TY - JOUR
T1 - Demon hunters and hegemony
T2 - Portrayal of religion on the CW's "Supernatural"
AU - Engstrom, Erika
AU - Valenzano, Joseph M.
PY - 2010/4
Y1 - 2010/4
N2 - The authors analyze the religious themes and portrayals in the television program Supernatural, aired on the CW television network since 2005. As fictional entertainment programming, Supernatural incorporates various religions and lore into its episodes, which feature its protagonists fighting monsters, demons, and the occasional evil human. Findings from a content analysis of 60 episodes from the first 3 seasons illustrate a religious hegemony that forwards Catholicism, in the form of weapons used to fight evil, such as holy water, and depictions of priests, as the main and most powerful opponent of evil. Non-Catholic, "other" religions, and their associated villainous characters, in contrast, serve as distractions for the protagonists, thus contributing even more to their marginal stature.
AB - The authors analyze the religious themes and portrayals in the television program Supernatural, aired on the CW television network since 2005. As fictional entertainment programming, Supernatural incorporates various religions and lore into its episodes, which feature its protagonists fighting monsters, demons, and the occasional evil human. Findings from a content analysis of 60 episodes from the first 3 seasons illustrate a religious hegemony that forwards Catholicism, in the form of weapons used to fight evil, such as holy water, and depictions of priests, as the main and most powerful opponent of evil. Non-Catholic, "other" religions, and their associated villainous characters, in contrast, serve as distractions for the protagonists, thus contributing even more to their marginal stature.
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U2 - 10.1080/15348421003738785
DO - 10.1080/15348421003738785
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:79960485167
SN - 1534-8423
VL - 9
SP - 67
EP - 83
JO - Journal of Media and Religion
JF - Journal of Media and Religion
IS - 2
ER -