Out of Print: Newspapers, Journalism and the Business of News in the Digital Age 1st Edition

by Professor George Brock (Author)

18 ratings

ISBN-13: 978-0749466510

ISBN-10: 9780749466510

Why is ISBN important?

Share <Embed>

Other Sellers

from

Other Sellers

See all 3 versions

Used: Good | Details

Sold by glenthebookseller

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

$3.98 delivery May 12 - 18. Details

Or fastest delivery May 10 - 13. Details

Only 3 left in stock - order soon.

Ships from and sold by City By The Light 💫.

List Price: $45.99 Details

Save: $34.00 (74%)

$3.99 delivery May 12 - 17. Details

Or fastest delivery May 6 - 10. Details

News and journalism are in the midst of upheaval: shifts such as declining print subscriptions and rising website visitor numbers are forcing assumptions and practices to be rethought from first principles. The internet is not simply allowing faster, wider distribution of material: digital technology is demanding transformative change. Out of Print analyzes the role and influence of newspapers in the digital age and explains how current theory and practice have to change to fully exploit developing opportunities.
In Out of Print George Brock guides readers through the history, present state and future of journalism, highlighting how and why journalism needs to be rethought on a global scale and remade to meet the demands and opportunities of new conditions. He provides a unique examination of every key issue, from the phone-hacking scandal and Leveson Inquiry to the impact of social media on news and expectations. He presents an incisive, authoritative analysis of the role and influence of journalism in the digital age.

Online supporting resources for this book include downloadable lecture slides.

Tarleton Gillespie
30
Hardcover
25 offers from $5.07

Editorial Reviews

Review

"When George Brock talks, in his excellent book, about the "disruption" of the net, the atomisation of news and opinion, he evokes echoes of a different era: an unruly world of vituperation, agitation, even revolution. But this time it may not be the melee of new voices that crowded the pages of centuries past. This time it's a higgledy-piggledy high-tech empowerment that politicians (and editors) can't control." ― Peter Preston, The Guardian

"...optimistic without being sentimental, thought-provoking without being pretentious and realistic without being harsh, which makes it comforting for someone with a keen interest in seeing journalism prevail and hopefully eye-opening for those who wish to better understand it." ― Madeleine Maccar, Chicago Center for Literature and Photography

"Brock is a journalist at heart. His confession at the start of the book reveals that in ample measure. The book is in some ways a response to a taunt by a business columnist that had doubted the ability of a journalism professor to offer credible and useful advice on business. By the time you finish reading the book, you realise that Brock has more than addressed that concern [...] What clearly stands out in Brock's analysis is his articulation of the changing paradigm of the journalism business." ― Business Standard

"Brock's stance is refreshing and the book is a pleasure to read." ― Word News Publishing Focus

"Seeking to reassure the doom-mongers, [George Brock] delves back into the history of journalism and demonstrates the shaky beginnings and rapid innovation that powered news journalism for three centuries before the maturation and slow decline of the business in the 20th century. His précis of the history is fascinating and elegantly done." ― Emily Bell, New Statesman

"

...makes a significant contribution in the field of journalism studies work on the future
of journalism. Out of Print: Newspapers, Journalism and the Business of News in the Digital Age offers a solid grounding for those looking for a quick brush-up with some current concerns facing the press, as well as a clear grounding in the newspaper crisis that arguably begins back in the 1920s or even 1880s. The compelling argument about industrialization and decline is particularly unique, and the merits of finally having a clear and approachable Leveson breakdown for a global audience is most welcome.

" ― Nikki Usher, International Journal of Communication

"The great virtue of Brock's book is that it deals comprehensively, intelligently and unsentimentally with the entire range of major questions about journalism now [...] it is the best single source available for context about the situation as a whole." ― Nicholas Lemann, The Times Literary Supplement

About the Author

George Brock is a professor and former head of the prestigious Graduate School of Journalism at City University London. During his career as a journalist he worked for the Observer and The Times, where he was Foreign Editor, Managing Editor and Saturday Editor. He has served as president of the World Editors Forum and is on the board of the International Press Institute. He is a regular commentator on news and journalism in the UK and global media and is an active conference speaker and reviewer.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0749466510
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Kogan Page; 1st edition (September 24, 2013)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780749466510
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0749466510
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.1 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.14 x 0.79 x 9.21 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,349,760 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #940 in Journalism
- #1,273 in Media & Communications Industry (Books)
- #4,328 in Journalism Writing Reference (Books)

Customer Reviews:
18 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		49%
4 star		23%
3 star		19%
2 star		9%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

How customer reviews and ratings work

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Diana

Not remarkable

Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2017

Verified Purchase

I can't remember anything new that I learned

Helpful

Khan

Insightful read, but difficult to get through

Reviewed in the United States on May 14, 2015

Verified Purchase

Very hard to get through because it goes into far too much detail. Arguably would be mildly easier for those in or interested in British media. Nonetheless the book does a good job of documenting how the media have shaped public opinion for centuries. Have not read anything like that before.

Helpful

Cliente de Amazon

A very useful and entertaining book about the business of journalism

Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2014

Verified Purchase

A very useful and entertaining book about the business of journalism. What I liked most about it is that it traces the origins of the business of journalism making this book a good primer about that subject.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Drew Jacobs

An Essential Read

Reviewed in the United States on August 27, 2014

Verified Purchase

Essential reading for everyone in the business and those teaching the next generation of students that want to work in news. Providing a historical perspective of journalism along with contemporary issues helps you understand where the news industry must go in order to survive.

Helpful

Dr. Laurence Raw

Clear-Eyed Dissection of the Contemporary Newspaper Industry (with a British focus)

Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2014

OUT OF PRINT takes a long, hard look at the British newspaper industry - its past, present and future. The author, a former journalist with many years of experience - for example, at the London SUNDAY TIMES - looks at the way in which newspapers acquired a position of considerable primacy in British cultures from the mid-eighteenth to the late twentieth centuries, a position that is now under threat through digitization. Brock is well aware of how the internet has changed the ways in which readers consume news - looking for outlets other than that of the newspapers and exercising freedom of choice, as well as making the news themselves through blogs. On the other hand, he believes that there is a future for the printed newspaper - perhaps the circulation figures will not be as substantial as they were in the past, but Brock understands how many readers prefer paper to the screen, even if they own an IPad or a smartphone. Ultimately OUT OF PRINT calls for the newspaper industry to become more flexible, to reject its antediluvian practices of the past, both in terms of news-gathering and distribution, and adapt itself to changing practices. A combination of the tried and tested, the reliable and the trustworthy, allied to new, innovative methods of delivering the news, both in print and online, seems like the formula for future success. Perhaps the book is a little too parochial in focus (there is too much on the Leverson inquiry, and not enough on developments within the American newspaper industry), but it is nonetheless well written and highly accessible.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

John Gibbs

Lessons in digital disruption

Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2013

Many busy people take journalism for granted, but the disruption of journalism should be a matter of urgent concern to democratic societies because the free flow, integrity and independence of journalism is essential to citizens who vote, according to journalism professor George Brock in this book. The book aims to explain why the news media is undergoing radical alteration, and what the result ought to be and might be.

The book provides an entertaining overview of the history of journalism, from its messy and opinionated beginnings featuring sensational and unreliable news stories through to the Leveson Inquiry in 2011 and 2012 into the culture, practices and ethics of the British press following the News International phone hacking scandal. In a 2000-page final report, Justice Leveson made a range of recommendations which would improve the protection of privacy in the UK and restrain the excesses of the press.

However, it is not the Leveson recommendations which provide the greatest threat to the press; rather, it is the digital disruption brought about by the Internet. Shrinking subscriber bases and advertising revenue have resulted in the crumbing of the established business model. Experiments have been made with paywalls and meters, but so far no-one has established a clearly viable new business model. The author suggests that news sites which prosper online require:

* a clear and distinct promise of value;
* a lean organisation that only scales up cautiously;
* diverse sources of income;
* niche target audiences served by different sites or contributors;
* high-calibre software;
* proficient capture and use of customer data;
* willingness to experiment

The author is pessimistic about the future of the press as we know it, but optimistic about the future of journalism, which he believes will find new ways to address financial sustainability. In my view the book provides some useful lessons for other types of businesses which are at a less advanced stage along the path to digital disruption.

6 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

Stephen Dorril

Disappointing

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 14, 2013

Verified Purchase

I really looked forward to reading this but on doing so found it to be a major disappointment. The subtitle is 'Newspapers, journalism and the business of news in the digital age' - well, the first 70 pages are irrelevant to that. A very nicely written history of the press, which is quite impressive but containing little new, little in way of new thinking and not really the link to the digital age that the author was aiming for. It is true that the long decline of newspaper circulation began in the late '50s but Brock doesn't provide enough on the reasons for this and misses some key points.

Brock really should have used his skills as an editor on the rest because it is a bit of a mish-mash of (admittedly interesting) material which gets quite boring with its style - on the one hand surveys say this but on the other... There are some good parts but they tend to get lost in the statistics and the tendency to write small sections, rather like lists. It is a collection of material rather than in-depth research. It lacks a cohesive argument and really doesn't do enough on the business side and fails to put this into the context of the wider economic system at play at particular times. A missed opportunity.

* Interesting and rather absurd 'Publisher's Note' in the book.

vicenza

Impressive range and clarity

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 5, 2013

Verified Purchase

As a general consumer and observer of the news media I found this book very informative and enjoyable. The historical introduction brings out how unusual the newspapers with which those of us in the UK and US grew up were. The author then discusses how newspapers have tried to respond to the loss of much of the advertising market before turning to new ways of doing journalism using the web. He has assembled an impressive corpus of examples from across the world, but so far many are still at an experimental stage. The writing throughout is clear and energetic. the examples often colourful and the judgements measured. It will fascinating to go back and re-read the book in 20 years' time.

Harald Brandstetter

Derzeit die beste Quelle für den Status in Sachen Print

Reviewed in Germany on August 28, 2014

Verified Purchase

Wie geht es Zeitungen und dem gedruckten Journalistmus in Zeiten der Online-Medien? Seit fast zwanzig Jahren hören wir vom Sterben der Printmedien. Erstaunlich viele gibt es immer noch, manche machen sogar noch Gewinne - etlichen Konzernen sind die Margen zu gering, aber das macht Printmedien noch lange nicht grundsätzlich unrentabel.
Wohin geht die Reise? George Brock hat zu diesem Fragenkomplex das derzeit beste Buch geschrieben.

Translate review to English

Kenneth David Popert

A well-documented, interesting and readable analysis of the origins ...

Reviewed in Canada on August 14, 2014

Verified Purchase

A well-documented, interesting and readable analysis of the origins and history of the newspaper revenue and circulation decline that began decades ago and accelerated into a crisis with the arrival of the internet.

nicholas

thoroughly recommended. eminently readable and informative.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 16, 2013

Verified Purchase

excellent guide to decline of a great industry but also very useful insights into how journalism may prosper in the future.

See all reviews

Out of Print: Newspapers, Journalism and the Business of News in the Digital Age 1st Edition

Buy used: $1.90

Buy new: $11.99

Customers who bought this item also bought

Editorial Reviews

Review

About the Author

Product details

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Top reviews from other countries

Buy used:

$1.90

Buy new:

$11.99