The power and influence of the mass media grows daily, crucially affecting the way all of us see and understand each other. The No-Nonsense Guide to Global Media introduces readers to the political economy of the major mediafilm, television, radio, recording, publishing and the Internet. Peter Steven looks at the ever greater concentration of ownership and at the convergence of technologies and media functions. At the same time, he emphasizes the diversity of local media production and media around the world. The media is more than the economics of ownership and the technology of production, he stresses; it is also audiences, in all their annoying and wonderful diversity.

Water sustains life: without it, humans cannot survive for more than a few days. And yet this precious fluid is becoming increasingly politicized as the debates about control and ownership of water itself, and of the many organizations which govern its use, gain force. Maggie Black explores the many roles water plays in human life and, as the defense of water rights looks set to become an explosive issue, provides a clear overview on the vital issues of distribution, technology, irrigation, land use and commodification.

Even before 11 September 2001, Muslims were generally viewed in the West as enemies of "freedom" and "progress". Yet there is far more to Islam than the stereotypical Occidental view. This No-Nonsense Guide looks at how Islam, a complex faith and civilization, can reconcile itself with the twenty-first century. Critically minded Muslims everywhere are rethinking and reformulating Islam as a contemporary moral and ethical force. Merryl Wyn Davies and Zia Sardar explain the Islamic worldview, examining the Qur'an and Islamic law (sharia), Islam in history, Islam's relationship with the West and its contemporary nature. They analyse the struggle within the faith for a more humane and holistic interpretation of their religion; examine the issues surrounding women, democracy, and economic development; and suggest how we can all move forward after 9/11.

How much has life really changed for women during the last decade? Has the womens movement affected women all over the world? Has it changed womens relationships with men? Nikki van der Gaag answers these questions with hard, sometimes disturbing, evidence. Many women have made huge leaps forwardin legal rights, political representation, employment, education, healthbut beneath the surface the statistics are shocking. Vivid testimonies from women and men around the world explain why, especially in this post-feminist age, womens rights are still very much an issue for men and women alike. "She has made a special effort to correct many of the misconceptions and biases related to the feminist movement, to link the liberation of women who constitute half of society to the liberation of men and to the dispossessed majority living on earth." from the introduction by Nawal El Saadawi

Virtually any commodity can move around the world to satisfy demand, but human beings have far less freedom. Many would-be migrants are forced to risk life and limb traveling illegally. Yet most rich countries are short of workers, have shrinking populations, and need more immigrants. This is a timely guide to a major issue that is never far from the political headlines. Peter Stalker is a former co-editor of the New Internationalist who now works as a consultant to a number of UN agencies. He has written two books on migration for the International Labor Organization.

This thoroughly revised and updated third edition provides a comprehensive introduction to the various approaches to the field, explaining why media messages matter, how media businesses prosper and why media is integral to defining contemporary life. The text is divided into three parts – Media texts and meanings; Producing media; and Media and social contexts – exploring the ways in which various media forms make meaning; are produced and regulated; and how society, culture and history are defined by such forms. Encouraging students to actively engage in media research and analysis, each chapter seeks to guide readers through key questions and ideas in order to empower them to develop their own scholarship, expertise and investigations of the media worlds in which we live. Fully updated to reflect the contemporary media environment, the third edition includes new case studies covering topics such as Brexit, podcasts, Love Island, Captain Marvel, Black Lives Matter, Netflix, data politics, the Kardashians, President Trump, ‘fake news’, the post-Covid world and perspectives on global media forms. This is an essential introduction for undergraduate and postgraduate students of media studies, cultural studies, communication studies, film studies, the sociology of the media and popular culture.

Western Media Systems offers a critical introduction to media systems in North America and Western Europe. The book offers a wide-ranging survey of comparative media analysis addressing the economic, social, political, regulatory and cultural aspects of Western media systems. Jonathan Hardy takes a thematic approach, guiding the reader through critical issues and debates, introducing key concepts and specialist literature. Western Media Systems is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students studying comparative and global media.

A critical cultural materialist introduction to the study of global entertainment media. In Global Entertainment Media, Tanner Mirrlees undertakes an analysis of the ownership, production, distribution, marketing, exhibition and consumption of global films and television shows, with an eye to political economy and cultural studies. Among other topics, Mirrlees examines: Paradigms of global entertainment media such as cultural imperialism and cultural globalization. The business of entertainment media: the structure of capitalist culture/creative industries (financers, producers, distributors and exhibitors) and trends in the global political economy of entertainment media. The "governance" of global entertainment media: state and inter-state media and cultural policies and regulations that govern the production, distribution and exhibition of entertainment media and enable or impede its cross-border flow. The new international division of cultural labor (NICL): the cross-border production of entertainment by cultural workers in asymmetrically interdependent media capitals, and economic and cultural concerns surrounding runaway productions and co-productions. The economic motivations and textual design features of globally popular entertainment forms such as blockbuster event films, TV formats, glocalized lifestyle brands and synergistic media. The cross-cultural reception and effects of TV shows and films. The World Wide Web, digitization and convergence culture.

Media and Society into the 21st Century captures the breathtaking revolutionary sweep of mass media from the late 19th century to the present day. Updated and expanded new edition including coverage of recent media developments and the continued impact of technological change Newly reworked chapters on media, war, international relations, and new media A new "Web 2.0" section explores the role of blogging, social networking, user-generated content, and search media in media landscape