Why Democracies Need an Unlovable Press (Paperback)

Michael Schudson

ISBN 10: 0745644538 / ISBN 13: 9780745644530

Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Oxford, 2008

About this Item

Paperback. Journalism does not create democracy and democracy does not invent journalism, but what is the relationship between them? This question is at the heart of this book by world renowned sociologist and media scholar Michael Schudson. Focusing on the U.S. media but seeing them in a comparative context, Schudson brings his understanding of news as at once a story-telling and fact-centered practice to bear on a variety of controversies about what public knowledge today is and what it should be. Should experts have a role in governing democracies? Is news melodramatic or is it ironic or is it both at different times? In the title essay, Schudson even suggests that journalism serves the interests of free expression and democracy best when it least lives up to the demands of media critics for deep thought and analysis; passion for the sensational event may be news at its democratically most powerful. Lively, provocative, unconventional, and deeply informed by a rich understanding of journalisms history, this work collects the best of Schudsons recent writings, including several pieces published here for the first time. A major volume bringing together the writings of one of the world's leading media scholars. Brings together some of Schudson's most influential pieces of the past decade with some pieces previously unpublished in English and a significant new introduction which reflects on the major themes and directions of the work. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780745644530

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Why Democracies Need an Unlovable Press (Paperback)
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Oxford
• Publication Date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0745644538
• ISBN 13: 9780745644530
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

Journalism does not create democracy and democracy does not invent journalism, but what is the relationship between them? This question is at the heart of this book by world renowned sociologist and media scholar Michael Schudson.

Focusing on the U.S. media but seeing them in a comparative context, Schudson brings his understanding of news as at once a story-telling and fact-centered practice to bear on a variety of controversies about what public knowledge today is and what it should be. Should experts have a role in governing democracies? Is news melodramatic or is it ironic – or is it both at different times?

In the title essay, Schudson even suggests that journalism serves the interests of free expression and democracy best when it least lives up to the demands of media critics for deep thought and analysis; passion for the sensational event may be news at its democratically most powerful.

Lively, provocative, unconventional, and deeply informed by a rich understanding of journalism’s history, this work collects the best of Schudson’s recent writings, including several pieces published here for the first time.

About the Author

Michael Schudson is Distinguished Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of California, San Diego, and Professor of Communication at the Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University.