"This book does precisely what you want a textbook to do. It brings students to a wide range of concepts, issues and debates in media studies and sets them within critical, yet accessible, contexts. Through a guided and fully illustrated tour of textual, political, economic, social, technological and regulatory concerns the reader is encouraged to grasp the fundamentals of the field. It is littered with both contemporary and classic examples, links to online resources and probing questions to both cement understanding and challenge assumptions. It is effortless to read and should be the bread and butter of every media student's diet." Natalie Fenton, Goldsmiths, University of London "The fifth edition of The Media Student's Book is the best textbook on the media available on the planet today. It is an invaluable resource not just for students, but also for scholars of media and cultural studies. Beautifully produced, with full-colour images, informative sidebars and information boxes working in tandem with Gill Branston and Roy Stafford's engaging text, the new edition addresses every and any topic in media studies today: documentaries, new media, globalization, advertising, news, and media regulation. With a key chapter on research methods and innumerable ideas for activities, assignments and projects, this book will find a home in media studies courses everywhere." Imre Szeman, University of Alberta, Canada "A terrific new edition, a re-write which takes on the challenges of Web 2 and uses it to explore and analyse the complexity of media production and use. A brilliant introduction to media studies with a range of accessible and up-to-date examples and student exercises which are thought-provoking and engaging. The re-design presents the material vividly and the cross-referencing to the companion website makes this a superb resource. Case studies provide an excellent basis for course activity while the clear advice on research methods and references is invaluable support for project work. The editors are experienced teachers and it shows. Branston and Stafford's enthusiasm for a wide range of media is infectious but they don't shy away from tricky issues like media ownership, regulation and environmental impact. In such a fast-moving world, updating this classic text book was an almost impossible task; to do it so well is a tremendous achievement." Christine Geraghty, University of Glasgow "This is an excellent core text for first year undergraduates, offering breadth, balance and a wealth of guidance towards further reading and research. " Christa van Raalte, Teesside Universitya "The fifth edition of The Media Student's Book is the best edition yet. Its reorganized and revised contents make the material more accessible and also provide valuable updated overviews of contemporary developments in both new and longer-standing forms of media. One of the book's major strengths is its combination of detailed up-to-date accounts of contemporary media forms together with a deeper historical and theoretical perspective. The widespread inclusion of discussions and case studies on media texts and genres which have emerged since the fourth edition also ensures the book's continuing ability to dialogue with media students and to provide a focused account of the contemporary media landscape." Hilary Dannenberg, University of Trier, Germany "This book breaks down the discipline into concepts, then shows how each one links to others. It makes sense of the huge interdisciplinary area of media studies by providing clear definitions of key concepts, illustrated with up-to-date examples and a wealth of external links. The language is simple and direct without being patronising. As well as allowing students to understand different approaches within media studies, this book will be a useful tool in essay writing and other assessment projects. Perhaps most importantly, because of the range of examples used and its thought-provoking style, I think after reading this, students will apply what they read and through that at least begin to understand the media around them. I think both lecturers and students will find this interesting, stimulating and very useful." Carole Fleming, Nottingham Trent University "Branston and Stafford still offer the best, one-stop resource for media studies with an incredible range of material and contemporary case studies presented in a conversational style. The book links itself to the broader mediasphere through the archiving of additional material online and references sending students to youtube clips and short films, encouraging students to be active participants in the process of learning about media rather than simply passive readers of the text. Through the expansive coverage, information distilled and ideas on display, The Media Student's Book will remain a valuable resource for students throughout their studies, as well as for many academics and those involved in the analysis and creation of media more generally." Jason Bainbridge, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia Student Feedback: "The new edition is great! It is accessible and easy to relate to. The use of normal everyday examples that a student will have come across instead of academic (probably unseen ones) makes understanding difficult theories and philosophies easy and straight-forward. It is like somebody your age is explaining it. I like how it acknowledges the change in the way people learn, with a greater reliance on the internet and absorbs this into its design and layout. The 'Explore' sections are also really well put together as they make you aware of all the media things that saturate your day-to-day life that you have grown to ignore or take for granted, and they make you take a step back and critically analyse them." Charlotte Dean, Media Studies student at St Andrews University "I think that the new edition is fantastic. It's very comprehensive and the examples used are very relevant to the topics discussed. I like the side information as it explains key concepts for readers who may not be aware of their meaning. Also, the extra websites and exercises I feel will enhance learning and allows the student to interact more with the topics covered. In the introduction, I like how readers can feedback to the publishers directly by email. I think it displays two-way media and new media culture very well." Anna Jordan, Media Studies student at Stirling University

Gill Branston is Honorary Senior Lecturer at the School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies at Cardiff University. Roy Stafford is a freelance lecturer, writer and examiner in media education and training.

List of Figures Acknowledgments Introduction Section 1: Key concepts 1 Approaching media texts Introduction Semiotic approaches Structuralism, difference(s), and oppositions Denotation and connotation The social nature of signs Debates Content analysis Conclusion Case study: Visual and aural signs Analysing a poster, and notes on two photos Voices and sound signifiers Audio-visual moving images Content analysis 2 Narratives General theories of narrative Narration, story and plot Narratives in different media Long running and 'single' narratives 'New media' and narrative debates Conclusion References and further reading Case study: CSI: Miami and Crime fiction The classification 'crime fiction' Plot/story Applying Todorov Applying Propp Applying Barthes Applying Levi-Strauss Narratives, institutions, ideologies References and further reading 3 Genres and classification Classifying films: Thelma and Louise (US 1991) Repetition and difference Repertoires of elements Case study: Formats and genres Status and genres 1: 'escapism' and verisimilitude Status and genres 2: the cultural context Conclusion References and further reading Case study: Horror as popular art The Orphanage and Let the Right One In The child in the horror film Global and local audiences Style and the Gothic: different repertoires Authorship and promotion Distribution patterns 4 Representations 'Representation' now Stereotyping and 'scripts' Case study 1: US plantation stereotyping Scripts and performances Case study 2: Representations and gender Stages of change, and 'positive/negative' debates Realisms and representations Comedy and questions of representation Historical and institutional processes Conclusion Reference and further reading Case study: Images of migration Introduction Discourses and stereotypes of 'migration' and other kinds of travel News media The 'grain of truth' in stereotypes? Varieties of media representations References 5 Globalisation Your experiences of globalisation Global histories Approaches to globalised media Global-local flows Global futures? Conclusion References and further reading Case study: Slumdog Millionaire: global film? The background to a global hit The production of the film Distribution The Bollywood connection Controversies in reception After the Oscar ceremonies ... 6 Ideologies and discourses Introduction 'Ideology' and its histories: Marxist approaches The persistence of class and its (in)visibility Post-Marxism and critical pluralism Discoures Lived cultures Conclusion? References and further reading Case study: The Age of Stupid (UK 2009) and Climate Change Politics Introduction Context: images and discourses The term 'propaganda' Textual approaches to the film 'Cinema' and its 'everyday practices' Conclusion 7 Media as Business Studying business organisations Ownership and control The experience of conglomerates New players in India and China Public or private funding? Public or private in filmed entertainment The new digital environment Business models Different perspectives Conclusion References and further reading Case study: Music and movies - digital and available The challenge of copying Piracy Changing models in the film industry Section 2 : Debates 8 'New media' in a 'new world'? Introduction 'Newness' and histories Academic approaches Openness, collaboration and 'users' 'The long tail' Digital copies and the 'enclosure' of information New media, old metaphors 'New media', vanishing resources Conclusion References and further reading 9 The future of television Introduction Ownership and control in the television industry Paying for television Business models for television broadcasting Public service broadcasting Network television Subscription 10 Regulation now Introduction Politics and media economics Regulation and 'freedom' Historical background Changes in the orthodoxy of economic policies and new models Deregulation, liberalisation and media institutions The contemporary regulatory environment A 'free market' for classification, censorship and sex and violence? The public gets the media it deserves? 'Free choices' and free speech? Conclusion References and further reading 11 Debating advertising, branding and celebrity Introduction Advertising, marketing and branding Debates Histories Hollywood and branding Hollywood: the brand(s) Case study: 'Brangelina' Citizenship and consumption References and further reading 12 News and its futures Introduction The importance of news, and views of 'the public' The construction of 'news' 'Impartiality' and accuracy 'News values' Debates on the influence of news Futures: 'new' news? Conclusion References and further reading 13 Documentary and 'reality' debates Recent issues in documentary Documentary and assumptions about 'realism' and truth 'Direct Cinema' Performance and documentary Ethics and documentary Recent hybrids 1: 'pranksters' Recent hybrids 2: 'reality TV' Recent hybrids 3: forms of 'drama documentary' Conclusion References and further reading 14 From 'audience' to 'users' Introduction Academic representations of audiences The effects model The uses and gratifications model From 'effects' to 'influence': factual forms 'Cultural' approaches Re-mediating audiences Conclusion References and further reading Section 3 : Research methods and reference 15 Research: skills and methods Introduction Basics Using the internet, and print forms Fear of 'theory' Methods Qualitative and quantitative Textual approaches Samples Focus groups 'Ethnographic' methods Footnote : Wikipedia References and further reading Glossary Index