linked negative behavior to radio (such as the theory that adolescents can learn
violent behavior from listening to certain songs), little has been done to study the
medium’s influence on altruism and communal good will.
Asbjoem Groenstad provides our only article from the cinema world with his
study of the changes in the meaning of “filmicity” wrought by the recent incorpo
ration of CGI into the medium. “Back to Bazin? Filmicity in the Age of the Digital
Image” argues for the preservation of “the filmic” as promoted by Bazin. Perhaps
I should have included Groenstad’s article among the “heavies” as it is thick with
theory, but the diligent reader is sure to gain a broader understanding of cinema in
the 21st century. Hopefully, Groenstad’s ideas will initiate further discussions of
“postphotography.” From the ubiquitous realm of television, we bring readers an
array of commentary from “reality tv.” In “The Oklahoma City Bombing and Policy
Agendas in the Media,” Ballard, Brents, and Dean chart the influence of diverse
groups of state representatives on public policy through a review of television
interviews broadcast after the bombing. They draw from several political and so
cial theorists in their study of power moves in times of crisis and invite us all to
look closely at the “experts” from strategically positioned state and national agen
cies who dominate our newscasts. Randyll Yoder analyzes public access television
producers by applying folklore and storytelling characteristics to them. Yoder di
vides his interviewees into three categories — ego promoters, message/issue prac
titioners, and story/entertainment producers — and uncovers a microcosm high
lighted by common traditions, personal interests and motivations, and a limited
concern with audience needs and expectations. In another “reality television” ar
ticle, Fran Pelham, a literature and communications professor, discusses the re
sults of a student assignment in comparing works of literature to one of the popular
reality tv shows that are dominating evening television these days. In addition to
the comparison, she has the students superimpose Freytag’s Triangle onto the tele
vision shows they pick. Her goal is to encourage students to “generate new texts”,
a la Robert Scholes, in a effort to make the study of literary canons more relevant
to today’s students.
Our final article on reahty television, Tom Mascaro’s “Crossing Over: How
Celebrity Newsmagazines Pushed Entertainment Shows Out of Prime Time,” traces
the emerging popularity of the newly-invented format of the news show in the
1980’s. Mascaro provides an informative history of primetime “infotainment,” from
early documentaries such as “Scared Sexless” and “Life in the Fat Lane,” through
the 1990’s creation of newsmagazines like “Real Life with Jane Pauley” and
“Expose”. Reality TV has become such a common term these days — with night
classes often ending early in order to catch the final round of Survivor or Survivor
Down Under, or Survivor on the M oon...— that further discussions of what is
“real” television and why many are so attracted to it are encouraged.
11