Making Sense of Media and Politics: Five Principles in Political Communication

A good book for kindle. Needed it for class.

Great book

Have you ever read a brilliant and entertaining non-fiction book and wished your college text books were as fun to read? Making Sense of Media and Politics by Prof. Gadi Wolfsfeld is the answer to that wish. Without compromising on the width and depth of the political communication theories it explains, this book makes the body of knowledge at the intersection of political science and mass communication studies crystal clear. The examples and the humor make the 5-point model easy to remember. If you're a student - you'll do really well on your papers and exams. If you're a professor - your students will love you for putting this book on the reading list and will give you high ratings on teaching surveys. Not in academia? - You'll impress your date, your friends and your colleagues with insights on the cyclical interaction between politics, the news media and citizens. This book does it all!

We are reading "Making Sense of Media and Politics" in my mid-level Media and Politics course, and I cannot believe that a book this poorly-written (to say nothing of the editing!) is in use as a college textbook. The ideas and topics presented are valuable, but Wolfsfeld's writing and grammar is laughable. The persistent comma omissions, in particular, left me wanting to abandon the book after only a few pages. A reasonable person can only tolerate sentences like "Cultural bias doesn't however just influence which stories make it through the editing process it also has a major impact on how these news stories are constructed" for so long before they are driven to distraction and begin to deeply loathe the editor who sent such a monstrosity to the printers with his/her blessing. Frequent typos are equally distracting, and Wolfsfeld's halfhearted attempts at "in" references failed to engage or humor me.I do not criticize the material presented--I think it is valuable and presents the reader with ways to make a more informed judgement about the vast amounts of information the media bombards us with daily. I do, however, take great issue with the actual presentation of that material. Several more rounds through the editing process would be the best thing that could happen to this sorry excuse for a college textbook. If I wanted to read something that sounded like an average middle-schooler wrote it, I would find an average middle schooler's notebook and peruse that instead.Bottom line: if you are a literate, decently well-read human being, find a different book. If multiple glaring errors and embarrassing typos in every paragraph get you excited about reading, then by all means, buy it...you have my pity.

Finally a book that is both informative and entertaining and provides the basic tools to understand and analyze how the synergism of politics and media feed off one another. Wolfsfeld has a marvelous style, one that makes you feel like you are talking with a savvy friend who has graciously agreed to take behind the scenes of the political process. He does so with a wink and a smile to make sure you understand that while this is important stuff, it's critical to maintain a sense of humor. And that is perhaps the secret of this short but important addition to understanding of political communications today. Media & Politics is replete with references to current academic research and interlaced with Wolfsfeld's own insights and analysis, and therefore will become a "must read" in academic circles. It nonetheless is one of those rare books that easily cross the line to be supremely accessible to the layman. Enlightening and entertaining in equal measure, I highly recommend Making Sense of Media & Politics.

As a once undergraduate student of Political Communication, and now doctoral student and Community College professor, I can say that Wolfsfeld's book is the perfect balance of academic rigor and ease of reading that every text book should strive for. Its academic insight, combined with its lighthearted tone will pull in students at all interest and academic levels and leave them wanting to go deeper into the field. By breaking the material into five clear principles, Wolfsfeld makes the material digestible, but does not sacrifice the nuances that are critical for continued study in the field. You finish the book feeling as if you have attended the Professor's classroom without having had to pay for the plane ride to Israel. I would highly suggest that professors, wether they are seeking a primary text or a political communication book to add to a more comprehensive Political Science or Communication class, consider this one.

This concise book captures the essential elements of the relationship between media and politics. While most political communication books focus exclusively on American media and politics, this book offers a more comparative approach, including an interesting chapter which contrasts the role of news media in peace negotiations in Israel with that in Ireland. I have adopted this book for my media and politics course and find that my students really enjoy reading it. Wolfsfeld introduces sophisticated theories in political communication using a conversational tone and fascinating examples. This book has greatly enhanced our class discussions!