Media Culture And Society

′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.

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 Clearly organized, systematic and combining a critical survey of the field with a finely judged assessment of cutting edge developments, this book provides a 'must have' contribution to media and communication studies. The text is organized into three distinctive parts, which fall neatly into research and teaching requirements: Elements of the Media (which covers media technologies, the organization of the media industry, media content and media users); Media, Power and Control (which addresses questions of the media and manipulation, the construction of news, public service broadcasting, censorship, commercialization); and Media, Identity and Culture (which covers issues of the media and ethnicity, gender, subcultures, audiences and fans). The book is notable for: • Logical and coherent organization • Clarity of expression • Use of relevant examples • Fair minded criticism • Zestful powers of analysis It has all of the qualities to be adopted as core introductory text in the large and buoyant field of media and communication studies.

This book presents a comprehensive, full-length analysis of the uses of media and communication technologies by different social actors in Malaysia. Unlike other studies of the media in Malaysia which concentrate on "political economy" or "freedom of the media" approaches, this book focuses on the ways in which different media forms have constituted cultural practices and power relations amongst particular audiences and publics. It also examines the ways in which technologies of varying scales and range have been appropriated for various subaltern purposes and counter-hegemonic agendas. Drawing upon recent case studies on the deployment of different media – including mainstream and independent films, television programming, black metal music, community rituals, political advertising, the internet, and artistic visual installations – it provides valuable insights into the complex, vibrant ways in which these different media forms have negotiated with the dominant cultural representations of Malaysian society. The book makes an important contribution to the emergent disciplines of media studies and cultural studies in Malaysia.

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.

An international collection of papers focused on media, culture and society in postcommunist Russia. Contributors deploy a wealth of primary data in examining the kinds of issues that are central to our understanding of the kind of system that has been established in the world's largest country after a period of far-reaching change.

Praise for the First Edition: `I can′t think of a book in media studies that handles so well the diversity of perspectives and issues that Stevenson addresses. Whether reconstructing Marxism or deconstructing postmodernism, tackling the pleasures of soap opera or the repetitive structures of daily news presentation, Stevenson is always clear and insightful′ - Sociology 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. Now fully revised to take account of the recent theoretical developments associated with `new media′ and `information society′, as well as the audience and the public sphere, Understanding Media Cultures: - Critically examines the key social theories of mass communication - Highlights the work of individual theorists including Fiske, Williams, Hall, Habermas, Jameson, McLuhan and Baudrillard. - Covers the important traditions of media analysis from feminism, cultural studies and audience research. - Now includes a discussion of recent perspectives developed by Castells, Haraway, Virilio and Schiller. - Provides a glossary of key terms in media and social theory. Retaining all the strengths of the previous edition, Understanding Media Cultures offers a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the field. It will be essential reading for students of social theory, media and cultural studies.

The essays in this volume discuss both the culture of technology that we live in today, and culture as technology. Within the chapters of the book cultures of technology and cultural technologies are discussed, focussing on a variety of examples, from varied national contexts. The book brings together internationally recognised scholars from the social sciences and humanities, covering diverse themes such as intellectual property, server farms and search engines, cultural technologies and epistemology, virtual embassies, surveillance, peer-to-peer file-sharing, sound media and nostalgia and much more. It contains both historical and contemporary analyses of technological phenomena as well as epistemological discussions on the uses of technology.