Television in the Antenna Age is a brief, accessible, and engaging overview of the medium’s history and development in the US. Integrating three major concerns--television as an industry, a technology, and an art—the book is a basic primer on the complex, fascinating, and often overlooked story of television and its impact on American life. Covers the entire history of American television, from its urban, middle-class beginnings in the late 40s, to the contemporary impact of new technologies and consolidated corporate. Includes interview segments with industry insiders, pictures, and sidebars to illustrate important figures, trends, and events

Television in the Multichannel Age is a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to the history of multichannel television in all its forms – from cable to direct-to-home satellite and beyond. Chapter by chapter, the book traces the evolution of cable television from its pre-historical origins in the late 1940s to the communications satellites and DBS distribution systems of the modern digital age, both in the U.S. and internationally. Guides the reader through the history of multichannel television from its origins in the ‘40s to the modern age Discusses factors that influence today’s television landscape including government policy-making, emerging technologies, and the public’s programming tastes Concentrates on domestic multichannel technologies while considering global impacts of these technologies Includes newly discovered oral history transcripts, personal interviews, government documents, and never before seen photographs Presents a fascinating history of media that have come to play critical roles in today’s society, and in doing so invites the reader to speculate on the future of multichannel television

With Amusement for All contextualizes what Americans have done for fun since 1830, showing the reciprocal nature of the relationships among social, political, economic, and cultural forces and the ways in which the entertainment world has reflected, changed, or reinforced the values of American society.

A Short History of the Modern Media presents a concise history of the major media of the last 150 years, including print, stage, film, radio, television, sound recording, and the Internet. Offers a compact, teaching-friendly presentation of the history of mass media Features a discussion of works in popular culture that are well-known and easily available Presents a history of modern media that is strongly interdisciplinary in nature

Global Food Crisis: What's Causing the Rising Prices?

The way detectives access and attain the 'truth' about a crime is an important indicator of how they relate to contemporary political developments. This book explores these methods of detection and positions the genre in a specific political, aesthetic, narrative and industrial context.

The NAB Engineering Handbook provides detailed information on virtually every aspect of the broadcast chain, from news gathering, program production and postproduction through master control and distribution links to transmission, antennas, RF propagation, cable and satellite. Hot topics covered include HD Radio, HDTV, 2 GHz broadcast auxiliary services, EAS, workflow, metadata, digital asset management, advanced video and audio compression, audio and video over IP, and Internet broadcasting. A wide range of related topics that engineers and managers need to understand are also covered, including broadcast administration, FCC practices, technical standards, security, safety, disaster planning, facility planning, project management, and engineering management. Basic principles and the latest technologies and issues are all addressed by respected professionals with first-hand experience in the broadcast industry and manufacturing. This edition has been fully revised and updated, with 104 chapters and over 2000 pages. The Engineering Handbook provides the single most comprehensive and accessible resource available for engineers and others working in production, postproduction, networks, local stations, equipment manufacturing or any of the associated areas of radio and television.

An analysis of I Love Lucy, one of the best loved sitcoms in the history of American television. I Love Lucy aired for six seasons between 1951 and 1957 as a top-rated weekly sitcom, and its characters appeared in thirteen hour-long specials between 1958 and 1960. In I Love Lucy, author Lori Landay investigates the groundbreaking series and its highly charismatic stars, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, to consider the program's impact on the conventions of the sitcom, television culture, and wider postwar culture. In chapters that proceed chronologically through the life of the series, Landay takes an interdisciplinary cultural studies approach to understanding the wider phenomenon of I Love Lucy, with an emphasis on a variety of issues as they arise from different phases of the show. She examines the program's efficient production system, compelling narrative formula, hilarious writing, and the technical genius behind the scenes that put it onto film. Landay also considers the show's clever plots within a familiar situation, magnificent comic performance, and the remarkable chemistry of its actors. In addition, she studies the end of the series and its continued place in popular culture. I Love Lucy is perhaps the most popular television show of all time, and its stars are some of the most recognizable in television history. For scholars of American television history as well as the series' many fans, I Love Lucy will be an enjoyable and informative read.

The definitive history of America’s greatest incubator of innovation and the birthplace of some of the 20th century’s most influential technologies “Filled with colorful characters and inspiring lessons . . . The Idea Factory explores one of the most critical issues of our time: What causes innovation?” —Walter Isaacson, The New York Times Book Review “Compelling . . . Gertner's book offers fascinating evidence for those seeking to understand how a society should best invest its research resources.” —The Wall Street Journal From its beginnings in the 1920s until its demise in the 1980s, Bell Labs-officially, the research and development wing of AT&T-was the biggest, and arguably the best, laboratory for new ideas in the world. From the transistor to the laser, from digital communications to cellular telephony, it's hard to find an aspect of modern life that hasn't been touched by Bell Labs. In The Idea Factory, Jon Gertner traces the origins of some of the twentieth century's most important inventions and delivers a riveting and heretofore untold chapter of American history. At its heart this is a story about the life and work of a small group of brilliant and eccentric men-Mervin Kelly, Bill Shockley, Claude Shannon, John Pierce, and Bill Baker-who spent their careers at Bell Labs. Today, when the drive to invent has become a mantra, Bell Labs offers us a way to enrich our understanding of the challenges and solutions to technological innovation. Here, after all, was where the foundational ideas on the management of innovation were born.