Soap Operas and Telenovelas in the Digital Age

Diana I. Rios is Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and directs the Institute of Puerto Rican and Latino Studies at the University of Connecticut, Storrs. Her research and teaching includes examinations of content such as news and entertainment, and the audience’s functional use of media. She studies race/ethnicity, culture, gender and sexuality in media, and intercultural communication processes.Mari Castañeda is Associate Professor in the Department of Communication and the Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Her research includes political economy of global communication, and Latina/o media studies.

«This book adds a much-needed analysis of the development of telenovelas in the digital age. With articles both providing a historical background and covering the main trends and production hubs around the world, this will be essential reading to those interested in better understanding one of the most popular and enduring genres in the global media landscape.» (Antonio C. La Pastina, Texas A&M University)«‘Soap Operas and Telenovelas in the Digital Age’ brings together a range of international scholars who tease out the complexities of these two television genres that are generally misunderstood, undervalued, and understudied. The book provides both breadth and depth, and is a welcome contribution to the growing body of telenovela and soap opera scholarship.» (Carolina Acosta-Alzuru, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Georgia)

• Contents: Diana I. Rios/Mari Castañeda: Introduction – Mari Castañeda: The Transcultural Political Economy of Telenovelas and Soap Operas in the Digital Age – Jaime S. Gómez: Telenovelas from the Rio Grande to the Andes: The Construction of Latin American and Latina Identities through Media Production Creative Processes – Sung-Yeon Park/Gi Woong Yun/Soo Young Lee: Emergence of Asian Dramas as a Global Melodramatic Genre: The Case of Korean Television Dramas – Tamar Ginossar: Media Globalization and «The Secondary Flow»: Telenovelas in Israel – Cacilda M. Rêgo: From Humble Beginnings to International Prominence: The History and Development of Brazilian Telenovelas – Melixa Abad-Izquierdo: The Cultural and Political Economy of the Mexican Telenovela, 1950-1970 – Daniela Cardini: Looking for ‘A Place in the Sun’?: The Italian Way to Soap Opera – George Ngugi King’ara: Kenyan Soap Operas as Functional Entertainment: Redefining the Role of Television Melodrama for an Active Audience – Petra Guerra/Diana I. Rios/Robert Forbus: Fuego en la Sangre Fires Risky Behaviors: A Critique of a Top-Rated Telenovela and its Sexual Content – Héctor Fernández L’Hoeste: Gender, Drugs, and The Global Telenovela: Pimping Sin Tetas No Hay Paraíso – Catherine K. Medina: The Third Subplot: Soap Operas and Sexual Health Content for African American and Latino Communities – Belkys Torres: Hybridity in Popular Culture: The Influence of Telenovelas on Chicana Literature – Martín Ponti: Globo vs. Sistema Brasileiro de Televisão (SBT): Paradigms of Consumption and Representation on Brazilian Telenovelas – Wazhmah Osman: «Trashy Tastes» and Permeable Borders: Indian Soap Operas on Afghan Television – Courtney Brannon Donoghue: Importing and Translating Betty: Contemporary Telenovela Format Flow within the United States Television Industry – Christa Salamandra: Arab Television Drama Production in the Satellite Era.