Índice

Bibliografía: p. 257-283

The newest edition of James L. Baughman's successful book "The Republic of Mass Culture" examines the advent of television and the impact it had on the established mass media - radio, film, newspapers, and magazines. When television captured the largest share of the mass audience by the late 1950s, rival media were forced to target smaller, sub-group markets with novel content: rock 'n' roll for teenage radio listeners in the 1950s, sexually explicit films that began to appear in the 1960s, and analytical newspaper reporting in the 1970s and 1980s. The growing popularity of cable TV posed new complications, especially for network television. All in all, the capacity of individual media industries to adapt not only determined their success or failure but also shaped the content of their products. Two new chapters examine new media entrants like Fox News, new technologies such as the Internet, and increasing industry concentration. Baughman discusses significant changes in media economics and audience demand that are having profound effects on radio program formats, television news coverage, and the very existence of newspapers.