{"product_id":"only-the-names-have-been-changed-9781477325391","title":"Only the Names Have Been Changed: Dragnet, the Police Procedural, and Postwar Culture","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWinner of the 2022 Peter C. Rollins Book Prize, Northeast Popular Culture Association (NEPCA)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn the postwar era, the police procedural series \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eDragnet\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e informed Americans on the workings of the criminal justice system and instructed them in their responsibilities as citizens.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAmong shifting politics, tastes, and technology in television history, one genre has been remarkably persistent: the cop show. Claudia Calhoun returns to \u003ci\u003eDragnet,\u003c\/i\u003e the pioneering police procedural and an early transmedia franchise, appearing on radio in 1949, on TV and in film in the 1950s, and in later revivals. More than a popular entertainment, \u003ci\u003eDragnet\u003c\/i\u003e was a signifier of America's postwar confidence in government institutions—and a publicity vehicle for the Los Angeles Police Department.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eOnly the Names Have Been Changed\u003c\/i\u003e shows how \u003ci\u003eDragnet\u003c\/i\u003e's \"realistic\" storytelling resonated across postwar culture. Calhoun traces \u003ci\u003eDragnet\u003c\/i\u003e's \"semi-documentary\" predecessors, and shows how Jack Webb, \u003ci\u003eDragnet\u003c\/i\u003e's creator, worked directly with the LAPD as he produced a series that would likewise inspire public trust by presenting day-to-day procedural justice, rather than shootouts and wild capers. Yet this realism also set aside the seething racial tensions of Los Angeles as it was. \u003ci\u003eDragnet\u003c\/i\u003e emerges as a foundational text, one that taught audiences to see police as everyday heroes not only on TV but also in daily life, a lesson that has come under scrutiny as Americans increasingly seek to redefine the relationship between policing and public safety.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication date:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1 September 2026\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePage count:\u003c\/strong\u003e 186\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e Height 229 mm; Width 152 mm; Thickness 23 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e University of Texas Press\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9781477325391\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Claudia Calhoun","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":50251065688314,"sku":"9781477325391","price":22.29,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0522\/4297\/2845\/files\/9781477325391.jpg?v=1788833561","url":"https:\/\/shulphink.com\/products\/only-the-names-have-been-changed-9781477325391","provider":"Shulph Ink","version":"1.0","type":"link"}