Abstract
Many professional archaeologists will engage with television. There seems to be little guidance—other than trial and error and personal communications—for navigating interactions with media production companies. Here, through a series of informal questions and answers, I present some issues with which one might be confronted in such engagements. I base my discussions on personal experience, literature and conversations with experienced colleagues. A key point is that media production companies’ agendas and priorities often differ from those of archaeologists. While the article draws on experiences from Europe and North America, it has relevance for archaeologists working with television everywhere.
Résumé
De nombreux archéologues professionnels feront l’objet de contrats avec des émissions de télévision. Il semble qu’il y ait peu d’indications – autres que les essais, les erreurs et les communications personnelles – pour les aider à naviguer dans les interactions avec les sociétés de production de médias. Dans cet article, que je présente comme une série de questions et de réponses informelles, je tente de présenter certains problèmes avec lesquels l’on pourrait être confronté dans des contrats avec les producteurs de télévision. Je fonde mes analyses sur mon expérience personnelle, des ouvrages et des conversations avec des collègues expérimentés. Alors que l’article s’inspire d’expériences en Europe et en Amérique du Nord, il présente un intérêt pour les archéologues qui travaillent partout avec la télévision.
Resumen
Muchos arqueólogos profesionales experimentarán colaborar con programas de televisión. Parece haber poca orientación para ayudar - aparte de sobre la base de prueba y error y las comunicaciones personales - a navegar en las interacciones con empresas de producción de medios de comunicación. En el presente artículo, que establezco como una serie de preguntas y respuestas informales, trato de presentar algunas cuestiones a las que nos podríamos ver confrontados en colaboraciones con productores de televisión. Baso mi debate en la experiencia personal, en el material publicado, y en conversaciones con colegas experimentados. Aunque el artículo recurre a experiencias de Europa y de Norteamérica, tiene relevancia para los arqueólogos que trabajan con la televisión en cualquier parte.
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Acknowledgements
I am indebted to Andy Brockman, Jan Fast, Natasha Ferguson, Carol McDavid and Anna Wessman for commenting on drafts of this article and for sharing their own personal insights and experiences with me.
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Thomas, S. Negative Experiences in Television Programming: A View from the Other Side. Arch 12, 243–263 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11759-017-9300-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11759-017-9300-3