Gary R. Edgerton, professor and chair of the communication and theatre arts department at Old Dominion University has published eight books, including Thinking Outside the Box: A Contemporary Television Genre Reader, numerous book chapters and journal articles, and is coeditor of the Journal of Popular Film and Television. Jeffrey P. Jones, author of Entertaining Politics: New Political Television and Civic Culture, is associate professor of communication and theatre arts at Old Dominion University.

At the turn of the century, HBO emerged as the preeminent venue for television art. The Essential HBO Reader describes the complexities and ambiguities of the channel, its history, its unique business model, and its individual programs. Robert J. Thompson Author of Television's Second Golden Age: From Hill Street Blues to ER