This book explores the imaginative construction of a cultural history of the media in a series of essays that draw on various artistic and intellectual narratives of Western societies and trace incidental encounters with the means of social communication in cultural and political settings.

Enriched by critical theory and the insights of cultural studies, and rooted in the power of historical explanation, this collection of classic and new essays contributes to the theory and practice of critical studies in communication, media, and journalism. The volume helps develop alternative ways of thinking about communication and media practices at a time when the conditions of communication, participation, and democracy are threatened by commercial and political interests. It is grounded in a critical theory of the media that addresses the potential of liberating individuals_consumers as well as newsworkers_by challenging their traditional roles in the hegemonic relationship of media and society. The culture of communication constitutes an arena of practices with its own knowledge that bridges traditional academic disciplines and demonstrates the power of an interdisciplinary vision. It also defines and places communication studies within a larger field of intellectual inquiry with its own dynamic as an integrating concept_a goal that Interactions well accomplishes. Interactions may be viewed, in fact, as a critical intellectual history of the 20th century through the lens of media, communication, and popular culture and in relation to the role of the individual on the cusp of a new millennium.

The development of communication studies has been a lively process of adoption and integration of theoretical constructs from Pragmatism, Critical Theory and Cultural Studies. Critical Communication Studies describes the intellectual and professional forces that have shaped research interests and formed alliances in the pursuit of particular goals. Hanno Hardt reflects on the need to come to terms with the role of history in academic work and locates the intellectual history within the context of competing social theories. The book provides a substantive foundation for understanding the field and will be a major text in all courses dealing with communication history and theory.

The American Journalism History Reader presents important primary textsa "news articles and essays about journalism from all stages of the history of the American pressa "alongside key works of journalism history and criticism. The volume aims to place journalism history in its theoretical context, to familiarize the reader with essential works of, and about, journalism, and to chart the development of the field.

The reader moves chronologically through American journalism history from the eighteenth-century to the present, combining classic sources and contemporary insights. Each century's section begins with a critical introduction, which establishes the social and political environment in which the media developed to highlight the ideological issues behind the historical period.

Hanno Hardt has thoroughly revised and expanded his pre-history of communication research in the United States. With the notable addition of Karl Marx's journalism-focused writings and a new foreword by James W. Carey, this edition covers intellectual contributions from several German theorists in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as well as first-generation U.S. sociologists who were influenced by this scholarship. A new concluding chapter explores the continuing influence of German social thought and the contemporary shift of paradigms in U.S. communication research, including approaches such as critical (Marxist) and cultural studies. Visit our website for sample chapters

This book explores the imaginative construction of a cultural history of the media in a series of essays that draw on various artistic and intellectual narratives of Western societies and trace incidental encounters with the means of social communication in cultural and political settings.

The development of communication studies has been a lively process of adoption and integration of theoretical constructs from Pragmatism, Critical Theory and Cultural Studies. Critical Communication Studies describes the intellectual and professional forces that have shaped research interests and formed alliances in the pursuit of particular goals.
Hanno Hardt reflects on the need to come to terms with the role of history in academic work and locates the intellectual history within the context of competing social theories. The book provides a substantive foundation for understanding the field and will be a major text in all courses dealing with communication history and theory.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203133129

The American Journalism History Reader presents important primary texts-news articles and essays about journalism from all stages of the history of the American press-alongside key works of journalism history and criticism. The volume aims to place journalism history in its theoretical context, to familiarize the reader with essential works of, and about, journalism, and to chart the development of the field. The reader moves chronologically through American journalism history from the eighteenth-century to the present, combining classic sources and contemporary insights. Each century's section begins with a critical introduction, which establishes the social and political environment in which the media developed to highlight the ideological issues behind the historical period.