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A Sheffield Hallam University Thesis Faith in view: religion and pirituality in factual British television 2000-2009 DELLER, Ruth A. <http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4935-980X> Available from the Sheffield Hallam University Research Archive (SHURA) at: http://shura.shu.ac.uk/5654/ A Sheffield Hallam University thesis This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. Please visit http://shura.shu.ac.uk/5654/ and http://shura.shu.ac.uk/information.html for further details about copyright and re-use permissions. Faith in View: Religion and Spirituality in Factual British Television 2000-2009. Ruth Anna Deller A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of Sheffield Hallam University for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Funding 2008-11 provided by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) March 2012 Contents Abstract 8 Acknowledgements 10 Chapters Chapter One: Introduction 11 Thesis aims and key questions 11 Defining religion/spirituality 11 Why this topic? 11 Context 13 A very British spirituality? 13 'Doing God': religion/spirituality in the public sphere 14 Back to 'reality': factual television developments 16 Thesis approach and structure 18 Chapter Two: Literature Review 21 Introduction 21 Religion and spirituality 21 Defining religion/spirituality 21 The secularisation thesis 24 Secularisation and Britain 28 Religion/spirituality and world events 30 Postmodernity and the quest for ‘meaning’ 32 Individualisation and religious/spiritual identity 34 Spirituality 36 New religious movements 38 Fundamentalisms 39 Ethnicity, nationality and identity 40 ‘Othering’ and Orientalism 40 2 Britishness and postcolonial identity 43 Multiculturalism 44 Media Studies 46 Representation 46 Moral panics 48 Audience studies 49 Factual media 52 Documentary 53 Reality and lifestyle 55 Religion/spirituality and the media 58 Visibility of religion/spirituality 58 Religious/spiritual practice and media 61 Existing analyses of religion/spirituality and media 64 Orientalism and media portrayals of Islam 65 Problematic religion/spirituality in the media 67 Public service broadcasting and religion/spirituality 70 Media audiences and religion/spirituality 72 Conclusion 73 Chapter Three: Methodology 75 Introduction 75 Methodological and analytical strategy 77 Discourse – conceptions and understandings 77 Critical Discourse Analysis 80 Thematic Analysis 85 Semiotics 86 Narrative 88 Encoding/decoding and discourse 89 3 Research processes and practices 90 Programmes: sample selection 92 Industry research: documentary analysis 94 Interviews 94 Audience research: finding perspectives 99 Audience research: processes 101 Ethics 107 Conclusion 111 Chapter Four: Industry 112 Introduction: television for a changing world 112 Public service context and background 113 Renewed obligations: changes in broadcasting policy 114 Changing faces: personnel and roles 117 Regulating religion and spirituality? Broadcasting policy and guidelines 118 Representing religion/spirituality: industry perspectives 123 Dealing with diversity 124 Programming, priorities and production 131 Presenters, provocation and problematising: discussions of programme content 138 Who are we making it for? Notions of the audience in PSB programme making 146 Expanding online 148 What are ‘they’ doing? How broadcasters perceive each other 151 The future of faith on factual TV 153 Conclusion 154 Chapter Five: Programmes - The 'Threat' 156 Introduction: The Soul of Britain? 156 Religious ‘fundamentalism’ as a threat to British values: Panorama & Dispatches 160 Mosques, Mullahs and ‘moderates’: the ‘threat’ of Islam 161 4 Sex, salvation and the ‘sinister’: the Christian threat 170 A fundamental problem with religion? 178 Religion and spirituality as a threat to the ‘vulnerable’ 183 The spirituality ‘industry’ 183 Suffer little children? 196 Conclusion 218 Chapter Six: Programmes - 'The Journey' 220 Introduction: journeys of faith 220 Journeys to ‘other’ cultures 220 Look at me, looking at ‘them’: travelogues and the practice of ‘othering’ 223 The ‘religious’ guide and authenticity 228 ‘Home’ is where the heart is? 231 The effect on ‘me’ 231 Journeys into the past 234 Britain, the world and a history of (dis)belief 235 A culture of faith 243 Digging up the past 245 Journeys into the self 247 Transforming the adult self 249 Transforming teenage behaviour 262 Journeys around Britain 266 The ‘extraordinary’ in ‘ordinary’ Britain 266 Conclusion 277 Chapter Seven: Audiences 280 Introduction: seeing ‘ourselves’ and ‘others’ 280 ‘Ourselves’ 281 That doesn’t look like me: diversity and representation 281 5 This is who I am: identification 288 I remember when: connections with lived experience 291 ‘Others’ 292 We know how they see us, here’s how we see them: discussion of ‘the media’ 295 What are they talking about? Discussion of personalities and presenters 300 What I know about you: discussing 'other' faiths 305 Foreign affairs: discussions of ‘other’ nations 309 Poor things: discussion of 'vulnerable' others 312 They’re not that bad, really: defending the ‘others’ 318 I like what I see: discussing positive portrayals of ‘others’ 320 Dialogue between ‘ourselves’ and ‘others’ 321 Serving our public? The industry and its audience 322 Is that me you’re talking about? Dialogue with participants 327 Conclusion 336 Chapter Eight: Conclusion 340 Introduction 340 Representation of religion/spirituality 341 A diversity problem? 341 God bless Britain? 345 Acceptable and unacceptable forms of religion/spirituality 349 Religion/Spirituality, television and Britain 351 A very British take on religion/spirituality? 351 Decoding, interactivity and audiencehood 354 Faith in factual formats 356 Faith in the future? 357 Conclusion 358 6 Appendix Appendix One: Bibliography 361 Appendix Two: Filmography 421 Appendix Three: Programme websites – screenshots 431 Appendix Four: Annual reviews & programme publicity packages - sample pages 434 Appendix Five: Sample consent forms and ethics committee emails 438 Appendix Six: Participant details 446 Appendix Seven: Sample interview transcript 457 Appendix Eight: Sample focus group transcripts 469 Appendix Nine: Sample screenshots of online discussion environments 539 Appendix Ten: ITV's statement re: religious programming 543 7 Abstract This thesis explores the nature of, and developments in, the coverage of religion and spirituality in factual British television programming 2000-2009, focusing on mainstream terrestrial networks (BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Five) with a public service remit. The study employs a mixed-method approach with an emphasis on discourse. Working within a broadly Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) framework, it explores discourses around religion/spirituality, identity and nationality across a range of environments – from the programmes themselves to audience discussion (in focus groups, questionnaires, forum and Twitter discussions, YouTube comments and blogs) and industry accounts of production (in policies, guidelines, publicity and interviews with several of those involved at different stages of the production process). The theoretical context of this study includes debates over the ‘secularisation thesis’, the rise of ‘fundamentalism’, the individualisation of religion and the apparent interest in ‘spirituality’ as opposed to ‘religion’, the role of public service broadcasting, issues of media representation of minorities, and developments within British factual television genres. The study concludes that, despite public service commitments, there is a lack of diversity in the portrayal of religion and spirituality within mainstream factual British television, with Christianity, Islam and Atheism dominating coverage. All faiths are represented by a limited repertoire of signifiers. Audiences, both those who have been researched for this study and those who feature in research by the broadcasters and Ofcom, often complain about what they perceive as 'misrepresentation', whilst at 8 the same time discussing 'other' people in stereotypical terms. Within all of the discursive contexts studied, there is a construction of Britain as a liberal, tolerant, moderate place, where spiritual/religious belief is acceptable as long as it operates within particular parameters. When beliefs and practices do not conform to these standards, they are exoticised, ridiculed or presented as dangerous, and often linked to other nations, thus emphasising how they are not a British way of expressing one's spirituality. However, I argue that the problematic nature of these constructions is in part a result of the complex interaction between audiences, programme makers, policy, academic discourse and media texts. Each area of discourse informs the other, replicating and reinforcing notions of Britishness, religion and spirituality across multiple contexts. 9 Acknowledgements I would like to thank the following: The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) for funding me 2008-2011. My supervisors Feona Attwood and Jenny Blain for their support, advice and encouragement throughout the course of this research. All of my respondents and informants for their valuable contribution to this study. Rebecca Lindley for proof-reading my final drafts. Kathy Doherty, Dave Waddington, Tracey Smith, Hilary Cunliffe-Charlesworth
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