A Social History of the Media

Asa Briggs and Peter Burke trace Western communication from Gutenberg's press all the way to early social media and global digital networks, with the third edition expanding to cover 21st-century developments. The book's most useful argument is a persistent one: new media don't kill old media — books, radio, and television keep coexisting with whatever comes next. For media and communications students, the writing is notably readable for an academic text, and the anti-determinist framework keeps the analysis grounded in real social context rather than tech hype. The honest caveat is that survey breadth means limited depth on any single medium, and readers outside academia may find it dry. A solid, well-regarded textbook for the courses it serves.