Understanding Media Cultures Social Theory and Mass Communication [Hardcover]

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. Understanding Media Cultures is now fully revised and takes account of the recent theoretical developments associated with New Media and Information Society, as well as the audience and the public sphere.

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. Understanding Media Cultures is now fully revised and takes account of the recent theoretical developments associated with New Media and Information Society, as well as the audience and the public sphere.

`Those interested in understanding contemporary debates over the media should find this book to be extremely valuable' - Douglas Kellner, University of Texas at Austin

`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' - SociologyIntroduction
Marxism and Mass Communication Research
Habermas, Mass Culture and the Public Sphere
Critical Perspectives within Audience Research
Marshall McLuhan and the Cultural Medium
Baudrillard's Blizzards
New Media and the Information Society
Conclusion