- - -. "When Transmedia Goes Wrong: Studio 60 and DeFaker." Weblog entry. 12 Oct. 2006. Confessions of an Aca/‌Fan. 19 Feb. 2008.

Barthes, Roland. "The Reality Effect." The Novel: An Anthology of Criticism and Theory 1900-2000. Ed. Dorothy J. Hale. Oxford: Blackwell, 2006. 229-234.

- - -. S/Z. Trans. Richard Miller. New York: Hill and Wang, 1974.

Boche, Torie. "What Your Favorite TV Characters are Blogging About." Slate 20 Sept. 2007. 19 Feb. 2008.

Chaney, Keidra, and Raizel Leibler. "Canon vs. Fanon: Folksonomies of Fan Culture." Paper presented at Media in Transition 5, Apr. 27-29, 2007, Cambridge, MA. 6 Aug. 2008.

Downey, Kevin. "In Their TV Tastes, The Rich Are Different." Media Life 5 Mar. 2007. 19 Feb. 2008.

Fiske, John. Television Culture. London: Routledge, 1987.

Grossman, Ben. "NBCU Effort Aims To Keep 'Lights' On." Broadcasting & Cable 23 July 2007: 3.

Heffernan, Virginia. "Art in the Age of Franchising." The New York Times Magazine 20 Jan. 2008. 19 Feb. 2008.

Jenkins, Henry. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York UP, 2006.

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Johnson, Steven. Everything Bad is Good For You: How Today's Popular Culture Is Actually Making Us Smarter. New York: Riverhead Books, 2005.

Lebowitz, Michael. "Transmedia Properties." Futures of Entertainment. Bartos Theater, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 17 Nov. 2007.

Levy, Pierre. Collective Intelligence: Mankind's Emerging World in Cyberspace. Reading: Perseus Books, 1997.

Lewis, Justin. The Ideological Octopus: An Exploration of Television and its Audience. New York: Routledge, 1991.

Long, Geoffrey. "Transmedia Storytelling: Business, Aesthetics and Production at the Jim Henson Company." MA thesis. MIT, 2007. 18 Feb. 2008.

Media Dynamics. TV Dimensions 2008. Ed. Ed Papazian. 26th ed. New York: Media Dynamics, Inc., 2008.

Mittell, Jason. "Narrative Complexity in Contemporary American Television." Velvet Light Trap 58.1 (Fall 2006): 29-40. 2 Mar. 2008.

Nielsen Media Research. "'House' and 'Lost' Show Greatest Gains from DVR Playback, Nielsen Reports." Nielsen Media Research. 25 Apr. 2007. 2 Mar. 2008.

Perryman, Neil. "Doctor Who and the Convergence of Media." Convergence 14.1 (Feb. 2008): 21-39.

Simmons, Bill. "End the Curse of Coolidge." ESPN.com 9 Oct. 2001. 29 Feb. 2008.

Stelter, Brian. "The Swells (Though Not Many) Love Friday Night Lights." Weblog entry. 7 Dec. 2007. TV Decoder. New York Times. 2 Mar. 2008.

Johnson's analysis of Hill Street Blues depends heavily on Robert J. Thompson's history, From Hill Street Blues to ER: Television's Second Golden Age. Thompson notes that Hill Street Blues made use of a large ensemble cast and a wide variety of genre conventions along with the "narrative density" that Johnson is concerned with.

By comparison, the site hosts 1,486 pieces for Prison Break (FOX), 4,558 for Grey's Anatomy (ABC) and 4,170 for The West Wing (NBC). Retrieved 17 February 2008.

See Jenkins, Convergence Culture, p. 106.

"[Co-executive producer Jeffrey] Reiner said, 'When we were looking for a real pastor, we used a real pastor from a church. When we do a church sequence, we are shooting a real church sequence. I'll even throw in the principal of the school – "OK, you're acting now." Even if that person might get cut out, it sets a tone. What it starts doing is, it starts lending this realism to the show, and the cast and the crew feel it.'" Maureen Ryan, "The revolutionary 'Friday Night Lights' makes all the right moves," Chicago Tribune.

Playmakers is a unique case – the first original dramatic series produced by ESPN, the show drew the ire of the National Football League for its unflattering portrayal of professional football players. It is widely acknowledged that ESPN cancelled the show under pressure from the NFL.

"Soon, we may be seeing these same hypertextual or transmedia principles applied to the quality dramas that appeal to more mature consumers -- shows such as The West Wing (1999) or The Sopranos (1999), for example, would seem to lend themselves readily to such expectations" (129).

However, these are precisely the kind of television programs that have so far resisted attempts to expand their narratives to other mediums. The difference between these shows and the niche-genre shows that have used transmedia storytelling so successfully lies in the limits of realism.

Will Brooker (qtd. in Perryman: 31) questions whether or not transmedia franchising has a negative effect, laying out a breadcrumb trail of dictated readings that discourages any resistant engagement with the text: “the relationship [between creators and viewers] is entirely shaped from ‘above’.” However, Perryman goes on to discuss how fans of the cult sci-fi series Doctor Who have overcome this challenge by building their own metatextual websites around details and storylines the official BBC sites have yet to exploit. Doctor Who’s story world, unbounded even by time, offers myriad opportunities for this kind of expansion. Jenkins agrees, noting that that a never-ending story world is fodder for transmedia storytelling, providing infinite space for details, characters, and narrative twists and turns: "The encyclopedic ambitions of transmedia texts often results in what might be seen as gaps or excesses in the unfolding of the story: that is, they introduce potential plots which can not be fully told or extra details which hint at more than can be revealed" ("Transmedia Storytelling 101"). In other words, if a show exploits narrative gaps with storylines in other mediums, it often opens multiple other gaps along the way.

In complex realist shows, however, there is an additional barrier to creativity – the fact that these shows use the real world as their setting. It goes against the spirit and appeal of these shows to, for example, suddenly situate Austin next to New York or land a spaceship in an Iowa cornfield. The fan’s avenue for imaginative engagement is already limited by this condition of realism; if the story’s creators create elaborate exploitations of the narrative gaps, they leave even less room for fan creativity. Indeed, Brooker's warnings are reminiscent of Heffernan’s observation that the narrative of Friday Night Lights "shuts fans out."

The key, then, is not to create franchises with self-contained storylines, which only serve to shut down opportunities for imaginative engagement. The primary goal for this mode of transmedia storytelling is building a bridge between the fictional and the real. Because these shows are often geographically bounded and grounded in actual, verifiable locations, it is impossible to expand the story world endlessly and keep the same level of verisimilitude that is key to these shows' appeal. The viewer's immersive experience, then, is found in living in the real world in which these characters also appear to live.

For a transmedia franchise to succeed, the readers or viewers must be motivated to seek pieces of the story across multiple media. In television texts that fall under the definitions of cult, science fiction and fantasy, the element of mystery is often what drives viewers to other screens. In a complex realist television show, it is the dedicated and intense focus on characterization and detail that inspires the encyclopedic impulse and the desire for more information. Instead of filling in narrative gaps and providing character information in self-contained storylines, such as those in comics and webisodes, transmedia franchises for complex realist shows can best accomplish these aims by creating immersive digital extensions, perpetuating the fiction that these characters and this story exist in the same world as the viewer.

The posts advertising the sites provided a minimum of context and merely asked for casual feedback. The bulletin boards were then monitored for comments; Any user who posted a comment was contacted and asked to complete a questionnaire designed to measure the model's effectiveness, as it relates to three key points: the websites achieve a high level of verisimilitude; the websites extend the story of the television show in a meaningful way, offering information that enriches the viewing experience; the websites are generally clear, engaging, and easy to use. In addition, several fans of the show were contacted directly and asked to complete the same questionnaire. These subjects were found by searching for personal blog postings about the show and contacting the authors.

When asked what they enjoyed about Friday Night Lights, most respondents referred to the characters and characterization. Several specifically noted realism as a key draw of the show, noting that the two main characters "are probably the most realistic-but-excellent parents on television" and that the show offers a "true-to-life and realistic portrayal of small-town high school life."

Respondents similarly appreciated realism in the digital extensions, reporting that the sites are relatively authentic in look and feel and identifying "little details" as one of the websites' strong points. When asked which sites they found the most interesting, the users kept coming back to the concepts of realism and faithfulness to the realist aesthetic of the show:

• "[I enjoyed] Dillon Panther Football because it made the show/team seem that much more real."
• "I like the dillon chronicle site the most because it really had the feel of a high school newspaper."
• "I liked the fact that there were blogs/articles etc that were really true to the show."

All respondents reported that they enjoyed the experience of interacting with the digital extensions, though one said he had no need to visit the sites again as "they don't [appear to] generate any new content… without the juxtaposition of location and scenes that one gets from a whole episode its not nearly as interesting." The comment speaks to the need to keep sites updated frequently with new and germane information, as well as the necessity of making digital extensions a tightly integrated part of the show's narrative.

The frequency with which the respondents seek out digital extensions of the show reflects Heffernan's observations in her Times article. Only one respondent said she visits any Friday Night Lights websites regularly; the others claimed to visit such sites sporadically, if at all. Their primary reasons for visiting such sites were to view or review episodes, or to seek information about whether or not the show had been canceled. No one specifically reported that they seek additional information about storylines and characters. However, judging by the level of enthusiasm for the content presented in the example sites, that may be because little additional narrative information currently exists. Indeed, respondents showed an especially high level of interest in The Dillon Chronicle – the most content-heavy site – reporting that "it provided additional detail and content beyond the show."

The success of The Dillon Chronicle is instructive in two ways. First, the more tightly focused sites – particularly the MySpace profile – drew less positive comments. With the exception of The Dillon Chronicle, each website focuses on a specific storyline. Respondents were primarily attracted to the one website that related to the show at large. In addition, of all four sites in the model, the Chronicle offers the lowest level of interaction. On the whole, respondents were more interested in learning additional narrative information than they were in interacting with the narrative.

Of course, this test of the model is somewhat limited. The analysis is primarily hampered by the small sample size. Though links to the sites were posted on active fan communities, the websites drew only 148 unique visits in a one-month period (June 25 through August 5). Of the approximately twenty fans contacted, twelve completed questionnaires. This small audience for the websites can be partly attributed to the fact that Friday Night Lights online communities, though active, have been seen a noticeable drop in traffic during the show's hiatus. Reaching fans, therefore, is not an easy task -- one that reinforces the need for well-designed migratory cues embedded in the show itself.

One other large barrier to an effective analysis is the fact that the websites were created by someone with no official ties to the show. It is unclear whether or not this was obvious to respondents. However, when asked if official licensing and branding of the sites by NBC would make them more or less likely to visit them, respondents offered mixed opinions. One said that official licensing meant "I'd know the information in them would be correct" (emphasis mine). Another said that if the sites were created and maintained solely by fans, they would offer "false information and a lack of 'official' news." Even those respondents who said they would be more likely to visit the sites if they were fan-created expressed a desire for more official story information: "spoilers and speculation."

Kiedra Chaney and Raizel Liebler delineate between canon and "fanon," defining the former as "a body of work that establishes its own internal storylines and/or character history, deemed to be 'official' by either the creator or publisher" and noting that fanon, or creative work by unaffiliated fans of the original text, "is seen by many fans as less valuable than canon" (3-4). The respondents desire for "true" information – facts about the story world blessed by the story's creator – suggests that the websites might draw more attention if they were positioned as part of an official Friday Night Lights transmedia narrative.

As the Gossip Girl franchise demonstrates, product placement is both more and less difficult to achieve in complex realist shows. The presence of known brands can contribute to a realist aesthetic; however, product placement that is too overt can be distracting. Just as it is integrated into the television shows themselves, product placement can be situated in digital extensions, but it must be done in a natural way.

A website for the high school newspaper (referred to in several episodes of Friday Night Lights) primarily offers opportunities for presaging storylines, filling in story details and adding to the canon. However, it also attempts to naturally integrate product placement by way of website ads. The ads are created around three major promotional deals the show is involved in (Applebee's, Under Armour, and Chevrolet) and incorporate details from Friday Night Lights -- such as a car dealership owned by a recurring character -- that might do more to attract the user's attention.

A digital extension in this vein is particularly effective during a hiatus. Since Friday Night Lights intentionally leaves time gaps in its narrative, depicting only the four months of the year when football is played, the "stories" in The Dillon Chronicle provide detailed information that reduce the need for elaborate exposition in a season premiere. The website also offers some limited interactivity in the form of a poll question that refers to an event from the show's storyline. The "Opinion" page, which currently has a message soliciting columnists, could easily be adapted to include a "columnist application" or other form that can be used to collect information from users.

The retelling of events from a different perspective is another popular way to extend television texts digitally; it could work particularly well with complex realistic texts, which tend to devote a good deal of energy to character development. For a show that primarily features male characters and revolves around the rhythms of a football season, a digital extension that allows a female non-athlete to retell and comment on the show's events could prove to be engaging.

The character of Jean Binnel appeared late in the second season of the show. Relatively little information about her appeared in the storyline, leaving large gaps as to who she was and how she would be involved in the story. Giving the character a MySpace page -- something common to her age group -- and a blog allows for deeper characterization and an alternative narration of the show's story. It also gives viewers the opportunity to engage directly with the character, "friending" her and responding to her blog entries with their own comments.

Digital extensions are an effective way to pre-introduce characters and pre-sage storylines. This evangelical organization is heavily featured in the show's second season; its "official website" offers information about future events and introduces a character that could potentially appear in future episodes.

In Jenkins' case study of Dawson's Desktop, one of the project's creators noted the emotional payoff for fans when one of these pre-introduced characters appears on screen: "In three or four or five episodes, when Aunt Jenny [a minor character in Dawson's Creek first introduced via the Desktop] arrives, you are going to feel good because you already know this character was from the 60s and drinks too much. You know the complete back story so that when the character walks on screen, you know who they are and your relationship to the series has been enriched" (Convergence Culture 117).

The blog page on the Christ Teen Messengers site functions in the same way. It is ostensibly maintained by the organization's youth minister -- a character that does not currently appear in the show. The blog's commenting feature could help a producer gauge reaction to the character, effectively beta-testing him on fans of the show before introducing him into the central storyline.

Detail and world-building are key aspects of successful transmedia texts, and digital extensions offer handy places to organize the encyclopedic amount of information that these shows introduce. A website supporting the high school football team -- the show's central element -- is a natural place to offer information about characters and events.

The website lists the full team roster and schedule, giving users knowledge beyond what they glean from the show itself. A "Media" page provides press releases that expand on storylines introduced on screen. Additionally, the website offers opportunities for readers to engage with the show by being a "member" of the Booster Club, interacting with other viewers and (potentially) the show's characters via forums.

Like the three sites that follow, The Panther Football Booster Club website aims to create an immersive experience. A sidebar link to official NBC merchandise is positioned as "spirit gear"; clips from the show are labeled "game film"; and the opening screen features a letter penned by a character, addressing the website user as though they were a member of the club.

Since complex realist television shows are grounded in detail, an appropriate aesthetic is crucial. By affecting a rougher, "homemade" aesthetic where appropriate, the websites will appear to be authentic parts of the show's world and will likely appeal more to fans. Each site offers varying degrees of interactivity, allowing users to engage as though they are participants in the world of the show.

To view any section's example website, click on the link underneath the section title. Pages will open in a new window.

The show sports a large ensemble cast lauded for its authentic portrayals, but even minor and extra characters on the show are cast with care; Friday Night Lights is filmed on location in central Texas and its production staff often casts local non-actors in minor roles. (5) Accordingly, the body of Friday Night Lights fan fiction shows an avid interest in the show's characters, including those who have only the barest amount of screen time. As in the example of "Dawson's Desktop," the lives of major and minor characters alike can be explored endlessly online with immersive diegetic extensions. By depicting the fictional lives of minor characters and establishing alternative perspectives on events in the narrative, a transmedia extension of Friday Night Lights could even produce alternate readings of the show, allowing fringe details of the shows' metaverse to anchor their own offshoot narratives and giving readers a non-dominant view of the primary characters and events in the television text.

Friday Night Lights also exhibits especially strong codes in the geographic class, as it is entirely set in the fictional town of Dillon, Texas. Locations both within and outside of the town are often referred to in the narrative and could function as valuable sites for expansion. Beyond explicitly mentioned locations, however, the portrayal of Dillon in the show recalls Jenkins' comments about transmedia storytelling as "world-building":

Most often, transmedia stories are based not on individual characters or specific plots but rather complex fictional worlds which can sustain multiple interrelated characters and their stories. This process of world-building encourages an encyclopedic impulse in both readers and writers. ("Transmedia Storytelling 101")

The show takes pains to ground its story in a realistic, yet entirely fictional, Texas town. By geographically constraining itself, Friday Night Lights creates a world with knowable details that can be closely tied to the show's narrative threads. Exploring and cataloguing those details seems like a natural site for transmedia expansion.

Hermeneutic codes in the chronological class occupy a tricky place in sports dramas. If a show revolves around the fortunes of a particular athlete or (more frequently) a team, games and matches are the primary chronological codes; they become events with highly anticipated outcomes. Friday Night Lights follows this formula, with each season of the show encapsulating a single football season. However, the makers of fictional sports dramas traditionally struggle to find a wide demographic, and hence are wary of making sport too central to the narrative. The longest running sports-themed fictional show is a sitcom – ABC's Coach, on air for nine seasons – which largely followed traditional workplace sitcom conventions (Simmons). ESPN's Playmakers, possibly the only ratings success in the history of sports television drama (averaging 1.9 million households – a respectable draw for a cable drama) nonetheless drew only a small portion of viewers outside the 18-49 male demographic and lasted just eleven episodes. (6)

A show that is perceived to be solely about sports pigeonholes itself. The creative team behind Friday Night Lights has openly acknowledged this struggle, as Executive Producer Jason Katmis has said: "It has been a challenge for women to know that they would like the show because of the football thing" (Grossman). A marketing campaign launched late in the show's first season carried the telling tagline "It's not about football… It's about life." For this reason, events on the fictional playing field are rarely the central source for narrative gaps and viewer anticipation. Instead, most hermeneutic codes in this and other sports dramas fall into the character class, creating tension around relationships between members of a large ensemble cast. That said, a digital extension could exploit chronological codes in a limited way, especially in reference to events that might happen during a show's summer hiatus.

A successful, engaging transmedia franchise for such a program would avoid the pitfalls Askwith details in his "Defaker" analysis, adopt a realistic aesthetic, closely mimic the tone and temper of the narrative, and exploit the hermeneutic codes and migratory cues inherent in the show.