When criticism meets TV: a cultural approach to the analysis of television criticism

Abstract

What can we learn about television from television criticism? Although television criticism studies are on the rise, such a question is rarely raised. This makes the treatment of criticism an object in itself—instead of a practice that is contiguous with the television field. This paper aims to offer a reflection on television criticism based on the cultural analysis formulated by cultural studies, i.e., treating television criticism as a cultural practice that has its own values and that remains at the intersection of product analysis and the broader social context. Finally, a brief discussion is proposed on how criticism can contribute to television studies, focusing on four aspects: 1) investigating quality as a flexible evaluation framework, 2) understanding how changes in the context interfere in the consumption and production forms, and 3) identifying tensions in the forms of mainstream television; 4) understanding television genres as cultural categories.