The Business of Media provides the critical analysis of the rapidly changing media industry that students need in order to get behind the headlines and understand our increasingly media-saturated society. This Second Edition includes updated data and examples, while incorporating some of the most recent media developments into the analysis. The book: </p> <p></p> <p>- uses two conceptual models to understand the media: the market model and public sphere model;</p> <p>- focuses on developments in the last decade, such as the rise of media conglomerates, and discusses new strategies;</p> <p>- offers clear, concise, jargon-free writing accessible to students without an economics background.</p> <p></p> <p>This book will provide an invaluable guide to the changing media landscape.

Sociologists Croteau and Hoynes offer a critical analysis of the rapidly changing media industry. They examine the influence that media have on US society, with particular attention paid to the tension between the industry's quest for profits and a democratic society's need for media in the public interest. The revised second edition reflects developments such as recent media mergers and policy shifts; discusses public debate about media ownership and media conglomerates; and explores the continuing integration of the Internet and the impact that changing technologies are having on the media business.
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The Business of Media presents the critical, yet careful, analysis of the rapidly changing media industry that students need in order to get behind the headlines and understand our increasingly media-saturated society. The writing is clear and jargon-free, accessible to undergraduates without requiring a background in economics. Key Features: Examines the basic dynamics that underlie the changing media industry and the possible influence these changes are having on society (society's insatiable quest for profits and democratic society's need for a media system that serves the public interest) Draws from both social and economic theory to create two conceptual frameworks: market model, and public sphere model Focus on devlopments in the last decade to major media industry trends mapping structural organization, the rise of media conglomerates, and their new strategies Assesses the impact of recent changes in the media industry using the public sphere model on social and political life Offers clear, concise, jargon-free writing accessible to all students and professionals without an economics background