ABSTRACT
A detached observer would undoubtedly determine that the dominant function of modern televisual media is entertainment. “In fact, entertainment offerings obtrusively dominate media content and are bound to do so in the near future” (Zillmann & Vorderer, 2000, p. vii). Such content seems designed to exact chills and thrills, to elicit laughter and tears, and, in general, to provide a panoply of emotional experiences that serve as immediate gratification of the seemingly insatiable hedonic needs and wants of modern media consumers.
