A History of Communications
Media and Society from the Evolution of Speech to the Internet
Published on 6. December 2010
Book
Paperback/Softback
352 pages
978-0-521-17944-7 (ISBN)
Description
A History of Communications advances a theory of media that explains the origins and impact of different forms of communication - speech, writing, print, electronic devices and the Internet - on human history in the long term. New media are 'pulled' into widespread use by broad historical trends and these media, once in widespread use, 'push' social institutions and beliefs in predictable directions. This view allows us to see for the first time what is truly new about the Internet, what is not, and where it is taking us.
Reviews / Votes
'Based on a truly impressive range (as well as amount) of reading, arguing an original and convincing thesis, and written in a lucid and engaging style, this book deserves to reach a wide audience of students and scholars alike.' Peter Burke, University of Cambridge 'The ambition and sweep of Marshall Poe's analysis of media make it different from anything else I have read on the topic. Many modern 'consumers' of media, in all its forms, have a vague sense that technological advances are altering their sense of the world in ways they can't fully appreciate in real time. Poe's book is a big advance in helping citizens understand the opportunities and problems the new media landscape offers.' James Fallows, The AtlanticMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
5 Tables, unspecified; 3 Halftones, unspecified; 2 Line drawings, unspecified
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 21 mm
Weight
572 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-521-17944-7 (9780521179447)
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
Additional editions
Marshall T. Poe
A History of Communications
Media and Society from the Evolution of Speech to the Internet
E-Book
01/2011
1st Edition
Cambridge University Press
€26.49
Available for download
Marshall T. Poe
A History of Communications
Media and Society from the Evolution of Speech to the Internet
Book
12/2010
Cambridge University Press
€124.30
Shipment within 15-20 days
Person
Marshall T. Poe, Associate Professor of History at the University of Iowa, is the author or editor of several books, including A People Born to Slavery: Russia in Early Modern European Ethnography (2000), The Russian Elite in the Seventeenth Century (2004) and The Russian Moment in World History (2006). He is the co-founder and editor of Kritika: Explorations in Russian and Eurasian History and founder and host of 'New Books in History' (http://newbooksinhistory.com), as well as a former writer and editor for the Atlantic Monthly. Professor Poe has been a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton University), Harriman Institute (Columbia University) and the Kennan Institute (Washington, DC).
Content
Introduction: media causes and effects; 1. Homo loquens: humanity in the age of speech and memory; 2. Homo scriptor: humanity in the age of manuscripts; 3. Homo lector: humanity in the age of print; 4. Homo videns: humanity in the age of the audio-visual media; 5. Homo somnians: humanity in the age of Internet; Conclusion: the media and human well-being.