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The Pennsylvania State University Schreyer Honors College THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHREYER HONORS COLLEGE DEPARTMENT OF FILM-VIDEO AND MEDIA STUDIES CHANGES IN PACING, SOUND USE, VISUAL COMPLEXITY, AND NARRATIVE COMPLEXITY IN U.S. SITCOMS 1950-PRESENT KELSEY J. BRADBURY Spring 2012 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for baccalaureate degrees in Advertising/Public Relations and Psychology with honors in Media Studies Reviewed and approved* by the following: Matthew P. McAllister Professor of Communications Thesis Supervisor Susan M. Strohm Senior Lecturer in Advertising Honors Adviser * Signatures are on file in the Schreyer Honors College i ABSTRACT Numerous theorists have argued that the manner in which television delivers information influences—and is influenced by—the information-processing preferences of its audience. Research supports a general intensity of the pace and visual complexity of several media forms in society, including television programming. Engaging with such scholarship, this thesis examines changes in content and formatting of three scripted, primetime, U.S. network domestic situation comedy television programs in three different eras of television history. Specifically, this thesis focuses on changes in pacing, sound use, visual complexity, and narrative complexity of such shows. Both quantitative content analysis and qualitative textual analysis were used to analyze episodes from Father Knows Best, The Cosby Show, and Modern Family, each of which represents a distinct era of television history in the U.S. It was found that over the past six decades, the pacing, sound use, visual complexity, and narrative complexity of television sitcoms has changed significantly. Such changes have implications for the U.S. culture as a whole, and may affect the ways viewers are influenced by newer televisual forms. ii Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................................... iv INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 1 MEDIA PACING AND SOCIETY ...................................................................................................................... 4 HISTORY OF TELEVISION PROGRAMMING .................................................................................................. 6 Broadcast Network Television ................................................................................................................. 6 Cable and Satellite Television Services in the U.S. .................................................................................. 6 The Switch from Analog to Digital Over-the-Air Signals ......................................................................... 8 Sponsorship and Commercials ................................................................................................................. 9 HISTORY OF TELEVISION USAGE ................................................................................................................ 12 Television Ownership Trends ................................................................................................................. 12 Television Viewing Habits ...................................................................................................................... 13 Web Video .............................................................................................................................................. 14 Changes in Viewer Attention Patterns and Distraction ........................................................................ 15 COMPLEXITY IN AUDITORY, VISUAL, AND NARRATIVE STRUCTURE ........................................................ 18 Viewer Attention and Changes in Auditory Structure .......................................................................... 18 Changes in Visual Complexity ................................................................................................................ 19 Changes in Narrative Complexity .......................................................................................................... 20 METHOD ..................................................................................................................................................... 26 Overview of Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 26 Variables ................................................................................................................................................. 27 Operational Definitions .......................................................................................................................... 28 Hypotheses ............................................................................................................................................. 31 Procedure ............................................................................................................................................... 32 Description of and Rationale for Sample Texts ..................................................................................... 34 QUANTITATIVE (CODING) RESULTS AND DISCUSSION .............................................................................. 43 Pacing: Results ........................................................................................................................................ 43 Sound Use: Results ................................................................................................................................. 47 Visual Complexity: Results ..................................................................................................................... 48 Narrative Complexity: Results ............................................................................................................... 49 Changes in Pacing: Discussion ................................................................................................................ 49 Changes in Sound Use: Discussion ......................................................................................................... 50 iii Changes in Visual Complexity: Discussion ............................................................................................. 51 Changes in Narrative Complexity: Discussion ....................................................................................... 52 QUALITATIVE RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ................................................................................................. 54 Father Knows Best Decoupage .............................................................................................................. 54 The Cosby Show Decoupage .................................................................................................................. 58 Modern Family Decoupage .................................................................................................................... 64 Qualitative Discussion of Narrative Complexity ................................................................................... 68 LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH .................................................................................................. 72 Limitations of the Study ......................................................................................................................... 72 Suggestions for Future Research ........................................................................................................... 72 CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................................................................ 74 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................ 77 Figures and Tables Figure 1: Family Tree, Father Knows Best……………………………………………………………………………….40 Figure 2: Family Tree, The Cosby Show……………………………………….…………………………………………..43 Figure 3: Family Tree, Modern Family……………………………………………………………………………………..45 Table 1: Episode, Scene, and Shot Pacing………………….…………………………………………………………….48 Table 2: Length of Title Sequence, Story Scenes, Action Scenes, and Closing Credits………………50 Table 3: Shot Length and Frequency for Title Sequence, Story Scenes, and Action Scenes……..51 Table 4: Presence of Auditory Elements………………………………………………………………………………….52 Table 5: Presence of Visual Elements…………………………..………………………………………………………….53 Table 6: Presence of Narrative Elements…………………………………………………………………………………54 Table 7: “Bud, the Millionaire” Scene Decoupage – Father Knows Best….……………………………..60 Table 8: “Isn’t It Romantic?” Scene Decoupage – The Cosby Show…………………………………………64 Table 9: “Regrets Only” Scene Decoupage – Modern Family………………………………………………….70 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I started this project with a specific idea for an experiment, but with no idea what a jump cut was. Dr. McAllister, I wholeheartedly appreciate your willingness to take on a thesis student with no background in television. Thank you for steering me through the learning process and helping me form the theoretical basis and research methods for this thesis. I would not have been able to undertake the project without your help and guidance. Working with you during the past two semesters has been an enriching experience and has helped me to realize a passion for the
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