The West Wing
eBook - ePub

The West Wing

  1. 144 pages
  2. English
  3. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

The West Wing

About this book

Explores how the award-winning NBC drama offered a space for vibrant conversation about U.S. politics, identity, and culture.

With its fast and furious dialogue, crackling wit, and political savvy, The West Wing became appointment TV for millions during its seven-season run between 1999 and 2006. The behind-the-scenes ensemble drama about Washington politics premiered on the wake of the Monica Lewinsky scandal, was the first series to respond to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and concluded in the closing years of the Bush administration. Its subject matter was ambitious and germane, its cast star-studded, its production team acclaimed. In this volume, Janet McCabe explores The West Wing as both a space for political and social discourse and a force that reshaped contemporary television.

McCabe begins by examining the series' broadcasting history, including its scheduling in the United States and around the world, and how the show defines channels and television markets. McCabe goes on to explore the role of the show's creator Aaron Sorkin as a TV auteur and investigates the program's aesthetic principles, including the distinctive look, feel, and sounds of the series. McCabe concludes by considering the political discourse of The West Wing, as the show spoke back to a U.S. culture divided by politics, race, and gender as well as the trauma of 9/11 and anxieties over terrorism and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

McCabe's analysis of The West Wing provides an intriguing look at the institutional, formal, and cultural politics of television. Fans of the series as well as students and teachers of television history will enjoy this detailed volume.

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Yes, you can access The West Wing by Janet McCabe in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Media & Performing Arts & Television. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Series Page
  3. Title Page
  4. Copyright
  5. Contents
  6. Acknowledgements
  7. Introduction: Politics of Quality U.S. TV: All the President’s Men . . . and a Few Good Women
  8. 1. Politics of Quality Primetime TV: Network Politics and Broadcasting Context
  9. 2. Politics of Storytelling and the TV Auteur: Authorship, Performance, and Narrative
  10. 3. Politics of the Televisual Form: Aesthetics and Sounds of Power
  11. 4. “Modern History Is Another Name for Television”: Representing Historical Relevancy and Cultural Memory
  12. Conclusion: “We Had It Good There for a While”: The West Wing Legacy
  13. Notes
  14. Works Cited
  15. Index