'Dear BBC': Children, Television Storytelling and the Public Sphere

by Máire Messenger Davies

Overview

Drawing on the diverse views of over 1,300 children in the UK between the ages of 6-12, "Dear BBC" discusses key controversies in the public sphere about children's relationship with the media, especially television drama. Máire Messenger Davies draws on material gathered from an audience research project commissioned by the BBC, based on surveys, structured discussions with children and interviews with program makers and policy makers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521780773
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	09/27/2001
Pages:	290
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.29(h) x 0.91(d)
Lexile:	1520L (what's this?)

Table of Contents

Introduction; Part I. Broadcasting Institutions and Childhood: 1. 'It should be mixed and something for all ages': children and broadcasting in the 1990s; 2. 'Once you get into it you are just, like, hooked': the importance of television storytelling; 3. 'How old are big people? Ten': changing childhood; 4. 'Dear BBC': children's relationship with broadcasters - the consumer child; Part II. The Social Functions of Broadcasting: 5. 'Setting good examples': the Reithian agenda; 6. 'If you ban it they'll be complaining it's not on': censorship; 7. 'I think it comes from England, because they speak our language': aspects of identity; Part III. The Art of Television: 8. 'Never, ever in a programme do you see the bad guy win': media literacy and the understanding of narrative; 9. 'You can make anything happen, as long as you can draw it': animation; Conclusion.

Editorial Reviews

'Maire Messenger Davies … is without a doubt an extremely gifted thinker, speaks about this subject with immense knowledge and, moreover, she does so from the heart. this is her best work yet.' David Oswell, Sociology

From the Publisher