The Media Studies Toolkit

by Michael Z Newman

In this critical primer, Michael Z. Newman introduces newcomers to the key concepts, issues, and vocabulary of media studies. Across ten chapters, Newman examines topics from text and audience to citizenship and consumerism, drawing on a myriad of examples of media old and new. Film and TV rub shoulders with mobile games and social media, and popular music and video sharing platforms with journalism and search engines. While the book takes a critical, cultural approach, it covers topics that apply across many kinds of media scholarship, bridging the humanities and the social sciences and looking at media as a global phenomenon. It considers media in relation to society and its unequal structures of power, and relates media representations to their conditions of production in media industries and consumption in the everyday lives of audiences and users. Spanning the historical periods of mass media and online participatory culture, it also probes assumptions about media that were formulated in a previous era and looks at how to update our thinking to address an ever-changing digital mediascape. With its clear and accessible style, this book is tailor-made for undergraduate students of media, communication, and cultural studies, as well as anyone who would like to better understand media.

286 pages, Paperback

Published March 4, 2022

Reviews

[meilyn *ೃ༄ · Rating 3 out of 5]

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3.5/5 stars

The Media Studies Toolkit by Michael Z. Newman is a solid beginner’s guide, especially for those completely new to the field. I read it for my Introduction to Media Studies course and found it accessible and clearly written, with helpful examples. However, it lacked the depth and complexity I was hoping for, and I often felt like the material only scratched the surface of larger media theories and frameworks. It’s a great starting point, but for anyone looking to dive deeper into media analysis or theory, this book might feel a bit too basic.

[Zachary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an excellent resource for students beginning a journey through the world of media studies, and is also a trove of ideas, examples, and extended analyses for instructors. Reading each chapter was an easy, enjoyable time, and certainly gave a lot of food for thought. I wish that there had been a bit more discussion about particular theories and an emphasis on maybe the work or end result of debates in media studies in general, but topically the book offers some really good starting points for course lessons and discussions. The questions at the end of each chapter seemed especially useful for either prompting class work/discussion or analytical assignments, which seemed quite salient. I’m not entirely sure if I’ll end up adopting this book wholesale in my classes, but it’s certainly a resource I’ll turn students towards as needed.