Quality television (also quality TV or quality artistic television) is a term used by television scholars, television critics, and broadcasting advocacy groups to describe a genre or style of television programming that they argue is of higher quality due to its subject matter, style, or content. For several decades after World War II, television that was deemed to be "quality television" was mostly associated with government-funded public television networks; however, with the development of cable TV network specialty channels in the 1980s and 1990s, American cable channels such as HBO made a number of television shows during the turn of the century that some television critics argued were "quality television", such as Angels in America, Sex and the City, The Sopranos, The Wire and Six Feet Under. Claims that television programs are of higher quality include a number of subjective evaluations and value judgements. For example, Robert J. Thompson's claim that "quality television" programs include "...a quality pedigree, a large ensemble cast, a series memory, creation of a new genre through recombination of older ones, self-consciousness, and pronounced tendencies toward the controversial and the realistic" includes a number of subjective evaluations. The criteria for "quality television" set out by the US group Viewers for Quality Television ("A quality show is something we anticipate...[it] focuses more on relationships...[and] explores character, it enlightens, challenges, involves and confronts the viewer; it provokes thought...") also require a number of subjective evaluations. Television programs on another end of the spectrum from quality television are sometimes called B-television or blue collar television.
Fictional and non-fictional "quality television" Fictional television programs that some television scholars and broadcasting advocacy groups argue are "quality television" include series such as Twin Peaks, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and The Sopranos. Kristin Thompson argues that some of these television series exhibit traits also found in art films, such as psychological realism, narrative complexity, and ambiguous plotlines. Nonfiction television programs that some television scholars and broadcasting advocacy groups argue are "quality television" include a range of serious, noncommercial programming aimed at a niche audience, such as documentaries and public affairs shows.
Prestige drama
Prestige drama is a genre of television show in which the tone of the show is serious, the production values are high, and there is a complex plot across episodes. Examples of prestige drama include shows such as Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and True Detective. Common characteristics of prestige drama include a more sophisticated approach to cinematography than other genres, high production values, and a complex storyline. Most prestige dramas, as the name implies, are more dramatic and serious in tone. One cause for the rise of prestige dramas is the rise in streaming video services where television creators are not limited by time slots and commercial breaks. These streaming services vie for viewer attention and spend large amounts to produce shows they hope will encourage customers to subscribe to their platform. Prestige dramas have been criticized as being similar to one another. Most are bleak with anti-hero qualities in the primary characters. In recent years they have become cliche, with studios across the television industry creating shows with a familiar feeling.
In the United States
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