Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
An instrumental work on todays outlook on the dominance of media in democracy, Public Opinion, is a key work by author Walter Lippmann. Does the manufacturing of consent amount to a democracy in the way democracy is practiced? Does the mass media have a control over the public opinion? These are questions that are more important today with the emergence of new technologies like the internet, and older technologies, like television, which are being politically dominated by an opportunistic media. Public Opinion is a highly recommended work for those who are interested in understanding the role of media and public opinion in politics and also those who enjoy the writings of Walter Lippmann.
Synopsis
In what is widely considered the most influential book ever written by Walter Lippmann, the late journalist and social critic provides a fundamental treatise on the nature of human information and communication. As Michael Curtis indicates in his introduction to this edition. Public Opinion qualifies as a classic by virtue of its systematic brilliance and literary grace. The work is divided into eight parts, covering such varied issues as stereotypes, image making, and organized intelligence. The study begins with an analysis of "the world outside and the pictures in our heads, " a leitmotif that starts with issues of censorship and privacy, speed, words, and clarity, and ends with a careful survey of the modern newspaper. The work is a showcase for Lippmann's vast erudition. He easily integrated the historical, psychological, and philosophical literature of his day, and in every instance showed how relevant intellectual formations were to the ordinary operations of everyday life. Public Opinion is of enduring significance for communications scholars, historians, sociologists, and political scientists.