Table of Contents

Introduction: ‘Media Studies Gone Wrong’ 1. Two Trajectories: The Rise of Mass Media and Computing 2. The Material Revolution: Becoming Digital 3. The Ecological Revolution: Convergence and Hybridity 4. The Cultural Revolution: The Post-Broadcast Era 5. The Me-Dia Revolution: The Second Reformation 6. Mass Media Studies: The Rise of Duck Science 7. The Emperor’s Old Clothes: Why Media Studies Didn’t Work 8. Upgrading the Discipline: Media Studies 2.0 9. The 21st Century Discipline: User Studies and the Productive Turn 10. Open-Sourcing Knowledge: Towards a University 2.0 11. Conclusion: ‘Shit Just Got Real’ Bibliography

About the Author

William Merrin is an Associate Professor in Media Studies at Swansea University, with research interests in media theory, digital media and culture and media history. He is the author of Baudrillard and the Media (2005) and co-editor of Jean Baudrillard: Fatal Theories (Routledge, 2008).

Reviews

"Media Studies 2.0 well repays a close reading and should be on the reading list of everyone teaching media. Merrin writes well and makes his points both seriously and entertaingly, a commendable combination."Paul A. Soukup, S.J., Santa Clara University, Communication Research Trends"For thoughtful, clearly articulated reasons, and with a deep understanding of the history of media theories and practices, William Merrin makes a powerful argument that ‘media studies’ is in need of dramatic disruption. Media Studies 2.0 offers students and their tutors a fruitful vision of how to engage with today’s complex digital media systems."David Gauntlett, Professor of Media and Communications, University of Westminster"Merrin's Media Studies 2.0 brings media to life and is the provocation that will force a real rethink in the field by students and scholars alike, and rightly so."Andrew Hoskins, Interdisciplinary Research Professor, University of Glasgow"William Merrin’s Media Studies 2.0 provides a rethinking of the discipline of media studies by arguing that the digital transformation of older media forms and emergence of new media requires developing innovative forms of media studies that engage contemporary changes in media, social practices, and the shift to a digitized culture. Clear, provocative, and engaging, Merrin provides many keen insights into the new media matrix and makes clear the need to reconstruct media studies to respond our ever-evolving proliferation of new media and communications practices."Douglas Kellner, George F. Kneller Philosophy of Education Chair, University of California, Los Angeles "Merrin’s Media Studies 2.0 works hard to offer a new account of the history (and prehistory) of media studies and it raises some interesting historical, theoretical and technological issues along the way. It is a controversial book, but one which should prove to be a valuable read for undergraduate students.Ben Taylor, Principal Lecturer in Media & Cultural Studies, Nottingham Trent University