Week 10 Workshop: Institutions + SNL
From Rex Sorgatz
As ‘Institutions’ is my subject for PB4 I had already done the readings a couple of weeks ago and discussed them a bit in the post ‘Late Night Talk’ and ‘PBS & Sesame Street’.
In the workshop today, when Louise asked the class what an ‘institution’ is and example with-in media some of the examples presented were the ABC – public broadcasting, News etc… These are all absolutely institutions. And my group will be focusing on them in PB4, but I believe there is another way of thinking about institutions in media. My favorite definition of an Institution I’ve found was on Wikipedia:
Institutions are identified with a social purpose, transcending individuals and intentions by mediating the rules that govern living behavior.
This allows for many other things to be considered institutions, some we may not have thought of in this way otherwise. This is how I think of Sesame Street, The Tonight Show, and especially Saturday Night Live.
Saturday Night Live has been one the most consistent things with in my life. I can not say when the first time I watched it was as I probably began to watch it as a kid. Though I don’t think I watched all that frequently until I was maybe 14. Either way, it is a show that has been around now for 40 years. It is one of the last shows I can watch and then call my dad to discuss it – knowing he has watched it as well.
SNL has launched the careers of almost all of our favorite comedians: Will Ferrell, Mike Meyers, Chevy Chase (bleck), Chris Rock, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Andy Samberg, Chris Farley, Eddie Murphy, Julia Louise-Dreyfus, Maya Rudolph, Adam Sandler, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Kristen Wigg, David Spade, Tracy Morgan, THIS LIST DOES NOT STOP.
Saturday Night Lives purpose is to make people laugh, It transcends the people who are on it at any given time – as the turnover is fast (with the exception being Lorne Michaels), and has become a part of Americans lives.
It certainly became a part of my life based on my Dad’s never ending use of “BUH -BYE” (which really is one of the best skits).
Circling back to PB4 where my group is discussing how institutions have been affected by affordances of New Media. Saturday Night Live is not an exception. Variety recently published an article discussion about changes SNL will be making this upcoming season:
“In the fall, some of that structure will likely change. NBCUniversal plans to reduce the commercial load that typically accompanies the program, part of an emerging format being tested by many big media companies growing increasingly conscious of the fact that younger viewers who watch streaming video on demand expect fewer ads and less commercial “clutter.” Gone will be two commercial breaks, representing about 30% of the ads that usually come packed into the program.“
