Theorising Media and Practice - (Anthropology of Media) by Birgit Bräuchler & John Postill (Paperback)
About this item
Highlights
- Although practice theory has been a mainstay of social theory for nearly three decades, so far it has had very limited impact on media studies.
- About the Author: Birgit Bräuchler is Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Copenhagen.
- 352 Pages
- Social Science, Media Studies
- Series Name: Anthropology of Media
Description
About the Book
Collection of papers, some of which were presented at a media anthropology network workshop, organised by the editors as part of the European Association of Social Anthropologists' (EASA) conference held in Bristol, U.K., September, 2006.Book Synopsis
Although practice theory has been a mainstay of social theory for nearly three decades, so far it has had very limited impact on media studies. This book draws on the work of practice theorists such as Wittgenstein, Foucault, Bourdieu, Barth and Schatzki and rethinks the study of media from the perspective of practice theory. Drawing on ethnographic case studies from places such as Zambia, India, Hong Kong, the United States, Britain, Norway and Denmark, the contributors address a number of important themes: media as practice; the interlinkage between media, culture and practice; the contextual study of media practices; and new practices of digital production. Collectively, these chapters make a strong case for the importance of theorising the relationship between media and practice and thereby adding practice theory as a new strand to the study of anthropology of media.
Review Quotes
"This book is extremely thought provoking and makes an important contribution to current debates about the nature and scope of media ethnography. It includes the work of some of the most outstanding scholars working at the intersection of media studies and media ethnography, and many of the individual chapters make important contributions to the field." - Virginia Nightingale, University of Western Sydney
"This is a worthy, potentially important book, very likely to have a substantial influence in the growing interdisciplinary fields of media studies and media anthropology. It is a well conceived and timely contribution to a set of ongoing conceptual debates and is successful in both representing those debates and participating in them. It deserves to be widely read." - Eric W. Rothenbuhler, Texas A&M University
About the Author
Birgit Bräuchler is Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Copenhagen. She is author of Cyberidentities at War (2013, Berghahn), The Cultural Dimension of Peace (2015, Palgrave), editor of Reconciling Indonesia (2009, Routledge), co-editor of Theorising Media and Conflict (2020, Berghahn) with Philipp Budka and has published widely in peer-reviewed journals.
