midterm


 * Release date ** : 2/1; Due date: 3/1
 * Each question is worth 25 points ||
 * A+ || 24-25 || C+ || 16-17 ||
 * A || 23 || C || 15 ||
 * A- || 21-22 || C- || 13-14 ||
 * B+ || 20 || D || 12 ||
 * B || 19 || F || 11-0 ||
 * B- || 18 ||  ||   ||

Guidelines
You are expected to answer the following 4 questions with 2 to 3 double-spaced, typed pages per question (500-750 words). Use quotation sparingly; use your own words. You should try to incorporate the terms in **bold** in your answers wherever you can. You are required to support answers with relevant examples from class screenings or your own television examples. The idea is to contextualize and support (or challenge) the ideas and arguments with concrete examples from television. Try to synthesize, compare and contrast where relevant. The following questions suggest a main thesis and 3-4 main points. You are encouraged to use such a format but you need not follow the exact logic or structure as set out in the questions below.

Questions
1. Ellis and Caldwell describe the production process of television in very different ways: Ellis emphasizes **routines** and **established formats** while Caldwell discusses **innovation** and **style**. What are the implications of such differences in terms of 2. Johnson and Meehan & Byers discuss networks rather than specific shows or genres. Discuss these articles according to the following 3 __interrelated__ issues. 3. Couldry writes that, “every gamedoc has a specific **myth** about how it represents the social world” (63). They also, then, have an ideological function as they represent social contradictions about human nature, family, marriage, professionalism, interpersonal or social relations and so on. How do their realist conventions (hand-held camera, interviews, observational or cinema //verité//) work to mask or efface the mythic or ideological work of these shows? 4. Robin Andersen assesses the Talk Show according to how well it can create participatory discourse within the **democratic public sphere**. Discuss both the potential and the limitations of the genre with reference to a talk show you have seen in or out of class.
 * the **economics** of television;
 * the role of the **audience**?
 * the relationship between **producers** and **audiences**;
 * the causes, nature and purpose of TV’s **self-reflexivity**;
 * The **institutional** structure of the networks (the **economics** of television, **ownership**, **organizational structure**, etc.)
 * ** Target audience ** (How is the audience is conceived? How does the network market or brand itself to that audience? How is programming designed to attract specific audiences?)
 * Most importantly: **values**. What set of values do these network reproduce in their programming and why?
 * Describe a show’s **media rituals** and their function.
 * What is the place of authenticity and how is it constructed? How do such shows claim to reveal **psychological truths** about the characters?
 * What is the “**media self**” and how does **celebrification** operate?
 * How does **voyeurism** function?
 * How, according to Couldry, are reality shows a social process and what are their **ethical** dimensions?
 * How might **direct address** to the camera (interview or confessional) work in a reality program?
 * What are the possibilities and limitations of an emphasis on individual **experience**?
 * How does personal experience function as a source of **authority**?
 * As opposed to news, how are social issues made **relevant** to viewers’ lives and experiences on talk shows?
 * What is the role of the studio **audience**?
 * How do the following hinder the democratic potential of talk shows:
 * the focus on the **individualized** problems, **interpersonal** relations and **private** solutions;
 * the language of **therapy;**
 * ** exploitation ** and the sensational;
 * individual **(ir)responsibility** and blame?