Media, Policy and Interaction

Situated within the field of discourse-oriented approaches to policy and media, this collection explores the interface between government, media and the public, highlighting the increasing importance placed on media channelled 'public opinion' as part of a democratic process. The authors use a variety of discourse analytic methods including CA/MCA, Discourse Analysis and Interactionism, to provide discussions around the social organization of policy debate in media sites including news interviews, public access broadcasts, broadcast debates, panel discussions, mediated government initiatives, newspapers and news broadcasts. The book's geographical coverage spans the USA, Canada, the UK, Europe, Asia and Australia. This volume offers a major contribution to discourse analysis and its emphasis on policy substance will appeal to a broad audience in social and public policy, political communication, journalism and politics.

Richard Fitzgerald is Senior Lecturer in the School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. William Housley is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Cardiff, UK, author of Interaction in Multidisciplinary Teams (2002) and the co-author (with Paul Atkinson) of Interactionism (2003).