E-Book | Understanding Media and Culture: Mass Media in a Free Society

Table of Contents

• A Note About This Edition
• Acknowledgements 
• Contributors
• Changelog
• Chapter 1: Media and Culture
• Chapter 2: Media Effects
• Chapter 3: Books
• Chapter 4: Newspapers and Magazines
• Chapter 5: Music
• Chapter 6: Radio
• Chapter 7: Movies
• Chapter 8: Television
• Chapter 9: Electronic Games and Entertainment
• Chapter 10: The Internet and Social Media
• Chapter 11: Advertising 
• Chapter 12: Public Relations
• Chapter 13: Economics of Mass Media
• Chapter 14: Media and Government
• Chapter 15: Ethics of Mass Media
• Source Edition - Chapters 1-3
• Source Edition - Chapters 4-6
• Source Edition - Chapters 7-9
• Source Edition - Chapters 10-12
• Source Edition - Chapters 13-16
• Bibliography

About the Book

Mass Media in a Free Society provides an engaging and interesting course experience for students that will not only show them the powerful social, political, and economic forces that will affect the future of media technology but also challenge them to do their part in shaping that future. This 2026 edition is the definitive version of Understanding Media and Culture, featuring extensive updates reflecting modern thought and practices. For questions about this textbook, please contact oer@nic.edu.

Previous edition: Understanding Media and Culture: Mass Media in a Free Society

Accessibility

This open textbook met all accessibility recommendations from Pressbooks, except for some hyperlinked material that leads to PDF files. All images, including those from the public domain, are sourced to their creator.

About the Contributors

Editor

Geoff Carr is a professor of journalism at North Idaho College, where he also serves as OER Coordinator. He was named a Distinguished Advisor by the College Media Association in 2021. He has also edited the OER Messages That Matter: Public Speaking in the Information Age.