NCBI ROFL: Doctors on display: the evolution of television's doctors.

Discoblog
By ncbi rofl
Dec 14, 2010 6:00 AMNov 20, 2019 2:03 AM
house-238x300.jpg

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news
 

"Doctors have been portrayed on television for over 50 years. In that time, their character has undergone significant changes, evolving from caring but infallible supermen with smoldering good looks and impeccable bedside manners to drug-addicted, sex-obsessed antiheroes. This article summarizes the major programs of the genre and explains the pattern of the TV doctors' character changes. Articulated over time in the many permutations of the doctor character is a complex, constant conversation between viewer and viewed representing public attitudes towards doctors, medicine, and science." br br br br br br br

Bonus table:

Photo: flickr/caricaturas

Related content: Discoblog: NCBI ROFL: Is Dick Cheney a poster boy for contemporary cardiac care?

Discoblog: NCBI ROFL: The history of poisoning in the future: lessons from Star Trek.

Discoblog: NCBI ROFL: D’oh! An analysis of the medical care provided to the family of Homer J. Simpson.

WTF is NCBI ROFL? Read our FAQ

!

1 free article left
Want More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/month

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

1 free articleSubscribe
Discover Magazine Logo
Want more?

Keep reading for as low as $1.99!

Subscribe

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

More From Discover
Stay Curious
Join
Our List

Sign up for our weekly science updates.

 
Subscribe
To The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Copyright © 2025 LabX Media Group