How is new media central to this?
It is basic knowledge that a TV series cannot be successful without a wide fan based. A fan base is what leads to higher ratings, more successful seasons and more money. The TV genre that is most likely associated with the devotion of fans is “Cult TV”. Hills (2004) states “the three major definitions of cult TV that I will discuss correspond broadly to different levels in a three-part model of text/inter-text/audience”, Hills is explaining that cult TV has three main elements that makes it work. The main element being the fan base as Hills continues to say “cult status arises, ultimately, through an audience’s passion for a TV show”, he carries on to say that this positions cult TV as a “‘grassroots’ phenomenon, assuming that it is created by fans rather than by media producers.” (pp. 510) The way that fans influence a TV series, especially cult TV, is that they are the buyers, they are wanting to watch what happens because they are devoted to the characters. Their devotion, ultimately, is what continues the series. This type of attention is what started the idea of “fan-fiction”, writing alternate endings to current fan bases.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) is an example of cult TV, the show had a massive following and since ending still continues to obtain new fans. There are hundreds of fan fiction pieces based around Buffy the Vampire Slayer which relates to the new media aspect of our generation. There are websites such as Tumblr, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram which allows fans to post images and communicate with one another to create an online fan group about certain cult television shows. The media industry demand that kind of attention from an audience to make a successful series.
Therefore, agreeing with Hills (2004) fans play a vital factor in the success of a television show. This is especially important with the new media aspect of this generation e.g the Internet.
References:
Hills, M. (2004). Defining Cult TV; Texts, Inter-texts and Fan Audiences, The Television Studies Reader, in R. C. Allen & A. Hill. London and New York: Routledge.
Good Sophie, thanks. Yes, these fandoms were the basis of fan fiction and it is now considered by many to be a genre in its own right.
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