Media representation of and for the disabled has been recharged in recent years with the expansion of new media worldwide. Interactive digital communications -- such as the Interact, new varieties of voice and text telephones, and digital broadcasting -- have created a need for a more innovative understanding of new media and disability issues. This engaging analysis offers a global perspective on how people with disabilities are represented as users, consumers, viewers, or listeners of new media, by policymakers, corporations, programmers, and the disabled themselves.

A toolkit of basic principles to help those in business, industry, law, and other professions deal with a constantly changing communications sector. Although telephone, cable, broadcast, print, and Internet companies are changing at a fantastic rate, the fundamentals of communications, networks, and competition have remained constant. This book provides the tools necessary to build lasting, flexible strategies to survive and grow in these times of transition. Whether you are a business executive, lawmaker, policy analyst, industrialist, stock analyst, lawyer, or judge, these tools will help you to solve real problems right away. The toolkit contains six tools -- essentially ways to view the workings of the communications sector from a larger, more inclusive perspective. The tools draw on knowledge and concepts from communications, engineering, biology, business, and law. Tool #1, New Building Blocks, presents the big picture of the communications sector. Tool #2, Networks, develops the fundamental parts and processes found in all networks. Tool #3, Competition and Cooperation, presents the basic characteristics shared by most processes in which two or more entities compete or cooperate to obtain a scarce resource. Tool #4, The Three Visions of Convergence, sorts out the many things people mean when they say "convergence." Tool #5, Convergence Theology, shows how people's faith (or lack of it) in convergence influences their predictions for the future. Finally, Tool #6, Concentration/Diversity, focuses on the forces that drive things together and those that pull them apart. The book also discusses how the tools can be used to understand and influence public policy issues.

Praise for the First Edition: "A landmark volume that provides a foundation stone for a new subject - the study of new media. It is stunningly well-edited, offering a very high standard of original contributions in a skilfully orchestrated and organised textbook." - James Curran, Goldsmiths, University of London "The first major review of interactive technologies and their cultural and social context. This is more than a welcome addition to one′s library; it is the authoritative overview of international research perspectives on interactive media technologies by leading scholars around the world." - Ellen Wartella, University of Texas, Austin "A landmark for the study of information and communication technologies within the field of communication. Its international team of editors and authors has brought together insights gained from over two decades of scholarly research. This indispensable reference demonstrates an increased maturity and stature for "new media" research within the field." - William H Dutton, University of Southern California "A truly comprehensive and authoritative volume. This Handbook will be an absolutely essential text for anyone concerned with social aspects of the new media." - Kevin Robins, Goldsmiths, University of London Thoroughly revised and updated, this Student Edition of the successful Handbook of New Media has been abridged to showcase the best of the hardback edition. It stakes out the boundaries of new media research and scholarship and provides a definitive statement of the current state of the field. Features new to the student edition include: Improved organization of material to make it more accessible for students and easier to incorporate into course design An introduction by the editors, which clearly lays out the main themes in new media studies as well as providing instructors with a guide to how to get the most out of the handbook in the classroom All chapters are updated to combine classic studies and background material with latest developments in the field. The first edition of the Handbook immediately established itself as the central reference work in the field. This new revised edition offers students the most comprehensive and up-to-date introduction to the area.

Based on a conference of national authorities and leading scholars in antitrust and competition law and policy, the text presents 20 essays which together provide an in-depth assessment of achievements and impasses, as well as a variety of possible ways forward.