Published March 2007
Understanding Global Media offers a comprehensive overview and examination of the global circulation of media forms and products, drawing insight from a range of perspectives - from political economy to cultural studies - not normally brought together in an integrated analysis. Grounded in extensive case study material in order to illustrate key debates and substantiate theoretical arguments, it treats media industries, content, audiences and policies as separate but closely related subjects of study in a structure that lends itself easily to teaching and study purposes.
Published December 2006
What does it mean to regard cinema as technology? How do special effects change our experience of contemporary film? How important is the internet to the film industry? What does it mean for films to be compared to videogames? Cinetech explores these debates and examines the important intersection between film and new media. Providing a comprehensive introduction to the digital practices used in film, this book moves from historical perspectives to up-to-date analysis. Applying these debates through to specific case studies, examples are drawn from recent Hollywood blockbusters such as Star Wars and The Matrix. Case studies, revisions points, exercises and suggestions for further study make this an ideal resource for courses and student assignments in Film Studies and Media Studies.
Published March 2002
'Focusing on visually mediated culture and linguistic discourses, and revealing all as sites of power / knowledge, interpellation and so on, this book will surely seize the imagination of new undergraduates. It will prove helpful to teachers, too, not least because it includes comprehensive exercises and further activities within each chapter. It could therefore constitute a complete course resource.' - Times Higher Education Supplement
Published May 2006
Communication influences everything we do: from our preferences as consumers of goods, to our business interactions in the professional world, to the entertainment choices we make. We are influenced by the messages that come to us and we influence others with our own messages. This book is innovative and diverse in bringing together the main sub-topics of communication studies - text analysis, business communication, mass communication, the media industry and film. In a clear and accessible style, drawing from popular culture examples, the book explains the concepts that guide the study of communication in all its forms. It provides a comprehensive and succinct resource for students of communication and the media, as well as for those interested in careers in these fields.
Published May 2003
This lively and supportive textbook introduces students to the role, practice and influence of the mass media in contemporary society. Emphasizing the social, cultural, political and economic contexts in which the media operate, it provides a clear conceptual framework for understanding the process of media communication and looks at a range of key issues, from news production, to media control and audience reception. This welcome new edition has been thoroughly updated to include substantial new material on the Internet and a more sustained engagement with debates about globalization.
Published May 2002
Media Institutions and Audiences completes Nick Lacey's trilogy of self-standing texts that give an in-depth introduction to the key concepts of Media Studies at an advanced and university level. The book delivers a range of theories and contemporary case studies in its coverage of media business and the influence of regulation and censorship. The issues surrounding the growing co modification of media texts, and the increasing influence of marketing and public relations, are considered. The major approaches to understanding audiences are also investigated.
Published February 2000
'A logically organised and concise introduction to the basic ideas related to narrative and genre. The book 'works' because it is structured the way the material might be taught - in a cumulative manner... His strategy for interweaving concrete examples and theoretical concepts is particularly effective. Its exercises have been thoughtfully conceived to encourage students to think laterally about the concepts.'
- Laurie E. Harnick, Scope
Published July 1998
'This is a stimulating and helpful book, with loads of material and texts from a wide range of media. Despite having to bring in some difficult concepts, Nick Lacey's obvious love and enthusiasm for his subject should encourage and spur his target audience - the post-16 media student - to a more careful and critical approach to all aspects of media texts.' - Media Education Journal
Published March 2006
This essential text provides a detailed account of the complex character of modern television. Covering issues ranging from television's historical development to its impact on culture and society in general, the text provides an insightful analysis of television's strengths and limitations. The book's scope and clarity make it an ideal text for all media students as well as others interested in the historical, cultural and social contexts of broadcasting.
Published May 2005
This concise introduction to the study of film offers an overview of the issues and perspectives that contribute to a full understanding of the medium. The book addresses all the important areas encountered by students studying film for the first time, ranging from a history of Hollywood and British Cinema to an analysis of the key theories of different genres and narratives. It draws on a fund of diverse examples, handled as extended case studies or briefer vignettes, that offer a sensitive mix of the familiar, classic and more unusual aspects of films. With its original narrative line and student-centred philosophy, this book makes for an essential and engaging read for all film enthusiasts approaching the subject for the first time.
Published January 2005
The most comprehensive and accessible text of its kind, Film: An Introduction combines the universal appeal of movies with the academic rigor instructors require. It includes a wider array of films, more help for students, and a broader selection of images than any other introductory book. Combining up-to-date examples and over 500 images with numerous classroom-tested learning tools and study aids, Film: An Introduction helps beginning students develop the critical skills they need to analyse films and understand the medium in all its variety.
Published January 2005
Anatomy of Film is a brief, jargon-free introduction to film appreciation and analysis. Designed to be used in either English or Communication departments, Anatomy of Film helps students new to film develop a critical awareness of cinema without overwhelming them. Offering rich examples from the past and present, the new edition provides deeper coverage of more film types, more discussion of the visual nature of film and new examples of analysis and criticism as models for students.
Published April 2004
The Film Experience provides students with a comprehensive introduction to the formal elements of film, but unlike all other beginning film texts, it uses viewership as its starting place, anchoring the fundamentals of film analysis in film-going experiences students can identify with. By using the relationship between viewers and films as a lens through which students can explore the historical, cultural, and financial issues surrounding the cinema, The Film Experience consciously allows for interpretive strategies beyond formalist analysis. As a result, the book enables students to extract a broad range of complex meanings from the films they watch. Combining these multiple approaches with a fresh, accessible writing style, The Film Experience offers a unique, innovative way to introduce students to film, giving them the technical vocabulary, cultural and historical background, and critical and analytical tools they need for serious film study.
Published October 2006
This new book addresses the key issue of objectivity in journalistic theory and practice. Drawing on his extensive research and teaching experience, Guy Starkey offers a clearly structured, accessible discussion of 'balance' in the media, and the difficulties inherent in both achieving and measuring it. Providing an analysis of theoretical issues, an exploration of practical considerations and a review of methods for assessing journalistic output, it will appeal to all students of journalism and media studies.
Published October 2006
Analysing Newspapers offers both an understanding of newspaper reporting and a means for readers to develop their own critical analysis. Drawing on critical discourse analysis, the text provides students with a practical framework from which to analyze the theory and practice of researching newspaper reporting. Using a wealth of contemporary case studies, students are taught how the language of journalism works - its power, its function and its effects. With key linguistic concepts tools clearly explicated, this book provides students of journalism and media and communication studies with an accessible and user-friendly guide to analyzing newspapers around the globe.
Published March 2001
Mass Media, Politics and Democracy provides a broad ranging overview of all aspects of the relationship between the media and politics. Drawing its examples from a wide range of developed liberal democracies, the book combines an accessible account of the political impact and regulation of the mass media today, with an assessment of the democratic potential and anti-democratic dangers of new media technologies.
Published October 2004
This text provides an accessible introduction and overview of research methods for studying media, communication and culture, drawing on both social science and humanities methodologies. The text covers the strengths, weaknesses, inherent assumptions and theoretical underpinnings of each methodology. It gives clear guidance, regarding how to use the methodologies and situates this in the context of critical evaluations of previously published research, thus encouraging students' development of skills in evaluating their own work and the work of others.
Published May 1998
Offering an introduction to key research methods and approaches for the study of media and mass communications processes, this book starts with a discussion on how to select the right methods for the right research questions, before going on to outline the main methods and approaches for the study of: media organisations; the practices of media professionals; media content and representations; and media audiences. Drawing widely on examples from communications research literature, the authors describe the development and application of each method and the details of the steps involved, giving examples of research instruments as appropriate.
