week10

Hills (2004) lists a number of defining characteristics of cult TV that contain

similarities to the defining characteristics of pop genres (e.g. fantasy, science fiction)

discussed earlier in the Pop Genres paper.

Can you identify these and discuss why you think that these characteristics are repeatedly viewed as underpinning popular genres.

What role does Hills (2004) suggest the fans play in the construction of cult TV? How

is new media central to this?

Hills (2004) introduced definitions of cult TV that are

Def1. Cult tv can be defined through textual analysis, and depends on texts.

Def2. Cult tv can be defined through an analysis of secondary texts or inter-texts, and depends on these inter-texts

Def3. An analysis of fan practices, and depends on fan activities

Def4. As depending on texts

Def5. As depending on inter-texts

Def6. As depending on fan audiences

According to Def3 cult TV is created by fans rather than by media producers. 

TV studies should endeavour to avoid such a producer/audience or text/audience stand-off attempting more adequate definitions of cult TV.

According to Def6 fan of cult TV is depending on fan audiences.

Fans should be able to analyse and critically appreciate one’s favoured text.

Proper fandom exists when an enthusiasm for some cultural object or other takes on a totalizing, defining role in people’s lifestyles and identities (Gripsrud,2002).

It is precisely because cult TV is centrally important to cult fans’ ‘lifestyles and identities’ that such fans are so keen to legitimate, defend and analyse their own consumption of cult TV.

Fans create cult status in a number of ways.

1. Fans organise TV programmes into an ‘intertextual network’

2. Fans self-consciously use the term ‘cult’ to describe these networks of texts as distinctive.

3. Fans of what is termed cult TV have organised themselves socially into ‘Appreciation Societies’.

4. Fans of cult TV gather for conventions, where they can share their interests.

5. Fans produce commentaries, fan fiction, episode guides and production histories        that all work to sustain the distinctiveness of fandom as a community that reads the “intertextual network”.

6. Fans create a market for memorabilia, merchandise and props that relates to their TV shows.

Most of these fan activities are carried out both online and in real life.