West Wing and 24 are among the recent American
shows to merge real-world issues with the fictional dramas played
out on the TV. The phenomenon is not limited to the United States,
however.
Telenovelas or soap operas, have become the world’s most
popular TV genre. Carolina Acosta-Alzuru, assistant professor
of public relations at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass
Communication, has spent years looking at the way culture and
society shape these shows -- and the way the shows shape culture
and society.
Her most recent project looks at Cosita Rica, a Venezuelan
telenovela whose title translates to “Sweet Thing”
in English. The show was broadcast to high ratings in Venezuela
in 2003 and 2004.
Acosta-Alzuru is studying the cycle from production to consumption
and beyond. She conducted more than 50 hours of in-depth interviews
with Cosita Rica’s writers, actors, producers
and directors and observed program tapings. Using textual analysis,
she examined each of the show’s 245 episodes. She is examining
audience perceptions through more than 60 hours of in-depth
interviews and observation of Internet chat rooms and bulletin
boards. Finally, she is analyzing the show’s press coverage
and has interviewed entertainment reporters.
Much like U.S. soap operas, the traditional telenovela is characterized
by tales of love, lust and betrayal. A newer format, like Cosita
Rica’s, injects social and cultural issues taken
straight from Latin American reality, however. For example,
Venezuela was, and still is, deeply polarized between those
who staunchly support President Hugo Chávez and those
who fervently oppose him. Cosita Rica featured a finely
tuned mix of love stories, humor and elements of the country’s
political and socioeconomic crises.
Besides developing a loyal audience, Acosta-Alzuru concluded
that Cosita Rica, permeated Venezuelan culture in important
ways: through the immense popularity of its musical score, through
the creation of a line of Cosita Rica perfumes, by
the obsessive coverage it received in both the entertainment
and political media, and most importantly, by the government’s
and opposition’s preoccupation with program content and
their attempts to influence it.
“As Venezuelans embraced Cosita Rica’s
unique mix of fiction and reality, the telenovela itself became
an important slice of the country’s history,” explains
Acosta-Alzuru. It also provided a real-world example of media’s
power and the undeniable links between media, culture and society.
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Carolina
Acosta-Alzuru, assistant professor of public relations at the Grady
College of Journalism and Mass Communications, has spent years studying
the way culture and society shape telenovelas. 
