously implicated in processing moral information was observed when characters who act immorally are punished for their actions with participants’ empathy as an important moderator. The results advance our understanding of the moral brain and the role of normative considerations and character outcomes in viewers’ engagement with popular narratives.

The British Royals in Australia

The British Royals in Australia