In this ground-breaking study, Glen Creeber gives a critical and historical account of small screen aesthetics, tracing its origins from the early days of television through to the arrival of the internet, YouTube and beyond. Creeber offers a comprehensive and lucid account of the ways small screen aesthetics have developed and evolved since the 1920s to the present day, clarifying and illustrating past debates while offering fresh and original insights into old and new ways of conceiving these diverse media forms.

Divided into four loosely chronological chapters, the book documents important phases in the history of the small screen, from early TV's conception of itself as a piece of live 'relay', the textual complexity of the 'videographic' look and the contemporary televisual notions of the 'real', to the 'cinematic' aspirations of digital television, the new interactive aesthetics of 'PCTV' and the arrival of the pc, laptop, tablet and smartphones as new small screens. Case Studies illustrate these discussions in more detail, including revealing analyses of I Love Lucy, The Avengers, The Osbournes, The Sopranos, CNN: International, Interactive TV, the webcam and Kony 2012.

Offering a timely assessment of a relatively underdeveloped field of analysis, Small Screen Aesthetics is an accessible, critical and often provocative introduction to some of the most important issues in media studies, covering not only the past and the present but also cautiously looking towards the future. Essential reading for all media students or for those who would simply like to know more about the nature of the screens that increasingly determine our conception of ourselves and the world around us.