Ecologies of the televisual: children’s use of the televisual in Melbourne, Australia

In a contemporary digital television landscape, commonly described as an era of post-broadcast or post-TV, the televisual can be constituted as the expanded range of possibilities for television consumption provided for in a digital context. The increased range of devices available today widens the scope for content consumption as it can include textual forms emerging from both traditional broadcast systems and content that can be described as being user-generated (UGC). This convergence and portability can be read as key to repositioning the consumption of the televisual from residing in the hands of viewers to that of users. Despite the increasingly flexible experience of the televisual—qualities some have argued are central to reconceptualising television—there is a need for more grounded studies into interpretations of the televisual with everyday life. Drawing upon the practices of children aged eight to 12 living in Melbourne (Australia), this thesis frames the televisual as part of an ecology whereby “old” and “new” media co-exist. In taking into account young people’s agentive potential in contributing to their own cultural lives, this thesis engages with how their uses of the televisual flow across differing media platforms in pursuit of this user-centric televisual consumption. Through a mixed-method approach that includes surveys, participant drawings, interviews, and observations with over 500 children, this thesis examines how symbolic environments and televisual texts are contributing to children’s literacies, identity construction, and ecology of the televisual.