"Daya Thussu's book rescues the concept of soft power from American hands and applies it insightfully to India, and the concept is made richer and more useful as a result. With its dynamic and prosperous diaspora, the growing global popularity of its spiritual beliefs and practice, its reach as a gl
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obal economic and technological powerhouse, and even its cherished cuisine, India's growing soft power potential is evident. Yet Thussu also takes a hard look at the impediments that stand in the way of India taking full advantage of its soft power appeal." (Steven Livingston, Professor of Media and Public Affairs and International Affairs, George Washington University)
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"Bringing together the perspectives of more than 40 internationally acclaimed authors, The Handbook of Global Media Research explores competing methodologies in the dynamic field of transnational media and communications, providing valuable insight into research practice in a globalized media landsc
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ape; provides a framework for the critical debate of comparative media research; posits transnational media research as reflective of advanced globalization processes, and explores the role and responsibility this bestows it with; articulates the key themes and competing methodological approaches in a dynamic and developing field; showcases the perspectives and ideas of 30 leading internationally acclaimed scholars; offers a platform for the discussion of crucial issues from a variety of theoretical, methodical and practical viewpoints." (Publisher description)
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"Almost entirely rewritten and updated, Global Journalism addresses the most pertinent issues and problems in today's global journalism and media environments, whilst providing an extensive overview of journalism throughout the world. This new edition recognizes the vast and rapid changes taking pla
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ce in international journalism. Its three interlinking parts first offer a thorough discussion of global media theoretical approaches; then survey the main issues confronting journalists, media organizations, audiences, and others in the media world, and thirdly focus on the media of the world's eight major regions." (Publisher description)
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"We have argued throughout this book that the various versions of the cultural convergence thesis are deeply flawed, whether one has in mind the ‘media imperialism’ argument that was fashionable during the 1970s, the ‘Coca-colonization’ claim that was popular during the 1990s, or contemporar
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y approaches advocating ‘cultural protectionism.’ The convergence thesis rests on the premise that repeated exposure to the ideas and images transmitted by CNN International, MTV, and Hollywood will gradually undermine indigenous values and norms. Consequently, many deeply conservative cultures fear that opening the floodgates to the American or Western media will erode faith in religion, respect for marriage and the family, and deference toward traditional sources of authority. But earlier chapters demonstrated how lack of access to globalized mass communications persists in many poor nations, limiting the diffusion of Western ideas and images. This book has documented the existence of multiple firewalls that prevent the mass media from penetrating parochial societies and thus influencing the culture in these places." (Page 261)
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"Media on the Move provides a critical analysis of the dynamics of the international flow of images and ideas. This comes at a time when the political, economic and technological contexts within which media organisations operate are becoming increasingly global. The surge in transnational traffic in
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media products has primarily benefited the major corporations such as Disney, AOL, Time Warner and News Corporation. However, as this book argues, new networks have emerged which buck this trend: Brazilian TV is watched in China, Indian films have a huge following in the Arab world and Al Jazeera has become a household name in the West. Combining a theoretical perspective on contra-flow of media with grounded case studies into one up-to-date and accessible volume, Media on the Move provides a much-needed guide to the globalization of media, going beyond the standard Anglo-American view of this evolving phenomenon." (Publisher description)
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"The purpose of this book, explained further in Chapter One, is to place before the media scholar, the historicity and continuity in structures of colonialism, postcolonialism, and media globalization around the world. Obviously these are not clearly demarcated processes and colonized countries have
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been implicated centrally in such processes as much as their colonial masters who have been the focus of a majority of theory and research in international communication. In its linkage of case studies to interdisciplinary theory, the book draws the reader into various strains of critical dialogue in the field – a dialogue that has predominantly, and unfortunately, been the prerogative of graduate studies. The scope of case studies included then, is necessarily broad. Theoretical interpretations that connect case studies could merit individual books themselves, and are provided in this book inasmuch as they advance the narrative and contextualize the examples. Through this strategy, the book presents to the reader crucial theoretical issues in the fi eld and demonstrates how they are grounded (or not) in reality. The book also attempts to recharge international media research with the political energy that informed its origins, particularly in Latin America and South Asia. It identifies the signifi cant moments in political and academic history that have fashioned international media studies, and through extensive examples, lays bare areas that require further research. Such a task is undertaken recognizing the theoretically and empirically rich writing that has gone before, and piecing together such writing to offer a comparative and ethical analysis of the fi eld. The postcolonial framework informs this project for its direct and stunningly clear focus on the historicity of international interactions and its activist component that awards the student some direction for social justice." (Preface, page x-xi)
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