The Office

Without a doubt, The Office is one of my favorite television shows. In class we discussed how television programs had to be modified and changed when broadcast in other countries around the world. The first program that came to mind was "The Office". Originally a British sitcom, Americans decided to copy the same idea and aired the show in the U.S. However, many changes were made during the process. To begin with, all the characters were changed into American actors. This is something huge because the entire cast of a successful show was completely changed in order to relate more to their new audience, Americans. Consequently, this modification also changed the cultural references and the accent and dialect of the show. The British accent was no longer there, and local American references began to dominate the entire show. Another drastic change also resulted, and that was the humor of the show. What seemed to be very comical to a British audience may not be as funny for people in the U.S. British comedy is much more dry and satirical in a sense. The American version of "The Office" also deals with an obnoxious manager but the humor has changed to one that accommodates our culture in a better way. The humor has become much more sarcastic, relevant, direct and blunt. It goes to show that while even following the same plot and the same overall theme, different cultures will always see the same thing in different ways.