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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the purpose of the Standards and Practices staff?
(a) Prevent the program from showing content and language that is sexist and inappropriate.
(b) Prevent the program from showing content and language that is culturally insensitive and inapproriate.
(c) Keep the programs from having legal problems with the FCC and other bodies.
(d) Prevent the program from showing content and language that is unsuitable for the viewers.

2. What does Amanda Fazzone claim in her essay "Boob Tube?"
(a) Female TV actors and participants are rated for their sex appeal as well as their intelligence.
(b) Female TV actors and participants are rated for their sex appeal and not for their brains.
(c) TV shows focus on women's glamour and not their sense of style.
(d) TV shows focus too much on women's breasts and not on their talent.

3. Fill-in the blank. Authors posit that pop culture is a subject that is _____________
(a) Popular with students.
(b) Popular with teachers and students.
(c) Easier for students.
(d) Familiar to students.

4. What does the term, semiotics, refer to?
(a) Study of popular culture.
(b) A writing process.
(c) Study of signs.
(d) Analysis of writing.

5. What may be the best way to start the semiotic interpretation?
(a) Looking at the history.
(b) Interviewing people.
(c) Looking at the facts.
(d) Reading popular magazines.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the essay, "Creating the Myth" about?

2. Why is the Oprah Winfrey show popular, according to Steven D. Stark?

3. What is the name of the film used by Linda Seger in her essay "Creating the Myth?"

4. Fill-in the blank. The analysis of a television episode must involve ___________ .

5. According to Todd Boyd, what aspect is a main factor in the gangster movies genre?

Short Essay Questions

1. According to the authors, what are the advantages of writing about popular culture?

2. How does Jack Solomon employ semiotic analysis to study the culture of American advertising?

3. Why are shows like West Wing popular according to Todd Davis , the author of "The West Wing in American Culture?"

4. How do advertisements perpetuate gender stereotyping?

5. Taking the example of blue jeans, explain how a product undergoes a transformation as a cultural symbol.

6. According to Michael Parenti, the author of "Class and Virtue," how does the movie Pretty Woman represent class and virtue?

7. What is Schadenfreude? How is it relevant to TV shows? Give two examples.

8. What archetype does the movie Pretty Woman represent? What are the archetypes for the hero (Richard Gere) and the heroine (Julia Roberts)?

9. What is Democracy of Afflictions? Name some of the products that are sold under this theme.

10. What is the first step in semiotic writing as recommended by the authors?

(see the answer keys)

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