The Television History Book

by Hilmes, Michele; Jacobs, Jason

• ISBN13: 9780851709871
• ISBN10: 0851709877
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-03-01
• Publisher: British Film Inst

Summary

A comprehensive overview of important historical topics in both Great Britain and the United States in readable short essay/reference form.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. vii
Acknowledgments	p. ix
Notes on Contributors	p. x
Introduction
TV Nations	p. 1
Technologies
Introduction	p. 4
Television's Prehistory: Radio (The Origins of the Soap Opera)	p. 4
The Development of Television (High Definition Television 1969-90)	p. 9
Cable, Satellite and the Challenge of Digital Media (Digital Distribution, Intellectual Property and the End of TV as We Know It?)	p. 13
The Internet: From Cold War to Commercialisation	p. 19
Institutions: From Origins to Stability
Introduction	p. 22
The Origins of Public Service Broadcasting (British Television before the War)	p. 22
The Origins of Commercial Broadcasting in the US	p. 26
Post-War Television in Britain: BBC and ITV	p. 30
Grace Wyndham Goldie
Establishment of the US Television Networks (The 'Other' Networks)	p. 35
Competition and Change in British Television (Television in Wales 1960-80)	p. 40
The 'Classic Network System' in the US (Genre Cycles: Innovation, Imitation, Saturation)	p. 44
Institutions: Conflict and Change
Introduction	p. 50
Channel Four and the Redefining of Public Service Broadcasting (Jeremy Isaacs--First Chief Executive of Channel Four (1981-7))	p. 50
Public Television and Public Access in the US (Paper Tiger Television)	p. 55
Satellite, Cable and New Channels in the UK (Rupert Murdoch)	p. 59
US Television in the Multichannel Age (Protectionism, Deregulation and The Telecommunications Act of 1996)	p. 62
Programming: 1950s-80s
Introduction	p. 68
Early Television in Great Britian (The Coronation)	p. 69
Experimental and Live Television in the US (Studio One, 'The Hospital')	p. 72
ITV: 1955-89: Populism and Experimentation (Mystery and Imagination)	p. 76
The 'Youth Revolution' and American Television (The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour [CBS, 1967-9])	p. 81
The BBC Adapts to Competition (Zircon)	p. 86
US Networks in the 1970s and 80s (Charlie's Angels)	p. 89
Programming: New Venues, New Forms
Introduction	p. 95
Channel Four: Innovation in Form and Content?	p. 95
Quality Drama in the US: The New 'Golden Age'? (China Beach)	p. 98
The 1990s: Quality or Dumbing Down? (Makeover Shows)	p. 103
New US Networks in the 1990s (Married ... with Children)	p. 107
Satellite and Cable Programmes in the UK (All Aussie Weekender: Sky One Down Under)	p. 112
US Television Abroad: Exporting Culture (Baywatch)	p. 115
The Global Television Format Trade (Big Brother)	p. 118
Audiences
Introduction	p. 122
From Network to Neo-Network Audiences	p. 122
From Mass to Meanings (Citizens and Consumers)	p. 126
The Ratings System and Its Effects (The A. C. Nielsen Company)	p. 129
The Television Violence Debates (The V-Chip)	p. 132
Audiences and the Internet (Xena and Buffy Fans)	p. 137
Bibliography	p. 141
Index	p. 155
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