The Small Screen How Television Equips Us to Live in the Information Age
, by Ott, Brian L.Note: Supplemental materials are not guaranteed with Rental or Used book purchases.
- ISBN: 9781405161558 | 1405161558
- Cover: Paperback
- Copyright: 11/17/2006
Television is one of the most important socializing forces in contemporary culture. This cultural history of primetime television in America during the 1990s documents a period of dramatic change, examining how TV helped viewers come to terms with their fears about living in a fast-paced, increasingly diverse, information-laden society.Ott considers changes that took place in programming, such as the rapid adoption of cable, the proliferation of content providers, the development of niche marketing, the introduction of high-definition television, the blurring of traditional genres, and the creation of new formats like reality-based programming. In doing so, he argues that television programmes of the 1990s afforded viewers a symbolic resource for negotiating the psychological challenges associated with the shift from the Industrial Age to the Information Age.