"European Television History" brings together television historians and media scholars to chart the development of television in Europe since its inception. The volume interrogates the history of the medium in divergent political, economic, cultural and ideological national contexts
Taking a comparative approach to the topic, the volume is organized around a set of common questions, themes, and methodological reflectionsDeals with European television in the context of television historiography and transnational traditionsCase study chapters written by scholars from different European countries to reflect their specific areas of expertise

Media critics invariably disparage the quality of programming produced by the U.S. television industry. But why the industry produces what it does is a question largely unasked. It is this question, at the crux of American popular culture, that "Switching Channels" explores.

In the past twenty-five years, the expansion of cable and satellite systems has transformed television. Richard Caves examines the economics of this phenomenon--and the nature and logic of the broadcast networks' response to the incursion of cable TV, especially the shift to inexpensive unscripted game and "reality" shows and "news" magazines. An explanation of these changes, Caves argues, requires an understanding of two very different sectors: the "creative industry," which produces programs; and the commercial channels, which bring them to viewers. His book shows how distributors' judgment of profitability determines the quality and character of the programs the creative industry produces. This determination, writes Caves, depends on the number and types of viewers that various programs can attract and advertisers' willingness to pay for their attention, as well as the organization of the networks that package programs, the distributors that transmit them, and the deals these parties strike with one another.

"You can't win races without working harder than the other guy."

A blazing ball of contradictions and a genuine original, Ted Turner has been labeled a philanthropist and humanist, a fascist and a racist, a madman and one of the canniest entrepreneurs of all times. Hard-driving and hypercompetitive, he has amassed one of the world's largest personal fortunes, only to give much of it away to liberal causes, including $1 billion to the United Nations.

As "Terrible Ted" has proven time and again, behind his outrageous public persona lies one of the most highly disciplined and creative business minds ever. Beginning with a family billboard advertising company, Turner forged a global media empire, and in the process revolutionized television broadcasting. He pioneered the Superstation concept and founded CNN-the first 24-hour, all-news network-along with more than a half-dozen cable channels. Starting with the Atlanta Braves baseball team, Turner also assembled one of today's most lucrative sports conglomerates.

Ted Turner Speaks brings together hundreds of quotes drawn from a wide array of sources. Hear straight from the maverick's mouth the secrets of his phenomenal success in business, entertainment, and philanthropy. Here is just a sample of what you'll find inside:

"Exposure to defeat is a very important thing. Anyone who doesn't look to get beaten is doing a disservice to himself. "

"I may look like a clown doing back flips at a baseball game, but I'm a very deadly serious person trying to accomplish things just for the satisfaction of accomplishing them."

"I bet you're all wondering what it feels like to be a billionaire. It's disappointing really. . . . I've learned that great wealth isn't nearly as good as average sex."

"I give [the networks] hell because they don't serve the public interest. They look at the viewer the same way a slaughterhouse looks at pigs and cattle. They sell them by the pound to the advertiser-the same way they sell ham hocks and spareribs."

"My desire to excel borders on the unhealthy."

The world listens when TED TURNER Speaks

"Losing is simply learning how to win."

"The worst sin, the ultimate sin for me, in anything, is to be bored."

"I just love it when people say I can't do something. There's nothing that makes me feel better, because all my life people have said I wasn't going to make it."

"When you're little, you have to do crazy things. You just can't copy the big guys.

To succeed you have to be innovative."

"Early to bed, early to rise, work like hell, and advertise."

This book has not been prepared, approved, licensed, or endorsed by Ted Turner.

The first comprehensive history of rock and pop on British television, from the early days of Oh Boy and Ready Steady Go!, through the institution that was Top Of The Pops, global events like Live Aid right up to date with Jools Holland's Later.

This new book examines whether television can be used as a tool not just for capitalism, but for democracy. Throughout television's history, activists have attempted to access it for that very reason. New technologies-cable, satellite, and the internet-provided brief openings for amateur and activist engagement with television. This book elaborates on this history by using ethnographic data to build a new iteration of liberalism, technoliberalism, which sees Silicon Valley technology and the free market of Hollywood end the need for a politics of participation.

Delinquent presenters, controversial executive pay-offs, the Jimmy Savile scandal...The BBC is one of the most successful broadcasters in the world, but its programme triumphs are often accompanied by management crises and high-profile resignations.One of the most respected figures in the broadcasting industry, Roger Mosey has taken senior roles at the BBC for more than twenty years, including as editor of Radio 4's Today programme, head of television news and director of the London 2012 Olympic coverage.Now, in Getting Out Alive, Mosey reveals the hidden underbelly of the BBC, lifting the lid on the angry tirades from politicians and spin doctors, the swirling accusations of bias from left and right alike, and the perils of provoking Margaret Thatcher.Along the way, this remarkable memoir charts the pleasures and pitfalls of life at the top of an organisation that is variously held up as a treasured British institution and cast down as a lumbering, out-of-control behemoth.Engaging, candid and very funny, Getting Out Alive is a true insider account of how the BBC works, why it succeeds and where it falls down.

"Radio in the Global Age "offers a fresh, up-to-date, and wide-ranging introduction to the role of radio in contemporary society. It places radio, for the first time, in a global context, and pays special attention to the impact of the Internet, digitalization and globalization on the political-economy of radio. It also provides a new emphasis on the links between music and radio, the impact of formatting, and the broader cultural roles the medium plays in constructing identities and nurturing musical tastes.

Individual chapters explore the changing structures of the radio industry, the way programmes are produced, the act of listening and the construction of audiences, the different meanings attached to programmes, and the cultural impact of radio across the globe. David Hendy portrays a medium of extraordinary contradictions: a cheap and accessible means of communication, but also one increasingly dominated by rigid formats and multinational companies; a highly 'intimate' medium, but one capable of building large communities of listeners scattered across huge spaces; a force for nourishing regional identity, but also a pervasive broadcaster of globalized music products; a 'stimulus to the imagination', but a purveyor of the banal and of the routine. Drawing on recent research from as far afield as Africa, Australasia and Latin America, as well as from the UK and US, the book aims to explore and to explain these paradoxes - and, in the process, to offer an imaginative reworking of Marshall McLuhan's famous dictum that radio is one of the world's 'hot' media.

"Radio in the Global Age "is an invaluable text for undergraduates and researchers in media studies, communicationstudies, journalism, cultural studies, and musicology. It will also be of interest to practitioners and policy-makers in the radio industry.

Since its establishment in 1922 the BBC has continually asserted itself as one of the great British institutions at home and abroad. David Pat Walker offers an in-depth analysis of the history of BBC Scotland from its creation in 1923 through to its 50th anniversary in the seventies. Examining how the firm developed over the course of the 20th century, the author portrays how the broadcaster developed its own Scottish identity despite governance from London and how it thrived within the context of the history it reported and created.

As the first collection dedicated to the relationship between television and the U.S. South, Small-Screen Souths addresses the growing interest in how mass culture represents the region and influences popular perceptions of it. In sixteen essays divided into three thematic sections, scholars of southern culture analyse representations of the South in a variety of television shows spanning the history of the medium, from classic network programs such as The Andy Griffith Show and Designing Women to some of today's popular franchises like Duck Dynasty and The Walking Dead. The first section, ""Politics and Identity in the Televisual South,"" focuses on how television constructs understandings of race, gender, sexuality, and class, often adapting to changing configurations of community and identity. The next section, ""Caricatures, Commodities, and Catharsis in the Rural South,"" examines the tension between depictions of southern rural communities and assumptions about abject whiteness, particularly conceptions of poverty and profitized culture. The concluding section, ""(Dis)Locating the South,"" considers the influence of postcolonialism, globalization, and cosmopolitanism in understanding television featuring the region. Throughout, the essays investigate the profuse, often contradictory ways that the U.S. South has been represented on television, seeking to expand and pluralize myopic perspectives of the region. By analysing depictions of the South from the classical network era to the contemporary post-broadcast age, Small-Screen Souths offers a broad historical scope and a multiplicity of theoretical and interdisciplinary perspectives on what it means to see the South from the television screen.

The TV Brand Builders is the definitive account of how the biggest television networks, channels and programmes are created as brands, with rare privileged access to the marketing strategies and creative thinking behind culturally defining TV promos, digital and social media campaigns and design identities. Written by two leading practitioners responsible for work as famous as the BBC One hippos, the creation of a TV channel called Dave and the re-launch of Doctor Who, and featuring interviews with 50 leading industry experts from 8 countries, from HBO to ESPN, from DreamWorks to CANAL+, The TV Brand Builders combines practical advice and strategic insight with exclusive stories from the ratings front line. Online resources include a bonus chapter on TV channel design in a multi-screen world, plus a 'Student and Instructor's Manual' with chapter summaries.

TV on Strike examines the 2007 upheaval in the entertainment industry by telling the inside story of the hundred-day writers' strike that crippled Hollywood. The television industry's uneasy transition to the digital age was the driving force behind the most significant labour dispute of the twenty-first century. The strike put a spotlight on how the advent of new-media distribution platforms is reshaping the traditional business models that have governed the entertainment business for decades. The uncertainty that sent writers out into the streets of Los Angeles and New York with picket signs laid bare the depth of the divide, after years of industry consolidation, between the handful of media barons who rule Hollywood and the writers whose works support the industry. With both sides afraid of losing millions in future profits, a critical communication breakdown spurred a brief but fierce fight with repercussions that continue today. The saga of the Writers Guild of America strike is told here as seen through the eyes of key players on both sides of the negotiating table and of the foot soldiers who shocked even themselves with the strength of their resolve to fight for their rights in the face of an ambiguous future.

In an age of proliferating choices, television nevertheless remains the most popular medium in the United States. Americans spend more time with TV than ever before, and many 'new media' forms, such as blu-ray movies, Hulu videos, and Internet widgets, are produced and delivered by the world's most lucrative and powerful television industry. Yet that industry has undergone profound changes since the 1980s, moving from a three-network oligopoly to a sprawling range of channels and services dominated by a handful of major conglomerates. Viewers can now access hundreds of channels at all hours of the day and can search and select from hundreds of thousands of individual programmes on video and Internet services. This diversity has fragmented the size of television audiences and transformed relationships between viewers and television companies. Unlike the first fifty years of television, today's industry leaders can no longer rely on mass audiences and steady revenue flows from big-budget advertisers, and this in turn affects their programming and production strategies.
"The American Television Industry" offers a concise and accessible introduction to TV production, programming, advertising and distribution. Michael Curtin and Jane Shattuc outline how programmes are made and marketed, and provide an insightful overview of key players, practices and future trends. Although star-driven dramas and comedies continue to attract a great deal of critical praise and audience attention, television is increasingly characterised by niche programming services, that, with modest production budgets, compete for audience attention. In this environment, reality TV genres have emerged as attractive programming alternatives for cable services such as the History Channel and the Food Network. Moreover, programming is increasingly delivered on an a la carte, on-demand basis to a diverse array of viewing devices, such as iPods and cell phones.
The book analyses the corporate strategies, technological innovations and cultural transformations that have driven changes in industry strategy, discourse and practice. Making reference to numerous case examples, the authors identify definitive trends and describe key players in industry and government. These are indeed vibrant but unstable times for the American television industry and this volume explains the major forces that will shape the future of the medium in North America and around the world.

Winner of the McKitterick Prize 2018. "Never cover an assignment without collecting a brown envelope," Boniface had said. "It is a real life saver for all journalists in this country." Ifiok, a young journalist working for the government radio station in Lagos, Nigeria, always aspires to do the right thing, but the odds seem to be stacked against him. Government pressures cause the funding to his radio drama to get cut off, his girlfriend leaves him when she discovers he is having an affair with an intern, and kidnappings and militancy are on the rise in the country. When Ifiok travels to his hometown to do a documentary on some ex-militants' apparent redemption, a tragi-comic series of events will make him realise he is unable to swim against the tide of corruption. Building on the legacy of the great African satirist tradition of Ngugi Wa Thiongo and Ayi Kwei Armah, Radio Sunrise paints a sharp-tongued portrait of (post) post-colonial Nigeria.

While not a production study, this book attempts to provide an insight into the inner workings of the television industry. As such its central concern is with processes, not texts or techniques or histories. "Television Industries" focuses on the essential elements of the industry: the policy and regulatory frameworks, the swiftly changing world of video production technology, all of which provides the backdrops against which broadcasters shape and sell their products. The book also examines the working practices of scheduling, budgeting, selling advertising air-time and so forth. Where issues may be familiar to readers (for example debates around public service broadcasting) the entries aim to be explanatory and fresh. Of course, it's not possible to cover every aspect of what is a complex and ever changing industry. Nonetheless, the aim is to provide a starting point for students and new scholars as they start to research into the nature of the broadcasting industry. Hence, this volume is extensively cross-referenced, to guide the reader as they tease out for themselves some of the complexity of this industry. There are several other elements that are distinctive about this volume. Perhaps the most striking of these is its blend of contributions from the UK and US. This book will raise as many questions as it provides answers. It aims to make a contribution to the on-going debates in the now well-established world of television studies with fresh perspectives on some familiar, and some not so familiar, landscapes. Fully illustrated, "Television Industries" is intended as an authoritative and accessible guide to the inner workings of the television industry.

Mabel Constanduros was one of the first British radio comediennes and a beloved star of the early BBC, best known as the creator and performer of the comic Cockney family, the Bugginses. In this, the first significant biography of Constanduros, Jennifer J Purcell explores Constanduros's career and influence on the shaping of popular British entertainment alongside the history of the nascent BBC. Mother of the BBC provides new insights into programming decisions and content on the early BBC, deepening our understanding of the history and evolution of situation comedy and soap opera. Further, Constanduros's biography considers class in the representation of the British people on BBC radio, the gendered experience and performance of radio celebrity, and the intersections between BBC entertainment and other forms of popular media prior to the advent of television. Constanduros's emphasis on the everyday and the family had far-reaching impacts on the shape of sitcom and soap opera in Britain, two popular lenses through which the nation sees itself at home. Her role in developing entertainment on the BBC and the ways in which she cultivated her career make her the Mother of the BBC, but in constructing a popular image of family life she might also be considered the Mother of the Nation.

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European Television in the Digital Age" traces the development of digital television and provides a clear, concise account of the dynamics and realities of the changing face of television in Europe. The book synthesizes an array of empirical research, summarizes arguments, and provides an up-to-date analysis of the European audio-visual landscape in the age of digital TV. It discusses the ways in which the Western European audio-visual scene has been formed by a set of common problems, and how these have been dealt with at a domestic level.

Papathanassopoulos considers the effects of the deregulation of European television, the dynamics of digital television, the economies of the new era, and the issue of consolidation in the media industries. He also examines the future of public broadcasters, the role of the European Union and the impact of television in political communication. Special emphasis is given to the emergence and the effect of thematic channels, particularly on news, sports, music and children's programming."

European Television in the Digital Age" is an invaluable textbook for students on courses in media and communication, cultural theory, European studies and national policy studies. It will also be a useful source for researchers and professionals in the field.

This collection of 51 essays contains rich memories of Singapore's broadcasting pioneers based in their station atop Caldecott Hill. ON AIR captures the breadth and depth of their experiences over 82 years on the Hill; from the founding in 1936 of the British Malayan Broadcasting Corporation, to Radio and Television Singapore (RTS), to Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), and finally to what is today, Mediacorp. In this book, the writrers have recorded eight decades worth of work experiences and have shared untold stories from the Japanese Occupation of Caldecott Hill, to the fascinating behind-the-scenes happenings that cast light and well known and well loved shows. Illustrated with rare, archival photographs, many not seen before, this publication is the first of its kind that gives an insight into the development of broadcasting in Singapore.

In "More Than a Movie," producer and entertainment attorney F. Miguel Valenti presents a compelling argument for the creative community to consider the consequences of its products, from movies to TV to the Internet. Valenti refrains from attacking the industries in which he himself works, but argues for reflection on the part of those who create media. "More Than a Movie "takes a pioneering first step toward outlining the issues in an insider fashion, and provides the tools to make ethical decisions about creating for the big and small screens. Edited by veteran media writer Les Brown and media consultant Laurie Trotta, "More Than a Movie "is written to stimulate debate in professional and academic arenas, and for the enjoyment of everyone who loves entertainment. The book contains a foreword by noted author and director Peter Bogdanovich, and commentary from producers Christine Vachon and David Brown. Mediascope, a Studio City, California-based media policy organization, commissioned the book upon discovering that ethical discussions seldom occur in film and television schools, although they are staples for studying law, medicine, business and journalism. Issues range from ethnic and gender stereotyping to excessive and gratuitous violence."It's not about censorship -- it's about having a responsibility for what we do," says author Valenti (no relation to MPAA's Jack Valenti). "The book outlines how we are helping to shape societal values and individual behavior with the artistic choices we make." A team of writers from across the nation offer essays: Neil Hickey, editor, "Columbia Journalism Review"; Annette Insdorf, Columbia University; Ted Pease, professor and columnist; Jack Pitman, "Variety"; Martin Koughan, Emmy Award-winning documentarian. The essays in "More Than a Movie "are interspersed with stories of actual ethical dilemmas told by noted screenwriters, directors and other practitioners in interviews by Manhattan writer Laura Blum.

The birth and development of commercial television in Cuba in the 1950s occurred alongside political and social turmoil. In this period of dramatic swings encompassing democracy, a coup, a dictatorship, and a revolution, television functioned as a beacon and promoter of Cuba's identity as a modern nation. In Broadcasting Modernity, television historian Yeidy M. Rivero shows how television owners, regulatory entities, critics, and the state produced Cuban modernity for television. The Cuban television industry enabled different institutions to convey the nation's progress, democracy, economic abundance, high culture, education, morality, and decency. After nationalizing Cuban television, the state used it to advance Fidel Castro's project of creating a modern socialist country. As Cuba changed, television changed with it. Rivero not only demonstrates television's importance to Cuban cultural identity formation, she explains how the medium functions in society during times of radical political and social transformation.

Ralph Engelman's history of the growth of public radio and television in America is timely, compelling, and instructive. Very useful for citizens who take seriously the need for public use of the public airwaves, which we need to remember, the people own but do not control. --Ralph Nader, Director, The Center for the Study of Responsive Law "There is no cynicism or stridency in Ralph Engelman's definitive history of public broadcasting's failure to fulfill its promise, only documentation of the immense problems endemic to government and corporate sponsored mass media. For models of hope, this volume acknowledges the civic discourse that has thrived in the margins of public broadcasting--in the independent community and in the homespun programming of the public access movement." --Dee Dee Halleck, Cofounder, Paper Tiger Television & Deep Dish TV "Public Radio and Television in America by Ralph Engelman effectively navigates the complex, controversial, and often maddening history of public broadcasting as a political and cultural force. Always more important than its audience size in America, public broadcasting's promise and problems, as well as its heroes and villains, are treated effectively and well in this solid and critical analysis. The book is compact, yet sufficiently substantive and blessedly well written and well documented." --Everette E. Dennis, Executive Director, Freedom Forum Media Studies Center, editor, Media Studies Journal "Ralph Engelman's Public Radio and Television in America is a chilling description of how noncommercial broadcasting is the tragic victim of conservative corporate politics that have spent most of this century trying to cripple and kill it." --Ben H. Bagdikian, former Dean, Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California,

In the days before mobile phones, the internet and 24-hour news channels, the easiest way for a British foreign correspondent to find out what was going on in the world was to phone the local office of Reuters news agency and ask: 'Is anything happening?'That's how the award-winning BBC reporter and presenter Robin Lustig started out in journalism, working for Reuters as an agency man. During a distinguished career spanning more than forty years, he watched the world of news change beyond recognition, as he reported on terror attacks, wars and political coups.In this witty and illuminating memoir, Lustig looks back on his life as a newsman, from coming under fire in Pakistan to reporting on the fall of the Berlin Wall; from meeting Nelson Mandela to covering Princess Diana's sudden death.Back in the studio, Lustig lets us in through the BBC's back door for a candid, behind-the-scenes look at some of his triumphs and disasters working for the nation's favourite broadcaster.He writes of his childhood as the son of refugees from Nazi Germany and, drawing on thirty years of reporting about the Middle East, he comes to a startling conclusion about the establishment of the state of Israel. Astute, incisive and frequently hilarious, Is Anything Happening? is both an irresistible personal memoir and an insightful reflection on world events over the past forty-five years.

"Distribution Revolution" is a collection of interviews with leading film and TV professionals concerning the many ways that digital delivery systems are transforming the entertainment business. These interviews provide lively insider accounts from studio executives, distribution professionals, and creative talent of the tumultuous transformation of film and TV in the digital era. The first section features interviews with top executives at major Hollywood studios, providing a window into the big-picture concerns of media conglomerates with respect to changing business models, revenue streams, and audience behaviors. The second focuses on innovative enterprises that are providing path-breaking models for new modes of content creation, curation, and distribution--creatively meshing the strategies and practices of Hollywood and Silicon Valley. And the final section offers insights from creative talent whose professional practices, compensation, and everyday working conditions have been transformed over the past ten years. Taken together, these interviews demonstrate that virtually every aspect of the film and television businesses is being affected by the digital distribution revolution, a revolution that has likely just begun.
Interviewees include:
- Gary Newman, Chairman, 20th Century Fox Television
- Kelly Summers, Former Vice President, Global Business Development and New Media Strategy, Walt Disney Studios
- Thomas Gewecke, Chief Digital Officer and Executive Vice President, Strategy and Business Development, Warner Bros. Entertainment
- Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer, Netflix
- Felicia D. Henderson, Writer-Producer, "Soul Food," "Gossip Girl"
- Dick Wolf, Executive Producer and Creator, "Law & Order"

This book presents information on minority commercial radio and television ownership in the United States. It reviews the history of such ownership and the role of viewpoint diversity in a changing industry. It also continues the data collection efforts, examining the current status of minority commercial broadcast ownership.