Examining television outside of the box

Includes bibliographical references (pages 114-118)This study looks at the intersection of new technology and storytelling in television by exploring television writers??? content creation process. While a great deal of contemporary popular discourse (and some scholarly discourse) about television presumes that new digital technology is radically transforming television content, this study seeks to understand the question of change from the television writer???s perspective. For this qualitative study, 10 television writers were interviewed and asked about their experiences writing for the medium. The interviews with the writers were coded and then grouped into three broad thematic concerns: television technology, the industry, and content creation. Results showed that while writers recognize new technology as having some impact on television content creation (for example, non-network production outlets??? willingness to take bigger risks on content) and a significant impact on their own personal viewing behaviors, they overwhelmingly see new technology as only minimally or indirectly affecting their writing. This lack of consideration of new technology in their creative process is supported by a number of shared narratives within the writing community about the role of the writer and the essence of the medium. In particular, narratives about prioritizing story and character, collaboration among writers, and respect for the past help facilitate the uneasy separation between technology and the creative process within the writing community. Moreover, such narratives suggest some of the mechanisms by which supposedly runaway technological change is tempered and negotiated within this particular phase of the content creation process