• Explores all of the big issues affecting contemporary journalism
• Considers the role journalism plays in an age of global, digital, and social media
• Assesses journalism as a method of entertainment and the ethical issues that raises
• Looks at the issues surrounding copyright and intellectual property
• Offers a global perspective, including examples from around the world

New to this Edition:

• Reflects the growth of social media, online, and electronic journalism
• Considers the impact technology has had on how war and major international issues/crises are dealt with
• Looks at the development of online entertainment journalism, including examples such as Gawker and YouTube
• Explores the impact of issues such as the banking and financial crisis as well as the aftermath of the Leveson Inquiry in the UK
• Includes an updated further reading section

 
Journalism entered the twenty-first century caught in a paradox. The world had more journalism, across a wider range of media, than at any time since the birth of the western free press in the eighteenth century. Western journalists had found themselves under a cloud of suspicion: from politicians, philosophers, the general public, anti-globalization radicals, religious groups, and even from fellow journalists. Critics argued that the news industry had lost its moral bearings, focusing on high investment returns rather than reporting and analysing the political, economic, and social issues of the day.
 
Journalism has a central and profound impact on our worldview; we find it everywhere from newspapers and television, to radio and the Internet. In the new edition of this thought-provoking and provocative Very Short Introduction, Ian Hargreaves examines the world of contemporary journalism. By looking not only at what journalism has been in the past, but also what it is becoming in the digital age, he examines the big issues relating to reportage, warfare, celebrity culture, privacy, and technology worldwide. 
 
 
REVIEWS:

Review from previous edition Hargreaves has written a timely and disturbing account of journalism in peril. - Martin Bell, The Times

Ian Hargreaves is a distinguished journalist and academic with a fine track record of editorial integrity and incisive thought. - Chris Cramer, Director of News, CNN