This thesis explores how Anti-Japanese War Drama in Chinese TV becomes a field of negotiation in which the forces of dominant state ideology, liberal market and alternative discourses meet. Focusing how the notion of Chinese nationalism has been constructed in the negotiation, this work examines TV dramas as a homogenizing national project in which market forces and state intervention are no longer at odd with each other. By critically reading representations and narratives of bandits and women in two dramas To Advance towards the Fire and Auntie Duohe, the study points out how dominant nationalist discourses attempt to incorporate the marginalized or disadvantaged group as a consistent part of the nation. However, the anti-Japanese war dramas still allow a space for the alternative discourse to emerge which disturbs the perceived coherence of the nation. / text

The present study aims to identify what viewer perceptions individuals have regarding fathers in television dramas. Framed through uses and gratifications theory and executed through the grounded theory method, 12 participants were interviewed. After analysis, findings revealed that although participants say that general perceptions of fathers on TV are negative, they have seen personally the diversity and variety of father portrayals in their favorite television dramas. Additionally, the realism of the TV dramas and characters influence the relatability to both the father figures and other characters in the show. This relatability, in turn, influences the likeability and loyalty to the TV drama. Such findings imply that negative portrayals are more often and more strongly remembered among television viewers. Likewise, because of the popularity in relatable characters, television networks and producers could have the chance to increase their viewership by including a variety of identifiable characters, especially fathers, within their TV dramas. Four major perceptions emerged from the data and inform the significance of this study. These four perceptions were that fathers in TV dramas were perceived more positively than TV sitcom fathers, fathers in TV dramas are perceived as the "flawed hero," fathers in TV dramas are perceived as a prompt for discussion, and lastly, fathers from TV dramas are perceived as someone who is worthy of emulation.

AN ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION OF Yuhui Tai, for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Mass Communication and Media Arts, presented on October 31, 2013, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: DEVELOPMENT OR DEPENDENCY? THE EMERGING CHINESE CULTURAL-LINGUISTIC TV MARKET AND IDOL TV DRAMA IN TAIWAN AND CHINA MAJOR PROFESSOR: John Downing and Jyotsna Kapur The global expansion of neo-liberalism and the new development of media technology have opened up national TV markets worldwide and the changing structure--a weakened local TV industry, multiple TV channels, and the increasing need for importation--has prepared the historical contingency for the emergence of regional cultural centers. The Chinese regional market based on China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is the most prosperous regional market due to the China hub effect, and it is playing an increasingly important role in world economy. In this research, I examine the formation and the driving forces behind the Chinese cultural-linguistic TV market, the dynamic dialectical global/regional/local relationships, the directions in which these forces push, and the major contradictions between these forces in the context of a global capitalist system. This research indicates that the dominant "cultural proximity" argument tends to naturalize the dominance of the regional cultural center and conceals multiple factors interwoven in the formation process. This research argues that it is important to examine the dialectical relationship between the position of a domestic country in the global capitalist system and its development in the regional cultural market. Second, the confluence of the popular cultural/creative policy and the soft power discourse strengthens the ambition and the competition between different states to pursue the crown of the regional cultural center. Third, the domestic state policy plays a determinant role in the dynamic formation of a regional cultural market. Fourth, the political motivation and manipulation might not be easy to recognize but are influential powers forging the regional cultural market. For example, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) proposed the China-Taiwan TV drama co-production policy near the end of 2007 in order to improve the prospects of Taiwan's pro-China party in the 2008 presidential election in Taiwan. In addition, it is not self-evident to assume that a regional cultural center definitely challenges the existing cultural dominance and that a regional cultural-linguistic market is emancipating. It requires careful examination to scrutinize the power relationships among those societies involved in the regional market to determine whether it increases the cultural diversity in this area. This research examines the power relationship in the Chinese cultural-linguistic TV market and argues the possible existence of dual suppression, in that a member of the regional cultural-linguistic market might simultaneously suffer from the dominance of the global center and the regional center. This research examined the historical development of idol drama in Taiwan and found that the Chinese censorship system has great impact on the production and distribution of cultural products in the Chinese cultural-linguistic TV market. Producers either tend to lower the potential risks by taking a conservative, non-historical approach to making TV drama, or, selling cultural products containing specific cultural odor, such as President Ma Ying-jeou's slogan, "Chinese culture with Taiwan characteristics (Ma, 2011.01.01)." Third, this research analyzes the production mode of idol drama in Taiwan and China from 2000 to 2012 and points out that the Taiwan TV industry has been moving on a dependency road through three phases, with four aspects of dependency. After 2005, some Taiwanese TV producers turned to the secondary export market due to the deepening neo-liberalism and the deteriorating Taiwan TV industry, which impedes its advancement in the regional market. In this stage, the emergence of the first wave of Taiwanese-made Chinese TV drama proved that the combination of the CCP's protectionist policy and a lucrative Chinese domestic market creates magnetic effects and attracts TV workers from the deteriorating region. In the second stage from 2008 to 2010, the CCP's cooptation policy, which encourages Taiwan-China co-produced TV drama, and the Kuomintang's China-centered CCI Policy emphasized the importance of the China market and strengthened the orientation to focus on the secondary export market rather than improve the quality of Taiwanese TV drama and aim at Asia and the global market. In 2010, the CCP denounced the phenomenon of "pseudo China-Taiwan co-produced TV drama," which was the byproduct of the strict Chinese censorship system, and issued a warning against it. It pushed some Taiwanese producers to abandon the Taiwan market and spurred the second wave of Taiwanese-made Chinese TV drama which appeals to Chinese audiences, and lowers or even closes the production business in Taiwan. This research demonstrates the four aspects of the dependency relationship in the Chinese cultural-linguistics TV market, which includes capital, export market, production chain, and cultural products flow. First, sufficient Chinese capital provides the CCP leverage to mold the Chinese cultural-linguistic TV market, purchase resources, and expand its influence into Taiwan society. Second, being the largest TV market in the world makes China an attractive export market, even with strict Chinese censorship. Third, the CCP's cooptation policy and the deteriorating Taiwan TV market gradually make Taiwan TV workers a supplement rather than a force in Chinese TV drama production. Fourth, the exportation of Chinese TV programs, including conventionally weak genres, into Taiwan is increasing. In short, the Taiwan TV industry has suffered from the dual crises of neo-liberalism and the dependency relationship with China, which is making Taiwan a dumping site for regional cultural product exporters, mainly from Korea, China, and Japan.

Almost everyone has some experience of seeing fictional couples in visual entertainment media. A large body of research has investigated the relationship depictions and their effects on how people perceive their own relationships. These studies have clearly shown that relationship representations in movies or TV series have an impact on the way we perceive our own relationships and are regulated by our exposure to them. However, these studies have primarily focused on the romanticised representations found in romantic comedies, or children's movies. These studies have criticised these depictions as problematic and unrealistic. The statistics and selection of popular streaming services, like Netflix and HBO Max, does however reveal that these genres are not the ones that account for the most exposure. Despite this, less research has been done in genres like drama series that account for more exposure–and may render relationships in a more realistic light. The purpose of this study was therefore to describe how adult romantic relationships that subscribe to mono-normative ideals are portrayed in contemporary western drama series. Drawing on a theoretical framework of relationship theories in late modernity by authors like Beck and Beck-Gernsheim, Bauman and Illouz, the study analysed 3 seasons from each of 5 popular drama series. The findings show that relationships are depicted as a constant struggle between increasing relationship stability (through recognition) and decreasing stability through risk mentality, individualization and liquid love. In these shows, relationships are defined through the severity of problems they face, where the forces pulling couples apart simultaneously make out their foundation. The findings suggest that relationships representations in drama series are comparatively more realistic than their romanticised counterpart but no less problematic.

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Tanken med denna uppsats är att försöka få en inblick i vilka funktioner musiken fyller i TV-dramat. Det finns en del studier att tillgå om filmmusik men ytterst lite om just musik inom TV-serier. Mitt syfte är således att undersöka vad för slags musik som används i TV-dramer, i vilka sammanhang den förekommer och dess relation i förhållande till det som utspelar sig i bild. Utöver det tar jag delvis upp diskussioner om huruvida vi ska uppfatta filmmusik medvetet eller inte. I och med det har viss vikt lagts vid att studera eventuella skillnader i upplevelsen och användandet av instrumentalmusik och populärmusik.   Till mitt arbete har jag använt mig av tidigare forskning kring filmmusik och gjort en jämförande analys av polisserierna Miami Vice och Life on Mars. Åtta avsnitt ur varje serie har studerats och därefter har ett representativt avsnitt från respektive TV-drama valts ut för en fördjupad analys. Min uppfattning utifrån studien är att instrumentalmusik och populärmusik i de flesta fall används i liknande sammanhang. Dessa kan exempelvis vara att ge en känsla av atmosfär, understryka en karaktärs känslor, ge tittaren information som inte kan utläsas utifrån enbart bilderna och bidra med kontinuitet. Populärmusik kan i somliga fall vara ett bra alternativ till instrumentalmusik för att vi ska hålla kvar vårt fokus på bilderna. Men populärmusikens främsta funktion i de undersökta serierna är som tidsmarkör för den period handlingen utspelar sig i.

<p> </p><p>Tanken med denna uppsats är att försöka få en inblick i vilka funktioner musiken fyller i TV-dramat. Det finns en del studier att tillgå om filmmusik men ytterst lite om just musik inom TV-serier. Mitt syfte är således att undersöka vad för slags musik som används i TV-dramer, i vilka sammanhang den förekommer och dess relation i förhållande till det som utspelar sig i bild. Utöver det tar jag delvis upp diskussioner om huruvida vi ska uppfatta filmmusik medvetet eller inte. I och med det har viss vikt lagts vid att studera eventuella skillnader i upplevelsen och användandet av instrumentalmusik och populärmusik.</p><p> </p><p>Till mitt arbete har jag använt mig av tidigare forskning kring filmmusik och gjort en jämförande analys av polisserierna <em>Miami Vice</em> och <em>Life on Mars</em>. Åtta avsnitt ur varje serie har studerats och därefter har ett representativt avsnitt från respektive TV-drama valts ut för en fördjupad analys. Min uppfattning utifrån studien är att instrumentalmusik och populärmusik i de flesta fall används i liknande sammanhang. Dessa kan exempelvis vara att ge en känsla av atmosfär, understryka en karaktärs känslor, ge tittaren information som inte kan utläsas utifrån enbart bilderna och bidra med kontinuitet. Populärmusik kan i somliga fall vara ett bra alternativ till instrumentalmusik för att vi ska hålla kvar vårt fokus på bilderna. Men populärmusikens främsta funktion i de undersökta serierna är som tidsmarkör för den period handlingen utspelar sig i.</p><p> </p>

A presente dissertação propõe uma abordagem da televisão brasileira através de um diálogo com os estudos do som, tendo como objeto a dimensão sonora das telenovelas. O estudo procura mapear as principais transformações ocorridas no aparato técnico sonoro televisivo, bem como a evolução dos processos da produção do som no período de 1950 até o início do século XXI. Posteriormente, visando investigar as funções desempenhadas pelos elementos sonoros - vozes, ruídos e músicas - na construção da narrativa das telenovelas, este trabalho apresenta uma análise da trilha sonora de cinco telenovelas da TV Globo: Pecado Capital (1975), Roque Santeiro (1985), Renascer (1993), Senhora do Destino (2004) e Avenida Brasil (2012). / This essay proposes an approach on Brazilian television through a dialogue with sound studies, having as object the soap operas\' sound aspects. It intends to map the main changes that occurred on television\'s audio technical apparatus, as well as the evolution on the sound production processes from 1950 until the beginning of the twenty first century. Subsequently, this work aims to investigate the functions performed by the sound elements - dialogues, sound effects, music - on the development of soap opera narratives and presents an analysis of the soundtracks of five soap operas produced by TV Globo: Pecado Capital (1975), Roque Santeiro (1985), Renascer (1993), Senhora do Destino (2004) and Avenida Brasil (2012).

A presente dissertação propõe uma abordagem da televisão brasileira através de um diálogo com os estudos do som, tendo como objeto a dimensão sonora das telenovelas. O estudo procura mapear as principais transformações ocorridas no aparato técnico sonoro televisivo, bem como a evolução dos processos da produção do som no período de 1950 até o início do século XXI. Posteriormente, visando investigar as funções desempenhadas pelos elementos sonoros - vozes, ruídos e músicas - na construção da narrativa das telenovelas, este trabalho apresenta uma análise da trilha sonora de cinco telenovelas da TV Globo: Pecado Capital (1975), Roque Santeiro (1985), Renascer (1993), Senhora do Destino (2004) e Avenida Brasil (2012). / This essay proposes an approach on Brazilian television through a dialogue with sound studies, having as object the soap operas\' sound aspects. It intends to map the main changes that occurred on television\'s audio technical apparatus, as well as the evolution on the sound production processes from 1950 until the beginning of the twenty first century. Subsequently, this work aims to investigate the functions performed by the sound elements - dialogues, sound effects, music - on the development of soap opera narratives and presents an analysis of the soundtracks of five soap operas produced by TV Globo: Pecado Capital (1975), Roque Santeiro (1985), Renascer (1993), Senhora do Destino (2004) and Avenida Brasil (2012).

The aim of this research is to reflect on how Syrian TV drama has worked to produce a narrative of 9 society in the context of a liberalized autocracy, such as Bashar al-Asad's Syria appears to be; and how this narrative has been commodified for and promoted on the Pan Arab market. My work focuses on the mechanism by which this form of elite cultural production, in tune with the agenda of the political elites, has elaborated and projected disciplinary and pedagogical messages for the Syrian public. It analyses the forms this subtle mechanism has taken in a market-oriented framework, where neoliberal "fantasies of accommodation and order"6 and for the thrill of consumption and a free choice between a range of lifestyles have given those in power novel ways of inducing compliance, while at the same time spreading new fears of the threat of instability and disorder in an increasingly complex and difficult to comprehend world.