Watching TV Viewers

        Daniel Chandler

        Bulletin

        • These are two-hour workshops with both lecture and seminar-style components. There are no separate seminars.
        • Assessment is purely by coursework in the form of two assignments of 2,500 words each. There is no exam. Deadlines are:
          • Wednesday 5th March 2003
          • Monday 19th May 2003
        • For the academic session 2002/3 this module has been scheduled for the Second Semester on Fridays from 11.10am-1.10 pm in Room 320 of the Physical Sciences building.
        • The 2002/3 session is the last in which this module will run.

        • Introduction
        • Aims and Objectives
        • Lecture Topics
        • Joining children.media.uk
        • Some General Reading
        • Assignment Guidelines
        • Assignment Options Batch 1
        • Assignment Options Batch 2
        • General Assessment Criteria

        Introduction

        We explore various aspects of the psychology and sociology of TV viewing. One focus is on gender, covering the on-screen portrayal of gender stereotypes, how we make sense of these, and also gendered differences in the use of television in the home. We also consider how we come to make sense of production and editing conventions. As adults, we tend to be largely unconscious of what we know about TV conventions such as the use of 'cuts', and we will try to make some of this knowledge more explicit. In doing so we will become more aware of our role as active interpreters of TV rather than merely as passive victims of it. There is a particular focus on the process and diversity of viewers' interpretations of television programmes.


        Aims and Objectives

          Aims

        • to explore the active processes involved in making sense of what we watch on television;
        • to explore the diversity of viewing styles;
        • to explore various approaches to researching the viewing experience.

          Objectives/Learning Outcomes

          Typically, upon completion of this module, a student will be able to:

        • reflect critically upon their own experience of watching television;
        • identify some of the processes of interpretation involved in making sense of television programmes;
        • identify key functions which television can serve for viewers;
        • outline key theories and studies concerning viewers' use and interpretation of TV.


        Lecture Topics

        1. Introduction: Learning Television
          • Recap: Active Interpretation
            • Visual Perception as an Active Process
            • Reading as an Active Process
          • Reading Film and Television
            • The 'Grammar' of Television
            • Opening Sequence in a Television Narrative
            • 'Textual Poachers' (Henry Jenkins)
            • Morley, David (1994): 'Active Audience Theory: Pendulums and Pitfalls'. In Mark R Levy & Michael Gurevitch (Eds): Defining Media Studies: Reflections on the Future of the Field. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 255-61.
        2. Children as Interpreters of Television
          • Children's Understanding of What is 'Real' on Television
            • Print version
            • Web version
            • The Portable Hole clip from Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
          • Cognitive Developmental Stages in TV Viewing
            • Doubleday, Catherine N & Kristin L Droege (1993): 'Cognitive Developmental Influences on Children's Understanding of Television'. In Gordon L Berry and Joy Keiko Asamen (Eds): Children and Television. Newbury Park, CA: Sage, pp. 23-37; [WWW document] URL http://www.aber.ac.uk/modules/documents/TF33120_5.pdf
            • My Notes
        3. Key Theories
          • Uses and Gratifications Theory: Why People Watch
          • Cultivation Theory
        4. TV & Violence
          • Lecture Notes
          • Bob Doll Studies (5-minute QuickTime video clip)
        5. TV & Gender
          • TV & Gender Roles
          • Gendered Identification in Big Brother
        6. Viewing Styles and the Domestic Politics of Television Use
          • David Morley (1980): Family Television
          • Student Case-Studies
            • Catherine Langan
            • Dewi Rheinallt Owen
            • Lesley Sands
            • Matthew Wood
            • Nicola Starke
        7. Inference and Schema Theory
          • Main Types of Inference in Reading a Media Text
          • Schema Theory and the Interpretation of Television Programmes
          • Doris Graber: Processing the News
        8. The Diversity of Interpretations (1): Psychological Factors
          • Allport & Postman: Constructive recall
          • Livingstone, Sonia (1998): 'Divergent Interpretations of Television Soap Opera' (from Making Sense of Television); online pdf extract at: http://www.aber.ac.uk/modules/documents/TF33120_2.pdf
            • My notes on Livingstone's studies...
              • Livingstone: 'Typology of Divergence in Narrative Interpretation'
              • Livingstone: 'What Makes Viewers Diverge When Interpreting Narrative?'
          • Viewers' Attitudes towards a Relationship in EastEnders (Word 6 format)
            • Daniel's draft report, March 1998
            • Daniel's data, March 1998
        9. The Diversity of Interpretations (2): Socio-Cultural Factors
          • David Morley (1980): The 'Nationwide' Audience
          • Elihu Katz & Tamar Liebes (1984-): Cross-Cultural Studies of Dallas Viewers
          • Buckingham, David (1987): Public Secrets: 'EastEnders' and its Audience. London: BFI; pdf extract 'Popular Television and its Audience' [WWW document] URL http://www.aber.ac.uk/modules/documents/TF33120_4.pdf
          • Notes on Buckingham (1987): 'Popular Television and its Audience' (Young Viewers of EastEnders)
        10. Summary of Key Differences in Viewers' Interpretations of TV
        11. Researching TV Viewing
          • Key Research Methods
          • Interpreting Children’s Talk About Television
          • Michael Wegerer (1995): 'Scanning Star Trek: The Next Generation'


        Joining children.media.uk

        The 'discussion list' called 'children.media.uk' is a British-based e-mail group concerned with children and the mass media. I would like everyone in this module to join. The list includes academics and television producers and you will get regular items of e-mail from them. I hope that you will find some of the mailings interesting and relevant. You may also raise issues of your own, including topics related to your assignment.

        Send an e-mail to jiscmail@JISCMAIL.AC.UK

        In the main body of the text type only this message (switch off any 'signature' file which you may use)...

        join children-media-uk Helen Jones

        [Replace 'Helen Jones' with your own name!]

        Let me know if you do not get a response from children-media-uk.

        The module Watching Television Viewers is registered as a Cultural Studies course with the World Lecture Hall (University of Texas at Austin).



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