The Home and Garden Television network has successfully made its way into the family rooms of many American homes. The network displays a variety of how-to shows with a focus on home-and-garden improvement, maintenance, renovation, craft and remodeling (Wikipedia). The HGTV website claims their television station sparks creativity in viewers ' homes and self-empowerment in their lives. The Home and Garden Television network, although welcome to all viewers, mainly attracts middle-aged women, as well as inspiring artists or interior designers (Everett). These inspiring artists and designers often fit into the stereotype of fashionably up-to-date women or openly gay men, similar to the hosts seen on the network’s programs. The HGTV network displays a brand identity for itself by airing programs and advertisements that attract middle-aged women and inspiring designers and decorators, and also by displaying the common values of these frequent viewers. In this essay, I will provide examples of HGTV’s brand identity through advertisements and specified episodes of particular network programs.
The Home and Garden Television network belongs to Scripps Networks Interactive, along with the Cooking Channel, the DIY Network, the Food Network, Great American Country and the Travel Channel. These channels collect audiences that are 73% women, 60% homeowners, and have an average age of 48 years (Scripps Network Interactive website). This means that a majority of the viewers are middle-aged women, whom probably have a family and own a home. For this reason, the Home and Garden Television network advertises products that middle-aged women, along with other inspiring artists would find useful or vital for bettering their home. If an audience member tunes into HGTV for a thirty-minute period, the viewer is likely to see an advertisement pertaining to home improvement or gardening. The Home Depot, a superstore dedicated to home improvement, is often
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