Media Industry Studies: A Short Introduction

(Polity, 2020) with Daniel Herbert and Aswin Punathambekar

Media Industry Studies aims to provide a roadmap for graduate students and early career researchers that maps the terrain of questions and methods within studies of media industries attentive to questions of culture and power. The book uses a wide-range of scholarship about media industries – including television, music, journalism, videogames, and social media – to illustrate the alignment of research questions and different ‘levels’ of study scholars have used to investigate them.

Television Studies: A Short Introduction (Polity, 2012; 2019) with Jonathan Gray

Television Studies charts the establishment of the field of television studies, examines its various approaches and objects of study, and provides an overview of its origins, central ideas, and intellectual traditions.

What have been the primary areas of inquiry in television studies? Why and how did these areas develop? How have scholars studied them? How are they developing? What have been television studies’ key works? Television Studies answers these questions by tracing the history of the field right up to present and emerging scholarship.

For all those wondering how to study television, or even why to study television, Television Studies will provide a clear and engaging overview of key topics. The book works as a stand-alone introduction, and by placing key works in a broader context, it can also provide an excellent basis for an entire course.

Available from Amazon.

Reviews

"A fantastic resource for scholars because it is an essential look back at the formation of the field, which makes the road ahead easier to see."--Communication Research Trends

"In this incredibly handy book, Gray and Lotz offer a concise, clear guide to state-of-the-art thinking. Covering how TV studies should be done; its history and its key aspect; and the importance of studying context alongside the classic trio of industry-program-audience, this 'Short Introduction' consistently makes the case for TV Studies' contemporary relevance, as well as for TV's cultural importance. The Meanings and technologies of television may be changing, but Gray and Lotz are supremely switched-on guides to the subject. If some shows are must-sees, then this is the intellectual equivalent - a must-read."--Matt Hills, Cardiff University

"Television Studies is the best introduction to the field available. Gray and Lotz present a comprehensive synthesis of the theories and methods that have defined television studies so far, bringing together a wide range of critical models for studying the medium's past, present and future. Undergraduates will love this highly engaging book."--Laurie Ouellette, University of Minnesota

Understanding Media Industries (Oxford University Press, 2012; 2016; out of press) with Timothy Havens

Understanding Media Industries examines the influence of media industry organization and practices on society. It offers students pursuing both scholarly and professional careers related to the media industries a comprehensive overview of how the industries work, why they work as they do, and what the broader theoretical and practical implications of the media industries are. Questions such as “why is media industry organization important?”, “how do we make sense of media industry changes?” and “what are the key issues facing media industries?” animate the analysis.”