Page 175 - A Handbook Genre Studies in Mass Media

CHAPTER 6

walk-in closets stuffed with clothes. In one episode, Mariah Carey shows
off her penthouse in New York. The motif of the penthouse is gold. At
one point, she climbs into the hot tub to show how large it is. In another
episode, Rap/Hip-Hop group B2K shows off their “denim room,” which
is entirely fashioned out of blue jeans that have been worn by celebrities.
Programs that revolve around celebrities showing off their possessions
as tangible evidence of their success generate feelings of awe and envy
on the part of the audience.
Sitcoms and romantic comedies send cumulative messages about the
central role of consumer culture in the lives of the characters. Sitcoms
like Friends act as a buyer’s guide—what the target audience should be
owning and using. Episodes show the characters fashionably dressed,
and the sets are well furnished. The plots show the characters consuming
the goods. The commercials that accompany the shows present products
that match the style of the programs.
This preoccupation with material culture also helps account for the
public’s fascination with voyeuristic reality shows. This subgenre gives
the audience a glimpse of the lives of the wealthy, such as Paris Hilton
and Donald Trump.

Lines of Inquiry

1. Genres possess distinctive ideological orientations that send mes-
sages about what life is and what life ought to be. Select a genre and
examine its ideological underpinnings. How does this genre shape
the content and the audience’s expectations and understanding?
2. Conduct an ideological analysis of a genre (or subgenre). Select a
sample of programs from a genre and identify the ideology char-
acteristic of the genre.
a. Who is the source of power and control in the genre?
3. Find a case study in which a genre serves as a platform for ideology.
a. Provide background
b. Describe each ideological perspective
c. How does the genre serve as a platform for the conflict?
4. Some genres seem to accommodate particular ideologies. Select
a genre and describe its characteristic ideology. Use specific pro-
grams, formulaic elements, etc., to support your contention.
5. Identify a program that can be interpreted as an allegory about cur-
rent events.

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