Friday, 26 November 2021, 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. on Zoom
The international comparative study of communication has been part of our field since the very beginning. The early studies of propaganda, which involved pioneers like Lasswell and Bernays, had a comparative dimension and this emphasis continued into the 1950s with the publication of extremely influential Four Theories of the Press. The growth of the scholarly study of the media in the last couple of decades has led to an ever-greater emphasis on attempts to find commonalities and divergences in legacy media produced in different nations as well as a recognition that electronic media are not, in the main, restricted by national boundaries. This talk discussed various ways of undertaking comparative studies and reviewed the strengths and weaknesses of some of the most impressive contemporary examples.
COLIN SPARKS is Emeritus Chair Professor of Media Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University. He has written extensively on several aspects of the mass media, including tabloidization, globalization and media in transitional societies. His most recently published work, undertaken in collaboration with Chinese scholars, has been about the impact of digital technologies on mainland Chinese newspapers and journalism.
For enquiries: mkcheung@hkbu.edu.hk
Organized by Centre for Media and Communication Research and Research Postgraduate Studies Program, School of Communication and Film