Small Screen Big Picture

This work features contributions from academics and media professionals who ask: what is the history of involvement between film and television in the US, Europe, Britain and Ireland; what are the sources of television finance for film; and what are the consequences for the type of film made?

Take On Hollywood and Make It as a Television Writer. From mediabistro.com, the media industry’s most well-respected source for jobs, professional development, and community, this inside-the-business guide gives you the knowledge and tools you need to infiltrate Hollywood and land a job as a TV writer. That’s right—Small Screen, Big Picture gives you a competitive edge over millions of other aspiring writers who share your talent, creativity, and determination . . . because after reading these pages, you’ll have the one thing they lack: an understanding of the business of television. This journey into Hollywood’s inner workings not only details how networks, studios, and production companies work together, it teaches you how the process affects the creation and writing of TV series, how shows make money, and—ultimately—how you can use this information to break into the industry. You’ll learn: • What really goes on in the inner sanctum of the writers’ room—and how to be a part of it • How today’s TV business model works—and how rapidly it’s changing • Who has the power to buy a show idea—and how to pitch your own • How new media formats are changing television—and how to use them to your advantage • Which jobs will kick-start your TV writing career—and how to get hired • And much more . . . Armed with this solid foundation of knowledge, you’ll be ready to plan your entry into the industry and begin your successful TV writing career.

Since 2010 “curation” has become a marketing buzzword. Wrenched from its traditional home in the world of high art, everything from food to bed linens to dog toys now finds itself subject to this formerly rarified activity. Most of the time the term curation is being inaccurately used to refer to the democratization of choice – an inevitable development and side effect of the economics of long tail distribution. However, as any true curator will tell you – curation is so much more than choosing – it relies upon human intelligence, agency, evaluation and carefully considered criteria – an accurate, if utopian definition of the much-abused and overused term. Television on Demand examines what happens when curation becomes the primary way in which media users or viewers engage with mass media such as journalism, music, cinema, and, most specifically, television. Mass media's economic model is based on mass audiences – not a cornucopia of endless options from which individuals can customize their intake. The rise of a curatorial culture where viewers create their own entertainment packages and select from a buffet of viewing options and venues has caused a seismic shift for the post-network television industry – one whose ultimate effects and outcomes remain unknown. Curatorial culture is a revolutionary new consumption ecology – one that the post-network television producers and distributors have not yet figured out how to monetize, as they remain in what anthropologists call a “liminal” state of a rite of passage – no longer what they used to be, but not yet what they will become. How does an advertiser-supported medium find leave alone quantify viewers who DVR This is Us but fast-forward through the commercials; have a season pass to The Walking Dead via iTunes to watch on their daily commutes; are a season behind on Grey's Anatomy via Amazon Prime but record the current season to watch after they're caught up; binge watched Orange is the New Black the day it dropped on Netflix; are watching new-to-them episodes of Downton Abbey on pbs.org; never miss PewDiePie's latest video on YouTube, graze on Law & Order: SVU on Hulu and/or TNT and religiously watch Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show via digital rabbit ears? While audiences clamor for more story-driven and scripted entertainment, their transformed viewing habits undermine the dominant economic structures that fund quality episodic series. Legacy broadcasters are producing more scripted content than ever before and experimenting with new models of distribution – CBS will premiere its new Star Trek series on broadcast television but require fans to subscribe to its AllAccess app to continue their viewing. NBC's original Will & Grace is experiencing a syndication renaissance as a limited-run season of new episodes are scheduled for fall 2017. At the same time, new producing entities such as Amazon Studios, Netflix and soon Apple TV compete with high-budget “television” programs that stream around traditional distribution models, industrial structures and international licensing agreements. Television on Demand: Curatorial Culture and the Transformation of TV explains and theorizes curatorial culture; examines the response of the “industry,” its regulators, its traditional audience quantifiers, and new digital entrants to the ecosystem of the empowered viewer; and considers the viable future(s) of this crucial culture industry.

The first sustained examination of the impact of religion on contemporary Australian politics reveals the growing influence of the religious right on John Howard and his government. 'God is working for the Liberal Party and this fine, disturbing book arrives just in time to tell us how. An eye-opening exploration of the real politics of Australia.' - David Marr '. a convincing and disturbing picture of the capacity of John Howard, and some of his friends, to co-opt God for their own political agenda.' - Dorothy McRae-McMahon '[spells] out the complicated place of religion in Australian politics today' - Professor John Hewson In the 2004 federal election campaign religion seemed to spring out of nowhere to take centre stage. In fact it was just the latest act in a drama that has been quietly developing for over a decade in Australian politics. Assiduously cultivated by John Howard, an extreme form of conservative Christianity now has real influence on our politicians and their policies. How has American-style evangelicalism become so prominent in secular Australia? Why are abortion, creationism and family values now on the political agenda? Why is religion no longer a private matter for public figures? In God Under Howard Marion Maddox explains how John Howard has harnessed the conservative social agenda and market-based ideology of American fundamentalists in order to stay in power. As a result, she argues that Australia's democratic, egalitarian culture is now under serious assault.