54. Clearly, most popular films and television shows are superficial and/or include a 1 y$ t$ T! T K
certain amount of violence or obscenity. Just as clearly, popularity leads to commercial
1 o7 m$ O$ G1 K$ E! b k: z- b7 Esuccess. But can we conclude that these productions are overly influenced by # ~9 c( [. T6 X% @( a- \# {
commercial interests? Perhaps not, since some popular films and television shows are ( _% H5 t w; u! d& j9 d E7 j) c
neither superficial, obscene, nor violent. Closer scrutiny, however, reveals that most
0 l$ z7 N- ^2 Z/ L( Z {such productions actually support, not disprove, the thesis that commercial interests
' E6 X. T% K s t1 z; t# m" ?dictate movie and television content.$ Q, H1 v4 L! {
One would-be threat to the thesis can be found in lower-budget independent films,
) q/ e0 P$ r! o" y4 c2 a& dwhich tend to focus more on character development and topical social issues than on ' J i4 ?4 ] g7 j1 `4 [
sensationalism. Recently, a few such films have supplanted Hollywood's major studio ! m+ [; T# H$ L( }# A1 d2 H7 `
productions as top box-office hits. Does this mean that profit potential no longer dictates
+ k6 _' R2 E9 g5 W Fthe content of films. No; it simply suggests that the tastes and preferences of the movie-
, O @! j; o/ m. E- H4 [3 Q S3 K+ Sgoing public are shifting.
+ u. k; p4 m6 q/ R5 j) |4 R A second ostensible challenge to the thesis can be found in companies such as
2 [! q G) F, C! l V9 lDisney, whose productions continue to achieve great popularity and commercial success, 0 x5 w) P' ?9 J" \# m( t7 h, K% ~
without "resort to an appeal to baser interests. Yet it is because these productions are
% t: E- }- Y( G! ?8 |+ pcommercially successful that they proliferate.+ c* i5 u) z; z- m
The only cogent challenge to the thesis is found in perennial television favorites 9 G8 Y! w, H+ m" E4 I
such as "Nova." a public television show that is neither commercially supported nor # ^ o" {/ u( T+ ~4 {
influenced. However, such shows are more in the nature of education than entertainment, 8 C5 t# k9 D. v# m: _ W
and for every one program like "Nova" there are several equally popular—and highly
* j: G) n+ j$ ^+ c; Ysuperficial—programs.$ {* Z4 u5 d8 h
With few exceptions, then, commercial success of certain films and television 9 B) g) `& j5 y1 [5 d6 d# J
shows is no accidental byproduct of popularity; it is the intentional result of producers' 6 w3 H) Z) Z$ m# D) A
efforts to maximize profits. |