Television has been a standard in American households for decades now. People have had the ability to turn on the screen and watch broadcasts of important stories or laugh along to an I Love Lucy episode. As the years progressed, people could watch music videos, reality TV shows, and everything in between from the comfort of their couches. With streaming services, people are watching TV without truly watching TV. It begs the question of whether “classic” television has a place in the modern world. Broadcast television is the bare bones of television. There are the big networks (NBC, ABC, FOX, CBS) and the shows that they make and produce. From the news to reality TV to heart wrenching shows like Grey’s Anatomy, broadcast television is an extremely popular from of TV to watch. The thing to think about is how a station like CBS is going to keep up with the changing times. Some shows have used tools like social media to have the audience interact with the programming. Broadcast television is going to continue to become a more socialized event to keep the conversation going and the medium relevant.
Near the tale end of WWII, television sets began to take fame. In the 1950’s, radio use significantly dropped, and televisions began appearing in homes across the country. As time progressed, FOX joined the big three broadcasting companies (CBS, NBC, ABC) to target a younger audience. There is a growth from family sitcoms, to game shows to reality TV and eventually all of it together. Today there are TV channels that broadcast extremely intimate reality shows and twenty-four-hour news cycles. Beginning with the Ted Bundy trial, large court trials and later police chases are being broadcasted on live TV. People have the ability to live tweet as things are happening and many competitions shows and news programs use social media to engage with their audience. Broadcast television is also straying away from its roots. In the book Media and Culture, Richard Campbell notes that “During the network era, the “big three” often put on bland, noncontroversial programming, known as westerns in the 1950s and 1960s, and sitcoms in the 1970s and 1980s (196).” TV used to be strictly used as entertainment and aside from the occasional heartwarming message in a sitcom, it meant nothing but to spark joy or report the basic news stories. The simple fact that Desi Arnez was Cuban was enough to create a huge television stir when the medium was just getting its rise. Broadcast TV now discusses controversial topics and shows more creative and diverse content. They take the time to appeal to a wider and more unique audience which will keep up their viewership. In today’s world, broadcast television is changing its tactics for a growing audience.
Looking at the medium today, some people may say it is dying but many consider quite the contrary. In Jan Teurlings book entitled After the Break: Television Theory Today, he discusses how “Even after the age of monopolistic public broadcasting and its explicit policies of nation making, broadcasting can contribute to the construction of an imagined community of the nation as a symbolic home. (12)” People gathered around the TV watching programs together is a symbol of the American household. Television was a spectacle and at that time was unable to be recorded so if someone missed the boat, they were in the dust. Another important thing to note is that broadcast TV has things that no other medium has. Some notable major events like the Super-bowl and the Olympics, which are still specifically broadcast only events. It was estimated from a few different people that over 98 million people tuned into last year’s super-bowl. The issue lies in keeping a viewership even when those types of events are not on the air. Who is watching broadcast TV on a random Friday night when nothing noteworthy is in the line-up? The idea moving into the future is not to remove families gathering together to watch broadcast TV. It is just going to have to be accomplished in new and creative ways. Tactics like social media engagement and diverse programming can be just some of the many ways this might be accomplished.
Healthy competition is important in business, but streaming services could be the biggest threat to broadcast television yet. Hulu, Netflix and Disney + are just some of the examples of the concept of streaming. In her book We Now Disrupt This Broadcast: How Cable Transformed Television and the Internet Revolutionized It All, Amanda Lotz comments on how “Research about why people subscribe to Netflix found 82 percent did so because of the convenience of an on-demand streaming service… (122).” This was just some basic research for Netflix but it does not lie. People want to be able to watch exactly what they want, when they want too. Streaming services allow for that to happen unlike anything even 10 years ago. Why would a person watch a television program full of commercials and disturbances, when they can skim social media for their news and stream anything they want? Broadcast TV has to fight for a spot in the modern media world.
A common phrase someone could hear in 2019 might be, is that still relevant? A meme, viral video or TV show could be relevant one day and old hat the next. In spring, the whole world was a buzz about the FYRE festival and now most people do not even remember or care. It is important for all forms of media, especially broadcast TV to stay relevant so they do not lose their audience. In his article Analysis: Social media and broadcasting – competition or partnership, Lorenzo Zanni notes how “Drama, sports, news: viewers are spending an increasing amount of time on social media for consuming these genres. Broadcasters are tackling this viewership migration through ad-hoc content deals with social media platforms and increased investment in technology to enable seamless social sharing (Zanni 2).” Broadcasters are not blind to the fact that social media has garnered plenty of attention and continues to grow. Zanni also discusses how “On the supply-side of the broadcast and media industry, the increasing role of social media platforms in driving engagement is giving birth to a new range of technology products that facilitate the publication of media assets on these outlets (2).” Broadcasters are taking the required steps to engage with an ever changing audience. They are taking the leap into social media and even in the two years since this article was published their presence has grown. You can live tweet about the news and use Instagram to vote for the winner of a competition show. Broadcast TV is not dying, but having a “re-birth” of sorts to a new audience.
Respect is one of the Mercy Core value that Georgian court University holds. When it comes to Broadcast television, they are working hard to keep their place in the modern world. They have to have respect for themselves and the viewers in order to remain successful. They have had a loyal viewership for years now and they have to respect and appreciate that. They have to also keep in mind the way television is changing and respect and support its growth.
Broadcast television is not going to ever go away completely. People are still going to watch the Olympics and people like my grandmother are going to watch the news every night before bed. The medium is always going to have its place; however, it would be ridiculous if the medium stayed stagnant. Just like any form of communication or digital medium it has to change as the world changes. There is a reason people do not write on walls like our neanderthal ancestors. People realized this medium was not mobile and it changed. It became paper and then technology and here we are in the most technologically advanced time in human history. Life changing medical procedures and crucial history data is being uncovered causing world changing events. If broadcast television does not change with the times than it is going to be left behind. Social media and streaming services are going to continue to rise. Things like working with the social media engagement and partnerships like Hulu live TV are hopefully going to keep helping. With the continued usage of social media platforms for advertising and audience engagement, broadcast TV has shown the world that it is indeed here to stay. It is continuing to grow while keeping all of the things that is loved and cherished about it in the first place.
References:
Teurlings, Jan, After the Break: Television Theory Today. Amsterdam Press. 2013. Print
Lotz, Amanda, We Now Disrupt This Broadcast: How Cable Transformed Television and the Internet Revolutionized It All. MIT Press. 2018. Print.
Campbell, Robert Et. Al., Media and Culture. Bradford, 2013.
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