James Shanahan

Does it matter what television we watch? Despite their stodgy reputation among many consumers of television, sitcoms, or situation comedies, have stuck around as a cornerstone of the television landscape. Sitcoms and Culture examines sitcoms as cultural artifacts ripe for exploration as they reflect the shifting landscapes of our society. From questions of social change to the portrayal of women and other racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities, sitcoms have evolved alongside the major social changes of the last half century. Using an interdisciplinary approach, author James Shanahan combines research on cultural indicators with an empirical methodology and cultural analysis to examine over 50 years of sitcoms to discern the reality of how these comedies have portrayed life to us across generations of television. Sitcoms and Culture helps us gain a deeper understanding of how sitcoms mirror and shape societal norms and of the pivotal role they have played in reflecting and influencing cultural trends.

Does it matter what television we watch? Despite their stodgy reputation among many consumers of television, sitcoms, or situation comedies, have stuck around as a cornerstone of the television landscape. Sitcoms and Culture examines sitcoms as cultural artifacts ripe for exploration as they reflect the shifting landscapes of our society. From questions of social change to the portrayal of women and other racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities, sitcoms have evolved alongside the major social changes of the last half century. Using an interdisciplinary approach, author James Shanahan combines research on cultural indicators with an empirical methodology and cultural analysis to examine over 50 years of sitcoms to discern the reality of how these comedies have portrayed life to us across generations of television. Sitcoms and Culture helps us gain a deeper understanding of how sitcoms mirror and shape societal norms and of the pivotal role they have played in reflecting and influencing cultural trends.

Does exposure to media violence make us more violent? Do stereotypes in the media affect the way we see different social groups? Do media institutions play any role in social change? Media Effects is a concise introduction which studies the ways in which media use affects society. James Shanahan explores how researchers and society became interested in media effects, outlines the important developments in the field, and looks at how research on narrative is playing a progressively important role in revealing what we know. The book also provides a timely interweaving of different perspectives, ranging from concerned and critical voices within media studies to quantitative psychological approaches which tend to be more sceptical about powerful media effects. Concise and authoritative, Media Effects is the go-to text for students and scholars getting to grips with this fascinating and important topic.

Does exposure to media violence make us more violent? Do stereotypes in the media affect the way we see different social groups? Do media institutions play any role in social change? Media Effects is a concise introduction which studies the ways in which media use affects society. James Shanahan explores how researchers and society became interested in media effects, outlines the important developments in the field, and looks at how research on narrative is playing a progressively important role in revealing what we know. The book also provides a timely interweaving of different perspectives, ranging from concerned and critical voices within media studies to quantitative psychological approaches which tend to be more sceptical about powerful media effects. Concise and authoritative, Media Effects is the go-to text for students and scholars getting to grips with this fascinating and important topic.

Television and its Viewers reviews ‘cultivation’ research, which investigates the relationship between exposure to television and beliefs about the world. James Shanahan and Michael Morgan, both distinguished researchers in this field, scrutinize cultivation through detailed theoretical and historical explication, critical assessments of methodology, and a comprehensive ‘meta-analysis’ of twenty years of empirical results. They present a sweeping historical view of television as a technology and as an institution. Shanahan and Morgan’s study looks forward as well as back, to the development of cultivation research in a new media environment. They argue that cultivation theory offers a unique and valuable perspective on the role of television in twentieth-century social life. Television and its Viewers, the first book-length study of its type, will be of interest to students and scholars in communication, sociology, political science and psychology and contains an introduction by the seminal figure in this field, George Gerbner.

Television and its Viewers reviews 'cultivation' research, which investigates the relationship between exposure to television and beliefs about the world. James Shanahan and Michael Morgan, both distinguished researchers in this field, scrutinize cultivation through detailed theoretical and historical explication, critical assessments of methodology, and a comprehensive 'meta-analysis' of twenty years of empirical results. They present a sweeping historical view of television as a technology and as an institution. Shanahan and Morgan's study looks forward as well as back, to the development of cultivation research in a new media environment. They argue that cultivation theory offers a unique and valuable perspective on the role of television in twentieth-century social life. Television and its Viewers, the first book-length study of its type, will be of interest to students and scholars in communication, sociology, political science and psychology and contains an introduction by the seminal figure in this field, George Gerbner.

This text analyses the role of television in the lives of Argentine adolescents, examining its implications for such issues as political attitudes, personal and social expectations, conduct of daily lives, social knowledge, and beliefs.