Critical Issues in Broadcast News (Revised First Edition)

Critical Issues in Broadcast News explores the functions, roles, and impact of broadcast and electronic news. The book is intended as a general introduction to the most critical issues in contemporary broadcast and electronic news. It works to enhance student appreciation and critical evaluation of various public and commercial broadcast and electronic news sources, as well as provide an understanding of how radio, television, and online news is defined and produced. The readings offer a wide range of theoretical and practical issues associated with the production, consumption, and dissemination of radio, television, and online news. This book is essential reading for students aspiring to careers in broadcast and electronic news, and for news consumers looking for an overview of critical issues facing television, radio, and online news today.

The readings in Critical Issues in Broadcast News discuss a variety of topics, including: The role of broadcast and electronic news in the political process; the advertising and corporate influences on news; the implications of entertainment news on cultural and social values; the impact of technological advancement on the future of broadcast newsrooms; and the way audiences consume news.

Dina Ibrahim is an Associate Professor of Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts at San Francisco State University, where she teaches courses on the theory and practice of radio and television news. She has reported for the BBC World Service Radio in London, United Press International in Cairo, CNN in Atlanta, NPR in Austin, and KPOO 89.5 FM in San Francisco. Her research interests are in the psychological impact of television depictions on audiences in the United States and the Middle East, as well as analyzing the post-9/11 visual framing of U.S. television news representations of Islam and Arab countries.