Eric Deggans

Tv and Media Critic for the Saint Petersburg Times

Eric Deggans appears in the following:

Golden Globes Deliver Surprises In Television Categories

Monday, January 11, 2016

This year's Golden Globes did not come without some surprises, especially in the TV categories. Amazon's Mozart in the Jungle won best TV comedy, and the show's main character, Gael G...

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What Mattered In Media In 2015

Monday, January 04, 2016

Before we get too far into 2016, it's worth taking one more look at what happened to media in the year that just ended. To paraphrase the old saying, ignorance of history dooms you to repeat it. And some of what happened in media in 2015, we really want to ...

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What Is The Cultural Impact Of Bill Cosby's Arrest On Sex Crimes?

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Cosby is accused of drugging and sexually assaulting a woman at his Pennsylvania home in 2004. Though dozens of women have brought civil suits, this is the first time Cosby is facing criminal charges.

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'Casual' Hides Romance With Cynicism And Subtlety

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

As part of our year-end look at the "Ones That Got Away in 2015" series, NPR TV Critic Eric Deggans reviews Hulu's Casual, a comedy about the modern search for connection.

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The Year In Television: 2015's Trends, Triumphs And Tragedies

Monday, December 28, 2015

Television exploded with options for fans, from a record number of shows to new kinds of online platforms. Our critic examines the biggest trends that reshaped the face of television this year.

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The Best Television Of 2015

Sunday, December 27, 2015

NPR TV critic Eric Deggans spoke to Carrie Kahn on Weekend Edition Sunday about the plethora of television available on broadcast, cable and streaming outlets, and you can hear that conversation at the top of the page. Eric has, however, picked 12 shows that rose above the rest for this ...

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From Bollywood To Hollywood: Shattering Stereotypes On The Silver Screen

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Priyanka Chopra is the first South Asian woman to play a lead in a network TV drama. She has an advocate in a venture capitalist who has made it her business to meld South Asian and U.S. pop culture.

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'Transparent' Is Transfixing In Season 2

Tuesday, December 08, 2015

The acclaimed Amazon show about a transgender woman and her dysfunctional family has just returned for a second season. TV critic Eric Deggans praises the show's drama, nuance and complexity.

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NBC Raises Its Musical Game With 'The Wiz Live'

Friday, December 04, 2015

NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says NBC's production of The Wiz was "fully and fearlessly filled with blackness."

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Bill Murray Stars In Netflix Holiday Special: 'A Very Murray Christmas'

Friday, December 04, 2015

A blizzard shuts down New York and Bill Murray worries no one will show up for his TV special. Directed by Sofia Coppola, the show features George Clooney, Rashida Jones, Amy Poehler and many more.

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'Marvel's Jessica Jones' Is About An Ex-Superhero Turned Private Investigator

Tuesday, December 01, 2015

The plot of the new Netflix show is something rare in superhero TV or film stories: It's a tale of women banding together to stop the man who abused them. Jessica Jones is played by Krysten Ritter.

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ABC Celebrates 50th Anniversary Of 'A Charlie Brown Christmas'

Monday, November 30, 2015

ABC will air "It's Your 50th Christmas Charlie Brown" Monday night. On the classic Christmas cartoon's golden anniversary, NPR explores what makes this ageless special endure.

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Episode 9: All in the Black Family

Thursday, November 26, 2015

We talk to NPR TV critic Eric Deggans about the hippest—thought not exactly the happiest—black family on TV. 

It's Not Hosting SNL, But NBC Will Give 'Equal Time' To 4 GOP Candidates

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

They won't actually get to host Saturday Night Live, but four GOP candidates have completed agreements with NBC allowing them to broadcast campaign messages on affiliate stations in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina over Thanksgiving weekend.

These deals resulted from "equal time" requests made after leading GOP candidate Donald ...

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'The Walking Dead' Makes Another Life-Or-Death Decision

Monday, November 23, 2015

SPOILER ALERT: This column discusses events from Sunday's Walking Dead episode. Read with care if you haven't already seen the show.

It was the biggest head fake in recent television history.

Fans of The Walking Dead Sunday finally got an answer to the question that had been on their lips ...

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PBS To Air Eddie Murphy Receiving The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize

Monday, November 23, 2015

The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor went to comedian Eddie Murphy this year. Monday night, PBS will air Murphy's first jokes for an audience in 28 years, delivered during his acceptance speech.

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'Scandal' Abortion Storyline Marks Bold Move For Network Television

Friday, November 20, 2015

The winter season finale for the hit ABC TV show, Scandal, featured the lead character seemingly getting an abortion. That's highly unusual for network television and an invitation to controversy.

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'Jessica Jones' Struggles In Life — But Triumphs On Screen

Friday, November 20, 2015

Marvel's Jessica Jones, a powerful Netflix series debuting today, is about a broken ex-superhero. She seems like every other angsty crime fighter on film and TV, until you learn why she's so wracked with PTSD she drinks herself into a stupor most nights.

Turns out, Jones (played by Krysten Ritter, ...

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'Scandal' Finale Stirs Up Controversy

Friday, November 20, 2015

SPOILER ALERT: Be warned that this post discusses details from Thursday's winter finale of ABC's drama Scandal.

ABC's buzzed-about drama Scandal dropped a bombshell episode Thursday, seeming to show lead character Olivia Pope secretly ending a pregnancy she may have had with her lover, President Fitzgerald Grant.

Earlier in ...

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The Next 'Law & Order?' 'Chicago' Series Take Over TV With New Franchise

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

NBC's Chicago franchise grew this week with the premiere of Chicago Med. NPR explores whether it can be the next ER and whether executive producer Dick Wolf, who built the Law & Order...

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