In this introductory textbook, the author contextualises approaches and theories on cornmunication studies by making use of local examples from the mass media, as well as relevant political and social experiences. The book is divided into two parts. The first provides students with a strong foundation in communication while the second focuses on the areas of specialisation within communication studies. Each chapter starts with the learning Outcomes and a short overview of the chapter. Students can monitor their learning by using the summaries and 'test yourself' questions at the end of every chapter. Scenarios provide examples of how the theory can be applied in practice. This makes for a learner-friendly and accessible book which will prove invaluable to Students and professionals alike. Beginner students majoring in Communication Studies, as well as those studying towards various degrees or qualifications where communication is a prerequisite will find this book useful.

The second edition of this widely used introductory textbook updates the work to take accounts of developments in the last few years. John Fiske's study equips the reader with a range of methods of analysing examples of communication in our society, together with a critical awareness of the theories underpinning them. The reader will be able to tease out the latent cultural meanings in such apparently simple communications as news photos or popular TV programmes.

This publication aims to introduce undergraduate students to the research practices of communication science, with the emphasis on fundamental and basic research.

Introduces history and basics of human communication, covering the communication process, functions of communication, language and communication, non-verbal communication, interpersonal communication, listening, public speaking, and mass communication.

This book is a philosophical introduction to the field of communication and media studies. In search of the philosophical backgrounds of that relatively young field, the book explores why this overwhelmingly popular discipline is in crisis. The book discusses classic introductions on communication, provides an update on lessons learned, and re-evaluates the work of pioneers in the light of up-to-date philosophical standards. It summarizes various debates surrounding the foundations of system theory and especially its applicability to the Social Sciences in general and to Communication Studies in particular. Communication schools promise their students an understanding of the source of a principal and dynamical power in their lives, a power shaping societies and identities, molding aspirations, and deciding their fates. They also promise students a practical benefit, a chance to learn the secret of controlling that dynamical power, improving a set of skills that would ensure them a critical edge in the future job market: become better media experts for all media. Yet no one seems to know how such promises are met. Can there be a general theory of communication? If not, what can (should) communication students learn? This book looks at the problem from a philosophical perspective and proposes a framework wherein critical cases can be tested.

This book brings together a huge range of material including academic articles, film scripts and interplanetary messages adrift on space probes with supporting commentary to clarify their imporatance to the field. Communication Studies: The Essential Resource is a collection of essays and texts for all those studying communication at university and pre-university level. Individual sections address: * texts and meanings in communication * themes in personal communication * communication practice * culture, communication and context * debates and controversies in communication. Edited by the same teachers and examiners who brought us AS Communication Studies: The Essential Introduction, this volume will help communications students to engage with the subject successfully. Its key features include: * suggested further activities at the end of each chapter * a glossary of key terms * a comprehensive bibliography with web resources.

Communication research is evolving and changing in a world of online journals, open-access, and new ways of obtaining data and conducting experiments via the Internet. Although there are generic encyclopedias describing basic social science research methodologies in general, until now there has been no comprehensive A-to-Z reference work exploring methods specific to communication and media studies. Our entries, authored by key figures in the field, focus on special considerations when applied specifically to communication research, accompanied by engaging examples from the literature of communication, journalism, and media studies. Entries cover every step of the research process, from the creative development of research topics and questions to literature reviews, selection of best methods (whether quantitative, qualitative, or mixed) for analyzing research results and publishing research findings, whether in traditional media or via new media outlets. In addition to expected entries covering the basics of theories and methods traditionally used in communication research, other entries discuss important trends influencing the future of that research, including contemporary practical issues students will face in communication professions, the influences of globalization on research, use of new recording technologies in fieldwork, and the challenges and opportunities related to studying online multi-media environments. Email, texting, cellphone video, and blogging are shown not only as topics of research but also as means of collecting and analyzing data. Still other entries delve into considerations of accountability, copyright, confidentiality, data ownership and security, privacy, and other aspects of conducting an ethical research program. Features: 652 signed entries are contained in an authoritative work spanning four volumes available in choice of electronic or print formats. Although organized A-to-Z, front matter includes a Reader’s Guide grouping entries thematically to help students interested in a specific aspect of communication research to more easily locate directly related entries. Back matter includes a Chronology of the development of the field of communication research; a Resource Guide to classic books, journals, and associations; a Glossary introducing the terminology of the field; and a detailed Index. Entries conclude with References/Further Readings and Cross-References to related entries to guide students further in their research journeys. The Index, Reader’s Guide themes, and Cross-References combine to provide robust search-and-browse in the e-version.

This book focuses on seven entries in Carl R. Burgchardt’s Readings in Rhetorical Criticism, to which it adds a complementary effort. While maintaining a strategy of ongoing dialogue with both the prospective reader and the texts under scrutiny, the book acknowledges the author’s privileged moment of essential identification and represents a step out of the limiting frame of the inherently political character of inquiry. This allows the book to present personal narrative about guidance by specific critics such as Edwin Black, Forbes Hill, Karlyn Khors Campbell, Kenneth Burke, William Lewis, and Raymie McKerrow through the labyrinth of “that Leviathan, the public mind” (H. Wichelns). The volume mediates a cross-cultural re-conceptualization of academic writing, more adequately inscribed within the symbolic border between the consolidated American and other fragile profiles of the discipline of Communication Studies.

Written in an accessible style using simple and direct language this guide takes students through the statistics actually used in most empirical research in communication and the social sciences. The text also includes a full set of data analysis instructions based on SPSS 12 and Excel.