Focusing mainly on United States, Canada and the UK, this work builds on the award-winning first edition that has been widely recognized and cited as the foremost reference work on the study of television.

This encyclopedia includes more than 1,200 original essays from more than 250 contributors and examines specific programs and people, historic moments and trends, major policy disputes and such topics as violence, tabloid television and the quiz show scandal. It also includes histories of major television networks as well as broadcasting systems around the world and is complemented by resource materials, photos and bibliographical information. It does not include articles on every television program ever produced. The 1997 ed. is available to browse online free of charge.