Full Description
From TV to smartphone apps to movies to newspapers, mass media are nearly omnipresent in contemporary life and act as a powerful social institution. In this introduction to media sociology, Lindner and Barnard encourage readers to think critically about the power of big media companies, state-media relations, new developments in journalism, representations of race, class, gender, and sexuality in media, and what social media may or may not be doing to our brains, among other topics. Each chapter explores pressing questions about media by carefully excavating the results of classic and contemporary social scientific studies. The authors bring these findings to life with anecdotes and examples ripped from headlines and social media newsfeeds. By synthesizing research on new media and traditional media, entertainment media and news, quantitative and qualitative studies, All Media Are Social offers a succinct and accessibly-written analysis of both enduring patterns and some of the newest developments in mass media. With strong emphases on theory and methods, Lindner and Barnard provide students and general readers alike with the tools to better understand the ever-changing media landscape.
Contents
Illustrations, Acknowledgements, 1 All Media Are Social, 2 Theorizing the Media, 3 Who Pays for It?, 4 In the Hands of a Few, 5 Big Brother Knows You're Watching, 6 The Makers and the Breakers, 7 Fear and Loathing on Cable News, 8 Doing Gender and Sexuality in Media, 9 Unequal Images in an Unequal Age, 10 Are We Robots?, 11 Or Are We Rebels?, Recommended Resources for All Media Are Social, Index
