Parks and Recreation
by
Abstract: Throughout its history as a mass medium, network television strove for wide appeal, while also occasionally courting controversy. In this look at the recent sitcom Parks and Recreation, Heather Hendershot considers how television might still function as a site for negotiating controversial topics and modeling civic engagement, even in an era of niche programming when there seems to be less and less shared culture.
This essay may be found on page 231 of the printed volume.