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News: The Politics of Illusion (Longman Classics Series in Political Science), 5/E
Lance Bennett, University of Washington

ISBN-10: 0321088786
ISBN-13: 9780321088789

Publisher: Longman
Copyright: 2003
Format: Paper; 320 pp
Published: 08/20/2002

This item has been replaced by News: The Politics of Illusion, 8/E.

This new edition of Bennett's landmark work has been completely updated and is now part of the “Longman Classics in Political Science” series, featuring a new Foreword by Doris Graber.

The book has been thoroughly revised and updated, introducing up-to-the-minute case studies, the latest research, and the rise of a digital information system without changing its lively writing style or its provocative point of view. This favorite of both instructors and students is a behind-the-scenes tour of communication in American politics, from the newsroom to the war room to the living room. The core question explored in this book is: How well does the news, as the core of the national political information system, serve the needs of democracy? In exploring this question, we examine how various political actors—from presidents and members of Congress, to interest organizations and citizen-activists—try to get their messages into the news.

Access to author's Web site, provides students with resources so they can explore topics in greater depth. http://faculty.washington.edu/bennett/

Case Studies: These analyses focus on particular events to help students apply concepts in the text to examples from real life.

New Foreword by Doris Graber of The University of Illinois-Chicago.

New discussions related to the September 11th terrorist attacks on the U.S.

New analysis of the 2000 presidential election.

New overview of different information eras in American democracy, with emphasis on the current transition from mass media to digital, personal information systems.

Substantially revised first chapter that explains the importance of information, news and the press for democracy. Explains the paradox of why news is essential for governing even as publics increasingly doubt its authority. Retains the popular discussion of how to think about press bias.

Greater focus on Internet and democracy, including the importance of Internet information in driving mass media news.

The latest on the changing economics of the news business and how this affects what makes the news. Updated information on media mergers and the business forces that shape the news.

Increased emphasis on generational differences in information use. Young citizens and problems of civic engagement.

Expanded discussion of how different political actors—presidents, Congress, interest organizations, and activists develop strategies to make the news.

New sections on gate keeping processes & the changes in how news organizations decide who and what to cover, and how to cover it.

Preface.

Acknowledgments.

1. The News About Democracy: An Introduction to the American Political Information System.

Gatekeeping: Who and What Makes the News?

News as A Democratic Information System.

Politicians, Press, and the People.

A Definition of News.

The Fragile Link Between News and Democracy.

Why Free Speech Cannot Guarantee Good Information.

Soft News and the Turn Away from Politics.

The New Gatekeeping.

How Mediated Government Works.

Case Study Governing with the News: Terror Comes to America.

Myths About News Bias.

Journalists and the News System.

The Politics of Illusion.

What Kind of News Would Better Serve Democracy?

Warning: The News Has No Democratic Warranty.

Democracy Without Citizens?

2. News Content: Four Information Biases that Matter.

A Different Kind of Bias.

Four Information Biases in the News: An Overview.

Personalization.

Dramatization.

Fragmentation.

The Authority-Disorder Bias.

How Do Competing Journalists Write Such Similar Stories?

Good News, Bad News: Putting News Bias in Perspective.

Case Study: The Media Go to War.

Four Information Biases in the News: An In-Depth Look.

Bias as Part of the Political Information System.

News Bias and Discouraged Citizens.

Is Civic Journalism a Model for More Useful News?

3. The Political Economy of News.

Corporate Profit Logic and News Content.

Case Study: All the News that Fits (the Audience Demographics).

The Political Economy of News.

Economics Versus Democracy: Inside the News Business.

The Media Monopoly: Arguments for and Against.

Effects of the Media Monopoly: Five Information Trends.

How Does Corporate Influence Operate?

News on the Internet: Perfecting the Commercialization of Information?

Commercialized Information and Citizen Confidence.

Megatrends: Technology, Economics, and Social Change.

Personalized Information and the Future of Democracy.

Whither the Public Sphere?

4. How Politicians Make the News.

The Politics of Illusion.

The Sources of Political News.

News Images as Symbolic Political Reality.

News Bias and Press-Government Relations.

The Goals of Strategic Political Communication.

Symbolic Politics and the Techniques of Image Making.

News Management: From Staged Events to Damage Control.

Different Presidents, Different News Management Styles.

Case Study: Presidential News Management.

Press Relations: Feeding the Beast.

Government and the Politics of News Making.

5. How Journalists Report the News.

Work Routines and Professional Norms.

How Reporting Practices Contribute to News Bias.

Reporters and Officials: Cooperation and Control.

Case Study: Reporters and Officials in the Age of Gotcha Journalism.

Reporters as Members of News Organizations: Pressures to Standardize.

Reporters and Officials: Cooperation and Control.

Reporters as a Pack: Pressures to Agrees.

The Paradox of Organizational Routines.

When Journalism Works.

Democracy With or Without Citizens?

6. Inside the Profession: Objectivity and Other Double Standards.

Why Objective Reporting Does Not Work.

Defining Objectivity: Fairness, Balance, and Truth.

Professional Journalism Standards.

Case Study: The Curious Origins of Objective Journalism.

Professional Practices and News Distortion.

The Adversarial Role of the Press.

Standards of Decency and Good Taste.

Documentary Reporting Practices.

The Use of Stories as Standardized News Formats.

Reporters as Generalists.

The Practice of Editorial Review.

Objectivity Reconsidered.

7. The News Public: Information Processing and Public Opinion.

News, Citizen Information, and Public Opinion.

The Citizen's Dilemma: Who and What to Believe.

Internet vs. Mass Media: Why Mass News Still Matters .

Processing the News.

Why People Prefer TV: Audio and Visual Information.

News Frames and Political Learning.

News and Personal Experience: What Gets Through.

Case Study: Public Opinion and Attention During the Clinton-Lewinsky Scandal.

Thinking About Media Politics with Citizens in Mind.

Uses and Gratifications: Other Reasons People Follow the News.

The Future: Citizens, Information, and Politics.

8. Freedom from the Press: Solutions for Citizens, Politicians, and Journalists.

The News About the Private Media System.

The News About Public Broadcasting.

The News About Objective Journalism.

Dilemmas of the American Information System.

News and Power in America: Ideal versus Reality.

Why the Myth of a Free Press Persists.

Critical Proposals for Citizens, Journalists, and Politicians.

Case Study: Citizen Input from Interactive News to Desktop Democracy.

The Perils of Virtual Democracy.

Corporate Social Responsibility: A Place to Start.

Index.

Media and Politics (Political Science)

News: The Politics of Illusion, 8/E
Bennett
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Brief Description | Buy from myPearsonStore

Part of the “Longman Classics in Political Science” series, this renowned book, known for a lively writing style, provocative point of view, and exceptional scholarship, has been thoroughly revised and updated, including up-to-the-minute case studies and the latest research.

This favorite of both instructors and students is a "behind-the-scenes" tour of news in American politics. The core question explored in this book is: How well does the news, as the core of the national political information system, serve the needs of democracy? In investigating this question, the book examines how various political actors – from presidents and members of Congress, to interest organizations and citizen-activists – try to get their messages into the news.

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