Conglomerates and the Media [Paperback]

Erik Barnouw (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1998

An examination of the effects on increasing conglomerate control of news and culture, by nine leading insiders and critics. What are the effects of increasing conglomerate ownership on the creation and dissemination of news and culture? Available for the first time in paperback, these nine essays by leading media insiders and critics take probing, critical looks at the dramatic changes of recent years. Opening with a fascinating overview of radio and television history by Erik Barnouw, the "dean of American media critics," the first part of the book features longtime media insiders such as Richard M. Cohen (former CBS Evening News senior producer) and Gene Roberts (managing editor of the New York Times), writing candidly on the effects of increasing profit expectations in the newsroom. In the second part of the book, prominent media analysts, such as Mark Crispin Miller (author of Boxed In), Thomas Schatz (author of The Genius of the System), David Lieberman (USA Today), and Patricia Aufderheide (In These Times), discuss the dumbing-down of the publishing industry, the transformation of Hollywood the increasing importance of merchandising and foreign rights in all media, and the false promise of the digital age. Finally, Thomas Frank (The Baffler) examines advertising and the possibility of resistance to conglomerate control of the media. Contributors include: Patricia Aufderheide, professor of communication at American University; Erik Barnouw, author of A History of Broadcasting in the United States; Richard Cohen, former senior producer of the CBS Evening News; Thomas Frank, editor-in-chief of The Baffier; Todd Gitlin, author of The Twilight of Common Dreams; David Lieberman, media analyst at USA Today; Mark Crispin Miller, author of Boxed In; Gene Roberts, managing editor of the New York Times; and Tom Schatz, author of The Genius of the System.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Many have watched with dismay as conglomerates have gobbled up an increasing number of media companies. This collaborative effort between the New Press and New York University's (NYU) Departments of Culture and Communications, Education, and Journalism addresses that concern. Experts ranging from practitioners to academics were invited to participate in a lecture series hosted by NYU in 1996. Edited versions of their talks appear in this volume. An introduction by media scholar Todd Gitlin is followed by nine individually authored chapters covering media activities from radio and television to newspapers and book publishing. Surveying changes in telecommunications, Aufderheide (communication, American Univ.) calls for public vigilance and a middle ground between the apocalyptic doomsayers and those who believe the new age of communication has dawned. This book will be of value to media scholars as well as to citizens following this issue. For academic and larger public libraries.?Judy Solberg, George Washington Univ. Lib., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Filled with excellent work on the creeping global reach of mass media. -- Mother Jones

Miller's essay on the degeneration of the publishing industry is a model of modulated analysis and curl-your-hair passion. -- Boston Globe

Provocative critiques, gracefully expressed. -- Booklist

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: New Press, The (September 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565844726
• ISBN-13: 978-1565844728
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #155,589 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essays providing insight into a growing area of concern., December 10, 1997

By 

B. Freeman (poughkeepsie NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Conglomerates and the Media (Hardcover)

It is difficult to read Conglomerates and not be alarmed at the growing media control by a few major companies. The book begins with an insightful introduction by noted scholar Todd Gitlin and includes essays from Mark Crispin Miller (Johns Hopkins scholar and author of Boxed In) and David Leiberman (USA Today), among other prominent writers. One discrepency occurs with Lieberman's piece: it is listed in the table of contents as "Conglomerates, News, and Children", but in the chapter it is referred to as "Conglomerates, News, and the Media," leaving the reader to decide the correct version. This book is a must have if you want to gain an understanding of what's happening with media monopolies; Bagdikian fans rejoice! However, it is not chalk full o' references, so students looking for cites to follow may be disappointed. In the introduction, Gitlin echos an earlier statement by Niel Postman (author of Amusing Ourselves to Death): "Big Brother isn't looming, Brave New World is."

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How To Create A Media Conglomerate From Scratch, March 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Conglomerates and the Media (Hardcover)

This book is quite insightful, especially for a Southeast Asian media professional like myself. I recommend this book to everyone, even to those who work in the upper regions of the power sturcture of the media conglomerates critiqued in the collection.

For starters, it is a wonderful overview of how the media economy is shifting all over the world. The US market is saturated, as the book said, and the rest of the world is ripe for picking, especially my country, the Philippines.

This book is a tool to launch our own media analysis of what's happenning in our own countries. And from an analysis, we launch a critique, and from a critique, we launch steps to face the situation.

This book, published by New Media, is invaluable. I first read about it in an issue of Utne Reader. I took down the title and hunted it down in Amazon. I found it, bought it, and consumed it. I loved it because it gave me useful insights to work with.

This is a book I will dog-ear in my attempts to understand what to do in my field, and how to start my own media conglomerate from scratch. I already have my ideas, which I hope aren't just soundbites in my head.

2.0 out of 5 stars interesting subject, mediocre presentation, September 22, 2005

By 

Gabriel H. Rossman "sociologist" (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Conglomerates and the Media (Paperback)

This book consists of a set of lectures delivered at NYU. Although it is apparent that they must have been fascinating speeches, the transmission to the printed word does not remotely do them justice. The most obvious failure is the lack of an index, references, or figures is grating. The problem goes deeper than that as the book is simply not in the style of a written work.
There are many superior works on the subject available, some of them by the same authors who contributed the lecture notes (I hesitate to call them "chapters").