Departmental Papers (ASC)
Document Type
Book Chapter
Date of this Version
2002
Publication Source
Encyclopedia of Communication and Information
Start Page
931
Last Page
935
Abstract
The influence of the media on society has for a long time preoccupied researchers in the field of communication. Various normative, social scientific, and critical communication theories have addressed how media influence social change. Early media effects theories assumed a direct and unmitigated influence of media on individuals and society. Later research questioned the assumption of all-powerful media effects, launching what became known as the limited-effects tradition. From those early days of communication research, there has been a constant ebb and flow of theories and empirical research attempting to understand the real effect of media on social change.
Recommended Citation
Kraidy, M. (2002). Social change and the media. In J. R. Schement (Ed.), Encyclopedia of communication and information (Vol. 3, pp. 931-935). New York, NY: Macmillan Reference USA. Retrieved from http://repository.upenn.edu/asc_papers/328
Date Posted: 16 April 2013
Comments
NOTE: At the time of publication, author Marwan Kraidy was affiliated with the American University. Currently (April 2013), he is a faculty member at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania.