Now in its second edition, Entertainment & Politics is an essential text for understanding how young people acquire and hold political beliefs over time. In this updated and expanded edition, the author reaches beyond the U.S., including research on Canada, Great Britain, and Ireland to investigate a broader international picture of the effect the entertainment media has on the socio-political beliefs of young people. The book examines the many ways that the entertainment media influence young people, and the extent to which young people's beliefs differ from those of their parents, teachers, and peers. Findings indicate that media's influence does not fit into neat «conservative» and «left/liberal» patterns, but interacts with parental and peer influence in heretofore unexamined ways. This up-to-date text is designed for undergraduates, graduate students, professors, and interested lay readers.
«For decades, scholars have speculated on the political impact of popular culture. 'Entertainment & Politics' provides us with evidence. Solidly grounded in theory and methods, this breakthrough book, which extends the findings of the first edition through comparative analysis, belongs on the reading list of every scholar and student of media effects, political socialization, and popular culture.» (Thomas E. Patterson, Bradlee Professor of Government and the Press, Harvard University)