Aim for the Heart

Book Description

The goal of this book is to help professional broadcast reporters, producers, and photojournalists tell stronger stories. It can serve as a guide for news managers whose job it is to train, coach, and inspire others. Veteran journalist Al Tompkins is Broadcast and Online Group Leader for the Poynter Institute for Media Studies.

Customer Reviews:

Loved this book.......2006-05-18

I've worked as a tv reporter for nearly 21 years...16 years in Portland, Oregon. This is by far one of the very best books I've read on the art of writing for tv news. I found it useful after reading the very first page. Tompkins uses clear, concrete examples to illustrate his points which instantly made me a better writer. Its refreshing to think about our craft with new insight on the purpose and focus of each story. I've urged all the producers and reporters in our newsroom to get and read this!

Aim for the Heart is a first-rate "How-To " for TV journalists.......2005-08-12

Al Tompkins scores with a practical guide to make pictures and words compelling, even for a novice TV reporter.

Probably THE book to read for any up-and-coming reporter..........2005-03-11

Mr. Tompkins' book was the reason I got my first job coming out of college. The first two stories I put on my resume tape were heavily influenced by the things I read in 'Write for the ear, shoot for the eye, aim for the heart.'

Al explains things so that you not only understand how to do the things we do, but also why we do the things we do. I still keep the book on my desk, and whenever my reporting gets into a rut, I haul out Al's book and re-read it. My next few stories are always better than my last few stories.

Great teaching tool.......2004-07-14

I purchased this book to help teach high school students how to write for broadcast, and the lessons Tompkins gives are valuable for students and professionals. Tompkins shows the process behind the writing and the factors a reporter should consider, such as when less writing is more. The book is funny, entertaining, and touching at the same time. He gives many specific examples, including exerpts from scripts, that show the detail and the planning behind the writing. It changes the viewer's perspective on the television news, and it certainly could help professionals refine their writing for broadcast.

Need more people to read books like this.......2004-04-23

Al Tompkins just gave a great presentation at RTNDA on how to find information on the internet. The seminar was filled with humor, insight, and just plain useful information. This book has a similar feel, like advice from someone who wants you to succeed. If a lot of young people read this book (along with some older journalists), perhaps journalism won't be in quite the spot it finds itself in.

Average customer rating:

A Great Start
Very Good
great book!!
Superlative
Bad Copies

Video Basics
Herbert Zettl
Manufacturer: Wadsworth Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Communications | Skills | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Television | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Direction & Production | Television | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Media Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Art Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Business & Investing | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Entertainment | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Accessories:

VideoLab 3.0, Revised

ASIN: 0495050326

Book Description

Herbert Zettl draws on his expertise and field experience to bring you the new edition of VIDEO BASICS, the handiest and most authoritative, current, and technically accurate student guide to video production. Meeting the need for a briefer book, this text distills comprehensive video instruction so that it can be covered in a single semester. The book moves students from video concepts and processes to production tools and techniques, and finally, to the production environment (studio and field, inside and outside) and its effects. A more conceptual framework leads the student from the idea (what to create) to the image (how to create) on video.

Customer Reviews:

A Great Start.......2006-03-02

This book is a must for anyone getting into video production. Full of basic information that is conveyed in an intuitive and concise way, plus there is plenty of advanced knowledge to keep you referring back for years to come. Definitely a staple for all video people.

Very Good.......2004-01-24

My boss told me to buy this book, and it is one of the best available book.

great book!!.......2002-08-09

i am an electronic media communications major and this book has been used for a number of years in my school's communications program. video basics 3 has everything you need to know and everything is explained in much detail, yet not too complicated. there are great illustrations throughout the book that are very helpful as well.
i bought this book used from my campus bookstore and i gotta wonder, why would someone return this book at the end of the semester? i still have mine and have re-read it through quite a few times, most definately something worth holding on to!

Superlative.......2002-04-24

This book gives a broad overview of the field of video. It is intended as a textbook for students in a university video course, however, the information that it contains will be valuable for anyone interested in improving their video skills, especially in professional contexts. Since the book is a textbook, each chapter begins with a list of key terms and definitions, and key concepts are highlighted in the text and repeated at the end of the chapter. Each chapter also contains instructions for a lesson in Zettl's Video Lab on CD (not included). The book covers many topics related to professional video production, including the video production process, the video team, video cameras, lighting, sound, editing, and the studio. I found the language to be very straightforward and highly informative.

Bad Copies.......2002-01-30

My copy of the book did not have chapters 3 and 4. I had a chapters 1 and 2 repeated. Check your copy of the book.

Average customer rating:

A worthy contribution to history free of myth and full of facts
Two Shortcuts To Becoming A Lone-Assassin Believer: Watch The 11/22/63 Real-Time Live TV Coverage....And Then Read This Book
Out of the Past
very good press reporting
JOURNALISM CLASSIC AND INSIDE SCOOP

When the News Went Live: Dallas 1963
Bob Huffaker
Manufacturer: Taylor Trade Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

Journalism | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

Journalists | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1589791398

Book Description

Broadcast journalism came of age in the Kennedy Assassination crisis and helped to hold a mourning nation together. Four reporters on the scene relate their experiences.

Customer Reviews:

A worthy contribution to history free of myth and full of facts.......2007-04-03

There are so very few books that convey a sense of "being there" when it comes to the Kennedy assassination. This outstanding book takes the reader back to that fateful weekend of November 22nd 1963 in Dallas, Texas and does so in an open, honest and compelling manner.

"When the News Went Live" is written by four journalists who were in Dallas on that day covering the presidential visit. Bob Huffaker and the other three newsmen share many interesting stories that you will not find elsewhere and that have been untold for many years no doubt to all but their personal friends. This is why the book is such a valuable contribution to the historical record. Such first hand observation regarding not just those few seconds in Dealey Plaza, the murder of Officer Tippet and the shooting of Lee Harvey Oswald by Jack Ruby, but how in fact the entire story unfolded, makes fascinating reading.

As an aid to anyone interested in the assassination, this book is a must have. I would emphasize - rarely do you find first hand knowledge like this - much of what is written on this subject is written by people many steps removed from the event where fact and fiction merge into one. Not so here. A fabulous book which is refreshingly free of the conjecture and myth that is so common in the Himalayan pile of work on the Kennedy assassination and is highly recommended.

Two Shortcuts To Becoming A Lone-Assassin Believer: Watch The 11/22/63 Real-Time Live TV Coverage....And Then Read This Book.......2007-01-02

"With three shots from a mail-order rifle, Lee Oswald set off a worldwide tragedy that developed too fast to print. .... Broadcast journalism came of age in that crisis of grief and uncertainty, and as it drew its mourning audience, it helped to hold the nation together." -- Bob Huffaker; From the Preface of "When The News Went Live: Dallas 1963"

----------------------

"When The News Went Live: Dallas 1963", published in 2004, paints a vivid word picture of many of the incredible events that surrounded President John F. Kennedy's assassination in November of 1963, as seen through the eyes of four journalists -- Bob Huffaker, Bill Mercer, George Phenix, and Wes Wise -- who covered those events as they happened for CBS affiliate KRLD-TV and Radio in Dallas.

President Kennedy's shocking and appalling assassination on November 22, 1963, was the very first really big "Watch It Unfold Live On TV" news event of the television era, with four full commercial-free days being devoted to nothing but exclusive assassination-related coverage by all three major TV networks (with KRLD's on-the-scene Dallas reporters frequently feeding CBS-TV headquarters in New York).

And the four reporters whose intriguing stories unfold within this 224-page hardcover volume were right smack in the thick of things during the rapidly-developing events -- from the initial sketchy bulletins that told of the President being shot in Dealey Plaza during a motorcade drive through the city of Dallas -- to the announcement of JFK's death at Parkland Hospital -- to the capture of the accused assassin (Lee Harvey Oswald) in a nearby movie theater -- to Oswald's very own murder on live TV (with Bob Huffaker reporting live from the basement of the Dallas Police Department, where the single gunshot from Jack Ruby's pistol added yet another hard-to-believe chapter to the weekend's nightmarish story).

It was a mesmerizing weekend in American (and television) history, to say the least. And those days are re-lived with clarity in this engaging book by way of the recollections of four men who lived through and reported on those events when they were occurring.

"When The News Went Live" contains several excellent black-and-white photographs, too (some of them I haven't seen published elsewhere).

On a personal level, I have had the pleasure of communicating (via e-mail) with Bob Huffaker several times. He has been very cordial and gracious whenever answering the questions that I had for him. His personal insights into the events revolving around JFK's death are fascinating glimpses into the past, and are insights that I have enjoyed reading immensely.

A sample e-mail excerpt from Mr. Huffaker:

----------------------

"David, you're right about the presidential visit and motorcade being the main attraction that all Dallas media were covering, of course. But all our stations had limited capabilities for doing mobile TV, which then demanded either cables or microwave dishes--as well as a receiving dish within line-of-sight beaming or bouncing.

Hence the pool TV arrangements, limited to three planned locations. The local TV stations did live TV from the FTW {Fort Worth} breakfast, Love Field, and the Trade Mart. But this was, indeed, the day the news went live on television, unplanned.

WBAP-TV in Fort Worth had a non-running TV van, which they had towed all the way from Cowtown to Dallas Police headquarters, and we sent both of our KRLD-TV vans into duty--the Bread Truck at DPD and the Blue Goose on the 24th to the county jail, etc.

This was the first time in TV history when on-the-spot news suddenly demanded to go live from the scene. Before that, radio news on-the-spot descriptions such as ours that day were common (like the Hindenburg broadcast--radio only), and live TV was usually reserved for major speeches, sports, etc.

Bob" -- E-mail to this writer; May 30, 2006

----------------------

Relating to the subject of "WHEN THE NEWS WENT LIVE", I'd like to offer up the following observations as an extension of this book review.....

To those JFK conspiracy theorists who seem to favor the Oliver Stone-like or Robert Groden-promoted assassination scenarios (that feature a minimum of three gunmen and anywhere from 6 to 10 gunshots being fired at President Kennedy in Dallas' Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963) -- I always suggest to them that they ought to dig up some of the originally-aired "As It Is Happening" live TV or radio broadcasts from that dark Friday in American history.

After performing that exercise of watching a few hours of the November 22 television coverage of the assassination (in real time), or listening to some of the radio broadcasts in real time (which works just as well) -- I challenge anyone to then arrive at the same conclusion that was slapped up on the big theater screen in 1991 via Director Oliver Stone's blockbuster, conspiracy-laden motion picture "JFK".

Watching the day's events unfold "live" in front of you (or listening to them unfold on the radio as it was happening) should, in my opinion, provide everyone with a good general idea of how utterly impossible a task it would have been to have "faked" so much stuff that was being IMMEDIATELY reported to the world on live television and radio within minutes and hours of the President's assassination (and within a very short space of time following Police Officer J.D. Tippit's murder as well).

Via those original live TV/Radio broadcasts, you're not going to hear a SINGLE report that resembles anything close to the Oliver Stone/Jim Garrison-endorsed nonsense of:

"Three gunmen fired six shots at President Kennedy's motorcade today here in Dallas!!"

What you will hear, instead, is live coverage, as it happened, of a ONE-GUNMAN assassination taking place from where the majority of witnesses said it took place (the Texas School Book Depository Building), with no more than three shots having been fired by the SINGLE SHOOTER, which is a shot count that over 91% of the witnesses concur with -- including the small percentage of witnesses who heard only one or two shots, who are witnesses that certainly don't do Mr. Stone's "6-shot ambush" theory any favors.

Upon evaluating virtually all of the TV networks' live assassination footage from November 22nd, 1963, there is no possible way that a reasonable person could arrive at a conclusion that JFK was shot by three assassins, firing from both front and rear. Let alone arriving at an even more-cockeyed "8-to-10-shot" shooting scenario, as purported by Mr. Groden and some other CTers, which is an outlandish conspiracy-flavored scenario that has John Kennedy and John Connally being shot by way more than just the two Warren Commission-backed Mannlicher-Carcano bullets from Lee Harvey Oswald's rifle.*

* = And Mr. Groden's theory (that sports from 8 to 10 gunshots) also features an additional hunk of lunacy, in that Groden thinks it's very likely that NONE of these eight to ten shots came from the "Oswald window" in the Book Depository! (I'm not making this crazy stuff up here. I promise. Anyone who owns a copy of Robert Groden's 1993 book "The Killing Of A President" can check out Groden's preposterous theory for themselves, on pages 20-40.)

The bottom line is -- Very nearly all of the information being reported on TV and radio that November day favored a "Lone Assassin" shooting scenario (including the info concerning the Tippit murder in Oak Cliff), with very little evidence and information being broadcast that would support any type of a "conspiracy" whatsoever; and certainly no "conspiratorial" evidence that has ever panned out and "proved" that a multi-gun plot ended JFK's life in Dallas.

This is quite a telling "One Killer" fact. Because, in my view, if a vast conspiracy and subsequent "cover-up" had been in place on November 22nd (given the immense amount of TV and radio coverage, with reporters scrutinizing everything coming across their desks and digging hard for any type of case-solving clues during those first hours and days after JFK and J.D. Tippit were killed), I think that at least SOME pieces of the conspiracy would have leaked through to the sweeping television and radio coverage surrounding the two Dallas murders.

And I'm guessing that every reporter and newsman in the country (including Messrs. Huffaker, Mercer, Phenix, and Wise) would have loved to dig up some "conspiracy"-proving angle during that weekend in November of '63. Being the person who uncovered such a huge story would certainly be a feather in that reporter's cap, to be sure. But, as it turned out, nothing of that nature occurred....and has yet to occur all these many years later.

To think (as many theorists do) that these conspirators were so smart and so quick to have had the capabilities to immediately eliminate virtually every last scrap of information leading to a conspiracy plot of some kind, making sure that none of the "multi-gunmen shooting event" details seeped through to the media (multiplied by TWO separate murders as well, counting Tippit's!), is to think that any such evil-doers had powers similar to "Superman".

For example -- Almost every one of the initial reports concerning the number of gunshots heard by witnesses stated "3 shots". And while it's true that the very first report of the shooting from UPI's Merriman Smith (which was broadcast over all the television networks) stated "Three shots were fired...", it's also worth noting that Smith's initial bulletin was not the ONLY "three shots" account that was reported during those early hours just after the shooting.

For instance, Jay Watson of ABC affiliate WFAA-TV in Dallas (who happened to be in Dealey Plaza during the shooting and nervously reported the first bulletins to the unaware Dallas TV audience) is heard multiple times on November 22nd saying he heard "3 shots" fired.

Plus, several other members of the media are also on record stating their own PERSONAL beliefs that exactly three shots were fired by the assassin, including Robert MacNeil, Jack Bell, Bob Clark, Jerry Haynes, and Pierce Allman, among still others.

Some of the other "Three Shot" witnesses who were riding right in the Presidential motorcade itself include -- Photographers Tom Dillard, Robert Jackson, Mal Couch, and James Underwood. Plus, both John and Nellie Connally, who were riding in the same car with President Kennedy.

In addition, Presidential aides Ken O'Donnell and David Powers, who were both riding in the Secret Service follow-up car directly behind JFK's limousine, can also be added to the lengthy list of witnesses who heard precisely three gunshots.

And then there's also amateur filmmaker Abraham Zapruder, who took the most famous 26-second home movie in history when he captured the entire assassination with his 8mm Bell & Howell movie camera -- Zapruder showed up on live TV about 90 minutes after the President's murder took place and gave a graphic account of the horrifying event that had taken place in front of his very eyes.

Mr. Zapruder told the WFAA-TV viewing audience that he had heard two or three shots (but definitely no more than three), and he also demonstrated on live television where on the President's head he had seen the effects of the fatal gunshot. Zapruder puts his hand over the right-frontal portion of his own head to demonstrate where he saw the blood coming from JFK's head.

That's pretty amazing "LIVE" stuff from Mr. Zapruder's own lips (within approx. an hour-and-a-half of the assassination). And it's especially incredible and amazing if there had actually been many more than just two or three shots fired at the President, and if the fatal shot had actually (as many CTers believe) caused a huge hole in the BACK of John Kennedy's head, instead of the location where Zapruder placed it on live television -- i.e., the RIGHT SIDE AND FRONT portion of the head.

How could the so-called "conspirators" have possibly gotten THAT lucky with respect to Abraham Zapruder's live "on-the-air" WFAA-TV statements and head-wound "demonstration"? How?

And -- Could these ultra-clever conspirators have somehow managed to "manipulate" several reporters who were relaying the news live to the world immediately after the event, and have them ALL report on hearing just "three shots" (or, in a few cases, hearing only TWO shots, which is a number that certainly does not favor a "Multi-Shooter Conspiracy Plot")?

Or did the plotters just happen to get really, really LUCKY (again) when virtually all of the news reports favored the "Three Shots Fired" conclusion? With this 3-shot scenario matching the precise number of bullet shells that were found on the 6th Floor of the Book Depository after the shooting; and also perfectly matching the exact number of shots heard by TSBD witness Harold Norman, and also perfectly matching the precise number of bullet shells (3) that Norman heard hitting the plywood floor directly above his 5th-Floor location within the Depository.

Which, per Oliver Stone's movie, would mean that a full 50% of the ACTUAL number of gunshots were somehow inaudible to the enormous majority (91%+) of the earwitnesses! And, remember, Oliver has NONE of the shots within his movie's six-shot assassination ambush being "synchronized" in order to merge together with the sound of some of the other shots.

And yet, per Mr. Stone, we're supposed to actually believe that approximately 9 out of every 10 witnesses somehow missed hearing HALF of the gunshots fired that day! A reasonable thing to believe....or not? I ask you.

Were these so-called conspiratorial shooters so good that they could make 4 to 10 shots sound like only three to the vast majority of witnesses scattered all throughout Dealey Plaza? Highly doubtful, to say the least.

Again -- I'd advise all conspiracy theorists to sit down and watch the live TV footage....or listen to some of the surviving 11/22/63 radio tapes....and then try to find a "Multi-Gunmen Conspiracy" lurking within ANY of those original broadcasts. If anybody finds proof of a conspiracy via those means, please let me know. And let the world know too.

David Von Pein
December 2006
January 2007

Out of the Past.......2006-04-04

We have become accustomed (yea, verily, some would say desensitized)to horror unfolding before our eyes in our very own living rooms. Bob Huffaker's book brings us back to a time before the desensitization, when we could scarcely believe what our eyes were telling us. I recommend this book highly to those who were there, watching as I was, and even more so to those who were not there. The young, raised in an era of suicide bombers, need to understand that it was not always thus.

very good press reporting.......2005-07-30

1963 nov 22 brought to life again but with more professionalism.some very interesting facts that confirmed my own thoughts .

JOURNALISM CLASSIC AND INSIDE SCOOP.......2005-05-07

I stayed up all night reading when my copy of When The News Went Live, Dallas 1963 arrived. This book is a classic and should be included in the curriculum of every journalism and political science classroom in America.

Huffaker, Mercer, Phenix and Wise have written the Texas story of the Kennedy assassination, the inside scoop on Oswald's murder and the history of the evolution of modern journalism. These four men were Dallas television reporters, on the scene and on their own, in the middle of the news story of the century.

It is a salute to their training and their integrity as newsmen that their coverage under duress stands today as a compelling rendering of those fateful moments. I am glad they were the early ones on the scene, for they were the ones who broke the news to me in my elementary classroom. The story gives their perspectives more fully; all these years later, this book helps me understand the events and how they affected Texas and the nation.

Bob, Bill, George and Wes were there in Dallas with their Southern sensibilities. They weren't easily pushed around or manipulated that dark day and still aren't. They were taught to tell the truth as objectively as possible, and they reverted to that training and their good common sense when placed in positions lesser men might have blown or exploited. These four men cared about truth and justice and fairness and still do. I hope all young journalists will read this and learn about balanced reporting.

Only Connect: A Cultural History of Broadcasting in the United States

Average customer rating:

Fast shipment!

Only Connect: A Cultural History of Broadcasting in the United States
Michele Hilmes
Manufacturer: Wadsworth Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Communications | Skills | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

High-Tech | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Media Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General & Reference | Technology | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Business & Investing | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Entertainment | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0495050369

Book Description

ONLY CONNECT is a comprehensive history of American broadcasting from its earliest days in radio, through the rise of television, to the current era of digital media and the Internet. It presents broadcasting as a vital component of American cultural identity, placing the development of U.S. radio, television, and new media in the context of social and cultural change. Each chapter opens with a discussion of the historical period, thoroughly traces the development of media policy, the growth of media industries, and the history of U.S. broadcast programming, and closes with a look at the major ways that radio and television have been understood and discussed throughout American history.

Customer Reviews:

Fast shipment!.......2005-10-05

I was impressed with the timely response to my order. The book arrived to my house in record time. It was slightly used but it served it's purpose.

Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News

Average customer rating:

Enough with the "liberal media" scam
An awesome book
Goldberg's Golden Hour
Biased Rant
It Had To Be Done!

Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News
Bernard Goldberg
Manufacturer: Regnery Publishing, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Television | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Media Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Performing Arts | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0895261901

Book Description

In 1996, veteran CBS News reporter and producer Bernie Goldberg committed the unpardonable sin of publicly mentioning the issue of liberal bias in the media. For that he became persona non grata at CBS. Goldberg tells how friends and colleagues turned on him, from junior CBS reporters all the way to Dan Rather. But much more than that, he exposes a bias so uniform and overwhelming that it permeates every news story we hear and read- and so entrenched and deep rooted that the networks themselves don't even recognize it.

Customer Reviews:

Enough with the "liberal media" scam.......2007-09-10

The right-wing establishment has milked this cow dry. [yawn] You want bias? Fox News and its minions should keep you busy for days.

An awesome book.......2007-08-22

A great book that verified much of what I had learned through my own dealings with the media. A real eye-opener if you want to see how things really work.

Goldberg's Golden Hour.......2007-08-19

"Bias" is Bernard Goldberg's best book. Once a CBS insider, Goldberg violated CBS' internal politics and chose to grind his axe in these pages. I'm glad he did. Goldberg chooses several key news stories from the 1990s and demonstrates how they were given a slanted portrayal by the television media. He never claims that anyone intentionally chose to distort the news. Rather, he claims that due to similar educational backgrounds and political affiliations most marquee-level TV reporters automatically view the world through a certain perspective which cannot help but influence their choice of words. This is the meaning of the word "bias" in the broadest sense, and this is what Goldberg addresses in his book.

As such, this is essential reading for anyone who cares about politics, journalism, or both. I've read it multiple times and find something new to enjoy in it each time. Back before the internet was in every home, this sort of bias went almost undetected and Goldberg deserves a lot of credit for writing this book and making a clear and unemotional case.

I don't know if it pays to dig deeper into Goldberg's canon, sadly. Despite his claims that he was in strong agreement with the liberal values of CBS, his post-"Bias" career has been staunchly in step with the equally biased Fox News and AM Talk Radio. As such, there's a sameness to his later writing (as well as the feeling that he is preaching toward the choir) that can't be found here. This doesn't diminish the power of this book at all; I mention it only as a caveat.

This book is a quick, worthwhile, and fun read. You'll also come back to it in the future, and it holds up very well to subsequent re-readings.

Biased Rant.......2007-07-23

Bernard Goldberg should have learned in childhood that when one points a finger, three fingers point back at oneself. From the very start of this rant, it is obvious that Goldberg's ego suffered from being in the shadow of other news anchors. The more he complains about others, the more one learns about Goldberg. He goes ad nauseum into recounting how he complained time after time about liberal bias, but the powers that be wouldn't listen to him. Perhaps that was due to the higher-ups' recognition of Goldberg's envious manipulation and whining. In reality, perhaps he was shunned in the end because of his own lack of professionalism.
There is very little of actual journalism presented by this so-called journalist. Somehow I am not surprised at all to find that Bernard Goldberg landed at Fox News. His style must fit right in. What is so laughable is that he wrote this entire book deploring bias and then went to work at the most blatantly biased news network.
He calls himself a liberal and from reading through the reviews here on Amazon, a number of readers bought Goldberg's assertion. What ever gave them the impression he was telling the truth about being a liberal? He gives himself away regularly as anything but a liberal. His social conscience is asserted, but not proven. I'm old enough to remember the emptying of the mental hospitals in California, the VietNam war and the increased numbers of homeless. If one actually goes back and looks at research on the economic and social effects of stripping first state and then federal funding for mental health in the 1970s-1980s, one will find that Reagan's policies started in California and moved across the states. There are very comprehensive discussions available on the internet of the complex economic and social pressures that have left countless mentally ill without care. Do some research, don't just accept Goldberg's opinions. Homelessness continued to be a problem discussed in the media under Clinton, although Goldberg denies that was the case.
Somehow, I don't think viewers are as stupid as Goldberg thinks they are. Most of us can pick up on slant. Goldberg never got to be the star he thought he deserved at CBS, so maybe the viewers will love him on Fox News, maybe not. At least he's free to be as biased as he wants to be now.

It Had To Be Done!.......2007-07-20

Five stars to Bernard Goldberg for blowing the whistle on the Media for the monopolistic power group that it is and for revealing what it is. His story stems from the article that he wrote in the Wall Street Journal about bias in the news and reactions that came from it.

I am a former journalist and the son of a network executive and what Goldberg reveals is exactly the atmosphere and thinking in the Media culture, even within little papers in the "conservative" Midwest.

His comments about what happened at CBS are telling and his sections that give evidence about stories and comments that have been made in the press about race, feminist power and aids are important. He confirms it from within. Also telling are the anti-Christian and anti-conservative hate comments that are frequently made in the industry with no repercussions. Believe me the media culture are one of the most conformist in the world and they will destroy you if you counter their orthodoxy and social prejudices.

Goldberg reveals much of his worldview location as a liberal in which the meaning of the world liberal has changed.

Peoples lives have been destroyed by this power culture!
It must change and will change.

This is one of the most important whistle blower books of our time.

Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond: An Introduction to Modern Electronic Media

Average customer rating:

Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet & Beyond

Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond: An Introduction to Modern Electronic Media
Joseph R Dominick
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Media Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Children's Books | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0072493836

Book Description

This text surveys the field of modern electronic media and beyond. Beyond, more than a word in the title, refers to the new technologies, regulations, programming, and competition that affect our world and the broadcasting industry. The authors of Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet and Beyond have three main goals for every edition: 1) to convey the excitement of the industry, 2) to provide a survey of the industry, and 3) presenting a readable text that makes even the most difficult information understandable. With new information and innovations added to an already strong foundation, this edition achieves each of these goals, again.

Customer Reviews:

Broadcasting, Cable, the Internet & Beyond.......2000-06-23

This book has been used broadly in American Universities from the first Edition. This book provides a lot of infomarion about history, procedure, and broadcating technology itself in the United States. Currently, the area of broadcasting has been broaden into Internet. Web-casting is one of new types of broadcasting internationally. This 4th edition includes this new shapes of broadcasting on the Web. I hope this edition gives more insights of American broadcasting systems.

Fighting for Air: The Battle to Control America's Media

Average customer rating:

Any college-level course in media studies needs this.
What to do about media consolidation should be the #1 issue in the 2008 election.
FCC = BIG BUSINESS agency that writes the laws for their PUPPET LEGISLATURES..
Figthing for Air is essential reading for understanding media reform
A Critical Contribution to the Field

Fighting for Air: The Battle to Control America's Media
Eric Klinenberg
Manufacturer: Metropolitan Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Media Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0805078193
Release Date: 2007-01-09

Book Description

A groundbreaking investigative work by a critically acclaimed sociologist on the corporate takeover of local news and what it means for all Americans

For the residents of Minot, North Dakota, Clear Channel Communications is synonymous with disaster. Early in the morning of January 18, 2002, a train derailment sent a cloud of poisonous gas drifting toward the small town. Minot’s fire and rescue departments attempted to reach Clear Channel, which owned and operated all six local commercial radio stations, to warn residents of the approaching threat. But in the age of canned programming and virtual DJs, there was no one in the conglomerate’s studio to take the call. The people of Minot were taken unawares. The result: one death and more than a thousand injuries.

Opening with the story of the Minot tragedy, Eric Klinenberg’s Fighting for Air takes us into the world of preprogrammed radio shows, empty television news stations, and copycat newspapers to show how corporate ownership and control of local media has remade American political and cultural life. Klinenberg argues that the demise of truly local media stems from the federal government’s malign neglect, as the agencies charged with ensuring diversity and open competition have ceded control to the very conglomerates that consistently undermine these values and goals.

Such “big media” may not be here to stay, however. Fighting for Air delivers a call to action, revealing a rising generation of new media activists and citizen journalists—a coalition of liberals and conservatives—who are demanding and even creating the local coverage they need and deserve.

Customer Reviews:

Any college-level course in media studies needs this........2007-03-12

FIGHTING FOR AIR: THE BATTLE TO CONTROL AMERICA'S MEDIA examines how national radio shows are adjusted to 'sound local', how the media consolidation is hurting America, and how in fact there is a vanishing case for local representation in the media. The author's interviewed many programming directors, DJs, reporters and more for this book surveying the politics and presence of media conglomerates, FCC and legal influences on media regulations and ownership, and how stories are promoted or killed by special interests. Any college-level course in media studies needs this.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

What to do about media consolidation should be the #1 issue in the 2008 election........2007-02-27

The genie is out of the bottle. Over the past 15 years our radio and television stations, newspapers and magazines have been gobbled up by a handful of media conglomerates. Turn on the radio in just about any city in this nation and you will hear the same tired and unimaginative programming. Local content has largely been eliminated on a good many of these stations and the number of commercials has increased dramatically. In many of our largest cities media companies are allowed to operate up to 8 radio stations, 3 televisions stations, cable TV service and even the local newspaper. It is an alarming state of affairs to say the least! In his new book "Fighting For Air: The Battle To Control America's Media" author Eric Klinenberg brings these critical issues to our attention. While the American public has been asleep at the switch our President, the Congress and those who are supposed to regulate such matters have allowed companies like Clear Channel, Entercom, Citadel and Infinity to gobble up our local media. If you have grown tired of all of the canned programming and recognize the importance that local media outlets have played throughout American history then this is a book you should definitely consider.
So how did this happen? Over the past two decades our government has been "deregulating" media. At one time, no company was allowed to own more than one television station in a community. The number of radio stations were also strictly regulated. And the FCC would never have allowed a company that owned a major daily newspaper to own a television station in the same town. All of this began to change in the 1980's as broadcasters cried poverty and declared that they were having a difficult time turning a profit. There was some truth to this claim, particularly for small to medium size AM radio stations. Broadcasters petitioned to have ownership restrictions relaxed and as you will see the deregulation of our media began in earnest in the late 80's. Perhaps the most dramatic and controversial measure was the Telecommunications Act of 1996. In one fell swoop Congress and the FCC eliminated the national station ownership limit altogether and raised local limits from four to as many as eight radio stations in some communities. As a result of this legislation, Clear Channel now controls more than 1200 local radio stations in the United States. A funny thing happened as local radio and television stations were gobbled up by the media giants...local programming began to disappear. The change is most noticable on the radio where thousands of local hosts have been let go. Talk shows that used to focus on local issues have been replaced by the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly. And that guy giving you the weather on your local TV station may be based in a city hundreds or maybe even thousands of miles from your town.
Eric Klinenberg does an outstanding job of framing these issues for his readers. There is so much at stake here. It matters not your political persuasion. Each and every one of us has lost something precious. It is high time that the American people began to fight back! "Fighting For Air: The Battle To Control America's Media" is a great way to educate yourself about these extremely important issues. But we face an uphill fight. For obvious reasons you will never hear or see these issues discussed and debated on the major networks nor will you see them written about in the major newspapers in this country. Once you understand this, you will then begin to realize why so many Americans are convinced that the short-sighted and irresponsible consolidation of the media should rank as the top issue in the upcoming election. We must demand accountability from our elected officials. This is a comprehensive and well written book and one that I can highly recommend!

FCC = BIG BUSINESS agency that writes the laws for their PUPPET LEGISLATURES.........2007-02-19

EASY GO! That is a tag line for the players in Las Vegas. It is also a tag line for the press when it comes to democracy. In other words, the bottom line is democracy is too expensive.
The accountants, marketers, & investment bamkers have stormed the newsrooms and hijacked its mission - there is NO LONGER THE ILLUSION THAT PUBLIC SERVICE IS THERE FIRST MISSION. IT has become instead a mission to establish local momopolies. Jack up advertising rates, downsize the editorial staffs( & where possible, break up unions), shrink news rooms.
News is actually commentary and entertaiment, not local reporting. What used to be a public trust is now just a cash cow.
What has been lost for the citizen is what A.J. Liebling, legendary press critic, called diversity in ownership that promotes competition, creates opportunities for smaller companies, local business people, creative programming, and in its stead, no public benefit. In short its the journalism, not the news print, that should be the bottom line.
Now they are going after the internet spreading THE LIE that new technology has rendered the changes of internet consolidation obsolite. Net Neutality is in the fascist's crosshairs.
Speaking of Michael Powell, who never met a merger he did'nt like, or monopoloy for that matter; the public be damned was his attitude.
In short the checks & balances made possible by diverse competition are being eradicated. When it all comes down to it there will be 2 or 3 companies that essentially own access to our culture. It will be impossible to break up as THOSE MONOPOLIES WILL BE SO POLITICALLY POWERFULL AND WILLING TO SPEND UNGODLY AMOUNTS OF $$$ - THAT NO GOVERNMENT COULD STAND UP TO THEM.
Highly Recommended

Figthing for Air is essential reading for understanding media reform.......2007-01-17

Dr. Klinenberg has provided a valuable service to Americans in his excellent historical and sociological study of media consolidation, its implications for access, content, and justice at both the national and local levels, and the growing movement to challenge consolidation. The work is a model of scholarship for a mass audience, meticulously documenting both the secondary literature and the extensive interviews Klinenberg has conducted with numerous industry and movement figures, while losing none of the immediacy of a compelling narrative and persuasive argument. Clearly and concisely Klinenberg marshals a compelling case.

My only criticism is that a more extensive discussion of the political economy of consolidation and its wider context in the US and international economies, and a more detailed critique of the failed libertarian economic paradigm which was used to sell consolidation to policymakers would be useful. But that would be asking for a much longer and more complicated book, and one which would probably not have done as admirable a job in explaining in simple and direct terms the complexities of consolidation and its dreadful consequences of American public life.

I recommend Fighting for Air as essential reading for anyone who wants to understand this vital area of public policy.

A Critical Contribution to the Field.......2007-01-17

As a participant in the "media reform movement" who has witnessed and participated in the events Klinenberg describes, I found his observations accurate and his analysis penetrating. I have full review on my professional blog. To give the teaser:

Anyone who wants to understand the media reform movement should buy this book. More importantly, this is the book to give your friends and relatives so that they can understand why the media reform movement matters, and why it will succeed in transforming the media landscape despite the multi-billion dollar forces arrayed against it.

Others have written excellent books on the rise of media concentration and why it sucks rocks. What makes Fighting for Air different, and therefore a must read, is that it chronicles the history of the media reform *movement*. Certainly you will understand by the end of the book why media concentration has inspired a movement of people dedicated to stopping further consolidation and reversing the effects of our increasingly centralized and homogenized media. But this realization comes through the telling of the stories of the movement -- its people, its victories, and its set backs.
[...]

War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom (with DVD)

Average customer rating:

Excellent stories by a Marine about our troops in combat
Great
Great read
War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom
How things have changed

War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom (with DVD)
Oliver North
Manufacturer: Regnery Publishing, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Iraq | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Military Science | History | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0895260638

Book Description

Fresh from his tour as an embedded journalist in Iraq, bestselling author Oliver North reports in living detail the story of the real Iraq War. Includes 50-minute dvd of War Stories episode (FOX News Network) on the War in Iraq.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent stories by a Marine about our troops in combat.......2006-06-27

This book is a series of snapshots in time covering the exploits of Marines and Soldiers in combat. Since it is written by a Marine, the stories are told from their perspective as opposed to being filtered by the media.

It is a positive portrayal of the events in Iraq. Although the author does insert some political statements into his narrative, his views are not all that different from many of the troops he writes about.

If you support the troops, or know one, and you want to understand what their life is like...you will love this book. If you do not support the troops and/or the only one you have ever met was an actor playing one on a Hollywood screen set...you will hate this book.

Great.......2005-05-02

This is a great book. It gets you right in with the action and keeps you reading. What is amazing is that it is real reality and not fiction. Lots of little details are thrown in at the appropriate times, for information and education. Really easy to read and also easy to read in small sections at a time.

Great read.......2004-10-17

Amazing first hand view of our Marines and soldiers in the field. Easy read (even for those without military experience). God bless our American heroes!

War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom .......2004-08-31

I received the book on time. Although I bought the book used, it looked brand-new. I was very satisfied with my purchase experience.

How things have changed.......2004-06-02

Being a combat veteran of an earlier era I found Col. North's book a fascinating read on how warfare is waged in this new age of high tech and high media exposure. Unlike steril fact books, this gives you the perspective of the infantrymen who are on the ground, dealing with it every day. I have handed this book off to several of my buddies, who have also been "out of the loop" for a number of years, telling them it's good look at how things REALLY were in Iraq vs. the tainted picture portrayed by the media.

Book Description

The best-selling text in the field for nearly 40 years, Broadcasting in America offers authoritative coverage of electronic media both as products of contemporary social forces and as social forces in their own right. While taking a domestic focus, the text also offers an entire chapter on issues affecting international broadcasting. The text's multidisciplinary perspective enables students to examine the role electronic media play in such academic areas as economics, law, history, and social sciences. In addition, the authors provide the most up-to-date information on broadcasting trends, including wireless communication.

Customer Reviews:

Not Too Current.......2007-08-07

This book covers the history of radio and tv well, but it really isn't too current with some of the new broadcasting standards and new research methods going on.

Covers the Subject Well.......2004-02-10

Among the historical aspects of broadcasting covered are: development, technology, economics, programming, impact, regulation, and international aspects. The book's beginning tells us that broadcasting has consequences and that theme runs through the text. We're given clear definitions of the key terms used by media professionals and a historical context of their development.

Appropriate charts, graphs, and photos add an element of visual explanation to accompany the written descriptions. The sections on regulation and audience research emphasize the importance of those two components for students interested in entering the field. This book is a good introduction to the industry's founding and place in American culture.

Standard Intro to TV and Radio Text Book.......2000-01-10

This is a popular text for your basic college TV and Radio intro class. I have used it for several years myself and it's a fine overview of the subject. Gets pretty technical on electronic stuff and has less on broadcast history and personalities (in my view). Also, since the death of one author the book has become more dated each year and will continue to do so unless they do a fairly significant rewrite.

Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television

Average customer rating:

Interesting, but far less satisfying than I expected
Every Parent Should Read This Book
I dropped the book after 30 min or reading
Delenda est TV
Why there is a mix of good and bad reviews

Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television
Jerry Mander
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Television | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Media Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0688082742

Book Description

A total departure from previous writing about television, this book is the first ever to advocate that the medium is not reformable. Its problems are inherent in the technology itself and are so dangerous -- to personal health and sanity, to the environment, and to democratic processes -- that TV ought to be eliminated forever.

Weaving personal experiences through meticulous research, the author ranges widely over aspects of television that have rarely been examined and never before joined together, allowing an entirely new, frightening image to emerge. The idea that all technologies are "neutral," benign instruments that can be used well or badly, is thrown open to profound doubt. Speaking of TV reform is, in the words of the author, "as absurd as speaking of the reform of a technology such as guns."

Customer Reviews:

Interesting, but far less satisfying than I expected.......2007-06-04

Well, I seem to be one of that rare species of person who didn't feel passionately one way or another about this book.

On the "pro" side, I agree (mostly) with his main premise: the impact of television on society and individuals is mostly negative -- and in particular, I don't see any benefit to television commercials at all. It's great to have a book out there that raises awareness of this. Fact is, our psychology is built in such a way that we are not "good" at television in the same way we are "good" at the natural world. For instance, it is TRUE that we have a natural bias that seeing is believing, and intellectual knowledge of what is true and false can get you only so far in overcoming that (as decades of work in cognitive science, much of it done since this book was published, will attest). Mander does a good job of highlighting many of the affects of television on the psyche and society (and why). I also really appreciated his perspective as former public relations and advertising executive. Plus, he raised a few interesting points that I had never thought of: for instance, the way that editing many rapid cuts can forcibly engage our attention, even if we don't "want" to be watching.

So I'm not sorry I read it. But I was disappointed by several other things, some attributable no doubt to the fact that it was written in 1977, some not so much. First of all, I found some of the science to be flimsy at best (I study cognitive science for a living). For instance, the entire section about natural light and television was frankly bizarre. It was most frustrating because I worried that these areas of quackery would turn off a reader who recognized them as such but wasn't familiar enough with psychology and cognitive science to recognize that the other 80% of it WAS pretty well supported (especially after decades of further research that Mander couldn't have known about). I can see from some people's comments here that it has done so, and I'm sorry for that.

Secondly, many of his points just aren't relevant now that television technology has changed so much. For instance, he talks a lot about how television is biased to show certain things (inanimate objects) and not show other things (faces) due to limitations caused by resolution and television set size. Some of this is still true -- I think war and soundbites will always be inherently favored over peace and long thoughtful monologues -- but some of it is not: e.g., with the advent of plasma TVs, resolution isn't an issue. And with people's increasing ability to be actively involved in television content (via TiVo, capturing the media and mixing it up themselves, etc), much of the nature of our interaction has changed.

Mander can't be faulted for not knowing about these things thirty years ago, but it does make me wish for a more current version of this book. As it is, the book is definitely worth reading: but you should keep in mind that it's dated and that not all of his scientific claims are very well supported.

Every Parent Should Read This Book.......2007-01-20

I read this book in high school and it changed my life. While I have not eliminated television in my home, we rarely watch it. Instead we choose to interact with each other or engage in other activities.

While Mander's arguments may seem over the top, it makes sense to question an object that consumes so much of our lives. To "plop the kids in front of the TV" with little thought as to the effects is quite foolish. Even the American Academy of Pediatrics agrees, and is against any television viewing for very young children.

I dropped the book after 30 min or reading.......2006-10-20

Jerry Mander has issues. Yes he did a lot of research but in the end he is on a holy crusade that is as one sided and closed minded as was the holy crusades. He treats the TV as an evil creation. Without TV as a device of information and entertainment transference, our society would be knocked back 30 years or so. TV does have its downsides but its all up to the parents to control its use. Apparently this book is a direct reflection of Jeff Mander's irresponsibility as a parent to control the raising of children and now tries to blame this incompetence on the TV rather then himself.

He brings up some detailed and convincing results but again he just redirecting blame.

To take the TV out of someone's life is a poor route and will cause problems for people, especially children in as society in the future. The transfer of information and demands on society for the transference of education, news, and others and the ability of a person to analyze and utilize the information will determine their success. It also will greatly hamper their ability to socialize.

People that say it works for them and the children and they are successful. Take a look at their financial standings. Chances are they are quite wealthy and the reason they have a " good life" is that they buy their way through life.

So when you reread the book, keep your mind open and keep in the back of your mind the financial standing of the person who wrote it. Its easy for him to say what he wants because he has the money to go do and BUY what ever he wants.

Overall the book has some good points but I would not recommend it to anyone to waist the money on the cost.

Save your money and use common sense. TV is a good thing, as long as the parents control it and encourage other activities. Its not that TV is bad.. its that the Parents are irresponsible. Face it Jeff, you sucked as a parent model... stop blaming TV.

Delenda est TV.......2006-08-09

This book is a revolutionary manifesto, a call to arms against the modern-day Moloch, that pernicious idol television. Read it at your own peril- if you're content facing life in a somnambulistic stupor, this book is a bucket of cold water in the face. TV=living death.

Mander makes it clear that he's not calling for people to reduce their TV watching or for the networks to "reform" themselves by adding more "educational" programming. The technology itself is irredeemable and must be eliminated. Nothing less it at stake, he asserts, than human autonomy and the democratic system. The book is full of seemingly overblown statements like that, but Mander's arguments, coupled with a lifetime of personal observation of television's effects, lend credence to even the most ostensibly hyperbolized polemics.

Employing both logical argument and frequent reference to scientific studies, Mander lays out his case for the condemnation of TV. He points out how sitting in a darkened room staring at an object is the ultimate in sensory deprivation, a state which makes the mind malleable and suggestible, and in which the subconscious will accord extraordinary authority and importance to the loudest and most forceful voice ("Buy Now!" "Tune in tomorrow!"), which is the very definition of hypnosis. TV is hypnotizing us. It separates us from humanity's natural means of understanding the world- direct experience. It is a pale and pathetic substitute for life itself. Our real-life knowledge of the world is being replaced by the knowledge and values that advertising executives want us to have- namely, brand identification and consumerism. The couch potato justifies his addiction by saying that TV-watching enables him to empty his mind and not think after a long hard day's work. Indeed, his mind is being emptied, but it is also being re-filled with images and desires of someone else's choosing. It is designed to plant ideas into the subconsciousness, so that people buy things they don't need and never knew they wanted, in order to perpetuate a never-ending cycle of consumerism. TV is an instrument designed to dominate other people's minds, a dangerous enough tool in the hands of advertising executives, but when used by authoritarian-minded political manipulators-which it is- it is a deadly weapon. In short, TV has created a nation of barely sentient, obedient zombies- the perfect market for the advertising industry and the perfect citizenry for the political class.

Ok, the book has faults, which some reviewers noted, more or less fairly- to be sure, some parts of the book are somewhat dated. The milieu in which it was written was the 1970s. References to the ERA, Vietnam, and anti-nuke rallies will jolt the modern reader. Also, Mander wrote in the era before cable TV, so obviously the book doesn't deal with the additional dynamic that creates. And surely there have been additional studies and books in the subsequent years that would be of value to the subject. Additionally, though Mander is correct that the human brain was created (or evolved, if you prefer) to function in a natural environment by gaining knowledge through hands-on experience, and the implications of that are certainly worth thinking about, his "noble savage" encomium may go too far; unless we're willing to go back to a pre-literate society in which we'd live in caves, we're going to have to deal with some level of artificiality and mediation of experience (e.g. books). And yes, the 4 Arguments aren't exactly organized as coherently as expected and would probably better be termed "1500 Arguments". Nevertheless, these are relatively minor objections- this is a brilliant book that will, above all, make_you_think_.

Unfortunately, the book is only likely to be read by those who have already thrown off the shackles of the toxic hypno-box, or who are close to doing so. In any case, it's an important manifesto whose message must be promulgated by one enlightened individual to another until the day when television's poisonous influence is finally eradicated from the world.

Why there is a mix of good and bad reviews.......2005-10-03

I'm in the camp with the good reviews, but I think I understand some of those who say "his arguments are ridiculous." I always took this book as part satire and black comedy. For example, he interviews a researcher at Stanford who says something like, "Televison beams photons at 20,000 electron volts directly into your eyes." "And the effects of that?" "Completely unknown." Someone referred to the 2005 Truman Capote movie as playing "like a mad scientist with a lisp" and I sort of imagine some of Mander's text being similar. I'm sure some of this was written tongue in cheek - but could I be seeing humor when it wasn't intended. Well, I don't think so, but who knows. I think this is why some find the book brilliant and others find certain arguments "ridiculous".

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books