Michele Hilmes, Roberta Pearson, and Matt Hills
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190663124
- eISBN:
- 9780190663162
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190663124.003.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies, World Literature
The editors situate the rise of transatlantic television drama within the history of transnational cultural exchange, theories of transnationalism, and scholarship on the topic within the field of ...
More
The editors situate the rise of transatlantic television drama within the history of transnational cultural exchange, theories of transnationalism, and scholarship on the topic within the field of media studies. They argue that broadcasting is uniquely entangled with tensions over national culture and identity to which scholars have responded with three distinct “waves” of thought. The first wave centered on fears of “Americanization,” the second focused on the “globalization” of culture via international trade, while the third has shifted to a transnational approach that is concerned with complex flows of influence and meaning. Theories of transnationalism put forward by Arjun Appadurai, Mette Hjort, Ien Ang, and others are brought to bear on considerations of international industries, texts, and fandom today, with particular attention to the transatlantic sphere. Finally, the key themes of transnational coproduction, new transnational relationships, and transnational representations are traced across and between the volume’s three parts.Less
The editors situate the rise of transatlantic television drama within the history of transnational cultural exchange, theories of transnationalism, and scholarship on the topic within the field of media studies. They argue that broadcasting is uniquely entangled with tensions over national culture and identity to which scholars have responded with three distinct “waves” of thought. The first wave centered on fears of “Americanization,” the second focused on the “globalization” of culture via international trade, while the third has shifted to a transnational approach that is concerned with complex flows of influence and meaning. Theories of transnationalism put forward by Arjun Appadurai, Mette Hjort, Ien Ang, and others are brought to bear on considerations of international industries, texts, and fandom today, with particular attention to the transatlantic sphere. Finally, the key themes of transnational coproduction, new transnational relationships, and transnational representations are traced across and between the volume’s three parts.
Michele Hilmes, Matt Hills, and Roberta Pearson
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190663124
- eISBN:
- 9780190663162
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190663124.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies, World Literature
A tide of high-quality television drama is sweeping the world. The new transnational television series has developed not only global appeal but innovative new modes of production, distribution, and ...
More
A tide of high-quality television drama is sweeping the world. The new transnational television series has developed not only global appeal but innovative new modes of production, distribution, and reception. Nowhere is the transnational exchange of television drama more vital than between Britain and the United States, where it builds on more than sixty years of import, adaptation, coproduction, and fandom. This edited volume explores the transatlantic flow of television drama, focusing on key programs, industry strategies, critical debates, and audience reception, from an international roster of scholars and researchers. The chapters explore some of the most widely discussed programs on the transatlantic circuit. The book's first part focuses on media industries, tracing the history of transatlantic exchange and investigating contemporary practices such as coproduction, digital distribution, global partnerships, promotion, and branding. The second part concentrates on specific television texts and their negotiation of meaning across cultural contexts, exploring critical issues in the creation of transnational drama, such as heritage, proximity, performance, and self-reflexivity. Part III turns to the lively sphere of transatlantic fandom and commentary, including fan conventions, fan fiction, the role of both traditional and social media, and fan strategies for negotiating cultural differences. Transatlantic Television Drama provides a wide-ranging analysis of a phenomenon at the forefront of today’s television universe. It is focused on the serial dramatic programs that have gained the bulk of critical and popular attention and is particularly concerned with the impact of digital technologies on the production, distribution, and reception of television drama.Less
A tide of high-quality television drama is sweeping the world. The new transnational television series has developed not only global appeal but innovative new modes of production, distribution, and reception. Nowhere is the transnational exchange of television drama more vital than between Britain and the United States, where it builds on more than sixty years of import, adaptation, coproduction, and fandom. This edited volume explores the transatlantic flow of television drama, focusing on key programs, industry strategies, critical debates, and audience reception, from an international roster of scholars and researchers. The chapters explore some of the most widely discussed programs on the transatlantic circuit. The book's first part focuses on media industries, tracing the history of transatlantic exchange and investigating contemporary practices such as coproduction, digital distribution, global partnerships, promotion, and branding. The second part concentrates on specific television texts and their negotiation of meaning across cultural contexts, exploring critical issues in the creation of transnational drama, such as heritage, proximity, performance, and self-reflexivity. Part III turns to the lively sphere of transatlantic fandom and commentary, including fan conventions, fan fiction, the role of both traditional and social media, and fan strategies for negotiating cultural differences. Transatlantic Television Drama provides a wide-ranging analysis of a phenomenon at the forefront of today’s television universe. It is focused on the serial dramatic programs that have gained the bulk of critical and popular attention and is particularly concerned with the impact of digital technologies on the production, distribution, and reception of television drama.
Michele Hilmes
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190663124
- eISBN:
- 9780190663162
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190663124.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies, World Literature
Masterpiece, initiated as Masterpiece Theatre in 1971 and still running today, remains one of the most successful examples of transnational coproduction between the United States and Britain. This ...
More
Masterpiece, initiated as Masterpiece Theatre in 1971 and still running today, remains one of the most successful examples of transnational coproduction between the United States and Britain. This chapter assesses the show’s impact on television culture on both sides of the Atlantic by examining the strategies it has devised over the years to negotiate issues of national identity, cultural heritage, and differing institutional structures, both within the television texts and behind the scenes. More broadly, it interrogates the history and concept of “transnational” in television in order to explore what is at stake when the specifically national mandate of public television systems is placed in tension with an ongoing transnational practice, and how audiences, critics, policymakers, and scholars have responded.Less
Masterpiece, initiated as Masterpiece Theatre in 1971 and still running today, remains one of the most successful examples of transnational coproduction between the United States and Britain. This chapter assesses the show’s impact on television culture on both sides of the Atlantic by examining the strategies it has devised over the years to negotiate issues of national identity, cultural heritage, and differing institutional structures, both within the television texts and behind the scenes. More broadly, it interrogates the history and concept of “transnational” in television in order to explore what is at stake when the specifically national mandate of public television systems is placed in tension with an ongoing transnational practice, and how audiences, critics, policymakers, and scholars have responded.
Michelle Hilmes
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190663124
- eISBN:
- 9780190663162
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190663124.003.0002
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies, World Literature
This part examines recent developments in the media industry that underlie the rise of transatlantic television drama, exploring its history in the context of the impact of digital technologies on ...
More
This part examines recent developments in the media industry that underlie the rise of transatlantic television drama, exploring its history in the context of the impact of digital technologies on industry relationships, branding, coproduction, distribution, and industry consolidation. Significant programs and players include Masterpiece, Orphan Black, and Happy Valley; BBC and its global arm BBC Worldwide, American broadcast and cable channels such as PBS, AMC, and HBO; and the digital platforms Netflix, Amazon, Sky Atlantic, and Hulu.Less
This part examines recent developments in the media industry that underlie the rise of transatlantic television drama, exploring its history in the context of the impact of digital technologies on industry relationships, branding, coproduction, distribution, and industry consolidation. Significant programs and players include Masterpiece, Orphan Black, and Happy Valley; BBC and its global arm BBC Worldwide, American broadcast and cable channels such as PBS, AMC, and HBO; and the digital platforms Netflix, Amazon, Sky Atlantic, and Hulu.
