Sam Ford, Abigail De Kosnik, and C. Lee Harrington (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.001.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
The soap opera, one of U.S. television’s longest-running and most influential formats, is on the brink. Declining ratings have been attributed to an increasing number of women working outside the ...
More
The soap opera, one of U.S. television’s longest-running and most influential formats, is on the brink. Declining ratings have been attributed to an increasing number of women working outside the home and to an intensifying competition for viewers’ attention from cable and the Internet. Yet, soaps’ influence has expanded, with serial narratives becoming commonplace on most primetime TV programs. This book investigates the causes of their dwindling popularity, describes their impact on TV and new media culture, and gleans lessons from their complex history for twenty-first-century media industries. It contains contributions from established soap scholars, along with essays and interviews by emerging scholars, fans and Web site moderators, and soap opera producers, writers, and actors from ABC’s General Hospital, CBS’s The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful, and other shows. This diverse group of voices seeks to intervene in the discussion about the fate of soap operas at a critical juncture, and speaks to long-time soap viewers, television studies scholars, and media professionals alike.Less
The soap opera, one of U.S. television’s longest-running and most influential formats, is on the brink. Declining ratings have been attributed to an increasing number of women working outside the home and to an intensifying competition for viewers’ attention from cable and the Internet. Yet, soaps’ influence has expanded, with serial narratives becoming commonplace on most primetime TV programs. This book investigates the causes of their dwindling popularity, describes their impact on TV and new media culture, and gleans lessons from their complex history for twenty-first-century media industries. It contains contributions from established soap scholars, along with essays and interviews by emerging scholars, fans and Web site moderators, and soap opera producers, writers, and actors from ABC’s General Hospital, CBS’s The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful, and other shows. This diverse group of voices seeks to intervene in the discussion about the fate of soap operas at a critical juncture, and speaks to long-time soap viewers, television studies scholars, and media professionals alike.
Christine Scodari
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0015
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This chapter examines how the gendered narrative elements of soaps have been absorbed into, handled cautiously in, or cast out of primetime genres such as science fiction “space operas” and reworked ...
More
This chapter examines how the gendered narrative elements of soaps have been absorbed into, handled cautiously in, or cast out of primetime genres such as science fiction “space operas” and reworked in light of the challenges daytime dramas currently face. It explores how soaps have adapted by peppering their narratives with primetime conventions, and argues that the commercial imperatives and gender biases of television conspire to circumscribe the feminine form and, along with it, the genre that started it all.Less
This chapter examines how the gendered narrative elements of soaps have been absorbed into, handled cautiously in, or cast out of primetime genres such as science fiction “space operas” and reworked in light of the challenges daytime dramas currently face. It explores how soaps have adapted by peppering their narratives with primetime conventions, and argues that the commercial imperatives and gender biases of television conspire to circumscribe the feminine form and, along with it, the genre that started it all.
Lynn Liccardo
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0016
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This chapter focuses on the soap opera genre’s increasing incorporation of over-the-top and campy elements alongside the development of many classic storytelling traits in primetime. It argues that ...
More
This chapter focuses on the soap opera genre’s increasing incorporation of over-the-top and campy elements alongside the development of many classic storytelling traits in primetime. It argues that the decline of quality in soap opera narratives has been driven in part by the industry’s self-loathing. The idea that soap opera is something that needs to change in order to not be hated has become deeply embedded in daytime producers’ collective psyche during the past thirty years.Less
This chapter focuses on the soap opera genre’s increasing incorporation of over-the-top and campy elements alongside the development of many classic storytelling traits in primetime. It argues that the decline of quality in soap opera narratives has been driven in part by the industry’s self-loathing. The idea that soap opera is something that needs to change in order to not be hated has become deeply embedded in daytime producers’ collective psyche during the past thirty years.
Sam Ford
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781604737165
- eISBN:
- 9781621037767
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781604737165.003.0018
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Television
This chapter presents Mittell’s views on whether soap operas have influenced primetime television. Mittell says that contemporary primetime narrative complexity has little in common with or influence ...
More
This chapter presents Mittell’s views on whether soap operas have influenced primetime television. Mittell says that contemporary primetime narrative complexity has little in common with or influence from soap operas, except through their common connections to 1970s and 1980s primetime serials. They are distinctly different in production method, scheduling, acting style, pacing, and formal structure. There is also almost no crossover of creative personnel between daytime and primetime drama.Less
This chapter presents Mittell’s views on whether soap operas have influenced primetime television. Mittell says that contemporary primetime narrative complexity has little in common with or influence from soap operas, except through their common connections to 1970s and 1980s primetime serials. They are distinctly different in production method, scheduling, acting style, pacing, and formal structure. There is also almost no crossover of creative personnel between daytime and primetime drama.
David Danzig
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231153591
- eISBN:
- 9780231526975
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231153591.003.0002
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This chapter focuses on Jack Bauer, the hero of the FOX television program 24, and his torture techniques, which are admired and sometimes emulated by American soldiers. To some, Bauer is just the ...
More
This chapter focuses on Jack Bauer, the hero of the FOX television program 24, and his torture techniques, which are admired and sometimes emulated by American soldiers. To some, Bauer is just the sort of guy the United States needs to counter the threat from extremist groups like al-Qaeda. Bauer never flinches when confronting a terrorist. In its first six seasons 24 broadcast eighty-nine scenes that feature torture. Bauer has used nearly every torture technique imaginable over the lifetime of the series. He has stabbed, shot, kicked, choked, electrocuted, drugged, blackmailed, threatened family members of terrorists with death, and used other exotic forms of torture in his abusive quest for information. Every character who questions the use of torture on the program is ultimately proved to be wrong. This chapter also discusses a documentary called Primetime Torture, which debunks the effectiveness of Bauer’s practice.Less
This chapter focuses on Jack Bauer, the hero of the FOX television program 24, and his torture techniques, which are admired and sometimes emulated by American soldiers. To some, Bauer is just the sort of guy the United States needs to counter the threat from extremist groups like al-Qaeda. Bauer never flinches when confronting a terrorist. In its first six seasons 24 broadcast eighty-nine scenes that feature torture. Bauer has used nearly every torture technique imaginable over the lifetime of the series. He has stabbed, shot, kicked, choked, electrocuted, drugged, blackmailed, threatened family members of terrorists with death, and used other exotic forms of torture in his abusive quest for information. Every character who questions the use of torture on the program is ultimately proved to be wrong. This chapter also discusses a documentary called Primetime Torture, which debunks the effectiveness of Bauer’s practice.
