Customer Reviews

Mediapolitik: How the Mass Media Have Transformed World Politics

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Not often is a book published that truly is seminal, in that it introduces a definitive new way of looking at history and today. Mediapolitik is essentially the politics of the media, how media, particularly in modern times, not only reports politics but also participates in it. Using examples throughout the 20th century, Lee Edwards also is able to tell griping stories that illustrate why the liberating effects of media worked to free the eastern block, but failed in China, even after Tiananmen Square.

Argued also is that those in media must understand the power they possess, and that they must consciously adopt a philosophy to guide them to responsibility. Comprehensive, insightful, and even entertaining, this book would do well as a base text in a college course as well as enjoyable and enlightening to the casual reader. Edwards not only asks numerous questions, which in the end of this kind of research anyone could do, he actually offers some answers, although leaves which answers are best to the reader.

Anybody interested in the history of the transformation of politics using the media this is the only book to read.
Lee Edwards, in twelve chapters, explains in an extremely detailed way the reality of what has happened in certain issues in history and how the media has been involved to change the course of things.
The author gives a fine description on how the media behaves in different parts of the world and even gives great pointers on how a journalist should work.
Not many books like this have been written and I sourly doubt that there will ever be another book about Media and Politics so complete as this one.