How We Choose to Engage: A Television State of Mind by McKenna Meyer

In 2016, Americans spent over half of all their leisure time watching television (“American Time

Use Survey”). While the United States Department of Labor has yet to release reports for 2017, it is safe to assume a similar set of statistics will be uncovered. For years this has been the common trend and, with the increase in online streaming platforms and amount of content available over the past decade, it doesn’t seem surprising. When television first started gaining popularity during the 1950s it was an activity meant for the whole family. But today, television has become a much more individualized and personal experience. No longer are people bound by singular or stationary television sets. Mobile phones and laptops, with the help of popular streaming platforms such as Netflix, make it possible for audiences to watch their favorite shows whenever and wherever they want. And they do not have a shortage of content to choose from.

Today, there are thousands of shows for people to watch and that list is constantly being expanded. With this abundance of content comes the notion that there is something out there for everyone, and there really is. Whether you are into sitcoms, horror, or something else entirely, there are television programs available to meet an incredibly wide range of tastes and preferences. ​This is one of the main explanations for why television has become such a personalized experience. Shows now cater to individual preferences instead of only making content suitable for family room gatherings. Because of this, television viewing has become an

increasingly solitary event and allows viewers to make more personalized connections with the content they choose to enjoy.

The Evolution of Television

Throughout history, no technology has ever integrated itself into our society as fast as the television. While it only took ten years for it to worm its way into over thirty-five million households, “the telephone required eighty years, the automobile took fifty, and... [the] radio needed twenty-five” to reach this level of popularity within American homes (Edgerton xi).

Today, that number has increased to over 119.6 million with an average of 2.6 sets per household, proving that television continues to be just as capable of capturing audience’s attention and garnering popularity now as it was back at its start (“Nielsen Estimates”).

During the early stages of television in the 1950s, the main focus of networks was to develop programs that would appeal to and be suitable for a general family audience as television sets were typically stationed in a household’s common room. One of the most popular genres that achieved this goal and emerged during this time was the domestic comedy. These comedies were shows that centered around “white middle-class families with traditional nuclear roles” and generally “portrayed the [more] conservative values of an idealized American life”

I Love Lucy The Dick Van Dyke Show, (“Understanding Media and Culture”). Shows such as ​ ​, ​ Leave It to Beaver and ​ ​ were popular examples of this genre and perfectly embody the ‘50s desire for lighthearted, family-friendly entertainment. But these programs often lacked diversity and

tended to shy away from discussion of current social or political issues. Even common topics and

occurrences that most people experienced in everyday life were subjected to heavy censorship.

Viewers would rarely, if ever, see a married couple sharing the same bed or a pregnant woman on screen. While there were certainly shows that tested these boundaries, there was still a limit as to how far they were willing to go.

I Love Lucy In the case of ​ ​, when Lucille Ball became pregnant outside of the show, the network had no choice but to work it in, although it was still incredibly censored. The word

“pregnant” was not allowed to be said on air, so the characters had to use words such as

“expecting” or “with child” instead because they were deemed more wholesome by the network

and viewers. Even the episode in which Lucy was first revealed to be pregnant and the episode

where she finally gave birth were carefully entitled “Lucy is Enceinte” and “Lucy visits the

Hospital” as to avoid any “sinful” connotations. The show also contained one of the only biracial

relationships on television at the time. And, in a world where “mixed marriages were less

common than mixed drinks,” this was an incredible boundary to be breaking, although the couple

still had to live under restrictions set in place by censorship laws (Thomson 64). So, while a few

I Love Lucy shows like ​ ​ tested boundaries, most stuck to the cookie-cutter mold which was expected of them. And although many of these shows remained popular, they didn’t provide an

accurate representation of the American populace or experience as a whole. People lacked

options, especially options that could be seen as relatable to their own lives.

Television continued to grow in popularity during the 1960s, as did the airing of news

broadcasts which brought “the realities of real world events [straight] into people’s living rooms”

(“Understanding Media and Culture”). For the first time, viewers could watch coverage of events

like John F. Kennedy’s assassination and the Vietnam war unfold right before their eyes. It was

like nothing they had ever seen before and in turn, these violent and tragic images spurred a new

Bewitched Gilligan’s Island Star trend of escapist programs during the ‘60s. Shows such as ​ ​, ​ ​, and ​ Trek ​ emerged during this era and provided a welcome diversion from the real world - a world that very few had ever seen or experienced like this before.

The ‘70s brought about even more change as shows began depicting the lives of more

The Brady Bunch diverse families and began tackling relevant societal issues. ​ ​ is one show that really marked the start of this shift towards diversity. The hit show began in 1969 and followed the lives of a blended family of eight until the show’s end in 1974. Although the topics addressed

The Brady Bunch in ​ ​were still relatively tame compared to other shows that dominated the ‘70s this break away from the nuclear family was still a step in the right direction towards breaking

the common mold previous television seemed to fall into. However, a show that best represented

All in the Family the shift within 1970s television was ​ ​. Originally airing in 1971, the show centered around a white, working-class family which might not seem groundbreaking in and of itself but the topics which were regularly addressed were. Issues like racism, religion, homosexuality, rape, war, abortion, women’s liberation, and many others which were previously deemed as unsuitable for television were constantly addressed during the nine years this show ran, making it one of the most influential programs on television during its time. Other

M*A*S*H, Saturday Night Live, The Mary Tyler Moore groundbreaking shows such as ​ ​and ​ Show ​ covered topics such as war, current political climates, current events, and female independence.

The variety of shows being offered only continued to grow during the ‘80s with the

introduction of cable television. Before this, ABC, NBC, and CBS were the three networks

which dominated broadcast television across the United States. But as cable gained popularity

and increased the options which were available to viewers the entire landscape for television

The changed. There continued to be a shift towards more diverse representation of characters. ​ Cosby Show ​, which first aired in 1984, centered around the lives of an African-American family All in the Family in New York. In fact, it, along with ​ ​, are the only sitcoms in history to be crowned “the number one show on television” for five seasons in a row according to the annual

Nielsen ratings, thus proving, that “controversial” shows could thrive and were enjoyed by the public (Tueth 165). The introduction of cable also meant that daytime television no longer only consisted of content deemed suitable for the whole family. Many of the new networks introduced by cable offered “adult” content at all hours of the day. While many viewers enjoyed this, others believed it was a cause for concern. This inspired a number of different studies which looked into the impact this constant stream of “adult” content could have on children. Many of those studies drew from the findings of a 1972 report the U.S. surgeon general conducted surrounding similar concerns in regards to the ever evolving world of television.

As the number of channels continued to grow during the 1990s, programs began narrowing and specializing their content to fit a growing, yet stretched, viewership. Now viewers could find entire channels devoted to news, cooking, music, and comedy among an assortment of other targeted interest categories. “The era of one-size-fits-all [was] ending” as author, Chris

The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less for Anderson, puts it in his book, ​ More ​, and he couldn’t have described it better. This trend continued into and throughout the 2000s and is still very much the case.

Today, we are in the new “golden age” of television. Not only is there an abundance of

content for viewers to choose from, but the caliber of that content has never been so high. One

reason for this is the fact that networks and programs can now cater directly to their targeted demographics instead of worrying about whether or not the content they are producing is appropriate for all ages. There is also a much larger importance placed on creators to produce well-written and incredibly well-developed stories that are driven by even stronger characters.

Because there is so much content out there, these narratives must be topnotch in order to compete with other programs and draw in a solid viewership. Likewise, production budgets have never been higher meaning that every aspect of a production is experiencing a higher level of investment. This means that everything from set design to casting and everything in between is simply being held up to higher standards than the shows born from previous decades.

This is something that anyone with an average knowledge of and exposure to television can recognize if they compare the shows of today to those of the past. Consider some of the most

The Walking Dead popular shows that have aired over the past several years. AMC’s ​ ​ and Breaking Bad Grey’s Anatomy This is Us Game of Thrones ​, ABC’s ​ ​, NBC’s ​ ​, and HBO’s ​ ​ have all seen major success since their respective air dates and are all perfect examples of the type of

high caliber content this new “golden age” can produce. But it isn’t only American television

Sherlock that exemplifies this shift into the “golden age.” BBC’s ​ ​which originates in the United Babylon Berlin Kingdom along with Sky 1’s ​ ​ which originates in Germany are two such foreign programs that can easily be added to this list. All are shining examples of what it means to be a successful show in the the 21st century and yet they are all so different. While the longest

Grey’s Anatomy running show of the bunch, ​ ​, first aired in 2005 and is currently on its 14th Babylon Berlin season with no signs of stopping, the most recent show to have aired is ​ ​, a show Game of Thrones that is still only on its first year of life. There are shows like ​ ​ which center

This is Us around a fictional world full of kingdoms and dragons, and then there are those like ​ which focus on an average American family very much centered in real life. Each of these shows is at a different stage of development and all tell a set of unique and diverse stories, but what makes them similar is the caliber at which they are executed. From the quality of writing and actor performances to the high-end budgets that allow them to create such captivating and realistic worlds, these shows represent everything this new “golden age” has to offer. But what kind of impact does this new age of television have on the lives of viewers that might not have been the case before? What do they gain from this?

Previous Studies and Theories

Historically, much of the research surrounding television has examined the content and its effects on viewers. This has been a common interest of study throughout history, especially during the early decades of television. As mentioned before, when comparing today’s television to that of the past anyone can recognize that they are two completely different entities. In today’s society, most people are familiar with and unfazed by the vast amounts of media presence around us. It is a part of our everyday lives, and for the younger generations it is something they have grown up with. But, when television first established itself in the 1950s it was a new and novelty form of family entertainment. No one had ever experienced this type of mass communication before and its popularity only seemed to grow overnight. This level of media exposure was bound to have an effect on society and as the years went by, more and more researchers began devoting their time to uncovering the types of impact television had on its viewers. Today, television continues to have a noticeable impact on our society and further research is constantly being conducted surrounding the issue but the focuses of these studies between the eras has vastly changed.

The Payne Fund Studies was a series of 13 studies conducted between 1929 and 1932 which aimed to determine the size and demographic of film audiences along with the effects certain films had on those audiences. Each of these studies was groundbreaking in its own right and played a major role in the development of mass communication research as a field of scientific investigation. However, many of the studies would no longer be useful sources for researchers looking to understand the effects of contemporary film on audiences of today. This can be said about much of the past research conducted within the field of television as well. As

Milestones in Mass Communication Research the book ​ ​points out, today’s audiences “are surrounded by media content to a degree unimaginable [almost ninety] years ago” (Lowery and

DeFleur 52).

Another influential study that was conducted surrounding mass communication is the

Cultural Indicators Project led by George Gerbner which began in 1968. This project worked to document the current trends in television programming and content and how they ultimately affected viewers’ perceptions of the world. The project conducted studies spanning a number of different themes including viewer opinions on violence, the elderly, political interest, and academic success. Gerbner and the many researches who participated in this project were working to prove their theory on cultivation. This theory proposed that “heavy exposure to media causes individuals to develop an [altered] perception of reality based on the most repetitive and consistent messages of a particular medium” (“Understanding Media and Culture”). In terms of one of the project’s main focuses, violence, this would mean that the more viewers are exposed to shows depicting acts of violence the more likely they are to view the world as more violent and dangerous than it really is.

The Television and Behavior Project, which was published in 1982, began shortly after the Cultural Indicators Project and looked further into the effect television had on viewer behavior. Many believed the project to be an extension of the Surgeon General’s report in 1972 as it did continue to look into the effects of televised violence but, overall, its focus was much broader than the earlier report. Its key areas of study were “television and health, violence and aggression, prosocial behavior, cognitive and affective aspects of viewing, family and interpersonal relations, social beliefs and behavior, and television’s effects on American society”

(Lowery and DeFleur 356). Although, instead of conducting its own set of new research, the study commissioned extensive reviews of all existing literature in order to organize and catalog it all in one place. Today, the completed meta-study is said to cover over “90% of all research that has ever been published on the influence of television on social behavior” (Lowery and Defleur

356). Because of this, it is a great reference and starting point for researchers and academics hoping to understand the history of television on a deeper level and the impact it has had on society over the years. These years of intense research and review also brought to light a number of different theories which greatly shaped the world of mass communication study and influenced much of what we understand about television’s purpose and effects today.

Two such theories which were investigated heavily during the height of televised

catharsis theory justification processes theory violence studies were the ​ ​and ​ ​. Both hoped to explain and create a better understanding of the relationship between viewers and TV violence.

The catharsis theory applied Freudian psychology in an attempt to explain a positive relationship

between the viewing of televised violence and further aggressive behavior. In short, it proposed

that exposure to violence on television reduced an individual’s own desire to be aggressive and

many people believed it. Even Alfred Hitchcock, in an interview with the National Observer, made the claim that “o​ne of television's greatest contributions is that it brought murder back into the home where it belongs” (Wilkins and ​Christians​ 165). In the same interview, he went on to state how “seeing a murder on television can be good therapy” and “can help work off one's antagonism,” which is exactly what the catharsis theory set out to prove. However, many scholars began to move away from this theory as more and more evidence suggesting the opposite began to be uncovered. Like the catharsis theory, the justification process was another theory which hoped to explain the correlation between viewing TV violence and aggressive behavior but claimed aggressive behavior as the cause of and not the effect of watching violence on TV. The theory suggested that an already aggressive individual chooses to watch violent programs as a way to justify his or her own aggressiveness.

spiral of silence One theory that still holds a lot of relevance and backing today is the ​ theory ​. This theory stems from the idea that those with minority opinions or beliefs often silence themselves in order to avoid social isolation and judgment. This has been a common issue

throughout time but arguably seems to lessen as that time goes by. As television has continually

grown less censored and become a place of expression for all sorts of beliefs and opinions,

people are becoming much more vocal and finding entirely new communities with whom they

can relate. This is helping to lessen the effects proposed in this theory but there are still those

who feel that need to remain silent. Although, the advancements and growing popularity of mass

communication and media are greatly helping to close this gap everyday.

uses and gratification theory The ​ ​ is another idea that is still incredibly relevant today and is used to help understand the different motivations behind media use. Everyone has his or her

own reason for using different forms of media, like the television, and the uses and gratification theory suggests that each of these uses “gratify a particular need,” and those needs “determine the way in which [the] media is used” (​“Understanding Media and Culture”).​ When applied to television and its viewers, this theory suggests that every choice an individual makes regarding what type of show to watch is done so with a purpose and desired outcome in mind. In other words, viewers are always looking to gain something from the content they choose to engage with.

So what?

Over the years, these projects and theories have helped to set and create the foundation for further research in the field. Each has played a vital role in understanding what we now know about television and its effects, whether they are still applicable today or not, but there is still room to learn more, especially when it comes to the cause. What causes viewers to choose certain content over others? What causes viewers to watch television at all? What about today’s television allows viewers to connect with programs on a deeper, more meaningful level and not just as simple background noise?

In order to begin answering some of these question, I conducted a survey with the hopes of proving that there is a direct correlation between an individual’s viewing preferences and his or her overall personality, or state of mind. In total, 87 women and 16 men, ranging in age from

14 to 77, completed the survey. These 103 participants first answered questions regarding their general television viewing habits. The purpose of this section was to understand how, with whom, how long, and what type of content individual participants prefered to watch. At the end

of the section, after listing their top three programs, participants were also given the option to write a brief statement explaining why these shows were their favorites. Out of the 103 participants, 50 provided answers. A number of participants made comments praising the writing, acting, and plot of the shows they selected. Many also commented on how they enjoyed the humor or drama. However, some of the most interesting information retrieved from this data was found in the frequent use of the words “relatable” and “entertaining.”

“Relatable” was a term many participants in the 14-24 age range used to describe their favorite shows, while not a single participant outside of that range used it. Instead, “entertaining” was the term used most often in these upper ranges. While there is no doubt that the younger participants find their favorite shows entertaining and the older participants likewise find aspects of their shows relatable, the trend seen in the use of these two words and by whom is undeniable.

This suggests that newer generations are looking for a deeper connection with the shows they choose to engage with. They don’t want something that’s merely “easy to watch,” as one

53-year-old woman stated to describe her own reasonings. They want something that “keeps

[them] engaged.”

The second section of the survey asked participants to respond to questions regarding individual personality traits and mental states. Each participant was asked to rank how often they experience certain states of mind, such as how often they feel “depressed” and “powerless” to

“motivated” and “excited.” The goal of this section was not to diagnose participants but rather to

they get a better understanding of how they feel about themselves and who ​ ​ think they are. Points were distributed based on the rank given to each of the 17 characteristic, six being the highest and one being the lowest for each question. All 17 rankings were then added up into a total

where higher numbers suggested a “lighter” state of mind and lower totals represented individuals with “darker” mental states. Again, the terms “light” and “dark” here are not meant to diagnose these individuals. Rather, these terms are meant to offer a basic categorization for personality types. In this sense, a lighter individual is generally someone with a happy, bubbly, more optimistic personality. In contrast, someone described as having a darker personality is merely someone who has a more apathetic or pessimistic outlook on life and is more reserved when it comes to their emotions. Participants were also asked how often they shared or discussed their feelings with others in the final question of the survey.

From these responses, a few different trends began taking shape. First, those who selected comedies and sitcoms as their favorite genres and listed shows which fell into those categories tended to also have high personality scores. This trend suggests a positive/positive relationship between a persons viewing habits and their state of mind. This implies that individuals with a lighter personality type are drawn to shows of a similar nature. The two other relationships that presented themselves from the data were negative/negative relationships and positive/negative relationships. In other words, participants who received lower personality scores tended to either enjoy darker genres such as crime, drama, and thrillers (negative) or lighter genres like comedy and reality TV (positive). However, there were very few negative/positive relationships.

This data suggests that viewers tend to watch shows that involve themes they are familiar with. One 22-year-old participant stated that the reason behind listing certain shows as her favorites were because “​even though the worlds are fictional, the characters are incredibly relatable. They each have their own set of flaws and obstacles to overcome in life but they always find a way to push through. They are inspiring.” This feeling of programs being

“relatable” and “inspiring” was something expressed by a number of individuals and are sentiments that work to prove the idea that viewers are looking for content even with or higher than their “light” or “dark” states of mind. However, while the data does suggest this it isn’t as clear cut as it could be.

Moving forward, it could be beneficial to conduct a similar survey on a larger and more even scale. While the answers given by the 103 participants that took part in the survey seemed to reflect a slight trend, it is not yet obvious. A larger number of participants would likely provide the needed room to make a more clear cut and accurate conclusion. Another issue a second survey could improve on is the fact that female participants outnumbered male participants five to one. This ratio does not accurately reflect a general populous and any future survey should aim for percentages that hit closer to a 50/50 split. But with that being said, the current survey does work as a justification for future research as their is clearly a trend here worth investigating.

Asking these types of questions and conducting this type of research is just as important when it comes to our understanding of television as any research done on the effects, although it doesn’t often receive the same level of attention. But dedicating time to conduct this type of research can only work to benefit the television industry and help negotiate this new “golden age” of television. By asking these questions, and others of a similar interest which aim to understand the cause of the relationship between viewer and television before questions of effect ever come into play, creators can learn to better target their audiences and, hopefully, continue to create even more successful and meaningful content.

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