Radio Critics and Popular Culture


Book Description

Radio still remains an important form of media, with millions listening to it daily. It has been reborn for the digital era, and is an area where there is great interest in its development, role and form. Attempting to fill the gap in research on British radio criticism, this volume explores the development and role of radio criticism in the discourse around radio in Britain from its birth in the 1920s up to present day. Using a historical approach to explore how, as radio emerged, the press provided coverage which helped shape and reflect radio’s position in popular culture, Paul Rixon delivers an interesting and engaging exploration that provides a cultural perspective on radio, with a specific focus on newspaper criticism. Radio Critics and Popular Culture is an innovative and original addition to existing research and will be invaluable for those interested in the way that British radio has evolved.




TV Critics and Popular Culture


Book Description

Ever since the first scheduled television broadcasts began in the 1930s, newspapers and magazines took quickly to reviewing this revolutionary new medium. The task of television criticism in the public doman intially fell to radio critics and journalists, but the 1950s saw the rise of the dedicated TV critic. These critics, including Peter Black, Philip Pursor and Clive James, played an important part in shaping the public discourse about television. This new book explores the evolution of television criticism in Britain, exploring different types of TV critics and reviewers, the form of their work, and evaluates their importance in our understanding of the way television has become such an integral part of modern culture. It also asks whether, with the birth of new technologies, is the TV critic a dying breed? This is an important contribution to the fields of Journalism and Television Studies, Cultural Studies, and contemporary History.




Radio's Legacy in Popular Culture


Book Description

Examining work by novelists, filmmakers, TV producers and songwriters, this book uncovers the manner in which the radio – and the act of listening – has been written about for the past 100 years. Ever since the first public wireless broadcasts, people have been writing about the radio: often negatively, sometimes full of praise, but always with an eye and an ear to explain and offer an opinion about what they think they have heard. Novelists including Graham Greene, Agatha Christie, Evelyn Waugh, and James Joyce wrote about characters listening to this new medium with mixtures of delight, frustration, and despair. Clint Eastwood frightened moviegoers half to death in Play Misty for Me, but Lou Reed's 'Rock & Roll' said listening to a New York station had saved Jenny's life. Frasier showed the urbane side of broadcasting, whilst Good Morning, Vietnam exploded from the cinema screen with a raw energy all of its own. Queen thought that all the audience heard was 'ga ga', even as The Buggles said video had killed the radio star and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers lamented 'The Last DJ'. This book explores the cultural fascination with radio; the act of listening as a cultural expression – focusing on fiction, films and songs about radio. Martin Cooper, a broadcaster and academic, uses these movies, TV shows, songs, novels and more to tell a story of listening to the radio – as created by these contemporary writers, filmmakers, and musicians.




The Oxford Handbook of Radio and Podcasting


Book Description

The Oxford Handbook of Radio and Podcasting provides a concise yet in-depth overview of the development of radio as a creative and cultural form, from early broadcasting to the digital present. Organized around major aspects of radio's social and political impact - on the arts, on news and documentary, on community, nation, identity, and culture - it draws on contributors from interdisciplinary backgrounds and many nationalities to explore the world of sound-based communication across a century of practice. Links are provided to illustrative sound clips in many chapters, along with chapter-by-chapter audiographies offering digital links to enable further listening.




Rethinking Cultural Criticism


Book Description

This edited volume examines cultural criticism in the digital age. It provides new insights into how critical authority and expertise in a cultural context are being reconfigured in digital media and by means of digital media, as the boundaries of cultural criticism and who may perform as a cultural critic are redefined or even dissolved. The book applies cross-media and cross-disciplinary perspectives to advance cultural criticism as a wide-ranging and multi-facetted object of study in the 21st century. Presenting a broad collection of case studies, including global cases such as the Golden Globe, the Intellectual Dark Web, YouTube, Rotten Tomatoes and Artsy and particular national contexts such as Britain, the Czech Republic, Denmark and the Netherlands, the book showcases the many theoretical and methodological approaches that may serve as useful frameworks for studying new critical voices in the digital age. It will be of interest to media, communication and journalism scholars as well as scholars from a range of aesthetic disciplines.




Encyclopedia of Politics, the Media, and Popular Culture


Book Description

Whether it's television, radio, concerts, live appearances by comedians, Internet websites, or even the political party conventions themselves, the mixing of politics and popular culture is frequently on display. The Encyclopedia of Politics, the Media, and Popular Culture examines the people, major events, media, and controversies in eight thematic chapters and over 150 entries to provide an invaluable resource for any student, scholar, or everyday political junkie needing a comprehensive introduction to the subject. On a typical weeknight in the United States, millions shun the traditional evening network news broadcasts and, instead, later grab their remotes to turn to Comedy Central to catch up on the political happenings of the day, delivered by the comedian Jon Stewart on the faux news program, The Daily Show. Immediately afterwards, they might stay tuned to The Colbert Report for another dosage of hilarious, fake news that, to them, comes across more honestly than the serious version they could watch on CNN. Whether it's television, radio, concerts, live appearances by comedians, Internet websites, or even the political party conventions themselves, the mixing of politics and popular culture is frequently on display. The Encyclopedia of Politics, the Media, and Popular Culture provides in-depth coverage of these fascinating, and often surprising intersections in both historical and contemporary culture. This highly readable and entertaining encyclopedia provides a sweeping survey of the historic and ongoing interplay between politics, the media, and popular culture in eight thought-provoking chapters. The volume is enhanced with the inclusion of over 150 entries to help students and researchers easily locate more in-depth information on topics ranging from political scandals to YouTube.




Popular Culture


Book Description

What is pop culture? Why do we so often hate to love it and love to hate it? What makes us embrace parts of it and not others? Marcel Danesi explores our human desire for meaning and the need to symbolize it in music, language, art, and other creative forms. He offers a variety of perspectives to help us understand the products of popular culture_from music and websites to fads, celebrities, and more_tapping into the fun of pop culture without making us feel guilty for enjoying it.




A Companion to Popular Culture


Book Description

A Companion to Popular Culture is a landmark survey of contemporary research in popular culture studies that offers a comprehensive and engaging introduction to the field. Includes over two dozen essays covering the spectrum of popular culture studies from food to folklore and from TV to technology Features contributions from established and up-and-coming scholars from a range of disciplines Offers a detailed history of the study of popular culture Balances new perspectives on the politics of culture with in-depth analysis of topics at the forefront of popular culture studies




Radiophilia


Book Description

A century ago, the emergence of radio, along with organized systems of broadcasting, sparked a global fascination with the 'wonder' of sound transmission and reception. The thrilling experience of tuning in to the live sounds of this new medium prompted strong affective responses in its listeners. This book introduces a new concept of radiophilia, defined as the attachment to, or even a love of radio. Treating radiophilia as a dynamic cultural phenomenon, it unpacks the various pleasures associated with radio and its sounds, the desire to discover and learn new things via radio, and efforts to record, re-experience, and share radio. Surveying 100 years of radio from early wireless through to digital audio formats like podcasting, the book engages in debates about fandom, audience participation, listening experience, material culture, and how media relate to affect and emotions.




Radio Reader


Book Description

First Published in 2002. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.