Go behind the TV screen to explore what is changing, why it is
changing, and why the changes matters
Many proclaimed the "end of television" in the early years of the
twenty-first century, as capabilities and features of the boxes that
occupied a central space in American living rooms for the preceding
fifty years were radically remade. In this revised, second edition of
her definitive book, Amanda D. Lotz proves that rumors of the death of
television were greatly exaggerated and explores how new distribution
and viewing technologies have resurrected the medium. Shifts in the
basic practices of making and distributing television have not been
hastening its demise, but are redefining what we can do with television,
what we expect from it, how we use it--in short, revolutionizing it.
Television, as both a technology and a tool for cultural storytelling,
remains as important today as ever, but it has changed in fundamental
ways. The Television Will Be Revolutionized provides a sophisticated
history of the present, examining television in what Lotz terms the
"post-network" era while providing frameworks for understanding the
continued change in the medium. The second edition addresses adjustments
throughout the industry wrought by broadband delivered television such
as Netflix, YouTube, and cross-platform initiatives like TV Everywhere,
as well as how technologies such as tablets and smartphones have changed
how and where we view. Lotz begins to deconstruct the future of
different kinds of television--exploring how "prized content," live
television sports and contests, and linear viewing may all be
"television," but very different types of television for both viewers
and producers.
Through interviews with those working in the industry, surveys of trade
publications, and consideration of an extensive array of popular shows,
Lotz takes us behind the screen to explore what is changing, why it is
changing, and why the changes matter.
