Firstly, unlike in most content analysis, only one coder viewed the sample and coded data. Bias may exist on the part of the coder, and there is no inter-coder reliability for this study. Furthermore, a small sample size was used not only in terms of the episodes chosen, but the number of shows overall; only four different animated programs were coded in this analysis, for a total of eight episodes. Another consequence of the small sample size is that the two episodes sampled from each show may not be representative of the shows themselves. TV shows tend to evolve over time, as due standards for on-air content. The results of the present study are limited to the chosen sample.…
Author Steven Johnson, of the article “Watching TV Makes You Smarter,” argues the evolution of modern television programming has intellectually challenged audiences, rather than stifling complex thoughts—and more, that audiences are craving a more cognitively demanding, complex plot line. Johnson uses multiple examples of drama type shows and even draws positive conclusions from many of the reality shows that are so popular now. He focuses in on a few key factors to take into account when considering the complexity and value of television—the “Sleeper Curve”, televised intelligence, and intentional viewer confusion.…
Steven Johnson presented the argument that watching certain TV shows can make a person more intelligent. According to the author, shows have only become more complex with different story arcs, threading, and social interactions amongst characters. He argues that certain types of narrative weaving cause a person to actually focus on what is happening and notice the details within the show. To support his argument, Johnson discusses the Sleeper Curve, which is found in certain television shows that cause a person to have to pay attention to things below the surface, such as tracking character relations and making inferences. The article presented comparisons between old and modern television shows, as well as clarifying that “bad” shows can also…
The purpose of this research paper is to investigate what people think about a show that…
Not only do millions of people waste time watching television, they laugh, cry and rejoice with fictional characters over a fictional story. Television viewers become deeply lost in thought - an unfamiliar territory for some sitcom fanatics. These viewers will neglect personnel thoughts and emotion when their beloved Dawson's Creek is on. Television is used as an escape from the stresses of reality. How many people come home from a rough day at…
Think about your favorite television show. What makes that show appealing to you? Place it in the context of other shows of a similar genre. Does this show offer a new or different…
When watching a program, people are focused on the plot, make inferences, and create relationships with characters. Therefore, develops a cognitive exercise for the audience. Johnson informs his readers that there is an interaction between people and a television screen. Some examples he describes are when TV shows allow the viewer to develop a mental outline of a show, when a characters encounter social issues, and giving someone a cultural experience through a TV screen. He includes visuals that show different threads of TV programs, displaying the complexity of their scenes overtime, and how much it challenges the brain. Those graphs associate with Johnson’s term the “Sleeper Curve” (279), which according to him is the most debased form of mass diversion. He says that even if it is just reality television, violent content on TV or video games, and children shows, it still helps people become perceptive. Johnson concludes that instead of people having a negative attitude or having fears of their children being influenced by content of TV or video games, he insists that they both should share the experience. Parents and children will continue to interact with the TV screen mentally and therefore develop skills no matter what they watch. This essay presents in argument that television is good for…
The HBO broadcasting network debuted my new favorite TV series Game of Thrones in April 17, 2011, which is based off the author George R.R Martin’s novels “Game of Thrones”. Since the first premiere of the fantasy driven drama series: resembling closely with medieval era, I instantly become a fan. Aside from the memorable characters, which oftentimes leads one to develop some form of attachment and then left with the unbearable shock due to well-known bloodlust of surprise executions gives more of reason to tune into the show. I would describe this show as truly unique where nothing is ever expected to be anticipated. It hold’s no true connection or trends to past popular shows, which makes it, stand out from the rest.…
Bewitched is a situation comedy, produced in the year 1964 and set in America. The main characters include Samantha and Darrin Stephens. The program Bewitched conveys the premise to not make assumptions about someone instantly – because there may be more to a person then what meets the eye.…
The "peek-a-boo" world of television is one in which the medium assembles disconnected facts in a "pseudo-context" (76) structure designed to make them more coherent and relevant. This structure is false creating a world that is "endlessly entertaining" (77) but does not allow for critical thinking. Information is shown to the audience so quickly that it does not allow them to think critically about it.…
Johnson’s idea of multiple threads in watching television fundamentally lies in his overarching theory called The Sleeper Curve. A thread is a strand of information in one scene; a scene can have up to ten threads increasing the complexity of the show. Multithreading is “keeping [these] densely interwoven plotlines distinct” (Johnson 63). In comparison to earlier television shows that only followed one or two stories, today’s features present a greater deal of complexity. The plot lines in shows like Starsky and Hutch and Dragnet are easy to follow. The story begins and ends in each episode, requiring no follow up in later episodes. Modern television shows that develop complex plots require a certain degree of engagement from its audience. The challenging simultaneous plot lines require viewers to “intuitively track narrative-threads-per-episode” in order to truly comprehend what is going on (Johnson 72). With multithreading, the audience is required to “integrate far more information that [they] would have a few decades ago” (Johnson 72).…
Since its invention in 1928, the television has had a tremendous effect on many aspects of society. Now, unlike film, people could sit in the comfort of their own homes and look into different worlds and situations which they have never experienced before. Shortly after the implementation of the television set into the American household, the television series was developed and has dominated the air waves ever since. The television series offered an element that film could not. Rather than viewing a one-shot story, television series tell many stories over the course of long periods of time. Character development is much deeper than in film and long, drawn out stories can continue on story arcs over the course of each season. Many television…
Sitcoms want to allow audiences to forget about their realities they have in…
As one dedicates all of their efforts to watching a nine season series, one often experiences an emotional attachment to characters and their lives. Many binge-watchers will begin to imagine the characters as someone in their own personal life, allowing the emotions to mentally and physically affect them. Many will feel that if a character passes away on the show, a family member of their own had also deceased. Many will cry tears of joy at the highest points of a fictional character’s life, and many will openly question the decisions that a specific character chooses to make outloud. In addition to attachment, one will begin to feel the urges of withdrawal. Being away from the search bar for an extended period of time will leave one constantly anticipating the safe arrival back to their dark room with a computer screen waiting to be used. Withdrawal will cause one to constantly think of nothing but what they are going to watch next and impatiently waiting to return to their “veg session.” Many Netflix users will also begin to plan their entire day around their binge-watch session to ensure they are getting the most out of the their monthly subscription. Lastly, a binger will often feel a roller coaster of emotions at least once during a period of binge-watching. While watching a series, one will feel pleasure mentally, but when the series ends, one will feel sad or sometimes even depressed. The highs and lows of each emotions relies directly on the amount of time spent watching the series and the level of attachment one felt towards the…
Johnson argues that by watching TV shows you can become smarter. “to keep up…you have to pay attention make inferences, track shifting relationships” (pg279) Johnson calls this the” sleeper curve.” Just by us watching an episode of 24 our cognitive skills are growing because were learning about world culture. The show 24 is based on Muslim terrorist and extremely violent scenes, but Johnson believes by exposing us to information such as this were learning as we go. Decades ago we had very simple plots and scenarios in our television shows such as The Mary Tyler Moore Show, didn’t make us think too much. Johnson explains ...”there’s no intellectual labor involved in enjoying the show as a viewer” (p280). Shows that we watch today keep us guessing as to what will happen next, we sometimes don’t even realize that our brains are working thinking about more complex details that could happen. The show ER is a good example of even if we don’t understand the entire dialog between the doctors and characters it keeps us intrigued and we follow along best we can with the medical terms we already know. Following along to such dialog we can learn a thing or two and start to understand what we’re…