Makeover TV

Brenda R. Weber is Associate Professor of Gender Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington.

• Introduction. Into the Makeover Maze: A Method in the Madness 11. Makeover Nation: Americanness, Neoliberalism, and the Citizen-Subject 372. Visible Subjects: Economies of Looking, Pedagogies of Shame, Sights of Resistance 813. "I'm a Woman Now!" Race, Class, and Femme-ing the Normative 1274. What Makes the Man? Masculinity and the Self-Made (Over) Man 1715. Celebrated Selfhood: Reworking Commodification through Reality Celebrity 215Conclusion. Can This Makeover Be Saved? 253Notes 267Bibliography 285Videography 301Index 315

“Whether or not you’re a fan of What Not to Wear and its ilk, Makeover TV is a great read which raises some serious questions about our society’s obsessions with appearance and conspicuous consumption. Next time I’m staring at my reflection in a department store three-way mirror, I’ll not only be wondering ‘What would Tim Gunn do?’, but also ‘What would Brenda Weber say?’” - Librarian Hot “The book is an engaging work that is as humorous as it is horrifying. While Weber’s very personal conclusion still questions the processes of humiliation and painful surgical procedures endured in the name of reality TV, she remains quietly optimistic about the role of the makeover genre because, after all, we all want to feel better about ourselves.” - Peter C. Pugsley, Media International Australia “[Weber’s] book blends the enthusiasm of a fan who has thought through her own connection to the genre with a high degree of scholarship that will be of considerable value to students and scholars alike. . . . It is the combination of redemption and coercion that make lifestyle such a fascinating genre and Weber’s book such an engaging read.” - Gareth Palmer, Celebrity Studies “Weber sees in these makeover programs a strange new world-or, more accurately, a strange new nation, one where citizenship is available only to those who have made the transition ‘from Before to After.’ . . . Weber’s makeover nation is an eerie place, because no one fully belongs there, and, deep down, everyone knows it.” - Kelefeh Sanneh, The New Yorker Makeovers are everywhere in today’s society, though I had never really given much thought to them until I read Brenda R. Weber’s Makeover TV. Weber points out that we are making over everything: bodies, houses, cars, hair, lifestyles, wardrobes, and even pets. . . . It was a bit scary to realize how right Weber is, and that so much ‘entertainment’ on TV is focused on making people conform to the norm. Makeover TV is a good, eye-opening read.” - Kristin Conard, Feminist Review blog “Makeover TV is a great book and a true pleasure to read. Brenda R. Weber’s treatment of makeover television as a crafting of the self within the broad scope of neoliberalism, postfeminism, and a kind of savvy consumerism is convincing and provocative. Her book is an important contribution to television studies, media studies, feminist theory, and cultural theory.”-Sarah Banet-Weiser, author of Kids Rule!: Nickelodeon and Consumer Citizenship “Makeover TV is a project of striking originality and timeliness, written by a skillful, sure critic. Brenda R. Weber’s analyses are consistently subtle and penetrating.”-Diane Negra, co-editor of Interrogating Postfeminism: Gender and the Politics of Popular Culture “[Weber’s] book blends the enthusiasm of a fan who has thought through her own connection to the genre with a high degree of scholarship that will be of considerable value to students and scholars alike. . . . It is the combination of redemption and coercion that make lifestyle such a fascinating genre and Weber’s book such an engaging read.” - Gareth Palmer (Celebrity Studies) “The book is an engaging work that is as humorous as it is horrifying. While Weber’s very personal conclusion still questions the processes of humiliation and painful surgical procedures endured in the name of reality TV, she remains quietly optimistic about the role of the makeover genre because, after all, we all want to feel better about ourselves.” - Peter C. Pugsley (Media International Australia) “Weber sees in these makeover programs a strange new world-or, more accurately, a strange new nation, one where citizenship is available only to those who have made the transition ‘from Before to After.’ . . . Weber’s makeover nation is an eerie place, because no one fully belongs there, and, deep down, everyone knows it.” - Kelefeh Sanneh (The New Yorker) Makeovers are everywhere in today’s society, though I had never really given much thought to them until I read Brenda R. Weber’s Makeover TV. Weber points out that we are making over everything: bodies, houses, cars, hair, lifestyles, wardrobes, and even pets. . . . It was a bit scary to realize how right Weber is, and that so much ‘entertainment’ on TV is focused on making people conform to the norm. Makeover TV is a good, eye-opening read.” - Kristin Conard (Feminist Review blog)