Why Don't We Look at Television?
Name
17-09-2024_WhyDontWeLookAtTV_JournalArticle_FINAL.pdf
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988.37 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (CRC64NVME)
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Resource type
Journal article
Creator (person)
Rees Koerner, Emily
Date published
October 2023
Abstract
The television set was for many decades a ubiquitous household technology. Though omnipresent and designed to be watched, it has faded into the background of domesticity. The era of streaming and portable viewing devices questions the continuing need for a television set—an opportune moment to reconsider the materiality of this object technology in domestic life. Taking television's entry into British homes as a case study, this essay asks what the act of looking at—rather than watching—television means. It explores the paradox in television's design and function, both to be viewed and to disappear. The essay argues that its materiality became embedded in mediated debates about design and taste, while television owners appropriated the television set according to their domestic requirements and tastes—sometimes bypassing what manufacturers and designers intended.
Journal title
Technology and Culture
Publisher
Project MUSE
eISSN
1097-3729
Official URL
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Rights statement
In Copyright
Keywords