Power Without Responsibility: Press, Broadcasting and the Internet in Britain

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.

Table of Contents:
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