Abstract This paper explains the concept of syndication and looks at its impact on actors, television audiences, and the industry as a whole. It discusses how syndication can also revive interest in a defunct show that never found its audience by giving it a new time slot and lease on life. The writer states that it can sustain the revenue of a faltering actor who gave his or her "best years" to America in a particularly beloved and culturally seminal role, like Archie Bunker, but, ultimately, syndication is the art of repetition, rather than the creation of what is new.
From the Paper "The most recent hit television show to come to an end was the popular NBC sitcom ?Friends.? The show was one of the last mainstays of NBC's long-standing but faltering "Must See TV" Thursday lineup. This lineup used to include "Seinfield" but has now dwindled to a faltering "ER" and little else, a show that is also syndicated and likely to end soon, given its declining number of viewers. What was so interesting, however, in terms of the death of "Friends" as a cultural mainstay, was not the loss of this rather pedestrian sitcom, but the fact that even more than the content of the final episode, the question in the media was often?how much would the actors receive for their performance in the show, and how much was the undisclosed amount they would receive when all of the episodes entered syndication. The show's presence, through syndication, had become so ubiquitous, that there were more questions about the revenue of the actors than of the show's termination itself. After all, no one could miss "Friends"--it would still be on, in recycled form, night after night."
Tags: friends, television, audience, actor, time, slot
Abstract This paper explains that Zadie Smith's novel "White Teeth" presents an optimistic vision of race relations in modern England by depicting how friendship and romance can transgress both religious and racial barriers, even though at times these barriers can create rifts between brothers and husbands and wives. The author points out that the younger and older generations in the novel negotiate the rocky terrain of a newly multi-national, multi-ethnic and multi-religious society through the long-standing friendship of the protagonists Samal Iqabal, a Bengali and Archie Jones, a white, living in North London. The paper relates that the ideological excesses of religious, class and other forms of identity that hem individuals in within modern Britain are overcome through human elemental desires to enjoy sensuality and to take delight in the beauty of the flesh.
From the Paper "The friendship of Samal and Archie shows how the need for human companionship, to say nothing of sexual desire often transgresses racial intolerance and hatred within the world of the novel "White Teeth". For example, because he sees himself as ugly, Archie Jones proves willing to look outside of his own racial group for happiness in his marriage. Thus he marries a beautiful woman of Caribbean ancestry named Clara. Clara wishes to escape the limits of her own conservative religious upbringing, so she escapes into Archie's arms, despite her loveliness and her youth in comparison to Archie. Her own daughter with Archie, although not beautiful, has her father's soul, and similarly seeks out love and friendship with members of other religions, races, and classes."
Abstract In this article, the writer discusses that "All in the Family" radically transformed the role of television to a form of study on society's views of race, ethnicity, gender and social class as well as a host of other previously taboo political issues such as gun control, homosexuality and rape. Even so, the writer notes that some debate whether or not the show really fostered a more positive view of diversity and multiculturalism. Despite the different points of views about the social merits of the show, the writer maintains that practically everyone can agree that 'All in the Family' was the first television show to openly deal with prejudice and that it opened the door for future shows to include real-world social concerns. The writer concludes that for this reason alone, 'All in the Family' should be viewed as one of the greatest innovations in television shows for advancing diversity and multiculturalism.
From the Paper "The Bunker's neighbors were George and Louise Jefferson and their son Lionel. George was just as much a racist and a bigot as Archie, illustrating that these characteristics are not just confined to the white community. George popularized the disparaging term "honky" for a white person. The son Lionel and his friends Gloria and Michael frequently railed against social injustice to the dismay and contempt of their fathers. Most of show centered on arguments between the younger members and Archie. These generational differences in opinions showed how the passage of time was beginning to transform society with younger people becoming more accepting of minority groups and developing different ideals for social roles. However, older Americans were having a hard time adapting to these new realities."
