Introducing
Media StudiesIntroducing
Media StudiesIcon Books(UK),Totem Books
(USA)
by Ziauddin Sardar, Illustrated
/ designed by Borin Van Loon
Reviews
Some subjects defy
simple summing-up, so perhaps it is the subject that makes this
book seem less that I want it to be. Because this field is relatively
new, it does not have a developed narrative to build the book around.
Because new media changes the way we view all media, previous paradigms
soon seem dated. Because media is approached different ways in
different places and media providers view it differently than media
consumers, priorities for “understanding media,” the
book’s title, can also vary greatly. The writer, artist, and
editor set themselves an impossible task, and the failed at it. The
book has value in explaining aspects of media studies, and will
especially benefit those new to it and want summaries of what certain
thinkers thought. A personal response: the review is for the first time
I read the book, though written after my second reading. The book made
so little impression on me that I bought it again without realizing it
(different cover), read it again, and it was not until I was deep into
the book that I realized I had read it before. It did not make a strong
impact on me, obviously. Mar 03, 2011 Mike Jensen www.goodreads.com
A fun read--these usually are.
Surprised that there was no mention of noam chomsky; the book came from
a british point of view which meant things were a little different;
wonderful example of reading independence day (the movie)--also a great
overview of communication/mass media/media studies and theories. No
independent media centers or any look at critiques coming from the
zapatistas which made me a little sad--then again, it was published in
2000 so the seattle protests in 99 may not have even occurred by the
time the script was written. A nice intro--i liked. Jan 07, 2011 Spicy
T AKA Mr. Tea. www.goodreads.com
It is interesting introduction to prime one for media studies. I like
words and pictures living in perfect harmony. Jan 11, 2011 Ione. www.goodreads.com
Hmmm, learning in fun way... (3 stars. Vinika Maharani). www.goodreads.com
This book does what it sets out to do. I don't love it, but then it is pretty theoretical. It does not work from the artifacts up, which I find a more convincing approach. (4 stars. Mike Jensen). www.goodreads.com
Oddly enough, as I'm WAY into Media Studies, this was the first book of the Introducing Series that really let me down. The actual media and communications theories were sort of passed over so the author could wax conspiratorial and get kind of racist. A dozen pages or so are spent explaining how Hollywood films exist primarily to reinforce the ideology of American foreign policy. The analysis of news and news media is misrepretational of journalistic technique and theory, and through out the whole of the text, media is treated and described as if it is one impenetrable monolithic entity with the sole mission of controlling every aspect of your mind. I could have written a better book on the subject. (1 star. Josh). www.goodreads.com
From the Icon Introducing...
series, this book explores the complex
relationship between the media, ideology, knowledge and power. Filled
with
illustrations and snappy asides, it provides a tour of media history
and
presents a coherent view of the media industry, media theory and
methods
in media research. It explains how "the audience" is constructed
and how it in turn interprets the content and meaning of media
representation.(Theatre
Books)
The next one's a long one, but worth reproducing, we think ...
uneven
overview of a suspect discipline, January 29, 2003
Reviewer: bruce bartlett from Toronto, Canada
If this book is less than a coherent whole, the fault is perhaps as
much
the nature of the subject matter as a failing on the part of the
author(s).
Already on page 9, we have Jonathon Margolis of the London Observer
quoted
thus: "Media studies is a pseudo-social science and puffed-up nonsense
masquerading as an academic discipline." The accusation may have some
merit; however, this same charge could be leveled against any number of
contemporary ivory-tower activities, especially the cultural studies
and
sociology that is inspired by the likes of Michel Foucault and his ilk.
(On that note, see the splendid 1997 LITERATURE LOST: SOCIAL AGENDAS
AND
THE CORRUPTION OF THE HUMANITIES by Yale University's John Ellis.)
That said, the volume is a timely reminder of just how much of
modern-day
life falls under the umbrella of "media." When we use the word
"media," it is often in a far too restrictive sense: we think
only of print journalism and the television news. Let us not forget
those
"media" (see pp. 16-17 epecially) that impinge far more on the
consciousness of many global citizens, in particular advertising, comic
books, rock videos, the cinema, and the Internet. Like the "news"
of the more traditional meaning, all of these media are engaged on the
same
spectrum of activities. At the least complex and most innocuous end of
the
spectrum, those activities are essentially narrative ones. That is to
say,
they are ways of telling a story, value-free means of instruction and
entertainment.
They are high-tech versions of folk-tales around the campfire. At the
other
extreme of the spectrum (and the book leans to analysis of what goes on
at this end), the activities are far more nuanced and nefarious. We are
given messages not intended to inform intelligently, but to persuade
unconsciously.
We have not narrative, but propaganda. We are treated not as citizens,
but
as consumers. To put it another way, media is just a tool of market
forces.
One comes away from the book asking this question: At the dawn of the
twenty-first
century, is "the media" (the term here understood in its broadest
sense) ultimately a force of enlightenment, or of darkness?
The highbrow comic-book format of the Icon Books INTRODUCING series (a
series
which on the whole is a wonderful set of primers on important thinkers,
ideas and issues, past and present) seems to preclude anything like a
formal
table of contents (even if there is a half-assed index). So it might be
worth listing what topics and themes the volume does treat (its
examples
tend to be heavily UK ones, hence not always readily familiar to North
American
audiences). Here is a 20-item ad hoc chapterization. Teachers (high
school
or post-secondary) seeking an entertaining beginner-level book for
media
studies might find it useful to have students do a pick-and-choose from
items below. (I for one plan to purchase the book for use in the "media
unit" of my senior high school English classes, if for no other reason
than to whet their appetites for the Icon Books INTRODUCING series.)
(a) introduction [5-11]
(b) the "Sunny Delight" affair [12-15]
(c) media as big business [16-20]
(d) a mock UK History Channel "Evolution of Media Studies" [21-38]
(e) a primer on semiotics and some corresponding key vocabulary [39-49]
(f) media as a political tool [50-60]
(g) the notion of audience, centering on the TV show DALLAS [61-70]
(h) two competing models of "representation," `hegemonic' vs.
`pluralistic' [71-75]
(i) stereotyping, esp. race and gender [76-88]
(j) the "news story" [89-100]
(k) comics and animation [101-104]
(l) radio [105-106]
(m) advertising [107-111]
(n) television & film & its production method [112-131]
(o) critical understanding of film [132-141]
(p) "foreign" & "alternative" film [142- 153]
(q) the newer technologies [154-58]
(r) media mega-corporations and "synergy" [159-166]
(s) fame & celebrity [166-169]
(t) conclusion re "the future" plus reading list [170-75]
2 out of 5 stars Too scattered,
July 31, 2000
Reviewer: A reader from virtual
This book spends too much time trying to decide what it wants to do. Is
it a history of media studies? A state of the field report? A technical
manual of film terms? A primer on media and culture? How can you do all
those things *clearly* in 173 pages of illustrated material? You can't.
The result is a jumbled mess, filled with unhelpful pictures.
The presentation is uneven and unamusing. Some valuable information
about
the state of the discipline is included (who knew that "Uses and
Gratifications"
was dead?) but so much more is left out. What's really missing here are
pointers to more information. For example, p. 123, the *one page* on
arguments
against television, Neil Postman's perspective is presented but he is
not
accredited (nor is anyone else). You'd want to be able to follow up on
these
sort of insights. Media studes is one field where there are too many
opinions
to rely on only a few sources, especially if you can't follow the
insights
back to the originator.
Strengths include a cultural studies perspective, expecially with
respect
to groups stereotyped /marginalized in media portrayals, as well as a
few
criticisms of the world wide web.
Darwin...
Genetics...
Buddha...
Eastern
Philosophy...
Sociology
Cultural
Studies...
Mathematics...
Critical
Theory...
Science...
Psychotherapy...
Hinduism
Statistics
DNA
Economics
