Living Without the Screen: Causes and Consequences of Life without Television (Lea's Communication) [Paperback]

Marina Krcmar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 28, 2008 | ISBN-10: 080586329X | ISBN-13: 978-0805863291 | Edition: 1

Living Without the Screen provides an in-depth study of those American families and individuals who opt not to watch television, exploring the reasons behind their choices, discussing their beliefs about television, and examining the current role of television in the American family. Author Marina Krcmar answers several questions in the volume: What is television? Who are those people who reject it? What are their reasons for doing so? How do they believe their lives are different because of this choice? What impact does this choice have on media research? This volume provides a current, distinctive, and important look at how personal choices on media use are made, and how these choices reflect more broadly on media’s place in today’s society.

A compelling exploration of the motivations and rationales for those who choose to live without television, this book is a must-read for scholars and researchers working in children and media, media literacy, sociology, family studies and related areas. It will also be of interest to anyone with questions about media usage and the choices families make regarding the role of media in their lives.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Krcmar fills a gap in media studies research... Highly recommended.' - CHOICE

About the Author

Marina Krcmar is an Associate Professor in the Communication Department of Wake Forest University. Her research focuses on children, adolescents, and the media, and her most recent research has examined the effect of violent video games on adolescents and the role of media consumption in adolescent risk-taking.

Product Details

• Paperback: 248 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (August 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 080586329X
• ISBN-13: 978-0805863291
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,070,132 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very important book, March 30, 2010

By 

J. Goddard "Jim Goddard" (Shipley) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Living Without the Screen: Causes and Consequences of Life without Television (Lea's Communication) (Paperback)

These days, there are very few research studies in social sciences where one thinks 'why hasn't this been done before?'. Here is one of them. In truth, a few researchers have looked at television non-viewers but, to my knowledge, none of them has done so in anything like this depth. Krcmar deserves enormous credit for having done so. There is a wealth of worthwhile material and discussion here that should make any social scientist with a pulse engage with the subject of television use in a fresh way.

Moreover, this is a serious, academic treatment. The author strives - sometimes too much, I thought - for detached objectivity and neutrality and adopts a solid methodology. It isn't without its flaws, some more significant than others. For example, I didn't fully accept her theoretical analysis (the failure to deal with Kubey and Csikszentmihalyi's seminal book on television use was a relevant gap here) and I thought her criticisms of Robert Putnam's arguments in 'Bowling Alone' were misplaced. Still, at least the author engages with and tries to use theory to frame her analysis. Moreover, the various findings should form important starting points for a range of further work in this area.

The shelves of libraries and book stores groan with media studies texts. This is more important than 95% of them. The interview material alone is worth the price of the book. I'm an academic, so I'm almost bound to disagree on some theoretical issue or other. However, that doesn't detract from my admiration for this significant contribution to our understanding of the hidden underside of television studies, the 1% or 2% of the population who reject television in their lives. Like the author, I am also a non-watcher of television. I therefore also found it of significant personal interest. We live in a world saturated with television. It's encouraging to be reminded that there are others who realise that there is an alternative.