Includes indexes.

Bibliography: p. 179-187.

Preface to the 1984 Edition Foreword to the Revised Edition By Horace Newcomb Introduction to the Revised Edition 1. Beginning to Begin Again 2. The Situation Comedy of Paul Henning: Modernity and the American Folk Myth in The Beverly Hillbillies 3. The Comedy of Public Safety 4. Gleason's Push 5. Self-Reflexive at Last 6. What Was Broadcasting? Appendix: Broadcast Network Prime Time Viewing Suggestions, 1984-96 Notes Bibliography Glossary Main Index Index of Television Series Index of Films Made for Theatrical Release

In Demographic Vistas, David Marc shows how we can take television seriously within the humanist tradition while enjoying it on its own terms. To deal with the barrage of messages from television's chaotic history, Marc adapts tools of theatrical and literary criticism to focus on key personalities and genres in ways that reward serious students and casual viewers alike.
This updated edition includes a new foreword by Horace Newcomb and a new introduction by the author that discusses the ways in which the nature of television criticism has changed since the book's original publication in 1984. A new final chapter explores the paradox of the diminishing importance of over-the-air broadcasting during the period of television's greatest expansion, which has been brought about by complex technologies such as cable, videocassette recorders, and online services.