Power Without Responsibility

Book excerpt: Power Without Responsibility is a classic introduction to the history, sociology, theory and politics of the media in Britain. It is an essential guide, both for students and teachers of media and communication studies, and for all those involved in the production and consumption of the media. The new edition has been substantially revised to bring it right up-to-date with developments in the media industry, new media technologies and changes in the political and academic debates surrounding media policy. In this new edition, the authors consider: * whether we are on the threshold of a new communications revolution * the role of global media empires * the rise of video, cable and satellite * the global information society and contradictions in media policy * the BBC and broadcasting at the end of the 1990s * the evolving relationship of the press and the Conservative party. Assessing the press and broadcasting at a time of radical change, the authors suggest a manifesto for media reform.