DOCSLIB.ORG

Televsion Writing & the Dynamics of the Writers

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Televsion Writing & the Dynamics of the Writers TELEVSION WRITING & THE DYNAMICS OF THE WRITERS’ ROOM Instructor – Aurorae Khoo (additional course instructor: Mounah Abdel-Samad) TFM 596 – Fall 2017 Wednesdays 3:30PM – 6:10 PM, SSW 2501 (and SSW 2532) SYLLABUS COURSE OBJECTIVES: This class will teach you how to write a script for an existing television show (“spec” script) and how to create an original television pilot. The course is part of the Interdisciplinary Collaborative Teaching Exchange program sponsored by Arts Alive SDSU. This class will be integrated with Public Affairs 340 (Administrative Behavior). The two classes will have several joint classes and assignments during the semester. Professor Mounah Abdel-Samad will be instructing you in principles of organizational behavioral management as it pertains to the power dynamics on television writing staffs. Also, the objective of combining these classes is to provide you with new skills, to expose you to a new discipline, and to foster creative thinking. This combination of classes is part of the Arts Alive initiative, which aims at bridging gaps between disciplines. Arts Alive SDSU is a university-wide initiative housed in the College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts and aimed at increasing visibility of and exposure to the arts on campus. Arts Alive SDSU engages a unique assessment process as part of the Collaborative Teaching Exchange program. Arts Alive SDSU assessment strategies will be integrated into the course requirements for this course. To practice concepts of writing, leadership, and collaboration, you will be pitching your ideas, then forming your own television writing staff, where you will create a concept for an episode, outline the episode, write the script, and then revise it all as a group. Advanced knowledge of screenwriting concepts such as character creation, dialogue writing, and story structure is expected. You will also be watching many episodes of various hit television shows. Your main assignments this semester will be: --Studying an existing hit television show. --Pitching an episode concept for that show. --Outlining an episode as a group. --Writing an episode as a group, which is how television staffs work. This script will be 30 – 60 pages. --Working with students from Public Affairs to learn concepts of organizational behavioral management, which you will then implement in your writing “staffs.” --Take pictures of group exercises with Public Affairs and post on Instagram, as part of the Arts Alive assessment process. --The class will culminate in a public presentation of your group’s script. LEARNING OUTCOMES: --Write a television script for an existing television show, which captures the show's tone and voice. -- Turn concepts of leadership and collaboration into practice with an actual mock writing staff. --Create and articulate the concept for an original television pilot. RECOMMENDED READING: The TV Writer’s Workbook: A Creative Approach to Television Scripts by Ellen Sandler, Delta, 2007. The Hollywood Standard: The Complete and Authoritative Guide to Script Format and Style, 2nd Edition by Christopher Riley, Michael Wiese Productions, 2009. REQUIRED READING: 5-6 television scripts (available online or distributed by instructor) Packet of Organizational Behavioral Management Articles (TBA) ASSIGNMENTS: There will be in-class and take-home writing assignments, which will be read and discussed in class. Please have Xerox copies for each member of the class and the instructor, and be sure to keep a copy of everything you turn in. All writing must be neatly typed and legible. Please be sure to put your name, the name of the assignment, the date, and number your pages. Always proof your work!!! You will be required to write in standard script format that is PERFECT, and that means no misspellings, typos, or grammatical errors. This standard of excellence is no joke and not to be taken lightly. It is demanded in the professional world. If you want your script to be taken seriously, YOU must make sure its most basic mechanics are flawless. WARNING: This writing course has a heavy workload. So pace yourself and don’t wait to finish your assignments the night before they’re due. Give yourself ample time to REWRITE and PROOF. Write every day. Again, this is what professional writers do. All work is expected to be turned in on time. Paper copy to the instructor, not by e-mail. Consistently late work drops a grade. If it is impossible to make a class, find out the assignment from your classmate. GRADING CRITERIA: Completion of assignments, creative content, professional presentation and growth during the semester are of great importance. The assignments are cumulative and build upon one another. Also important is your participation and promptness. That means if you don’t ATTEND CLASS, you deny yourself the opportunity to hear your classmates’ feedback. Even worse, you rob your classmates of your input. The class will be run like a professional “writers’ room.” So there will be constant, interactive discussions with only occasional lectures. Specifically, your grade will be based on these factors: -- take-home assignments (30%) -- in-class assignments (20%) -- in-class participation, critiques (10%) -- final project: from concept, to outline, to actual script, to rewrite, (to public presentation) (40%). You can’t write the final assignment the weekend before it’s due. Throughout the semester, you will go through the script writing or outline writing process. If you turn in all your work, if that work is on time, if it is competent, and if you consistently add to our class discussions, then you will earn no less than a “B.” I do not easily or frequently give out “A” grades. This is reserved for students who accomplish all of the above and whose work is of a high quality. GRADUATE STUDENT GRADING CRITERIA: Graduate and undergraduates have different grading standards. % weight per assignment is the same. But graduate students' writing is expected to be of higher quality. Also, in addition to writing their final script, they are expected to take a leadership role in their group’s final presentation, which is a filmed excerpt or a staged reading of the group script for an invited audience. CONSULTATION: Office hours by appointment Wednesdays 1-3PM, COMM 112, e-mail: [email protected]. Other times to meet are the hours before and after class. If that doesn’t work, we’ll arrange something else. DISABILITIES STATEMENT: “If you are a student with a disability and believe you will need accommodations for this class, it is your responsibility to contact Student Disability Services at (619) 594-6473. To avoid any delay in the receipt of your accommodations, you should contact Student Disability Services as soon as possible. Please note that accommodations are not retroactive, and that accommodations based upon disability cannot be provided until you have presented your instructor with an accommodation letter from Student Disability Services. Your cooperation is appreciated.” CLASS SCHEDULE: WEEK 1 – (SSW 2501) 8/30/17 --Introductions. Discuss syllabus. Discuss the writers’ room and the workshop method of critique. --Keeping a 3 ring binder for class. --The difference between television scripts and screenplays. --Television script format comedies vs. dramas. --Where do we get ideas from? --Review of building blocks of a dramatic writing: creating a world, compelling characters, thinking outside of the box, writing from the heart. --How to break down and analyze a television script. --In-class writing exercise: meditation on a character. --If there’s time, watch an outstanding television pilot. ASSIGNMENT: --Watch episodes of an existing hit television show that you’re interested in writing a “spec” script for. --Break down an episode using the format from the TV Writers Workbook. --Get screenwriting software. --Get a 3-ring binder. --Optional: Read Chapter 1, “Organizational Behavioral Management” text and PowerPoint (posted on Blackboard) WEEK 2 (JOINT CLASS WITH PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SSW 3620) – 9/6/17 --Lecture on what Organizational Behavior is. (45 min.) --Lecture on interpersonal dynamics in a television writers room. (1 hour) --Lecture on television structure: spec scripts vs. original pilots. Dramas vs. comedies. --Meet and greet with your classmates from Public Affairs. Assign groups. (45 min) ASSIGNMENT: --Break down another episode of a hit television show using the TV Writers Workbook. --Continue watching episodes of that show. Decide which show you want to write for. --Collaboration assignment with your Public Affairs team members. --Optional: Read Chapter 8, “Power & Politics” text and PowerPoint (posted on Blackboard) WEEK 3 (JOINT CLASS WITH PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SSW 3620) – 9/13/17 --Lecture on power and politics from O.B. perspective (2 hour) --How to pitch your idea for a “spec” script of an existing hit television show. (30 min.) --Announce which shows are being pitched. ASSIGNMENT: --Prepare to pitch your episode for an existing television show. --Read the “Story Area” handout. --Watch episodes of your classmates’ tv shows. --Practice pitching in front of your Public Affairs team members. Optional. WEEK 4 (SSW 2501) – 9/20/17 --Pitch your “spec” script episode. --How to write a “story area.” ASSIGNMENT: --For those yet to present, continue preparing your pitch. --Practice pitching in front of your Public Affairs team members. Optional. --Write a one-page “story area” for the script you want to “spec.” --E-mail three pages of your writing to your classmates, comedy or drama from any existing script and your STORY AREA by this Friday at midnight. --Read your classmates writing samples and story areas by next class. --Continue watching episodes of existing shows. WEEK 5 (SSW 2501) – 9/27/17 --Pitch your “spec” script episode. --Go over story areas in class, present paper copies. --Put in requests for which writing staff you want to work on, comedy or drama. ASSIGNMENT: --Optional: Read Chapter 10, “Working In Groups & Teams” text and PowerPoint (posted on Blackboard) WEEK 6 (JOINT CLASS WITH PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SSW3620, go to our room SSW 2501 for second half of class) – 10/4/17 --Public Affairs lecture.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Telling Stories with Soundtracks: an Empirical Analysis of Music in Film
    Telling Stories with Soundtracks: An Empirical Analysis of Music in Film Jon Gillick David Bamman School of Information School of Information University of California, Berkeley University of California, Berkeley [email protected] [email protected] Abstract (Guha et al., 2015; Kociskˇ y` et al., 2017), natural language understanding (Frermann et al., 2017), Soundtracks play an important role in carry- ing the story of a film. In this work, we col- summarization (Gorinski and Lapata, 2015) and lect a corpus of movies and television shows image captioning (Zhu et al., 2015; Rohrbach matched with subtitles and soundtracks and et al., 2015, 2017; Tapaswi et al., 2015), the analyze the relationship between story, song, modalities examined are almost exclusively lim- and audience reception. We look at the con- ited to text and image. In this work, we present tent of a film through the lens of its latent top- a new perspective on multimodal storytelling by ics and at the content of a song through de- focusing on a so-far neglected aspect of narrative: scriptors of its musical attributes. In two ex- the role of music. periments, we find first that individual topics are strongly associated with musical attributes, We focus specifically on the ways in which 1 and second, that musical attributes of sound- soundtracks contribute to films, presenting a first tracks are predictive of film ratings, even after look from a computational modeling perspective controlling for topic and genre. into soundtracks as storytelling devices. By devel- oping models that connect films with musical pa- 1 Introduction rameters of soundtracks, we can gain insight into The medium of film is often taken to be a canon- musical choices both past and future.
    [Show full text]
  • The Work of the Critic
    CHAPTER 1 The Work of the Critic Oh, gentle lady, do not put me to’t. For I am nothing if not critical. —Iago to Desdemona (Shakespeare, Othello, Act 2, Scene I) INTRODUCTION What is the advantage of knowing how to perform television criticism if you are not going to be a professional television critic? The advantage to you as a television viewer is that you will not only be able to make informed judgment about the television programs you watch, but also you will better understand your reaction and the reactions of others who share the experience of watching. Critical acuity enables you to move from casual enjoyment of a television program to a fuller and richer understanding. A viewer who does not possess critical viewing skills may enjoy watching a television program and experience various responses to it, such as laughter, relief, fright, shock, tension, or relaxation. These are fun- damental sensations that people may get from watching television, and, for the most part, viewers who are not critics remain at this level. Critical awareness, however, enables you to move to a higher level that illuminates production practices and enhances your under- standing of culture, human nature, and interpretation. Students studying television production with ambitions to write, direct, edit, produce, and/or become camera operators will find knowledge of television criticism necessary and useful as well. Television criticism is about the evaluation of content, its context, organiza- tion, story and characterization, style, genre, and audience desire. Knowledge of these concepts is the foundation of successful production. THE ENDS OF CRITICISM Just as critics of books evaluate works of fiction and nonfiction by holding them to estab- lished standards, television critics utilize methodology and theory to comprehend, analyze, interpret, and evaluate television programs.
    [Show full text]
  • Netflix and the Development of the Internet Television Network
    Syracuse University SURFACE Dissertations - ALL SURFACE May 2016 Netflix and the Development of the Internet Television Network Laura Osur Syracuse University Follow this and additional works at: https://surface.syr.edu/etd Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Osur, Laura, "Netflix and the Development of the Internet Television Network" (2016). Dissertations - ALL. 448. https://surface.syr.edu/etd/448 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the SURFACE at SURFACE. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations - ALL by an authorized administrator of SURFACE. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Abstract When Netflix launched in April 1998, Internet video was in its infancy. Eighteen years later, Netflix has developed into the first truly global Internet TV network. Many books have been written about the five broadcast networks – NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox, and the CW – and many about the major cable networks – HBO, CNN, MTV, Nickelodeon, just to name a few – and this is the fitting time to undertake a detailed analysis of how Netflix, as the preeminent Internet TV networks, has come to be. This book, then, combines historical, industrial, and textual analysis to investigate, contextualize, and historicize Netflix's development as an Internet TV network. The book is split into four chapters. The first explores the ways in which Netflix's development during its early years a DVD-by-mail company – 1998-2007, a period I am calling "Netflix as Rental Company" – lay the foundations for the company's future iterations and successes. During this period, Netflix adapted DVD distribution to the Internet, revolutionizing the way viewers receive, watch, and choose content, and built a brand reputation on consumer-centric innovation.
    [Show full text]
  • David Silberberg San Francisco Bay Area Location Sound Mixer, Analogue Audio Restorer, FCP Editor, and Film-Maker
    1 David Silberberg San Francisco Bay Area Location Sound Mixer, Analogue Audio Restorer, FCP Editor, and Film-maker P.O. Box 725 El Cerrito, CA 94530 (510) 847-5954 •Recording sound tracks for film and television professionally since 1989, from hand-held rough and ready documentaries to complex multicam, multitrack productions. Over 20 years experience on all kinds of documentaries, narratives, network and cable television, indie and corporate productions. Final Cut Pro Editor and award winning film-maker (for Wild Wheels and Oh My God! Itʼs Harrod Blank! ) • Recording Equipment Package Boom Mics: 3 Schoeps mics with hypercardiod capsules, Senneheiser MK-70 long shotgun mic, Schoeps bidirectional MS stereo recording, Assorted booms and windscreens Wireless Mics: 2 Lectrosonics 411 systems, 4 Lectrosonics 195D uhf diversity systems Sanken COS-11 Lavs & Sonotrim Lavs Also handheld transmitters for use with handheld mics. Mixers: Cooper CS104 mixer 4 channel: audio quality is better than excellent. Mid-Side stereo capable, as well as prefader outs—for 4 channel discreet recordings Wendt X4 MIXER : 4 channel field mixer. A standard of the broadcast industry Recorders: Sound Devices 788t HD recorder- a powerful 8 track portable recorder with SMPTE time code and CL8 controller for doing camera mixes. Edirol R-09 handheld, HHB Portadat with Time Code, Nagra 4.2, 1/4ʼʼ mono recorder, Multi-Track Recording: Using Boom Recorder software, Motu interfaces, a fast MacBook Core 2 Duo laptop, and a G-tech hard drive Iʼm now capable of recording 16 channels at 48K, 24bit—with 1 track reserved for time code. The system is clocked to the 788 t ʻs SMPTE time code output, which also records 8 more tracks and I can record a 2 channel mix on dat tape as a back-up.
    [Show full text]
  • Limitations on Copyright Protection for Format Ideas in Reality Television Programming
    For exclusive use of MLRC members and other parties specifically authorized by MLRC. © Media Law Resource Center, Inc. LIMITATIONS ON COPYRIGHT PROTECTION FOR FORMAT IDEAS IN REALITY TELEVISION PROGRAMMING By Kent R. Raygor and Edwin Komen* * Kent R. Raygor and Edwin Komen are partners in the Entertainment, Media, and Technology Group in the Century City, California and Washington, D.C. offices, respectively, of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP. The authors thank Ben Aigboboh, an associate in the Century City office, for his assistance with this article. 97 For exclusive use of MLRC members and other parties specifically authorized by MLRC. © Media Law Resource Center, Inc. LIMITATIONS ON COPYRIGHT PROTECTION FOR FORMAT IDEAS IN REALITY TELEVISION PROGRAMMING I. INTRODUCTION Television networks constantly compete to find and produce the next big hit. The shifting economic landscape forged by increasing competition between and among ever-proliferating media platforms, however, places extreme pressure on network profit margins. Fully scripted hour-long dramas and half-hour comedies have become increasingly costly, while delivering diminishing ratings in the key demographics most valued by advertisers. It therefore is not surprising that the reality television genre has become a staple of network schedules. New reality shows are churned out each season.1 The main appeal, of course, is that they are cheap to make and addictive to watch. Networks are able to take ordinary people and create a show without having to pay “A-list” actor salaries and hire teams of writers.2 Many of the most popular programs are unscripted, meaning lower cost for higher ratings. Even where the ratings are flat, such shows are capable of generating higher profit margins through advertising directed to large groups of more readily targeted viewers.
    [Show full text]
  • Mixed Reality Technologies for Immersive Interactive Broadcast
    MIXED REALITY TECHNOLOGIES FOR IMMERSIVE INTERACTIVE BROADCAST O. Schreer1, W. Waizenegger1, W. Fernando2, H. Kodikara Arachchi2, A. Oehme3, A. Smolic4, B. Yargicoglu5, A. Akman5, U. Curjel6 1Fraunhofer HHI, Germany; 2University of Surrey, UK; 3HFC Human- Factors-Consult, Germany; 4Disney Research Zurich, Switzerland; 5Argela, Turkey; 6SRF, Switzerland ABSTRACT Up until now, TV has been a one-to-many proposition apart from a few exceptions. The TV Stations produced and packaged their shows and the consumers had to tune in at a specific time to watch their favourite show. However, new technologies are changing the way we watch and produce television programs. For example, viewers often use second screen applications and are engaged in lively discussions via social media channels while watching TV. Nevertheless, immediate live interaction with broadcast media is still not possible. In this paper, the latest results of the European funded project ACTION-TV, which is developing novel forms of user interaction based on advanced Computer Vision and Mixed-Reality technologies, are presented. The aim of this research project is to let viewers actively participate in pre-produced live-action television shows. This expands the horizon of the interactive television concept towards engaging television shows. The paper explains the concept, challenges and solutions resulting in a first prototype real-time demonstrator for novel interactive TV services. INTRODUCTION ACTION-TV [1] proposes an innovative mode of user interaction for broadcasting to relax the rigid and passive nature of present broadcasting ecosystems. It has two key aims: (i) a group of users can take part in TV shows providing a sense of immersion into the show and seamless natural engagement with the content; (ii) users are encouraged to use TV shows as a means of social engagement while keeping themselves and their talents more visible across social circles.
    [Show full text]
  • Developments in Television Viewership
    City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 2-2016 Developments in Television Viewership Lucile E. Hecht Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/730 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] DEVELOPMENTS IN TELEVISION VIEWERSHIP by LUCILE E. HECHT A masters’ thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Liberal Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, The City University of New York 2016 © 2016 LUCILE E. HECHT All Rights Reserved ii DEVELOPMENTS IN TELVISION VIEWERSHIP by LUCILE E. HECHT This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Liberal Studies satisfying the thesis requirement for the degree of Master of Arts. Giancarlo Lombardi ___________________ ______________________________ Date Thesis Adviser Matthew Gold ___________________ ______________________________ Date Executive Officer THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iii Abstract DEVELOPMENTS IN TELEVISION VIEWERSHIP by Lucile E. Hecht Adviser: Professor Giancarlo Lombardi In recent years the ways in which we watch television has changed, and so has the television we watch. “Binge watching,” almost the Oxford English Dictionary’s Word of the Year in 2013, has taken a firm hold on the American television audience who now watches television not according to the broadcast schedule but on its own terms. So, too, has the practice of engaging with other audience members, be they friends, family, or strangers, while watching a show by using a secondary device – a “second screen.” These practices have been developing for some time, and as technology adapts to facilitate them the denizens of television viewers now consider them normal.
    [Show full text]
  • Indie TV: Innovation in Series Development Aymar Jean Christian Northwestern Univeristy I Spent Five Years Interviewing Creators
    Indie TV: Innovation in series development DRAFT Aymar Jean Christian Northwestern Univeristy I spent five years interviewing creators of American web series, or independent television online,1 speaking with 134 producers and executives making and releasing scripted series independent of traditional network investment. No two series or creators were ever alike. Some were sci-fi comedies created by Trekkers, others urban dramas by black women. Nevertheless nearly every creator differentiated their work and products from traditional television in some way. Strikingly, whenever I ask if any particular creator inspired them to develop their own show independently, I heard one response more than any other: Felicia Day. Indie TV creators revere Day for her innovation in production and distribution: she developed a hit franchise, The Guild, outside network development processes. The Guild, a sitcom about a diverse group of gamers who sit at computers all day to play an MMORPG in the style of World of Warcraft, ran for six seasons, from 2007 to 2013, and spawned a music video, DVDs, comic books, a companion book, as well as marshaled the passions of hundreds of thousands of fans. By the end of its run, The Guild had amassed over 330,000 subscribers on YouTube, though it could also be seen on other portals. In my work I have seen The Guild emerge as central to the online indie TV industry’s case for itself as antidote to what ails Hollywood. Day initially pitched to Christian, A.J. (forthcoming). Indie TV: Innovation in Series Development, in Media Independence: 1 working with freedom or working for free?.
    [Show full text]
  • Television Trends for Millennials and Generation Z in the Nordic Region
    The Ultimate TV Show project Television trends for Millennials and Generation Z in the Nordic region Annette Hill Imagining the ultimate Terry Pratchett TV show (done right) by a Nordic fan Summary The Ultimate TV Show project used mixed methods to analyze the television show preferences of Millennial and Generation Z viewers in the Nordic regions of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland. The project used contextual information, including ratings data for the top television series from 2019 to 2020; news and magazine articles featuring critics’ top picks for TV shows to watch; and fan discussions about their favourite series on public websites. The primary data that formed the basis of this report included qualitative interviews with Nordic viewers. The project conducted interviews with 44 viewers, during November and December 2020, that addressed their tastes and values and the social context surrounding television. The sample included a mix of male and female viewers between the ages of 18 and 38. The research highlighted a golden age for television, where both linear television and streaming services provided a social place where viewers could sit around the campfire and experience amazing storytelling. From drama and comedy to adult animation and reality romance, audiences valued television as both a “friend that never lets you down” and a master storyteller that invited empathetic viewers to relate to characters and reflect on their own lives. Key themes from the empirical data included the shift from solo to social viewing, the DNA of television storytelling and the value of authenticity. In the past year, Nordic viewers have turned toward television to while away the hours at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
    [Show full text]
  • WRITING for EPISODIC TV from Freelance to Showrunner
    WRITING FOR EPISODIC TV From Freelance to Showrunner Written by: Al Jean Brad Kern Jeff Melvoin Pamela Pettler Dawn Prestwich Pam Veasey John Wirth Nicole Yorkin Additional Contributions by: Henry Bromell, Mitch Burgess, Carlton Cuse, Robin Green, Barbara Hall, Al Jean, Amy Lippman, Dan O’Shannon, Phil Rosenthal, Joel Surnow, John Wells, Lydia Woodward Edited by: John Wirth Jeff Melvoin i Introduction: Writing for Episodic Television – A User’s Guide In the not so distant past, episodic television writers worked their way up through the ranks, slowly in most cases, learning the ropes from their more-experienced colleagues. Those days are gone, and while their passing has ushered in a new age of unprecedented mobility and power for television writers, the transition has also spelled the end of both a traditional means of education and a certain culture in which that education was transmitted. The purpose of this booklet is twofold: first, to convey some of the culture of working on staff by providing informal job descrip- tions, a sense of general expectations, and practical working tips; second, to render relevant WGA rules into reader-friendly lan- guage for staff writers and executive producers. The material is organized into four chapters by job level: FREE- LANCER, STAFF WRITER/STORY EDITOR, WRITER-PRODUCER, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER. For our purposes, executive producer and showrunner are used interchangeably, although this is not always the case. Various appendices follow, including pertinent sections of the WGA Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA). As this is a booklet, not a book, it does not make many distinc- tions among the different genres found in episodic television (half- hour, animation, primetime, cable, first-run syndication, and so forth).
    [Show full text]
  • Reality Television Production As Dirty Work
    University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations 2016 Good Character: Reality Television Production as Dirty Work Junhow Wei University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Communication Commons, Organizational Behavior and Theory Commons, and the Sociology Commons Recommended Citation Wei, Junhow, "Good Character: Reality Television Production as Dirty Work" (2016). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2094. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2094 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2094 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Good Character: Reality Television Production as Dirty Work Abstract Audiences, critics, and academics have raised significant moral concerns about reality television. The genre is commonly criticized for being exploitative, harmful, and fake. By extension, reality TV workers are morally tainted, seen as dirty workers of questionable character. This dissertation describes the sources of moral taint in reality television production and how production workers dispel this taint—making their work acceptable and even glorious to themselves and others—through everyday micro-level interaction. The data for this study comes from approximately 2 years of ethnographic observation at 2 reality TV production companies, attendance at 2 reality TV industry conferences, and interviews with 83 respondents, including reality TV production workers, television network executives, and people who auditioned to be on reality shows. Findings focus on the development process, during which production companies generate ideas for new television shows and pitch those ideas to television networks. First, I describe the development process and three significant moral dilemmas that workers face at this initial stage of production: creating negative representations (e.g.
    [Show full text]
  • KCPS Launches New One-Hour Television Show for Distance And
    KCPS launches new one-hour television show for distance and virtual learners In partnership with KSHB and KCMI 38 The Spot, KCPS’s new television show will feature creative learning opportunites for all families in the Kansas City viewing area Kansas City, August 13, 2020: KCPS, in partnership with KSHB and KCMI 38 The Spot, has launched a new one-hour television show created to provide additional learning opportunities for all families in the Kansas City viewing area. ‘KCPS Homeroom’ is a new television show that will offer daily academic instruction in the core content areas for all age groups. These content areas include Math, English Language Arts, Science, Social Studies and Fine Arts. The goal of this television show is to provide an additional academic outlet for families as we all navigate education through distance learning and virtual learning during the pandemic. In order to reach more students, KCPS will air academic content on 38 The Spot every week day at 8:00 a.m. At KCPS, we understand the struggles of at-home learning; we understand the difficulties of balancing academics, family dynamics and work. Our goal is to provide an extra resource for not only KCPS students but students throughout the area. We look forward to providing this show for our families. We hope families find it valuable and continue to tune in throughout the school year. Start your day with KCPS Homeroom on 38 The Spot! This new one-hour television show created by Kansas City Public Schools is a learning opportunity available to all families in the Greater Kansas City metropolitan area.
    [Show full text]