Mediated Communication: A Social Action Perspective

by James A. Anderson, Timothy P. Meyer

The authors of this groundbreaking work argue that traditional theories of the media -- which locate the site of media effects in the individual and the source of those effects in the content -- provide inadequate explanations of our modern mediated society. In Mediated Communication they propose an alternative "Accomodation Theory "which describes the interpenetration of three elements: media, texts and our daily lives. The authors present a wide overview of the nature of communication and its social action, the media industry and the contexts of reception. They explore current theories on the notion of effect, present methodologies which generate evidence for these explanations, and show how theory and method

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1988