Television Genre Research Articles

Genre in Transnational Television: A Case of Netflix Originals Korean Dramas

Recently, South Korea has become one of the largest content providers for Netflix. We analyze the textual characteristics of five Netflix Originals K-dramas – Sweet Home (2020), My Name (2021), Squid Game (2021), Hellbound (2021), and All of Us Are Dead (2022) – to unfold the existing genre conventions and uniquely local factors in the context of transnational television. In the process of transnationalization, genres are continuously and simultaneously evolving in the directions of homogenization and heterogenization. Universal values such as humanism, altruism, and family-oriented solidarity, as expected in the existing genre conventions, were homogenizing factors. However, these homogenizing factors were accompanied by uniquely local, heterogenizing factors arising from traumatic collective memories, political, and economic situations in South Korea. We also found that webtoons played a significant role in the transnationalization of the K-dramas genre. This study contributes to genre studies and transnational television research.

Mediating Poverty on Arab Television

The recent interest in depicting poverty on Arab television has increased through a new genre of reality television shows focused on charity. This article focuses on one such show on Iraqi television. Through a multimodal analysis of selected recent episodes, the article asks how poverty is being mediated, what the overarching narrative is and its underpinning values and norms. The analysis is anchored on the concept of divine economy, which emphasizes personal faith and optimism, placing blame on individuals experiencing poverty. The thrust of the argument is that poverty is mediated as a performance and a social activity, while being distributed as an aesthetic product to Arab audiences inside and outside Iraq. This form of mediation enforces the neoliberal idea of hard work in return for aid, promoting the belief that personal wealth is attainable through individual effort, faith, and positive thinking. In so doing, the focus is shifted away from debating the distribution of wealth and opportunities within society.

Fat girl on TV: humor, embodiment and the aberration of fatness in neoliberal media

ABSTRACT This paper examines discursive embodiment on the reality television show My Big Fat Fabulous Life. I ask how the tension between fat and fabulous is reconciled on the show, as two seemingly incongruous concepts in contemporary society, particularly within the genre of reality television, which is well known for makeovers, bodily transformations and other life interventions that compel disciplinary practices of neoliberal self-governmentality. Using multimodal critical discourse analysis, I examine how Whitney’s body is discursively constructed through humorous talk. I argue that the way humor is recruited, paired with multimodal elements such as music and strategic camerawork, serve to undermine the message of ‘body positivity’ that is outwardly promoted on the show, in favor of a standard anti-fat narrative more readily acceptable to the viewing audience.

The big heroine genre: motherhood and the maternal body in postsocialist Chinese television

This article explores the feminist social critique in the ‘big heroine’ drama, a newly emerged genre of television that focuses on empowering yet dramatic stories of urban women in contemporary...

Beyond Words

Beyond Words

The politics of crisis, care, and vulnerability in “this is going to hurt (2022)”

ABSTRACT This article explores themes of crisis, care, and vulnerability in the 2022 BBC series This is Going to Hurt. Arguing that the series is significant within the genre of medical-themed television because of its complex representation of a “broken” NHS, the article analyses the ongoing, gendered, and racialised dimensions of the public healthcare crisis it depicts. Despite the series concluding that the NHS holds the potential to provide universal care in the future, such a promise rests on eliding the unequal and precarious institutional realities the series has revealed. This suggests a feminist analysis is essential for diagnosing the gendered and racialised forms of labour and recognition within the healthcare system and resisting the differentiated forms of precarity a discourse of crisis can exploit and obscure.

Kinder-Conspiracy Theories: Disney's Gravity Falls and the Conspiracy Genre in Children's Television

This essay suggests that there is a variant of what Stephanie Kelley-Romano calls the “conspiracy genre on American television,” a subgenre targeting children that we call kinder-conspiracy theories. Treating Disney's Gravity Falls as an exemplar of the subgenre, we argue that kinder-conspiracy theories differ from the larger genre in three ways. First, while inspiring social mistrust like most conspiracy entertainment, the programs portray some conspiracy theorists as hucksters, encouraging viewers to build their defenses against possible deception. Second, by serving as an introduction to reading conspiracy culture, the genre also serves as a kind of conspiracy literacy training and an inoculation against a milieu of rampant suspicion and polarization. Finally, due to their prosocial messaging for younger audiences, the genre also emphasizes a kind of collectivistic agency that privileges community over the traditional individualism and fantasies of the lone wolf conspiracy theorist.

Overseas Communication Strategy and Development Direction of Chinese Film and Television Works in the Internet Era

Abstract In this paper, we first improve the influence propagation model by combining sentiment analysis and propose a new algorithm for node activation probability. Sentiment shift is the dynamic change of node attributes during the propagation of movie and television works. The algorithm for node activation probability has been further improved, and a model for influence propagation applicable to dynamic networks has been proposed. Finally, based on the data of the YouTube Internet platform, this paper analyzes the awareness of overseas audiences on Chinese film and television types, popular elements, publicity methods and domestic and foreign box office from 2010 to 2019. The findings indicate that 0.7379, 0.7031, and 0.5596 foreign viewers believe that three Chinese film and television genres, palace fighting, romance, and youth, are the most popular. Although there are still more than 0.42 million overseas viewers who prefer martial arts genres, they are in a downward stage compared to before. In terms of publicity, more than 0.91 percent of them believe that online social networking areas and chat groups for movie and TV enthusiasts are the most effective forms of publicity. Therefore, this study is an important reference for the development of communication strategies.

Языковая репрезентация речевого жанра «пояснение» в медицинском дискурсе в рамках телевизионной просветительской передачи (на примере передачи «Мед. эксперт»)

The paper analysed the speech genre of explanation often implemented as a popular scientific description of a disease within the framework of the television genre of educational transmission of medical topics, that is, the researchers consider medical discourse. The aim of the study is to identify the differential features of explanation as a speech genre based on the material of television medical discourse. The study is novel in that it is the first to highlight the linguistic features that define the speech genre of explanation. As a result, it has been revealed that in the medical discourse in Russian, the genre of explanation is characterised at the pragmatic level by the adaptation of information for the audience of potential viewers. A trusting atmosphere is created by emphasising the status of the addresser. The pragmatic attitude toward explication simplicity is expressed in speech at all levels. The speech genre of explanation can be constructed according to the classical scheme on a “simple-to-complex” basis, but it is also possible to use the reverse technique.

The "Gaze" Defect Behind Revenge: On the Ways of Female Revenge and Redemption in Sympathy for Lady Vengeance

In today's film and television genres that show women fighting against the powerful, women's revenge films are gaining more and more attention. These films have some positive significance in showing women's sense of independence. However, the problems behind most female revenge films are still under consideration. This article will take "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance," one of "The Vengeance Trilogy" by the famous Korean director Park Chan-wook, as an example and use the theory of gaze to analyze the otherness of the female gaze embodied in the film; from the way the female protagonist, Geum-ja Lee, takes revenge, it will analyze the otherness of the third-world female culture behind the violent revenge in the film; the similarity of women's revenge dilemma, that is, the inevitable self-alienation or self-destruction of excellent and weak women, is discussed by analyzing Geum-ja's revenge and redemption at the end of the film. Ultimately, the film tries to raise the discourse of the other and present a genuinely feminist perspective and voice.

Book Review: The Delight of Turkish Dizi: Memory, Genre and Politics of Television in Turkey, by Arzu Öztürkmen

Book Review: The Delight of Turkish Dizi: Memory, Genre and Politics of Television in Turkey, by Arzu Öztürkmen

Intersections between Italian and Slavic cinemas

The purpose of this issue is to explore the encounter between Italy and Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe and Russia during and after the Soviet period, as well as the fervid cooperation and fruitful co-productions between the film industries in this vast geographic region. More specifically, this Special Issue covers the following topics: the reception of neorealist films in Slavic countries and the influence of neorealism in Slavic cinema, the links between Italian political cinema and Slavic media, the presence of popular Italian genres of television shows and series in these geographical areas, transnational stardom in cinema and television, co-productions and their adaptation to the needs of national film and television markets, Soviet–Italian film institutional exchanges and co-productions and Italian film festivals in Russia and Italy.

Musical Performances in Digital Audiovisualities

This study discusses modes of appropriation of television genres for the constitution of new audiovisual dynamics in a digital context, based on performatic strategies of the Brazilian funk singer Pepita, who is known for her LGBTQ+ activism. Based on a methodology that articulates studies about media genres and performance, we try to understand how television conventions and characteristics of YouTube and Instagram are appropriated for the constitution of what we call performances of empowerment. We conclude that Pepita’s movements exemplify a broader phenomenon, associated to a complex articulation between audiovisual materialities and digital platforms, and to confluences between genre conventions and their transformations.

General textual analysis of the television genre

The presented paper deals with the general textual analysis of the television genre. The mentioned topic is quite relevant, to the extent that television conversations occupy a large place in the modern media discourse. It has a great influence on the creation and formation of public opinion. In television genre studies, types of television texts are classified according to their common codes and conventions, for example sitcom, science fiction, western, horror. Dividing the universe of television shows into discrete genre categories is often the subject of considerable controversy. Genres do not have fixed semantic boundaries. Television texts do not exist in isolation, but are understood in relation to other television texts. It is often difficult to clearly distinguish one television genre from another, as many of them contain a mixture of textual elements from pre-existing genres. By discussing these issues, I will try to make a general textual analysis of the television genre.

Looking beyond the punchline: the effect of political entertainment on evaluations of political candidates

ABSTRACT This study examined the effects of three different television genres on perceptions of a political candidate during an election period. Students at a large Southeastern university (n = 172) were assigned to one of three conditions: late-night comedy, traditional news, or sketch comedy to assess differential impacts on perceived trust, evaluations, and electability of Elizabeth Warren during the 2020 Democratic presidential primary period. Results showed that participants in the late-night condition rated Warren as more trustworthy than those in the traditional news condition. However, there were no differences across the conditions in terms of perceptions of electability or candidate trait evaluations. Finally, this study found that political knowledge moderated the relationship between condition and trust. More specifically, results showed that as knowledge increased, participants in the sketch comedy condition reported higher levels of trust in Warren whereas the opposite occurred for those in the traditional news condition. Perceptions of trust remained fairly high and stable in the late-night condition, regardless of political knowledge. Results demonstrate the importance of understanding how politicians (or their likeness) are perceived in different television settings and how certain media appearances could affect viewer perceptions of those politicians.

Creative Genre Matters: Trendy Drama and the Rise of the East Asian Global Media Market

The trendy drama, a new TV genre coined to signify contemporary trends, initially emerged in Japan in the 1980s and became popular with middle-class audiences across East Asia for portraying Western-like chic metropolitan lifestyles. This television genre typically consists of a 10 to 13 episode long miniseries with 60 to 90 minute episodes. Their narratives focus on love affairs between rich, attractive, hard-working elites as they question traditional Han Chinese values and consider whether women should be independent, allowed to work, have sex outside marriage, and divorce. While specifically Chinese, these values have influenced cultures across East Asia. While espousing liberal and feminist ideals, they roam from trendy stores, such as fashion clothing and cosmetic shops, to expensive restaurants, and back to their luxurious apartments. Quickly, these dramas became so associated with highlighting current global and local trends and countering tradition that they became known as “trendy dramas”. This genre quickly took off and soon thereafter, South Korea and Taiwan partnered together to create their own versions of trendy dramas that helped generate much of contemporary East Asian popular culture, including the rise of K-Pop. Based on Mittell’s claim that genres function as a means of framing mass audiences’ taste, here I explore the role of this TV genre in the context of globalization and local culture in East Asia and its effect upon reshaping social meanings during the 1980s and the early 2010s. In particular, the Taiwanese trendy dramas played a key role in elevating this genre within the Asian TV market. In this article, I argue that in Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea, the trendy drama became a way to debate Han cultural values and their role in the lives of liberal metropolitan Asians. In the process, this genre helped reshape the East Asian TV market along with popular culture around the globe. I will begin by describing the history of the trendy drama before focusing on how it debates traditional beliefs and considers the value and utility of feminism and individualism in contemporary urban Asia.

Older Adult Representations, Stereotypes, and Interpersonal Competence in Christmas Television

ABSTRACT Recognizing the need to monitor the television depictions of older adults (OAs) we used social cognitive theory to study OA representations, stereotypes, and appearances in the understudied genre of Christmas television, specifically Hallmark Christmas movies (N = 50). We extended social cognitive theory to understand the effect of positive stereotypes on older adults’ appearances by employing interpersonal competence theory and coding OA interactions for positive and negative altercasting, defined as casting of one’s interactant into a valued or disvalued identity. Unlike primetime television analyses, OAs were not underrepresented relative to the U.S. population. OAs appeared in more minor than supporting roles, and participated in Christmas traditions like celebrating with family and affirming Christmas traditions and spirit. Over 60% of OAs portrayed positive stereotypes like Sage, Golden Ager, Perfect Grandparent and John Wayne Conservative. As theorized, net positive altercasting completely mediated the effect of three positive OA stereotypes on the frequency of OA appearances. Implications for studying Christmas television, aging stereotypes, and media portrayals of interpersonal competence are discussed.

Cultivating paranormal beliefs: how television viewing, social media use, and podcast listening predict belief in UFOs

ABSTRACT This study builds on cultivation theory to consider how use of different media – including television, social media, and podcasts – may predict belief in unidentified flying objects (UFOs) and extraterrestrials. Extending previous research on media use and belief in paranormal phenomena, the study tests whether consumption of specific television genres, television news outlets, social media platforms, and podcast programs is linked to greater belief in UFOs. An analysis of national survey data (N = 1,035) collected two months after the widely publicized release of a US government report on ‘unidentified aerial phenomena’ shows that paranormal documentary and reality television viewing, Fox News viewing, YouTube use, and Joe Rogan Experience listening were positively associated with belief in UFOs. By illuminating how specific forms of media use predict public beliefs about one type of purported paranormal phenomena, the findings suggest future directions in investigating beliefs about other topics on the fringes of conventional inquiry.

Impact of medical TV shows on the surgical knowledge of non-healthcare students of Lahore, Pakistan

IntroductionA popular genre of television shows is medical dramas. Although the primary objective of watching these shows is entertainment, acquiring medical knowledge is a passive by-product. Surgical procedures constitute a large part of the storyline of these shows. This could either serve as a source of medical knowledge or provide false information, the effect being especially important in individuals with no prior medical exposure.ObjectivesThis study aims to assess the impact medical TV shows can have on the surgical knowledge of non-healthcare students and the difference in knowledge between different demographic groups (among those with relatives in the medical community and those without).MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among the non-healthcare students of Lahore, Pakistan. A self-administered questionnaire was used containing socio-demographic factors (age, gender, educational discipline), history, and hours of medical TV shows watched. It also contained ten questions each with a score of 1 to assess surgical knowledge. Data was analyzed using SPSS v.26.ResultsAmong the 1097 respondents, 450 (41%) had a history of watching medical TV shows. The majority, 319 (29.1%), had seen these shows for < 24 hours. The mean score of all respondents was 5.79 out of a maximum score of 10. Respondents with a history of watching medical TV shows were more knowledgeable than those who did not (p < 0.001). Similarly, respondents with a history of watching more hours of medical TV shows were more knowledgeable than those who watched for a lesser number of hours (p < 0.001). Respondents with relatives in the healthcare profession were also more knowledgeable than those without (p = 0.049).ConclusionsIf properly developed, while maintaining their primary entertainment value, medical TV shows can also be used as efficient learning tools. Quality controls must also be applied to minimize the risk of false information.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

From television genre to film genre: Finnish Schlager music on small and big screens

Schlager shows were one of the main attractions on early Finnish television. Featuring a popular music genre, the shows were soon followed by a wave of Schlager films. In this article, I discuss Schlager film as an intermedial genre that sheds light on the early forms of cooperation between television, film and record industries. Focusing on the Schlager film Hit parade (1959), I suggest that while television was often seen merely as a competitor of the film industry, contributing to the crisis of Finnish film production, the relation between the two was more ambiguous than that: the case of Hit parade indicates that the film industry was also interested in the potential provided by the new medium.