Professor Allen Woll  (Ex. 6670/6671 or awoll@camden.rutgers.edu)

Assigned Books:   Erik Barnouw, Tube of Plenty (TOP)
                       Ken Auletta, The Highwaymen
                       Minow and Lamay, Abandoned in the Wasteland
 
 

WEEK I

6/25   Introduction
       VIDEO:  Empire of the Air I

6/26   Where Does Television Come From?-I
       READINGS:  TOP, 1-2/ VIDEO:  Empire of the Air II

Listen to one of the following radio shows at:

http://xroads.virginia.edu/g/1930s/RADIO/audio_archive/radio/radio.html

Choose either:  Jack Benny, Fibber McGee, Edgar Bergen, Superman, Lone Ranger, or Dick Tracey  (You need Real Audio to listen to this—if you do not have a computer available, go to the Business and Science building and ask where you can use Real Audio.  You might have to bring headphones)

How do radio shows differ from television shows?  How are they similar?
 
 

6/27   Where Does Television Come From?-II
       READINGS: TOP, 3/ VIDEO: Philo Farnsworth

6/28   Berle and the Expansion of Television
       Video:  Texaco Star Theater

For next week: (Watch the Robert Redford film Quiz Show (1994) prior to Tuesday’s class.)  [Also watch at least one episode of “Who Wants To Be a Millionaire” if you haven’t already done so.]
 

WEEK 2
 

7/2   The Murrow Moment
       READINGS: TOP, 4  (Up to “Dynamic Duo”)
       VIDEO: See It Now
 

7/3   Ethics of the Medium
        VIDEO: $64,000 Question
 

7/4-5   No class

*****TEST I will be a take-home test.  It will be passed out after class on 7/3, and will be due at 8am Monday morning, July 9.******
 

WEEK 3

[Warning:  The last week’s readings are fairly heavy.  It might help to begin Minow’s book as soon as possible, and Ken Auletta’s book as well.]

7/9   The Golden Age of Television Drama
          READINGS: TOP, (Complete Ch. 4)
          VIDEO: Requiem for a Heavyweight

7/10   TV and Politics
           VIDEO:  The Checkers Speech
           READINGS, TOP, 5

7/11   The Minow Experiment and the FCC
           READINGS:  Abandoned in the Wasteland will be discussed today.  Pay particular attention to Appendix 2.  (“The Wasteland Speeches”) for today’s class.

7/12   The Relevant 1970s
           VIDEO:  All in the Family
           READINGS: TOP, 6

WEEK 4

7/16   The New Television Media I – Cable, VCRS, Satellites &
Computers
            Begin reading:  Auletta, The Highwaymen,  Intro, 1-5

7/17   The New Television Media II  -- Decline (?) of the Networks
           Auletta, The Highwaymen, 6-10

7/18   Into the Future – The Telecommunications Act of 1996 and the
New Media Enterprises
           Auletta, The Highwaymen, 11-16

7/19   Final Exam
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Grades:  Midterm (7/9)  100 points
Final (7/19)  100 points

Attendance will be taken at 8:00.  Those arriving late three times or more will receive a 5% penalty.  Those absent three times or more will receive a 10% penalty.