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The Cable Network in an Era of Digital Media: Bravo and the Constraints of Consumer Citizenship

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The Cable Network in an Era of Digital Media: Bravo and the Constraints of Consumer Citizenship University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations Dissertations and Theses Fall August 2014 The Cable Network in an Era of Digital Media: Bravo and the Constraints of Consumer Citizenship Alison D. Brzenchek University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2 Part of the Communication Technology and New Media Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Film and Media Studies Commons, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine Commons, and the Political Economy Commons Recommended Citation Brzenchek, Alison D., "The Cable Network in an Era of Digital Media: Bravo and the Constraints of Consumer Citizenship" (2014). Doctoral Dissertations. 55. https://doi.org/10.7275/bjgn-vg94 https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2/55 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations and Theses at ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE CABLE NETWORK IN AN ERA OF DIGITAL MEDIA: BRAVO AND THE CONSTRAINTS OF CONSUMER CITIZENSHIP A Dissertation Presented by ALISON D. BRZENCHEK Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2014 Department of Communication © Copyright by Alison D. Brzenchek 2014 All Rights Reserved THE CABLE NETWORK IN AN ERA OF DIGITAL MEDIA: BRAVO AND THE CONSTRAINTS OF CONSUMER CITIZENSHIP A Dissertation Presented by ALISON D. BRZENCHEK Approved as to style and content by: ___________________________________________________ Mari Castañeda, Chair ___________________________________________________ Emily West, Member ___________________________________________________ Shawn Shimpach, Member ___________________________________________________ Nancy Folbre, Member ________________________________________________ Erica Scharrer, Chair Department of Communication DEDICATION I dedicate my dissertation to Bentley and Blackjack Brzenchek. Bentley, a feisty, intelligent, and independent-minded miniature schnauzer died on March 17, 2012. Blackjack, a loyal and athletic lab mix with a passion for playing fetch died on March 23, 2012. They were both loving dogs that made me a better human being. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Writing a dissertation is a long arduous process, and I am grateful I had the unwavering support and guidance of Mari Castañeda. Dr. Castañeda is a serious scholar and a generous mentor. Her rigorous approach to research pushed me to set high standards, while Dr. Castañeda’s open and caring mentorship gave me the strength to move forward when faced with setbacks and frustrations. From feedback on countless drafts of chapters, meetings on campus to talk though ideas, and phone calls to discuss my progress after I took an out-of-state position as a lecturer, Dr. Castañeda’s support made the completetion of this project possible. I am grateful for the indelible mark she has left on my dissertation, my development as a scholarly writer, and my commitment to feminist political economic analysis. The support of my committee – Emily West, Shawn Shimpach, Julie Graham (1945-2010), and Nancy Folbre – has also been of immense value. My understanding of consumer culture and qualitative methods expanded through course work and discussions with Dr. Emily West. An early paper I wrote for Dr. West guided my interest in consumer citizenship, while a discussion I had with Dr. West after my comprehensive exams led me to settle on the Bravo cable network as my object of study. During the writing process, Dr. West provided valuable feedback that pushed me to clarify my arguments. My interest in television and film studies grew through course work and discussions with Dr. Shawn Shimpach. He offered valuable direction regarding historical research that helped guide my methodology. Moreover, Dr. Shimpach’s thoughtful critique in the editing stage enabled me to strengthen my scholarly voice. v Dr. Julie Graham (1945-2010) began serving on my dissertation committee when I audited a course with her in Fall 2009. While I only knew Dr. Graham for a short period of time, her approach to political economy pushed me to think about the tensions between structure and agency in more nuanced ways. I am thankful to have been touched by Dr. Graham’s intellectual rigor, generosity, and humanity. Her willingness to participate in my prospectus defense in February 2010, despite being out of the country for the semester, is representative of the commitment she offered all the students she mentored. I would also like to acknowledge Dr. Nancy Folbre’s participation in my dissertation committee. I greatly appreciate her willingness to commit her time to my scholarly development. Dr. Folbre’s work as a feminist economist has influenced my understanding of the tensions between gender, economics, and consumer citizenship. Moreover, her insightful feedback has pushed me to clarify the theoretical and causal issues at stake in my dissertation research. Dr. Erica Scharrer and Dr. Stephen Olbrys Gencarella are two final scholars that I would like to thank. Dr. Scharrer served as the committee chair for my oral exams, and her commitment to media literacy led me to develop an immediate connection with her when I entered the doctoral program. Through course work and discussions, Dr. Scharrer shaped my understanding of quantitative methodology, gender representation, and media studies. Dr. Gencarella also supported my development as a critical thinker and scholar. I am thankful for his willingness to share the depth and breadth of his knowledge in rhetoric, cultural studies, and media studies. My understanding of the dialectical relations between agency and structure, on the one hand, and discourse and subjectivity, on the other, vi arose through Dr. Gencarella’s mentoring during my course work and in preparation for my comprehensive exams. Finally, I would like to acknowledge and thank my family for their support. First, I would like to thank my parents, Elaine and Dennis O’Keeffe. There was a time early in my college career when I faced personal and academic struggles. Still, my parents never gave up on me. Without their emotional and financial support I would not be where I am today. Like my parents, my brother Kevin O’Keeffe believed in me when I did not believe in myself. Kevin provided me with strength during my tumultuous college years, and he introduced me to my husband, David Brzenchek. Throughout my time in the doctoral program, Dave was willing to make personal sacrifices to support my professional goals. From the five hour drives he endured each weekend from Wilkes-Barre to Shutesbury and his understanding when I was immersed in my writing and not the best company, to his support when I took a lecturer position at The Pennsylvania State University while I was finishing my dissertation, Dave’s commitment and selflessness never faltered. I am grateful for Dave’s love, support, and encouragement. Last but not least, my canine companions also need to be thanked. Bentley (1996-2012) and Blackjack (1997-2012) provided me unconditional love for fifteen years. Today, I am blessed to have Casper and Coal in my life. vii ABSTRACT THE CABLE NETWORK IN AN ERA OF DIGITAL MEDIA: BRAVO AND THE CONSTRAINTS OF CONSUMER CITIZENSHIP MAY 2014 ALISON BRZENCHEK, B.S., PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY M.S.W., UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN Ph.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Mari Castañeda This dissertation takes a historiographical approach to the evolution of cable television over thirty years. Case analysis of archival data is used to trace the trajectory of the Bravo cable network from 1980 through 2010. My dissertation is a vital contribution to critical cultural studies, feminist studies, citizenship studies, and media history because it historicizes the role branding, commodification, and convergence played in Bravo’s evolution from a highbrow arts programmer guided by bourgeois consumer citizenship, to a affluent lifestyle network guided by nouveau riche consumer citizenship. My combination of production studies and political economic analysis gives visibility to the interpenetrating relations between branding, commodification, and convergence at the micro and macro levels. I argue cable television and its networks shaped and were shaped by the cultural, political economic, and technological processes of the media landscape. Still, I conclude that Bravo’s commercial metamorphosis over three decades is a tragic example that is representative of the ways institutional practices are constrained by the structural parameters of the viii media landscape. Bravo’s twenty-first century status as an affluent lifestyle network driven by brand management, cybernetic commodification, and digital convergence supports this claim. Bravo’s shift to affluent lifestyle entertainment has left an indelible mark on gendered programming in the digital media landscape. I argue that this ostentatious form of branded entertainment uses irony and conspicuous lifestyle as aesthetic commodities to support the iteration of postfeminist nouveau riche consumer citizenship, and I show how this happens across interconnected texts, platforms, and industries reliant upon cybernetic
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