Insights into the television in French sources from 1940 to 1960

Abstract

The aim of the research is to look into texts about television (critical reviews on television, texts by first television theoreticians and practitioners, interviews, scientific articles, books, and dossier) published in France in the 1940s-60s, to reveal the reactions towards the new and rapidly spreading medium. An attempt will be made to show how the early insights of French authors reflect the purpose of the new medium, its distinctiveness, specific character, functions, content, audience, relationship with other media, and technological change. The analysis covers over 70 sources, categorizing the insights according to the following criteria: television in the context of other media, influence of theatre and cinematography, television as a home media, particularities of live broadcasting, and communicational characteristics of the small screen. The research was carried out with the support of the French Government and in co-operation with the Information and Communication Research Laboratory CARISM of the Pantheon-Assas University (Paris 2).