INTERACTING WITH "DALLAS": CROSS CULTURAL READINGS OF AMERICAN TV *

will appear in a symposium volume on the international dissemination of television programs being edited for UNESCO by Peter Larsen. Decoding by overseas audiences of the American hit program, "Dallas," shows that viewers use the program as a "forum " to reflect on their identities. They become involved morally (comparing "them " and "us"), playfully (trying on unfamiliar roles), ideologically (searching for manipulative messages), and aesthetically (discerning the formulae from which the program is constructed). La faqon dont les auditoires Ctrangers dkodent la populaire drie amkricaine "Dallas " montre que les tCl6spectateurs den servent comme d'un "forum " pour rkflkhir sur leurs identitks. 11s s'engagent moralement (en cornparant "eux " et "nous"), de facon ludique (en prenant des dles inhabituels), idkologiquement (en dkelant des messages manipulateurs) et esthktiquement (discernant les formules selon lesquelles le programm