Brittney Marie

News/Scholarly  Article 2

When the TV Series, "Nip/Tuck", aired back during the summer of 2003, America had no idea what they were in for. "Nip/Tuck" pushed that fine line. Dylan Walsh and Julian McMahon starred in the hit TV series on FX. This "alternatively emotional, outlandish, sexual, graphic, tongue-in-cheek and gothic, the story of two handsome Miami plastic surgeons," (LA Times, 1) , was an instant hit. With the show moto that beauty is a curse to the world, it's demographic did not just include baby boomers, but younger viewers as well. It has maintain that demographic for five straight seasons. After the fourth season, "Nip/Tuck" has 3.9 million viewers. 
All great things have to come to an end especially with TV programs. After seven seasons, 100 episodes, "Nip/Tuck" signed off the air. "It's the end of the first generation of cable originals that really made in-roads in television programming," said Brad Adgate, director of research for Horizon Media. "There are very few shows that have helped identify a network and that strike a chord on a lot of different fronts. 'Nip/Tuck' really hit the zeitgeist because it was so topical. It has a very secure place as one of the most impactful shows of the past decade of television."(LA Times, 1) "Nip/Tuck"  paved the way even deep for more "edgy" shows to come through in the future. Being a big human interest, TV programs are going to become far more "edgy" than "Nip/Tuck" became. 
In relation to my group's webisode, "Portable Media", one might think well "Nip/Tuck" has nothing to do with that. But, that is where people go wrong. What about the content we see on the portable media devices? Since the way was paved deeper by" Nip/Tuck" these portable media devices will have access to these "edgy" shows. The content for any type of media will be "edgy". That line keeps getting pushed, eventually it won't even exist. Even if this is a good thing or a bad thing, thats what we as a society have interest in. That is what gets us hooked on these programs. And, this is what the media gives back. Exactly, what we have asked for.

According to the Ferguson and Eastman's textbook on Media Programming, its talks about the Super Bowl incident. "Yet, on this one night, just for the Super Bowl, almost half the country's population came face-to-face with what mainstream television had become. They didn't like it". (page 124) If we didn't like it so much, they why did we asked for programs like "Nip/Tuck"? We have to be careful what we wish for, huh? It is what it is. 




Snooki from MTV's hit show Jersey Shore gets punched.

We have since then come a long way in Broadcast Programming, and the "Jersey Shore" started to pump their fists. Again, another "edgy" program. At first it was bashed, then America fell in love with the cast. Much controversy was over the "Snooki Punch", and the full scene is not available anymore. America wanted more. Now, "Jersey Shore" will be pumping their fists for America once again this summer. Now, this brings it back to the question? America has come face-to-face of what mainstream TV has become, but they didn't like it. Then why keep asking the media for it? America loves it, there is no doubt about it.

Los Angeles Times Article

Jersey Shore Article 

Nip/Tuck Photo 

Media Programming Photo 

Snooki gets punched 

Scholarly Article 1



Back in February 2009, the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association held its Asia-Pacific Regional Conference. The CBA organized their conference on the main island of Tonga called Tongatapu. 


Conference Center in Tongataptu, Tonga.

The conference delegates were drawn from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Brunei, and Taiwan, as well as the Pacific Island nations of Fiji, Papua-New Guinea, the Cook Islands, the Solomon Islands, Samoa, Vanuatu and Kiribati (Starks, 1). The agenda for this conference involved Digital Television along with regulatory and technical planning. Australia and New Zealand had the most experience with launching Digital Television. Their strategy faced challenges on the way, and eventually will lead to an Analog shut off. The purpose of this conference was to consider the relevance of Digital Television in the smaller, less developed countries. At the start, they voiced that these smaller, less developed countries should wait a decade or two. However, Fujian government stated that they already put this transition into the works along with South Africa.

Arguments against such as development priorities had been brought up. On the other hand, since the larger countries will be fulling switch to digital, analog equipment will be extinct. If leapfrogging, by the spread of mobile phone with limited landline networks, is being use now in these countries, you can enhance the television with an all-digital design. Unemployment rates would go down, even if the switch off is a decade away, there is areas for work in the preparation, such as spectrum planning. 

Commonwealth Broadcasting Association LOGO

Digital Television in Developing Countries? Reflections from the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association’s Asia-Pacific Conference in Tonga *Scholarly Article from the International Journal of Digital Television written by Michael Starks ,2010.

iPad Commercial 2010

New Zealand PCWorld Magazine Article

New Zealand PCWorld Logo 

CBA Conference Photos 

Media Programming book photo