Challenging prime time television

Abstract

Television (TV) has always been the focus of continuous debate around its shifting social practices, involving and challenging all established main agents, from content producers to brands, corporations, regulators and audiences (Boddy, 2002; Uricchio, 2002). At the same time, the remediations of TV are at the core of broader discussions on media change, particularly since the popularization of media consumption through the Internet. TV retains a position of centrality for understanding what it means to live in a connected environment. This article contributes to this debate through the analysis of the co-viewing practices within the specific context of Brazil’s most popular cultural product, the telenovela. After an overview of the key themes and scope of the research, we will situate the practices of co-viewing in the context of some of the key issues regarding connected viewing. We will deal with the particularities of the Brazilian telenovela as a cultural product and finally we will outline our empirical research on co-viewing practices in unofficial Facebook groups surrounding the controversial prime time telenovela ‘Babilônia’.

Pesquisando co-viewing em redes sociais e aplicativos de mensagem instantânea: ética e desafios

“…Esse formato televisivo único é central para a observação de práticas de covisualização, pois inclui questões sociais e políticas em seu enredo, questões estas que vão além do aparelho de televisão (Atencio, 2014;Lopes, 2012;Pires de Sá, 2017;Pires de Sá & Roig 2016). As telenovelas brasileiras foram consideradas durante décadas um ritual, através do qual as pessoas se reuniam diariamente ao redor da televisão para assiti-las.…”

Las prácticas de copresencia durante la COVID-19: co-playing en plataformas online

“…En este artículo, exploramos la dinámica de la copresencia durante la crisis sanitaria de la COVID-19 por medio de las prácticas del co-playing (jugar y socializar con pares) que, justamente por la pandemia, han tomado especial relevancia en muchas de las esferas de la vida social. En este sentido, entendemos la copresencia digital a partir de las prácticas de co-visionado conectado (Pires y Roig, 2016), es decir, como prácticas que permiten la socialización entre personas que pueden estar ubicadas físicamente en distintos lugares pero que, al mismo tiempo, hacen uso de tecnologías y plataformas digitales para comunicarse y realizar actividades sincrónicas. Dichas prácticas, a su vez, permiten generar un sentimiento de presencia, similar a un espacio físico compartido.…”

Researching co-viewing on social media and instant messaging applications: ethics and challenges

“…This unique television format is central for observing co-viewing practices, as it includes social and political issues in its plots that are extended beyond the television set (Atencio, 2014;Lopes, 2012;Pires de Sá & Roig 2016;Pires de Sá, 2017). For decades, Brazilian telenovelas have been co-viewed among people that ritually reunite themselves around the television, and now with SNS this ritual is being reshaped and made more visible through the use of different kinds of digital materialities.…”