[Air-L] Family in the 21st century on TV

[Barry Wellman]

Thanks to all the folks who took the time to send me comments, some widely
inventive and some staying with the specs.

I think Justin Reedy summed up the situation well -- see below -- and then
my comment after him.

 Barry Wellman
 _______________________________________________________________________

  S.D. Clark Professor of Sociology, FRSC               NetLab Director
  Department of Sociology                  725 Spadina Avenue, Room 388
  University of Toronto   Toronto Canada M5S 2J4   twitter:barrywellman
  http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman             fax:+1-416-978-3963
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From: Justin Reedy <jsreedy at gmail.com>
To: wellman at chass.utoronto.ca
Subject: Re: Air-L Digest, Vol 62, Issue 13

Hi Barry,

I wonder if someone was suggesting the new incarnation of Beverly Hills
90210? That show is just called "90210" --
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1225901/

BW: I agree, but I can't find it on Canadian TV now. (Global network.
Where are you.

I would also suggest Friday Night Lights (a real pip of a show!), which
features a husband who is a high school football coach, a wife who is a
school counselor and administrator, and a daughter who is a student at the
same school. I seem to recall them using cell phones to stay in touch,
though more often that comes up after school hours, I think. Also, there is
a plotline at one point involving one student's dad serving in Iraq, and
trying to stay in touch with him via video chat.

BW: Good idea. I'd also mention Gossip Girls, which has a few intact
families.

Hope this helps!
-Justin Reedy
Doctoral student
University of Washington

BW: As I've discussed with a few of you, the lack of family shows (with
real kids on them, and not almost 20s) and the lack of intact families on
major networks [I discount ABC Family because it is marginal and
doesn't come to Canada anyway;-)], may reflect changing demographics to
some extent. Yet H-W marriages with children are still quite prevalent.

BW: What this exchange has led me to meditate on is that there may be a
change in marketing that is linked to changes in TV use.

Family shows of a while ago were aimed at more-or-less the entire family.
But 92010 are not aimed at olde me (@66), children or anything more than
20-30 year olds.

I wonder -- and would love evidence -- if TV watching has become more
personal TV watching instead of family TV watching -- so shows are
narrowcasting their demographics much more. This would be true if each
sentient HHold member had their own TV, and if many folks were getting
their TV fix thru downloads, podcasts, iPhones, etc. (I know I'm being
quasi-redundant here).

Anyway, that's my .02, and while I hope for evidence on the last point,
I'll move on and keep writing up the rest of the Networked Family chapter.

PS: As some have asked. I will not be at the AIR conference, alas. I'll be
instead at the Mobile Communications conference at Rutgers at the same
time, and also before that at the WIN (networked information) conference
at NYU. More than enough traveling and not enough money for more.

Thanks for listening. Barry