Product Description

The tremendous growth of the so-called information superhighway has opened countless new channels for media, but only a very few opportunities for control of these channels. In this book, the author of Telecommunications, Mass Media, and Democracy traces the emergence of the global media monopoly, describes what the main players are up to, and details how the Internet is being brought under their control.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #361643 in Books
• Published on: 2003-07-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 79 pages

Amazon.com Review
If we believe that an informed populace is an integral part of a successfully active democracy, writes Robert W. McChesney, then the commercial basis of U.S. media, in which a substantial number of media outlets are owned by a handful of corporations, is definite cause for concern. When corporations control the flow of information, he suggests, they will inevitably do so in a way that promotes their own interests over those of the citizenry. From an analysis of the corporate influence over the 1934 Communications Act to a discussion of how media convergence might kill off hope of the Internet bringing about a revolution, he debunks the myth of an objective, liberal media and emphasizes the belief that issues of media ownership should be treated as matters of public policy rather than strictly business.

About the Author
Heraled as a modern day Thomas Paine and "one of the nation's most important analysts of the media," McChesney has written or edited 8 books, including "Telecommunications, Mass Media, and Democracy" and "Rich Media, Poor Democracy." He's a professor at the University of Illinois and hosts a weekly radio show on WILL-AM.

Customer Reviews

A great book, if you can handle the truth.
While most media criticism looks at the personal politics of reporters and editors or other such nonsense, McChesney's terrific little book examines the news industry as an industry. Out of this analysis comes eye-opening revelations about why we get such a narrow perspective in the mainstream news, and why there is so little news reporting available that could serve to upset the corporate status quo.

McChesney is not a conspiracy theorist. This book is loaded with solid data and analysis that shows how our news providers are owned and organized and allowed to operate. And it is written in plain, clear language that anyone can understand.

The book might be hard to accept for people who think they already have it all figured out, but for everyone else it goes a long way toward explaining how our news and politics can remain so static when virtually everyone is unhappy with what they are getting from both.

Get it, read it, and lend it out to everyone you know.

good, but theres more....
this book is brief and covers some of the basics of the corporate controlled media issue. for more in-depth coverage of controlled media as related to its social implications, read the authors "rich media, poor democracy." For those with short attention spans, this book will suffice.

Short, Simple, Clear: Demcoracy is At Stake
If you want a handy resource on media mergers and corporate consolidation - This is the book for you.