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54. Clearly, most popular films and television shows are superficial and/or include a
certain amount of violence or obscenity. Just as clearly, popularity leads to commercial
success. But can we conclude that these productions are overly influenced by
commercial interests? Perhaps not, since some popular films and television shows are
neither superficial, obscene, nor violent. Closer scrutiny, however, reveals that most
such productions actually support, not disprove, the thesis that commercial interests
dictate movie and television content.
      One would-be threat to the thesis can be found in lower-budget independent films,
which tend to focus more on character development and topical social issues than on
sensationalism. Recently, a few such films have supplanted Hollywood's major studio
productions as top box-office hits. Does this mean that profit potential no longer dictates
the content of films. No; it simply suggests that the tastes and preferences of the movie-
going public are shifting.
      A second ostensible challenge to the thesis can be found in companies such as
Disney, whose productions continue to achieve great popularity and commercial success,
without "resort to an appeal to baser interests. Yet it is because these productions are
commercially successful that they proliferate.
      The only cogent challenge to the thesis is found in perennial television favorites
such as "Nova." a public television show that is neither commercially supported nor
influenced. However, such shows are more in the nature of education than entertainment,
and for every one program like "Nova" there are several equally popular—and highly
superficial—programs.
      With few exceptions, then, commercial success of certain films and television
shows is no accidental byproduct of popularity; it is the intentional result of producers'
efforts to maximize profits.