A television presenter is a person who introduces or hosts television programmes. Nowadays it is common for minor celebrities in other fields to take on this role, but there are also a number of people who have made their name solely within the field of presenting, particularly within children's television series to become a television personality.
Some presenters may double as an actor, model, singer, comedian etc. Others may be subject matter experts, such as scientists or politicians, serving as presenters for a programme about their field of expertise (for instance, David Attenborough). some are celebrities who have made their name in one area, then leverage their fame to get involved in other areas. Examples of this latter group include British comedian Michael Palin who now presents programmes about travel (such as Around the World in 80 Days), and Alan Alda, who has presented Scientific American Frontiers for over a decade.
The term is also used in other countries, such as Ireland. In the USA, such a person is typically called a host or an MC (Master of Ceremonies).
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Famous quotes containing the words television and/or presenter:
“Television ... helps blur the distinction between framed and unframed reality. Whereas going to the movies necessarily entails leaving one’s ordinary surroundings, soap operas are in fact spatially inseparable from the rest of one’s life. In homes where television is on most of the time, they are also temporally integrated into one’s “real” life and, unlike the experience of going out in the evening to see a show, may not even interrupt its regular flow.”
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