Synopses & Reviews
To fully understand the impact and significance of the Internet, it is essential to consider its historical, societal, and cultural contexts. This handbook presents a wide range of original essays by established scholars in the field of Internet studies exploring the role of the internet in modern societies, and the continuing development of its academic study. Presenting a range of standpoints intended to provide both introductory and more sophisticated frameworks for understanding the many areas of Internet research, the collection explores the history of the Internet, the Internet and society (including such topics as community, networks, law, identity, and politics), and the Internet and culture (including the media connection, news, entertainment, Web 2.0 and social media). Within each section, individual chapters provide in-depth analysis of current research, debates and questions being raised in that particular sub-area. Chapters point to major findings in the area, as well as challenges and questions that the sub-area is currently grappling with. Concluding with a discussion of the future of the internet, the as yet unrealized potentials of current Internet-related technologies, and the impact of possible future technologies within both the developed and developing worlds, the Handbook of Internet Studies is thought-provoking and insightful reading for both students and researchers in the field. |
Review
"The editors of the Handbook of Internet Studies are to be congratulated on creating a state-of-the art collection that represents and celebrates the diversity of theoretical and disciplinary approaches marking this brave new field. A new must-have reference book for Internet Studies."
Caroline Haythornthwaite, University of Illinois"This indispensable volume reflects the complexity of Internet studies--indeed, the Internet itself--by bringing together a diverse set of voices, geographies, disciplines, and arguments. It is not only an important resource for practitioners, but will also spark the curiosity of those on the edges of the field, including humanists, social scientists, and engineers alike." Michael Zimmer, University of Wisconsin
"The Handbook of Internet Studies is a comprehensive and useful volume that will appeal to students, teachers and researchers. It provides a welcome survey of the still-emerging field of Internet Studies and can readily serve as a jumping-off point for further exploration. I highly recommend it to those who have been following the field since its emergence in the 1990s as well as to those new to the field." Steve Jones, University of Illinois at Chicago
“Of all media, the internet holds the most wide-ranging, deep and complex depiction of contemporary society. If you want to understand today’s society, you need to study the internet. This handbook is landmark, documenting that internet studies have now come of age.” Niels Ole Finnemann, Aarhus University, Denmark
Review
“Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty.” (
Choice, 1 April 2012)
Synopsis
The Handbook of
Internet Studies HANDBOOKS IN COMMUNICATION AND MEDIA
"Highly recommended." CHOICE
"A state-of-the-art collection that represents and celebrates the diversity of theoretical and disciplinary approaches marking this brave new field. A new must-have reference book for Internet studies." Caroline Haythornthwaite, University of Illinois
"This indispensable volume reflects the complexity of Internet studies - indeed, the Internet itself - by bringing together a diverse set of voices, geographies, disciplines, and arguments. It is not only an important resource for practitioners, but will also spark the curiosity of those on the edges of the field, including humanists, social scientists, and engineers alike." Michael Zimmer, University of Wisconsin
"A comprehensive and useful volume that will appeal to students, teachers, and researchers. I highly recommend it to those who have been following the field since its emergence in the 1990s as well as to those new to the field." Steve Jones, University of Illinois at Chicago
"This handbook is landmark, documenting that Internet studies have now come of age." Niels Ole Finnemann, Aarhus University
To fully understand the impact and significance of the Internet, it is essential to consider its historical, societal, and cultural contexts. This handbook presents a wide range of original essays by established scholars in the field of Internet studies exploring the role of the Internet in modern societies, and the continuing development of its academic study.
Synopsis
The Handbook of Internet Studies brings together scholars from a variety of fields to explore the profound shift that has occurred in how we communicate and experience our world as we have moved from the industrial era into the age of digital media.
- Presents a wide range of original essays by established scholars in everything from online ethics to ways in which indigenous peoples now use the Internet
- Looks at the role of the internet in modern societies, and the continuing development of internet studies as an academic field
- Explores Internet studies through history, society, culture, and the future of online media
- Provides introductory frameworks to ground and orientate the student, while also providing more experienced scholars with a convenient and comprehensive overview of the latest trends and critical directions in the many areas of Internet research
About the Author
Mia Consalvo is Associate Professor in the School of Media Arts and Studies at Ohio University.
Charles Ess is Distinguished Research Professor, Interdisciplinary Studies, and Professor of Philosophy and Religion, Drury University, Springfield, Missouri, USA. He is also Professor MSO in the Information and Media Studies Department at Aarhus University in Denmark.
Table of Contents
Notes on Editors and Contributors vii
Acknowledgments xii
Introduction: What is “Internet Studies”? 1
Charles Ess and Mia Consalvo
Part I Beyond the Great Divides? A Primer on Internet Histories, Methods, and Ethics 9
Introduction to Part I 11
Charles Ess
1 Studying the Internet Through the Ages 17
Barry Wellman
2 Web Archiving – Between Past, Present, and Future 24
Niels Brügger
3 New Media, Old Methods – Internet Methodologies and the Online/Offline Divide 43
Klaus Bruhn Jensen
4 The Internet in Everyday Life: Exploring the Tenets and Contributions of Diverse Approaches 59
Maria Bakardjieva
5 Internet Research Ethics: Past, Present, and Future 83
Elizabeth A. Buchanan
Part II Shaping Daily Life: The Internet and Society 109
Introduction to Part II 111
Mia Consalvo
6 Assessing the Internet’s Impact on Language 117
Naomi S. Baron
7 Internet Policy 137
Sandra Braman
8 Political Discussion Online 168
Jennifer Stromer-Galley and Alexis Wichowski
9 Does the Internet Empower? A Look at the Internet and International Development 188
Deborah L. Wheeler
10 Internet and Health Communication 212
Lorna Heaton
11 Internet and Religion 232
Heidi Campbell
12 Indigenous Peoples on the Internet 251
Laurel Dyson
13 Queering Internet Studies: Intersections of Gender and Sexuality 270
Janne Bromseth and Jenny Sundén
Part III Internet and Culture 301
Introduction to Part III 303
Mia Consalvo
14 Community and the Internet 309
Lori Kendall
15 MOOs to MMOs: The Internet and Virtual Worlds 326
Mia Consalvo
16 Internet, Children, and Youth 348
Sonia Livingstone
17 Internet and Games 369
T. L. Taylor
18 Social Networks 2.0 384
Nancy K. Baym
19 Newly Mediated Media: Understanding the Changing Internet Landscape of the Media Industries 406
P. David Marshall
20 Online Pornography: Ubiquitous and Effaced 424
Susanna Paasonen
21 Music and the Internet 440
Steve Jones
22 Why and How Online Sociability Became Part and Parcel of Teenage Life 452
Marika Lüders
Index 470