Quality TV: Contemporary American Television and Beyond (Reading Contemporary Television)

Dealing primarily with the post-1996 era shaped by digital technologies and defined by consumer choice and brand marketing, this book brings together leading scholars, established journalists and experienced broadcasters working in the field of contemporary television to debate what we currently mean by quality TV. They go deep into contemporary American television fictions, from The Sopranos and The West Wing, to CSI and Lost -- innovative, sometimes controversial, always compelling dramas, which one scholar has described as "now better than the movies!" But how do we understand the emergence of these kinds of fiction? Are they genuinely new? What does quality tv have to tell us about the state of today's television market? And is it quality? Original, often polemic, each chapter proposes new ways of thinking about and defining quality TV. There is a foreword from Robert Thompson, and heated dialogue between British and US television critics. Also included are interviews with W. Snuffy Walden (scored The West Wing among others) and with David Chase (The Sopranos creator). Preface / Robert J. Thompson -- Introdution: Debating Quality / Janet Mccabe And Kim Akass -- 'quality Tv' On Show / Karen Fricker -- Pt. 1. Defining Quality: Critical Judgements And Debate. Is Quality Television Any Good? Generic Distinction, Evaluations And The Troubling Matter Of Critical Judgement / Sarah Cardwell -- Quality Tv: A Us Tv Critic's Perspective / David Bianculli -- Quality Tv Drama: Estimations And Influences Through Time And Space / Robin Nelson -- As Seen On Tv: Women's Rights And Quality Television / Ashley Sayeau -- Sex, Swearing And Responsibility: Courting Controversy, Hbo's Original Programming And Producing Quality Tv / Janet Mccabe And Kim Akass -- Pt. 2. Defining Quality: Industry, Policy And Competitive Markets. Quality Control: The Daily Show, The Peabody And Brand Discipline / Jimmie L. Reeves, Mark C. Rogers And Michael M. Epstein -- Inside American Television Drama: Quality Is Not What Is Produced, But What It Produces / Peter Dunne -- Quality Us Tv: A Buyer's Perspective / Dermot Horan -- Csi: Crime Scene Investigation: Quality, The Fifth Channel And 'america's Finest' / Ian Goode -- The Problem Of Quality Television: Television Schedules, Audience Demographics And Cultural Policy In New Zealand / Geoff Lealand -- Pt. 3. Defining Quality: Aesthetics, Form, Content. Hbo And The Concept Of Quality Tv / Jane Feuer -- Seeing And Knowing: Reflexivity And Quality / Jonathan Bignell -- Quality And Creativity In Tv: The Work Of Television Storytellers / Máire Messenger Davies -- Mark Lawson Talks To David Chase / Mark Lawson -- Writing Music For Quality Tv: An Interview With W.g. 'snuffy' Walden / Peter Kaye -- Read Any Good Television Lately: Television Companion Books And Quality Tv / David Lavery -- Afterthought. Defining Quality: Into The Future. Lost In Translation: From Post-network To Post-television / Roberta Pearson. Edited By Janet Mccabe And Kim Akass. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [271]-286) And Index. Contents......Page 6 Contributors......Page 10 Acknowledgements......Page 16 Preface - Robert J.Thompson......Page 18 Introduction: Debating Quality - Janet McCabe and Kim Akass......Page 22 'Quality TV on Show' - Karen Fricker......Page 34 Part 1: Defining Quality: Critical Judgements and Debate......Page 38 1. Is Quality Television Any Good? - Sarah Cardwell......Page 40 2. Quality TV - David Bianculli......Page 56 3. Quality TV Drama - Robin Nelson......Page 59 4. As Seen on TV 0 Ashley Sayeau......Page 73 5. Sex, Swearing and Respectability - Janet McCabe and Kim Akass......Page 83 Part 2: Defining Quality: Industry, Policy and Competitive Markets......Page 98 6. Quality Control - Jimmie L. Reeves, Mark C. Rogers and Michael M Epstein......Page 100 7. Inside American Television Drama - Peter Dunne......Page 119 8. Quality US TV - Dernot Horan......Page 132 9. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation - Ian Goode......Page 139 10. The Problem of Quality Television - Geoff Lealand......Page 150 Part 3: Defining Quality: Aesthetics, Form, Content......Page 164 11. HBO and the Concept of Quality TV - Jane Feuer......Page 166 12. Seeing and Knowing - Jonathan Bignell......Page 179 13. Quality and Creativity in TV - Marie Messenger Davies......Page 192 14. Mark Lawson Talks to David Chase - Mark Lawson......Page 206 15. Writing Music for Quality TV - Peter Kaye......Page 242 16. Read Any Good Television Lately? - David Lavery......Page 249 Afterthoughts: Defining Quality: Into the Future......Page 258 17. Lost in Transition - Roberta Pearson......Page 260 TV and Film Guide......Page 278 Notes......Page 286 Bibliography......Page 292 Index......Page 308 In his seminal book'Television's Second Golden Age', Robert Thompson described quality TV as'best defined by what it is not':'it is not'regular'TV'. Audacious maybe, but his statement renewed debate on the meaning of this highly contentious term. Dealing primarily with the post-1996 era shaped by digital technologies and defined by consumer choice and brand marketing, this book brings together leading scholars, established journalists and experienced broadcasters working in the field of contemporary television to debate what we currently mean by quality TV. They go deep into contemporary American television fictions, from'The Sopranos'and'The West Wing', to'CSI'and'Lost'- innovative, sometimes controversial, always compelling dramas, which one scholar has described as'now better than the movies!'But how do we understand the emergence of these kinds of fiction? Are they genuinely new? What does quality TV have to tell us about the state of today's television market? And is this a new Golden Age of quality TV? Original, often polemic, each chapter proposes new ways of thinking about and defining quality TV.There is a foreword from Robert Thompson, and heated dialogue between British and US television critics. Also included - and a great coup - are interviews with W. Snuffy Walden (scored'The West Wing'among others) and with David Chase ('The Sopranos'creator).'Quality TV'provides throughout groundbreaking and innovative theoretical and critical approaches to studying television and for understanding the current - and future - TV landscape. Programmes examined include: The daily show, CSI crime scene investigation, Lost, Six feet under, The Sopranos, Buffy the vampire slayer, Desperate housewives, ER, Friends, Hill Street blues, The Mary Tyler Moore show, Nip/tuck, The Rockford files, Sex and the city, The shield, Seinfeld, The Simpsons, South Park, the Star trek series, Thirtysomething, Twin Peaks, The west wing, The X files