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Proauest Information and Leaming 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 MUCH MORE THAN MUSIC VIDEO: AN EXAMINATION Of CANADIAN RESPONSE TO AMERICAN PARADIGMS SAMANTHA MARY MORRIS Graduate Program et! Art Hi.tory and Communications Studies • McGIIi University, Montreal A th.sis submitled to the Faculty ofGraduate Stud•• and R_arch in partial fulfillment ofthe requirements for the degree of _ra ofArts March 2001 e. c. S.II. IIorris 2001 National Library BmIiothèque nationale 14'1 of Canada -du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie services services bibliographiques 385 WeIingIDn StrMt 385. rue We-.agean oaawa ON K1A 0N4 ClII8aON K1 A 0N4 canada c.n.da The author bas granted a non­ L'autem a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library ofCanada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, 10an, distnbute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies oftbis thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership ofthe L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in tbis thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. tbesis nor substantial extracts from it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may he printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the autbor's ou autrement reproduits sans son pemusslon. autorisation. 0-612-70303-7 Canadl • ABSTRACT Although the relationship between Canadian and American culture is often discussed in terms ofdominance and dependency, there is little cultural scholarship that examines how Canadians interpret American cultural products and how Canadian "replicas· ofAmerican products encompass infatuation and imitation ofAmerican popular culture while simultaneously offering aitique, resistanœ and parody. By comparing the evolution of MuchMusic and MlV and the ·supertext- of the two networks- programming philosophy, musical and non-musical shows, VJ's, and television aesthetics­ 1address how MuchMusic functions as both an example of uniquely Canadian sensibilities and as an example of Canada's complicated • relationship with the United States. Bien que les rapports entre la culture canadienne et la culture américaine sont souvent abordés sur l'angle de la dominance et de la dépendance, il y a peu de théories socioculturelles qui expliquent comment les canadiens interprètent les produits de la culture américaine et comment les "répliques" canadiennes des produits américains provoquent l'engouement et la volonté d'imiter la culture populaire américaine et, en même temps, être la cible de critiques, de résistance et de parodie. En comparant l'évolution de Much Music et de MlV, les grandes lignes de la philosophie de ces deux chaines de programmation, les émissions musicales et non-musicales, les VJ's et • l'esthétique de la télévision, je vais élaborer sur comment Much Music joue le rôle de promoteur des valeurs strictement canadiennes et comment la chaine • de télévision sert d'exemple de la relation compliquée entre le Canada et les Etats-Unis. • • • ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thanks to my superviser, Will Straw, for his expertise and guidance. Thanks to my friends and family, with special thanks to Jay Morris, the only persan who truly shares my love of music video, and Elan Mastai, who has been a constant source of intellectual and ernotional support. • • • TABLE Of CONTENTS Introduction Chapter One: Two Become One?: The Relationship Between Canadian Identity and the United States American Oreams. International Screens: The Global 1 Influence ofthe US Canadian Bacon: Can We Take the Heat or Should We 3 Get Out ofthe Kitchen? Defining Culturalldentity 11 Early Days: A History of Canadian and American 13 Structuring Principles American Voices. Canadian Choices: The History of US 20 Domination From "Wheat Kings D to "Our True North": Images of 28 • Canada Canadian Edition: Canada as a Response. Resistance, 33 Critique ofthe US Chapter Two: Behind the Music: An Analysis of Music Video Scholarship and the Evolution of Music Television in Canada and the US Smells Like Teen Spirit: Music Video and Generation Next 40 Rage Against the Machine: Academie Approaches to Music 47 Television BIORhythm: A History of Music Video and MN 57 The Great Live North: The History of MuchMusic 73 • Ch.pter Th,..: W. W.nt Ou,MTV: A. Content Analys" ofMuchMusic and MTV • Tuning ln: Introductory Comparisons of MuchMusic and MTV 83 The Beaver Snores, the Eagles Soars?: Canadian and American 88 Television Go With the Flow vs. Choose or Lose: Programming Philosophy 92 Live, Baby 1 Live!: A Pre-Critical Aesthetic Analysis of 103 MuchMusic's Interview Style With or Without You: The Relationship Between VJ and Viewer 113 Conclusio.. 123 • • • INTRODUCTION As an individual who has grown up in the age of music video, 1have a special appreciation for music television's ability to reflect, establish, and complicate cultural narratives. By conducting a comparative study ofthe Canadian and American discourses embedded in music television, 1have attempted to address Iwo major questions. Firstly, what is the Canadian response to both homegrown and American popular culture? Are Canadian "replicas" ofAmerican cultural products (such as MuchMusic) subordinate, second-rate copies, or do they have the potential to offer recontextualization, resistanœ, parody and critique? Secondly, why is analysis of the cultural relationships at play within music television significant? How has the current, • more traditional televisual structure of music video channels changed the cultural role of music video? Throughout this study, 1will be referring to seemingly homogenous, essentialist definitions of nation culture. Yet, despite the limitations of identifying distinctively Canadian and American discourses, certain widely conceived cultural notions can be discussed in terms of typically Canadian perceptions of both American and Canadian culture and cultural productions. Thus, rather than creating clear-cut definitions of national culture, my aim is to explore nationally­ shared psychological states, the narratives embedded in products ofAmerican multinational col'p\)rations Iike MlV, and the complicated interaction between • Canadians and such products. Also, when discussing "Canada" or "Canadianness", 1will be referring to English-speaking Canadians. While 1 • regret excluding francophone Canadians and Quebecois culture from rny research, 1believe that the relationship between English Canadians and the United States neœssitates separate analysis. Also, since Quebec has its own unique French-fanguage music video network, involving French Canada in my research would neœssitate a tripartite comparison of MusiquePlus, MuchMusic, and MlV. • • ü • CHAPTER ONE Two Become One?: The Relatio..hip Between C....di.n Ide.and the United St8t8e American Drums, International Scree_: The GloNllnfiuence ofthe US The international perception ofthe United States as a culturally imperialist force committed to "Americanizing" the wortd is extremely common- few people are shocked by Coca Cala's expectation that the world will saon be drinking more Coke than water, that a Starbucks coffee shop reœntly opened in Chinais Forbidden City, or that the largest McDonald's in the world is in Moscow's Red Square (Spark, 1996: 83). Since the US market has the most mature television and film industry, and because the English language is 50 intemationally pervasive, it is also not surprising that the • United States is the clear frontrunner in the global television market. 8y having the largest and mest lucrative indigenous industry to use as a testing ground for products, American corporations have had a definite upper-hand in the global entertainment industry. For example, in Germany, the 21 most heavily viewed films and nine of the top ten video rentais for 1995 were produced by US film studios (Herman & McChesney, 1997: 43). Furthermore, a 1996 survey of 20000 consumers in 19 nations found that 41.5% of respondents perceived American films and television programs ta be excellent or very goOO, more than double the figure for any other nation (43). As US media giants enter joint ventures with local producers around the • world, domestically produced programming has become increasingly 1 homogenized with the flavour of Hollywood (43). Communications theorist • Manuel Castetis states, 'While the media have become globally interconnected, and programs and messages