Academic Scientific JournalsPolitainment: Reflecting on Political Affairs Via Audiovisual Media Entertainment
Keywords:
politainment, media entertainment, political communication, feature film, episodic drama, audiovisual mediaAbstract
The study discusses the ways in which current political issues and different aspects of political communication are portrayed in audiovisual media products, specifically in motion pictures and episodic television dramas. As noted by the authors, these types of narratives are often available globally, especially in films and TV shows that are produced in the U.S. and the United Kingdom. However, the principles of politainment, i.e., a politics-entertainment hybrid that turns serious political discourses into entertaining media stimuli, can be identified in post-Communist countries as well; Slovakia being no exception. Therefore, the article also reflects on how Slovak film producers utilise elements of the modern political history of the country to create highly successful film stories. To elaborate the topic, the authors apply standard procedures of logical reasoning – analysis, synthesis, giving examples, comparison and wider generalisation. Certain elements of narrative and discourse analysis are used as well.
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