Intro: Watch television, and apply both the methodological tools (semiotics, in particular) and the theoretical tools of understanding the history of images to it. How does being on television differ from other media, such as movies, theatre, photography, and WWW experience? Questions to ask:
A. Structural & Intertextual Elements
1. What station was the program on? Does the network that the program appeared on have a reputation for airing a specific kind of program?
2. What time of day did the program you watched appear? What was before and after? What kinds of ads ran during the program? What was on on competing channels?
3. What kinds of non-programmatic elements occurred during the program? Were there station logos, promos during the program, contests, etc.?
4. To what other programs does this program make reference? To what other media does it make reference?
B. Narrative/Content Elements
1. Who is assumed to be the viewer, that is, who is the camera substituting for?
2. How is the narrative implied by shot selection?
3. Who is addressing you – what is the relationship implied between the actors or participants and you?
4. Are there heroes and villains? Who are you meant to sympathize with, and what are the visual cues that lead you to believe that? Who are you meant to be suspicious of, and what visual cues are there for that?
C. Social Interpretation
1. Imagine different audiences viewing the same segment. What do you think they would notice, and would they analyse the segment the same way you did?
2. What is presented as "natural"? What is assumed to be the natural order of things, the natural relationships between men and women, whites and blacks, parents and children, state and citizen, etc.?
3. What is television reality, in this case? Keep in mind how we are using the term "reality" – the seamless presentation of events in a way that does not draw attention to the "constructed" nature of the medium.