Media/Society: Industries, Images, and Audiences

by David Croteau, William Hoynes

Praise for the Second Edition

"Croteau and Hoynes have written the clearest, most comprehensive, and useful textbook I’ve seen on the media, American Society, and their interconnections. As sage as it is thoroughgoinga, it serves as an encyclopedic reference book as well as a cogent summation of what scholars know. My congratulations to the authors."

-- Todd Gitlin, Columbia University

"The most comprehensive and insightful book on the role of media in life and society. If students, scholars, and all those concerned about our culture had to pick one book to enlighten and inform them, this would be the book."

-- George Gerbner, Bell Atlantic Professor of Telecommunication, Temple University

In a society saturated by mass media, from newspapers and magazines, television and radio, to digital video projects and the worldwide web, most students possess a great deal of media knowledge and experience before they ever enter the classroom. What they often lack, however, is a broader framework for understanding the relationship between media and society. Media/Society: Industries, Images, and Audiences provides that context and helps students develop skills for critically evaluating both conventional wisdom and one’s own assumptions about the social role of the media.

The first two editions of Media/Society introduced thousands of students to a sociologically informed analysis of the media process. The Third Edition builds on this success with revised Internet resources, the latest data on the media industry, new examples from the independent media sector, and updated discussions of media policy, online media, and independent media. Media/Society is unique among media texts in that it offers:

A sociological approach that examines overarching relationships between the various components of the media process—the industry, its products, audiences, technology, and the broader social world An integrated study of mass media that looks at media technologies, collective influences, and connections between mass media issues that are often treated as separate An examination of how economic and political constraints affect the media and how audiences actively construct their own interpretations of media messages

Media/Society: Industries, Images and Audiences, Third Edition engages the reader with accessible analyses that are historically grounded but draw upon current media debates such as regulation of the Internet, concentration of media ownership, portrayals of gays in the media, and the growth of global media. Media/Society an outstanding text for courses in mass media and sociology.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sociology, Academic, Read For College

463 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Jenny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Painful. An excruciatingly long read that only gets two starts because it DOES have educational value, but I'm not happy that I had to put up with it semester.

This book was assigned for my "Media & Society" course. Every chapter was a lesson in extreme discipline. I am a reader by nature, but this book completely failed to hold my attention. I would diligently take notes and STILL forget what I had just read. The authors are obviously well-schooled in what they are trying to convey, but the text is so dry you need a gallon of water sitting by you just to read a chapter. I usually space my text readings for any given class session over a few days to help absorb the information. It was impossible to do with this book, as I would forget what I had read the moment I closed the spine.

Croteau and his cohorts have put together a compendium that offers a lot of valuable information. They simply failed on their presentation to make it appealing to anyone with a sense of adventure.

[MM · Rating 3 out of 5]

So here's the thing. I do not like using textbooks when I teach. But I've been looking for the intro to media studies class -- something comprehensive, not too boring, not too simplified or didactic. So far so good with this one -- fits the bill. I'm supplementing it with articles and other books, and I imagine I'd use it again. Addendum: students found it boring, I think, and so did I eventually. I'm just not a fan of textbooks. I'll probably go back to assigning primary texts and using these for my own lectures.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a textbook, I was very impressed. This book captures the key issues necessary for learning about the development of media. As someone considering pursuing journalism, I felt that this book’s broad focus provided me with the context needed to start my exploration of the field.

[David Kirschner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really nice textbook for sociology of media. I think a new edition is coming out soon, as this one does feel a bit dated. Technology, social media, and research in these fields move so quickly that my students are constantly saying, "Well, Twitter isn't like this anymore," or "What about SnapChat?" and "The Oculus Rift shipped. Why doesn't this book have anything about VR?" and so on.

Besides the impossibility of being cutting edge, it's very well written, organized, and covers key topics without favoring any one pet topic. Great teacher resources as well--discussion questions, ideas for activities, journal articles, audiovisual materials, etc. Would use again.

[Ayeesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

i'm reading this book again for another class, and i think it does a great job of introducing someone to the field of "media studies."

in fact, the next time someone asks about what i study, i should just send them a copy of the book.

[Taylor Marr · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was reeeaaalllyyy dry, but it had some damn fine insight.

[Kimmy]

Creepy ass book cover.