Shaking the World for Jesus

MEDIA AND CONSERVATIVE EVANGELICAL CULTURE

http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/S/bo3629610.html

In 19shaking99, the Reverend Jerry Falwell outed Tinky-Winky, the purple character from TV’s Teletubbies. Events such as this reinforced in many quarters the common idea that evangelicals are reactionary, out of touch, and just plain paranoid. But reducing evangelicals to such caricatures does not help us understand their true spiritual and political agendas and the means they use to advance them. Shaking the World for Jesus moves beyond sensationalism to consider how the evangelical movement has effectively targeted Americans—as both converts and consumers—since the 1970s. Continue reading “Shaking the World for Jesus”

Nickelodeon Nation

The History, Politics, and Economics of America’s Only TV Channel for Kids

http://nyupress.org/books/9780814736524/

nickelodeonnation

Nickelodeon is the highest rated daytime channel in the country, and its cultural influence has grown at an astounding pace. Why are Nickelodeon shows so popular? How are they developed and marketed? And where do they fit in the economic picture of the children’s media industry? Nickelodeon Nation, the first major study of the only TV channel just for children, investigates these questions.

Intended for a wide range of readers and illustrated thorughout, the essays in Nickelodeon Nation are grouped into four sections: economics and marketing; the production process; programs and politics; and viewers. Continue reading “Nickelodeon Nation”

Saturday Morning Censors

Television Regulation before the V-Chip

https://www.dukeupress.edu/saturday-morning-censors

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Many parents, politicians, and activists agree that there’s too much violence and not enough education on children’s television. Current solutions range from the legislative (the Children’s Television Act of 1990) to the technological (the V-chip). Saturday Morning Censors examines the history of adults’ attempts to safeguard children from the violence, sexism, racism, and commercialism on television since the 1950s. By focusing on what censorship and regulation are and how they work—rather than on whether they should exist—Heather Hendershot shows how adults use these processes to reinforce their own ideas about childhood innocence. Continue reading “Saturday Morning Censors”