Exploring Mass Communication: Connecting with the World of Media

Vincent F. Filak named next editor for Journalism and Mass Communication Educator Exploring Mass Communication examines the many paths that led to our digital media world and how digital media both connects and disconnects us. While providing the need-to-know concepts, history, and theories, Vincent F. Filak urges students to critically think about how media affects them, and how they can best engage with media to improve their everyday lives. Through Filak′s conversational and personable style, the text interweaves inclusivity and diversity throughout, presenting a modern and fresh approach that today’s students will connect with. This title is accompanied by a complete teaching and learning package. Learning Platform / Courseware Sage Vantage is an intuitive learning platform that integrates quality Sage textbook content with assignable multimedia activities and auto-graded assessments to drive student engagement and ensure accountability. Unparalleled in its ease of use and built for dynamic teaching and learning, Vantage offers customizable LMS integration and best-in-class support. It’s a learning platform you, and your students, will actually love.. Assignable Video with Assessment Assignable video (available in Sage Vantage) is tied to learning objectives and curated exclusively for this text to bring concepts to life. LMS Cartridge: Import this title’s instructor resources into your school’s learning management system (LMS) and save time. Don’t use an LMS? You can still access all of the same online resources for this title via the password-protected Instructor Resource Site.

Table of Contents:
Part I: Understanding Today′s Media World Chapter 1: Media Basics: Models and Theories What Is Media? How Do We Use Media to Interact? What Does Media Do to Us? From Media Consumer to Media Creator Chapter 2: Media Audiences and Uses From Age to Interests: A Brief Look at How to Define an Audience Media Literacy Why Do We Consume Media? Is Media Use Risky? The Era of “Demassification” Chapter 3: Media Systems and Corporate Ownership A Basic Overview of Global Media Systems A Brief History of Media Ownership and Control Digital Media Disruptors Impact of Ownership Consolidation Part II: Traditional Media Chapter 4: Books: The Original Mass Medium From Stone Tablets to Digital Tablets: A Brief History of Text Role of Books The Process of Developing, Writing, Publishing, and Selling Books Censorship and the Movement to Ban Books Jobs in Publishing Chapter 5: Print Journalism: Newspapers and Magazines A Brief History of News Publications Role of Newspapers and Magazines Is Print Dead or Is It Evolving? Careers in Print Journalism Chapter 6: Radio and Other Audio Formats A Brief History of Audio Media Television Competition and the Shift to the Niches Rules and Regulations The Role of Radio in Society Jobs in Audio Media Chapter 7: Movies A Brief History of Movies The Role of Movies How Movies Are Made Viewer Discretion Advised: Ratings and Social Acceptability Jobs in Movies and Film Production Chapter 8: Television A Brief History of Television The Many Benefits of Entertainment Television The Role of Broadcast Journalism How TV Has Adapted to Technological Advances Is Television a “Vast Wasteland”? Jobs in Television Part III: Digital Media Chapter 9: The All-Consuming Internet From Military Tool to Daily Necessity: A Brief History of the Internet Role of the Internet Media Monopoly 2.0 The Dark Corners and Negative Consequences of the Internet Jobs Working with Online Media Chapter 10: Social Media From Six Degrees to TikTok: A Brief History of Social Media Defining and Differentiating Social Media Examining Social Media Approaches The Value of Social Media Uses and Gratifications of Social Media Jobs Related to Social Media Chapter 11: Videogames and Gaming as Media A Brief History of Video Games: From Cathode Rays to Fortnite Game Typology and Genres Gaming Crossovers Role of Video Games Understanding Flow and the Value of Video Games Jobs Related to Video Games Part IV: Strategic Media Chapter 12: Public Relations and Persuasion A Brief History of Public Relations Defining and Explaining Public Relations Using Persuasion in Public Relations Key Elements of Successful PR Communication Tools for Public Relations Jobs in PR Chapter 13: Advertising and Marketing A Brief History of Advertising Defining and Explaining Advertising Exploring Advertising Options Advertising and Society Jobs in Advertising Part V: Rules and Values Chapter 14: Media and the Law Free Speech, Free Press, and the First Amendment Beyond the First Amendment: Regulators and Regulations Defamation, Libel, and Slander Invasion of Privacy That’s Mine! Copyright Law and Protections Jobs in Media Law Chapter 15: Ethics: What We Value What Are Ethics and Why Do They Matter? Some Basic Ethical Models The Basic Elements of Media Ethics Working through Ethical Dilemmas Determining Your Own Approach to Ethics Jobs in Media Ethics Glossary Notes Index

About the Author :
Vincent F. Filak, Ph.D., is an award-winning teacher and scholar who serves as a professor of journalism at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, where he primarily teaches courses on media writing and reporting. Prior to his arrival at UWO, he served on the faculty at Ball State University and also taught courses at the University of Missouri and the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He also previously worked for the Wisconsin State Journal and the Columbia Missourian newspapers. He was also unanimously voted and selected as the next editor of Journalism & Mass Communication Educator by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. The Associated Collegiate Press honored him as part of the organization’s inaugural class of Pioneer Award Winners in 2022. The Scholastic Journalism Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication presented him with the Educator of the Year award in 2021, a year after he was honored by the National Society of Leadership and Success with an Excellence in Teaching award. In 2019, he received the Friend of KEMPA award for his work with high school journalism students through the Kettle Moraine Press Association. In addition, he has received awards from the College Media Association (CMA) and the National Scholastic Press Association for his work as a college media adviser and a mentor to high school journalists. As a scholar, Filak has received thirteen top conference paper awards, including those from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, the Broadcast Education Association, and the International Public Relations Society of America. He has published more than thirty scholarly, peer-reviewed articles in top-tier journals, including Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, Journalism and Mass Communication Educator, the Newspaper Research Journal, the Atlantic Journal of Communication, Journalism: Theory, Practice and Criticism, the Howard Journal of Communication, Educational Psychology, and the British Journal of Social Psychology. He is also the winner of CMA’s Nordin Research Award, which goes to the best research paper completed on a topic pertaining to media advisers within a given year. He has published several textbooks in the field of journalism, including Dynamics of Media Writing (SAGE), Dynamics of News Reporting and Writing (SAGE), Dynamics of Media Editing (SAGE), Convergent Journalism (Focal), and The Journalist’s Handbook to Online Editing (with Kenneth Rosenauer; Pearson). He also blogs about media-related topics at DynamicsOfWriting.com. xxivHe lives outside Auroraville, Wisconsin, with his wife, Amy, and their daughter, Zoe.

Review :
Filak′s Exploring Mass Communication is current and relevant, as well as pedagogically significant. The style is helpful to educators and students alike. Not as verbose as other textbooks on the topic, he puts the "less is more" strategy in place without sacrificing quality. It′s very diverse and inclusive in each chapter with the achievements and contributions by individuals and groups usually overlooked by other media textbooks. It has a mix of examples, questions, and tables that help the students grasp the content. Exploring Mass Communication is a modern read based upon the history and evolution of human communication across multiple genres. It adeptly blends the origination of communication methods with current and breaking technologies and trends. The text is an easy read for students, making it both understandable and relatable to students of various levels. This feels like the book on mass media and communication that I′ve been waiting for. It incorporates a little bit of everything, ranging from theory to practice; it covers all of the media industries, from old to new; and it even delves into the related industries of advertising and PR, while also exploring both law and ethics as separate concepts. I′m very excited about this text and would not hesitate to adopt it--or recommend it. Filak accessibly presents mass communication using current examples that easily relate to students. The book′s more casual language will help novice students connect to academic concepts and disciplinary knowledge. Filak′s not afraid to weave the day′s current events into the ever-evolving study and practice of mass communication. His timelines provide a wonderful historical perspective beyond listing names and dates, and he raises and discusses fundamental points that all media literate consumers need to hear to understand the power and scope of mass communication has on everyone who calls Earth home. Filak′s use of up-to-date examples and a conversational tone make the text relevant and relatable to students. The book is well written, and approaches the material in an accessible, relatable fashion. The tone is appropriate and engaging for students, and it does an excellent job creating a relationship between "real world" examples and experiences to theoretical concepts and historical events. Exploring Mass Communication presents a strong introduction to mass communication through an emphasis on understanding the history, study, and literacy around media as a part of our society and everyday lives.