
Power Without Responsibility
Press, Broadcasting and the Internet in Britain
Routledge (Publisher)
8th Edition
Published on 29. June 2018
Book
Paperback/Softback
572 pages
978-0-415-71042-8 (ISBN)
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Description
This book attacks the conventional history of the press as a story of progress; offers a critical defence and history of public service broadcasting; provides a myth-busting account of the internet; a subtle account of the impact of social media and explores key debates about the role and politics of the media.
It has become a standard book on media and other courses: but it has also gone beyond an academic audience to reach a wider public. Hailed as 'a classic of media history and analysis' by the Irish Times and a book that has 'cracked the canon' by the Times Higher, it has been translated into five languages.
This edition contains six new chapters. These include the press and the remaking of Britain, the rise of the neo-liberal Establishment, the moral decline of journalism, the impact of social media and a history of attempts to reform the press. It contains new research on the relationship between programmes, institutions and society. It places key UK institutions in the wider context of international affairs and their impact. The book has been updated to take account of new developments like Brexit and the rise of Jeremy Corbyn and the shift in authority and legitimacy prompted by social media. It does this with a clear explanation of how policy can shape media outcomes.
It has become a standard book on media and other courses: but it has also gone beyond an academic audience to reach a wider public. Hailed as 'a classic of media history and analysis' by the Irish Times and a book that has 'cracked the canon' by the Times Higher, it has been translated into five languages.
This edition contains six new chapters. These include the press and the remaking of Britain, the rise of the neo-liberal Establishment, the moral decline of journalism, the impact of social media and a history of attempts to reform the press. It contains new research on the relationship between programmes, institutions and society. It places key UK institutions in the wider context of international affairs and their impact. The book has been updated to take account of new developments like Brexit and the rise of Jeremy Corbyn and the shift in authority and legitimacy prompted by social media. It does this with a clear explanation of how policy can shape media outcomes.
Reviews / Votes
'This is the book that changed everything in media studies.'Sally Young, University of Melbourne
'This is a brilliant seminal history of broadcasting, press and the new media, vividly and insightfully told, with sharp vignettes of political interference and policy challenges. It is a powerful reminder of why public service broadcasting and truthful communication is vital to our democracy.'
Baroness Helena Kennedy, President of Mansfield College, Oxford
'This skillfully revised and updated edition of Curran and Seaton's magnificent history is just as fresh and relevant now as it has been over the decades.'
David Hesmondhalgh, Leeds University
'The pleasure of a classic that just keeps redelivering. Power Without Responsibility proves itself yet again as the go-to source for analysis of the British media at their best and worst.'
Barbie Zelizer, Annenberg School of Communication, University of Pennsylvania
'If I was able to suggest one book about the history of journalism - whether to a student, a journalist or someone who simply wanted to know more about the role of the news media in our democracy - it would be Power Without Responsibility. Much of our understanding of the past is altered by the present, so we are all indebted to James Curran and Jean Seaton for this excellent new edition. There has been no shortage of controversies and debates about the news media in recent years: this book guides us through them with a sharp eye, a clear head, and the wisdom that comes from a formidable sense of history. Packed with eloquently delivered information, it is analytical but jargon-free, critical without ever being doctrinaire.'
Justin Lewis, Cardiff University
More details
Edition
8th edition
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
7 s/w Tabellen
7 Tables, black and white
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 31 mm
Weight
878 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-415-71042-8 (9780415710428)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
New editions

James Curran | Jean Seaton
Power Without Responsibility
Press, Broadcasting and the Internet in Britain
Book
09/2024
9th Edition
Routledge
€65.50
Shipment within 10-20 days
Additional editions

James Curran | Jean Seaton
Power Without Responsibility
Press, Broadcasting and the Internet in Britain
Book
06/2018
8th Edition
Routledge
€215.41
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Previous edition

James Curran | Jean Seaton
Power Without Responsibility
Press, Broadcasting and the Internet in Britain
Book
08/2009
7th Edition
Routledge
€57.13
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Persons
James Curran is Professor of Communications at Goldsmiths, University of London.
Jean Seaton is Professor of Media History at the University of Westminster, and Director of the Orwell Foundation.
Jean Seaton is Professor of Media History at the University of Westminster, and Director of the Orwell Foundation.
Content
Part I
Press history
James Curran
Press history as political mythology
The struggle for a free press
Janus face of reform
Industrialization of the press
Era of the press barons
Press under public regulation
Post-war press: fable of progress
Press and the remaking of Britain
Rise of the neo-liberal Establishment
Moral decline of the press
Part II
Broadcasting history
Jean Seaton
Reith and the denial of politics
Broadcasting and the Blitz
Public service commerce: ITV, new audiences and new revenue
Foreign affairs: the BBC, the world and the government
Class, taste and profit
Managers, regulators and broadcasters
Public service under attack
Broadcasting roller-coaster
Part III
Rise of new media
New media in Britain - James Curran
History of the internet - James Curran
Sociology of the internet - James Curran
Social media: making new societies or polarization - Jean Seaton
Part IV
Theories of the media
Jean Seaton
Metabolising Britishness
Global understanding
Broadcasting and the theory of public service
Part V
Politics of the media
Industrial folklore and press reform - James Curran
Contradictions in media policy - James Curran and Jean Seaton
Media reform: democratic choices - James Curran
Bibliography
Index
Press history
James Curran
Press history as political mythology
The struggle for a free press
Janus face of reform
Industrialization of the press
Era of the press barons
Press under public regulation
Post-war press: fable of progress
Press and the remaking of Britain
Rise of the neo-liberal Establishment
Moral decline of the press
Part II
Broadcasting history
Jean Seaton
Reith and the denial of politics
Broadcasting and the Blitz
Public service commerce: ITV, new audiences and new revenue
Foreign affairs: the BBC, the world and the government
Class, taste and profit
Managers, regulators and broadcasters
Public service under attack
Broadcasting roller-coaster
Part III
Rise of new media
New media in Britain - James Curran
History of the internet - James Curran
Sociology of the internet - James Curran
Social media: making new societies or polarization - Jean Seaton
Part IV
Theories of the media
Jean Seaton
Metabolising Britishness
Global understanding
Broadcasting and the theory of public service
Part V
Politics of the media
Industrial folklore and press reform - James Curran
Contradictions in media policy - James Curran and Jean Seaton
Media reform: democratic choices - James Curran
Bibliography
Index