TV soap operas have been derided, mocked, loved, and appreciated in equal measure since their appearance. Now, when the genre is at a turning point, The Survival of Soap Opera investigates the causes of soaps’ dwindling popularity, describes soaps’ impact on TV and new media culture, and gleans lessons from soaps’ complex history and ponders the relevance for the future of the popular entertainment form.
Soap critic Marlena De Lacroix offers her praise for the book in recent post. A sound bite below:
What I really like about the book is its tone of intelligent optimism. Nowhere does it say what everyone else is saying — that soaps are dying. It examines minutely a medium that is still — unlike Tom Hughes — alive and in the fight, even as its numbers dwindle. It’s a uniquely American creation that is still often worth watching — and thinking deeply about.
Comments