This book discusses two related themes concerning the role and processes of mass communication in society. The first deals with questions regarding the power of the media: how should it be defined? how is it wielded and by whom? are previous approaches and answers to such questions adequate? The second theme revolves around the divisions between the liberal pluralist and Marxist approaches to the analysis of the nature of the media. These divisions have, in recent years, been fundamental to the debate concerning the understanding of the role of mass communication, and the examination of them in this book will challenge the reader to look more closely at a number of assumptions that have long been taken for granted.
′In his beautifully balanced, clear and broad-ranging account of a fast-changing field, Paul Hodkinson has successfully brought together myriad perspectives with which to critically analyse today′s media culture and media society.′– Sonia Livingstone, Professor of Media & Communication, LSE Paul Hodkinson′s bestseller is back, once again exploring the concepts and complexities of the media in an accessible, balanced and engaging style. Additions to the Second Edition include: A new chapter on advertising and sponsorship Extensive revision and updating throughout all chapters New material on technologies, censorship, online news, fan cultures and representations of poverty Greater emphasis on and examples of digital, interactive and mobile media throughout Fully reworked chapter on media, community and difference Up-to-date examples covering everything from social media, contemporary advertising, news events and mobile technologies, to representations of class, ethnicity and gender. Combining a critical survey of the field with a finely judged assessment of cutting-edge developments, this Second Edition cements its reputation as the must-have text for any undergraduate student studying media, culture and society.
In this large-scale, postindustrial society, the mass media has become deeply embedded into the lifestyles of everyday citizens. People are lured by television ratings, celebrity-sponsored products, and high-profile crimes and scandals, all finding their way into living rooms across America by satellites, cable wires, and modems. This book examines the real, imagined, and potential effects of the mass media on individuals and society. The book explores the processes through which the mass media is enabled and constrained by such factors as technology, law, industry structure, and occupational careers, accounting for the vast changes that have developed in recent years. This book is divided into two parts. Part I defines mass communication and locates its role in social life. Part II considers the factors which influence media content, providing insight into how the industry operates. Sociologists, Communication and Mass Media specialists, film, music, and pop culture critics, and enthusiasts of these fields.
The reference will discuss mass media around the world in their varied forms—newspapers, magazines, radio, television, film, books, music, websites, and social media—and will describe the role of each in both mirroring and shaping society.
Media and Society: A Critical Perspective offers an accessible introduction to the role that the mass media play in our lives, our society, and American culture. Berger explores the relationship between consumers and media with an emphasis on the shaping influence that both have on each other. This lively text, illustrated with original sketches by the author, equips students with the tools necessary to analyze the media that permeates their lives. The third edition features a discussion of the impact of Facebook, Twitter, and other social media on youth culture, an expanded discussion of media ethics, including the Murdoch phone-tapping scandal, an analysis of how media has affected our political landscape, and updated examples and material on media theories and ideology.
Carey's seminal work joins central issues in the field and redefines them. It will force the reader to think in new and fruitful ways about such dichotomies as transmissions vs. ritual, administrative vs. critical, positivist vs. marxist, and cultural vs. power-orientated approaches to communications study. An historically inspired treatment of major figures and theories, required reading for the sophisticated scholar' - George Gerbner, University of Pennsylvania ...offers a mural of thought with a rich background, highlighted by such thoughts as communication being the 'maintenance of society in time'. - Cast/Communication Booknotes These essays encompass much more than a critique of an academic discipline. Carey's lively thought, lucid style, and profound scholarship propel the reader through a wide and varied intellectual landscape, particularly as these issues have affected Modern American thought. As entertaining as it is enlightening, Communication as Culture is certain to become a classic in its field.
A treatise of Black women’s transformative influence in media and society, placing them front and center in a new chapter of mainstream resistance and political engagement In Reclaiming Our Space, social worker, activist, and cultural commentator Feminista Jones explores how Black women are changing culture, society, and the landscape of feminism by building digital communities and using social media as powerful platforms. As Jones reveals, some of the best-loved devices of our shared social media language are a result of Black women’s innovations, from well-known movement-building hashtags (#BlackLivesMatter, #SayHerName, and #BlackGirlMagic) to the now ubiquitous use of threaded tweets as a marketing and storytelling tool. For some, these online dialogues provide an introduction to the work of Black feminist icons like Angela Davis, Barbara Smith, bell hooks, and the women of the Combahee River Collective. For others, this discourse provides a platform for continuing their feminist activism and scholarship in a new, interactive way. Complex conversations around race, class, and gender that have been happening behind the closed doors of academia for decades are now becoming part of the wider cultural vernacular—one pithy tweet at a time. With these important online conversations, not only are Black women influencing popular culture and creating sociopolitical movements; they are also galvanizing a new generation to learn and engage in Black feminist thought and theory, and inspiring change in communities around them. Hard-hitting, intelligent, incisive, yet bursting with humor and pop-culture savvy, Reclaiming Our Space is a survey of Black feminism’s past, present, and future, and it explains why intersectional movement building will save us all.
Media, Culture & Society has pioneered a unique approach to media analysis. Since 1979, it has published some of the finest theoretical and historical work in communication and cultural studies from Britain and Europe. The articles in this reader are grouped in three parts, representing a selection of the best work. Each part is preceded by an introductory essay which helps students understand the issues presented, and places the theoretical contributions in context.
This anthology of hard-to-find primary documents provides a solid overview of the foundations of American media studies. Focusing on mass communication and society and how this research fits into larger patterns of social thought, this valuable collection features key texts covering the media studies traditions of the Chicago school, the effects tradition, the critical theory of the Frankfurt school, and mass society theory. Where possible, articles are reproduced in their entirety to preserve the historical flavor and texture of the original works. Topics include popular theater, yellow journalism, cinema, books, public relations, political and military propaganda, advertising, opinion polling, photography, the avant-garde, popular magazines, comics, the urban press, radio drama, soap opera, popular music, and television drama and news. This text is ideal for upper-level courses in mass communication and media theory, media and society, mass communication effects, and mass media history.
The Second Edition of this book provides a comprehensive overview of the ways in which social theory has attempted to theorize the importance of the media in contemporary society. Understanding Media Cultures is now fully revised and takes account of the recent theoretical developments associated with New Media and Information Society, as well as the audience and the public sphere.
