Elana Levine

After mass media: storytelling for microaudiences in the twenty-first century Published in Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies (Ahead of Print, 2026)

New work: a review of After Mass Media by @drtvlotz.bsky.social in Continuum. Important book for TV studies, lots to learn from it. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

book cover of Michael Z. Newman, The Media Studies Toolkit, 2nd ed., Routledge, 2026

The Media Studies Toolkit, 2nd edition, dropped this week. I'm excited for this refreshed, updated, and expanded version to reach students and instructors of introductory courses in media studies. www.routledge.com/The-Media-St... A short thread about what's inside.

Everything feels really heavy right now but, boy, is it a hard day to be someone whose world was shaped by the romantic comedy of the '80s, at the movies and every afternoon on TV

I just sent in the proofs and index to the 2nd ed. of The Media Studies Toolkit, coming soon.

Added index entries for 2e include: Beyoncé, Carpenter, S., The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Spielberg, S., Swift, T., Wednesday, X (social media).

I am so appreciating your Substack, Michael! I learn something new from it all the time and have been encouraging grad students to start reading it, too.

Book cover of The Media Studies Toolkit Second Edition (Routledge)

New Toolkit edition coming in February 2026
www.routledge.com/The-Media-St...

😢 Still miss ours every day!

Disney cross-promoting Marvel and . . . General Hospital?! Another never thought I'd see it moment.

Got to do an interview about HER STORIES on the New Books Network podcast! newbooksnetwork.com/her-stories

Kathleen Gallagher: UWM's making a big mistake to cut engineering program at critical time It’s a classic example of dumb decisions potentially accelerating the decline of an industry. In this case, at exactly the wrong time.

The state can easily allow UWM to make long-term investments by funding the university system properly.

They are actually still in school! But no school tomorrow + central time
zone

The best

Gaggle of 15 year old boys in the house to watch the new Phineas & Ferb season. It’s a beautiful thing

Such a thrill to write about My So-Called Life and Winnie Holzman for @atpost45.bsky.social!

The Voice of Winnie Holzman - Post45 My So-Called Life is full of Angela Chase’s voice. As the protagonist, the young teen’s thoughts — unfiltered, emotional, hilarious, self-involved — are threaded in voice-over throughout the series. T...

For @ehl.bsky.social, the voice of MSCL's creator, Winnie Holzman (who would go on to write the musical and film adaptation of Wicked), stands out. Holzman’s style has had an enormous & largely unrecognized effect on popular culture, especially on depictions of girlhood. post45.org/2025/05/the-...

VERY excited for this one . . . coming Thursday!

It’s sooooo good!

David poses with his mom and dad, Pete and Joanne

David poses with his BFF since 5th grade, KD!

David poses with his friends Matthew, Jess, Kristine, and Janelle

David poses with his advisor Elana Levine!

I graduated today! Can't thank my friends, family, and my advisor @ehl.bsky.social enough for all their support, joy, and care. Thank you all so much!

TV wouldn’t be TV without soap operas Soaps once brought in 75% of a TV network’s revenue, says author Elana Levine. “Soaps were a legitimate kind of pop culture sensation.”

Strong final episode (before a bonus ep!) of Making: Stories Without End. So happy I got to explain my beef with the "OJ killed the soaps" narrative, one of my pet peeves
www.wbez.org/making/2025/...

The great soap opera inheritance The launch of the first new show in the genre in the US in 25 years shows the endurance of steamy melodrama

new piece on soaps with some thoughts from me www.ft.com/content/d4d8...

I was told years ago by IRB that something we can call oral history does not need approval.

The OG best

For Flow, I wrote this essay about the camera looks in Abbott Elementary and other comedies, and camera looks more generally going back to film comedian comedies and musicals. I connect these looks to the sitcom laugh track. www.flowjournal.org/2025/04/came...

Black actors don’t want to be your sidekick Soaps have featured Black actors for decades, but Black writers and actors say they’ve had to push their stories to the foreground.

This week's episode of Making: Stories without End is a great look at the place of Black actors, writers, and viewers for daytime soaps, plus a bit on the history of Black characters and storylines. Good stuff! www.wbez.org/making/2025/...

This is a really good TV history podcast with a critical edge and lots of great audio clips.

I’ve been really happy with how they turned out!

In the world of soaps, women’s issues take front-burner status Soap operas air five days a week. That frequency allows for — and demands — pioneering storytelling, especially when it comes to gender.

If you need a respite from, well, all of this, check out episode 2 of Making: Stories without End, all about the soaps' attention to "women's issues." W/ great cover image of Erica Kane!
www.wbez.org/making/2025/...

Had minor symptoms for a few days and thought it was just a cold. Ha! Things got real yesterday. Hope I am just a day or two behind the rest