SIGNAL TO NOISE: life with television
TO READ - PRINT RESOURCES
Media Literacy
- The Kid's Guide to Social Action
(Barbara Lewis, Free Spirit
Publishing, 1991). - This booklet contains a chapter on media, consumer
action and democratic citizenship skills. Free Spirit Publishing, 400
First Ave North, Suite 616, Minneapolis, MN 55401-1730, (Phone)
800-735-7323.
- Questioning the Media: A Critical Introduction
(John Downing, Ali
Mohammadi and Anabelle Sreberny-Mohammadi, Sage, 1995). - This book of
essays by leading media thinkers provides a valuable "crash course"
for those preparing to teach/lead media literacy groups. Sage, 2455
Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320, (Phone) 805-499-0721.
- Teaching the Media
(Len Masterman, Routledge, 1988). - This is a useful
book on media education with chapters on media determinants, rhetoric,
ideology and audiences. It has an extensive annotated
bibliography. Routledge, 7625 Empire Drive, Florence, KY 41042,
(Phone) 800-634-7064.
- Visual Messages: Integrating Imagery into Instruction
(David Considine
and Gail E. Haley, Libraries Unlimited, 1992). - This book provides
background and activities for dozens of topics from 'why study
television' to advertising, violence and stereotyping. Libraries
Unlimited, Box 6633, Englewood, CO 80155-6633, (Phone) 303-770-1220.
Advertising/Industry
- Advertising, the Uneasy Persuasion: Its Dubious Impact on American
Society
(Michael Schudson, Basic Books, 1986) - Basic Books/Harper
Collins, P.O. Box 588, Dunmore, PA 18512, (Phone) 800-331-3761).
- Captains of Consciousness: Advertising and the Social Roots of
Consumer Culture
(Stuart Ewen, Harper Collins, 1986). - An in-depth
discussion of the impact of advertising on consumers. Harper Collins,
Box 588, Dunmore, PA 18512 (Phone) 800-331-3761.
- Culture, Inc.
(Herb Schiller, Oxford University Press, 1989). - The book
examines culture as a commodity, from museums to broadcast TV. Oxford
University Press, 2001 Evans Road, Cary, NC, 27513-2009, (Phone)
800-451-7556.
- Cultural Politics in Contemporary America
(Edited by Ian Angus and
Sut Jhally, Routledge, 1989) - A collection of essays on contemporary
media issues. Routledge, 7625 Empire Drive, Florence, KY 41042,
(Phone) 800-634-7064.
- The Media Monopoly
(Ben Bagdikian, Beacon Press, 1992). - A
ground-breaking analysis of the effects of monopolization in the media
industries. Beacon Press, 25 Beacon St., Boston, MA 02108-2892.
- The Sponsored Life
(Leslie Savan, 1995). - A collection of columns by
Savan critiquing the advertising industry. KOEN Book Distributors,
(Phone) 800-257-8481.
Media History & Criticism
- Age of Missing Information
(Bill McKibben, Penguin, 1993) - Penguin,
U.S.A., 120 Woodbine Street, Bergenfield, NJ 07621, (Phone)
800-253-6476.
- Channels of Discourse Reassembled
(Robert Allen, University of North
Carolina Press, 1987). - A collection of essays about television and
modern society. University of North Carolina Press, P.O. Box 2288,
Chapel Hill, NC 27515-2288, (Phone) 800-848-6224.
- Culture, Society and the Media
(Gurevitch and Bennet, Methuen,
1982). - Collection of essays on media theory, ideology and
ownership. Includes Stuart Hall's "The Rediscovery of 'Ideology':
Return of the Repressed in Media Studies." Available from Routledge,
7625 Empire Drive, Florence, KY 41042, (Phone) 800-634-7064.
- Desperately Seeking the Audience
(Ien Ang, Routledge, 1991) - This book
discusses the relationship between viewers, programming, and the
television industry. Routledge, 7625 Empire Drive, Florence, KY
41042, (Phone) 800-634-7064.
- Mediating History: The MAP Guide to Independent Video by and about
African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Latino and Native American
People
(Abrash and Egan, New York University Press, 1992) - This book
contains video listings, essays and a directory of resources. New York
University Press, 70 Washington Square South, New York, NY 10012,
(Phone) 800-996-6987.
- Mediations: Forays into the Culture and Gender Wars
(Elayne Rapping,
South End Press, 1994) - Essays on the role women play in the
media. Available from the Center of Media Literacy. (See
"Organizations in the United States")
- Pedagogy of the Oppressed
(Paulo Freire, Continuum, 1996) - An
influential educational theory where students learn by being taught to
think critically. Continuum, 370 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY
10017, (Phone) 212-953-5858.
- Queer Looks: Perspectives on Lesbian and Gay Film and Video
(Martha
Gever, John Greyson, Pratibha Parmar, Routledge, 1993). - The book
contains contemporary essays about lesbian and gay media. Routledge,
7625 Empire Drive, Florence, KY 41042, (Phone) 800-634-7064.
- Representing Reality
(Bill Nichols, Indiana University Press, 1992) - A
discussion of styles, strategies and structures used in documentary
filmmaking. Indiana University Press, 601 Morton Street, Bloomington,
IN 47404, (Phone) 800-842-6796.
- Resisting the Virtual Age: The Culture and Politics of Information
(Edited by James Brook and Iain Boal, City Lights, 1995) - A collection
of essays about issues in the information age. Subterranean Company,
Box 160, 265 S. 5th St., Monroe, Oregon, 97456 (Phone) 800-274-7826.
- Understanding Media: The Extension of Man
(Marshall McLuhan, McGraw
Hill, 1964). - McLuhan's perspective on the history of media.
M.I.T. Press, Book Order Department, 55 Hayward Street, Cambridge, MA
02142, (Phone) 617-253-5646.
- Video Culture: A Critical Investigation
(John Hanhardt, Visual
Studies Workshop Press, 1986). - This book covers the history of video
theory and art.
- Watching Race: Television and Signs of Blackness
(Herman S. Gray,
University of Minnesota Press, 1995). - University of Minnesota Press,
111 Third Avenue South, Suite 290, Minneapolis, MN 55401, (Phone)
800-388-3863.
- Ways of Seeing
(John Berger, Penguin, 1972) - A discussion of how social
culture affects individual perception. Penguin U.S.A., 120 Woodbine
Street, Bergenfield, NJ 07621, (Phone) 800-253-6476.
News
- Deciding What's News: A Study of CBS, NBC News, Newsweek & Time
(Herbert Gans, Vintage, 1980) - Random House, Inc., 400 Hahn Road,
Westminster, MD 21157, (Phone) 800-733-3000.
- Inventing Reality: The Politics of News Media
(Michael Parenti,
St. Martin's Press, 1993). - The influence of the media on the
audience's perception of reality. St. Martin's Press, 175 5th Avenue,
New York, NY 10010, (Phone) 800-288-2131.
- Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media
(Edward
S. Herman and Noam Chomsky, Pantheon, 1988). - The authors contend that
an underlying elite consensus structures almost all facets of the
news. Random House Inc., 400 Hahn Road, Westminster, MD 21157, (Phone)
800-733-3000.
- Unreliable Sources: A Guide to Detecting Bias in the News Media
(Martin A. Lee and Norman Solomon, Carol Publishing, 1990). - From the
group, FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting), a guide to bias in
the news. Carol Publishing Group, 120 Enterprise Avenue, Secaucus,
NJ 07094, (Phone) 800-447-2665.
Production
- Directing the Documentary
(Michael Rabiger, Reed Publishing, 1992). - A
comprehensive guide to producing documentary. Butterworth Heinemann,
80 Montvale Avenue, Stoneham, MA 02180.
- ROAR: The Paper Tiger Guide to Media Activism
(The Paper Tiger
Collective, 1991). - An activist guide to production. Paper Tiger, 339
Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012.
- Working with Video: A Comprehensive Guide to the World of Video
Production
(Brian Winslow & Julia Keydel, 1986). - Billboard
Publications, Inc. 1515 Broadway, New York, NY 10036
Television
- Boxed In: The Culture of TV
(Mark Crispin Miller, Northwestern
University Press, 1988). - A collection of essays on the effects of
television. Northwestern University Press, Chicago Distribution
Center, 1103 S. Langley Avenue, Chicago, IL 60628, (Phone)
800-621-2736.
- Inside Prime Time
(Todd Gitlin, Random House, 1985). - Random House
Inc.. 400 Hahn Road, Westminster, MD 21157, (Phone) 800-733-3000.
- Tube of Plenty
(Erik Barnouw, Oxford University Press, 1990) - The
history of American broadcasting. Oxford University Press, 2001 Evans
Road, Cary, NC 27513-2009, (Phone) 800-451-7556.
- Watching Television
(Todd Gitlin, Pantheon, 1986) - An excellent series
of essays on television issues such as the news, soap operas,
advertising, children's TV and MTV. Random House Inc., 400 Hahn Road,
Westminster, MD 21157, (Phone) 800-733-3000.
Journals/Newsletters
- Adbusters
1243 West 7th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V6H 1B7, Canada,
(Phone) 604-736-9401, (F) 604-737-6021, email:
adbusters@adbusters.org. - Critical information on advertising and
"counter-advertising" from The Media Foundation. (See "Organizations
outside the United States")
- Advertising Age
Subscription Dept., 965 East Jefferson Avenue,
Detroit, MI 48207, (Phone) 800-678-9595 - An insider look at the
business.
- Afterimage
Visual Studies Workshop, 31 Prince Street, Rochester, NY
14607, (Phone) 716-442-8676 A publication of the Visual Studies
Workshop. - Afterimage is devoted to theoretical writing and listings of
happenings in video and other art forms.
- American Demographics
108 N. Cayuga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850, (Phone)
607-273-6343. - A guide to the changing composition, character, and
tastes of the U.S. public, with uses in everything from math and
economics to social studies.
- EXTRA!
P.O. Box 170, Congers, NY 10920, (Phone) 800-847-3993
- Criticism of bias and imbalance in the media published by FAIR
(Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting), 130 West 25th Street, New York,
NY 10001, (Phone) 212-633-6700, (F) 212-727-7668, email: fair@fair.org
- The Independent Film & Video Monthly
Association of Independent
Video and Filmmakers (AIVF), 304 Hudson Street, 6th Floor North, New
York, NY 10013, (Phone) 212-807-1400, (F) 212-463-8519 - The Independent
includes listings of happenings in independent film and video
including a back issue titled "Media in the Schools."
- Media-Culture Review
77 Federal Street, San Francisco, CA 94107,
(Phone) 415-284-1420, (F) 415-284-1414 email: alternet@alternet.org. - A
quarterly newsletter of news, opinion and essays examining media
policy issues and the impact of new technologies on the practice of
journalism. Published by the Institute for Alternative Journalism
(IAJ). (See "Organizations in the United States")
- Zillions (previously Penny Power)
Subscription Department, P.O. Box
51777, Boulder, CO 80323-1777 (Phone) 800-234-2078. - This shows real
ads, how they are put together, who they are aimed at, and how they
work.
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