«We» and «I» television - the crossroads of general-interest television programming

Abstract

Starting out from viewer ratings studies which show a fall-off in general-interest television programming, the author seeks explanations for this phenomenon in the «society of individuals» and in the «multiple I» which give rise to «diffuse audiences» in a society which is «drowning in media». General-interest TV programming, a phenomenon of the «we» society, has increasingly been overtaken by fragmented TV programming, which identifies more with the «I» society, except when individuals want for a moment to feel that they are «we». Being at such a crossroads requires general-interest TV programming, and sociological research into audiences and programmes, to look for new paths.