Book Reviews

Review: The Tower of Babble by Richard Stursberg

Apr 25, 2012 - Posted by Belinda Alzner

The Tower of Babble by Richard Stursberg is a mass of contradictions, says Howard Bernstein in this review. So, why read it? A few reasons: It is a rare opportunity to see inside CBC management. It is an amazing look at one of the most controversial, confrontational characters to work in media in Canada. And it actually does provide many examples of what’s wrong with our national broadcaster and the difficulties inherent in trying to keep it running.

Book Review: "Intersections of Media and Communications: Concepts, Context, and Critical Frameworks"

Feb 28, 2012 - Posted by Belinda Alzner

Intersections of Media and Communications: Concepts and Critical Framework offers the thought-provoking and intriguing entry points to a field undergoing a most fascinating transformation, but students of communication will not get ready-made recipes and solutions for treating the world of media. They will get something more valuable.

Book Review: "About Canada: Media"

Jan 26, 2012 - Posted by Belinda Alzner

What’s the number one issue facing Canadian media? According to Peter Steven, it’s diversity. Steven, a professor of media studies at Sheridan College in Ontario, has written a guide to Canadian media for Fernwood Publishing’s pocketbook series About Canada. Marc Edge reviews it for J-Source.

Book Review: Feeling Canadian by Marusya Bociurkiw

Jan 19, 2012 - Posted by Belinda Alzner

In Feeling Canadian, Marusya Bociurkiw tackles the difficult and often frustrating topic of Canadian identity. Bociurkiw’s work yields a wide-ranging book that often strays from its initial objective: to explore Canadian television and national practices from 1995 to 2002.

Crime reporting in the age of victim's rights: interview with Carrie Rentschler

Oct 13, 2011 - Posted by Lisa Lynch

In Second Wounds, media scholar Carrie Rentschler traces the emergence of victim advocacy in the U.S. from the sixties until the present. Rentschler also explores the relationship the victim’s rights movement and the media, describing how U.S. reporting on crime has been influenced by the movement’s idea of the “secondary victim” as well as theories of post-traumatic stress. In the first of a series of interviews with scholars about journalism research, Researching Journalism page editor Lisa Lynch spoke to Rentschler about her research process and her findings.

Book review: The New Journalist

Jul 27, 2011 - Posted by Lauren McKeon

Mark Kearney takes a look at The New Journalist -- and discovers a resource that was designed for longevity in the fast-changing journo world.

Digging Deeper: A Canadian Reporter's Research Guide, second edition

Jun 21, 2011 - Posted by Lauren McKeon

After a year of teaching with the text, J-Source asked two j-school profs what they thought of Robert Cribb, Dean Jobb, David McKie, Fred Vallance-Jones' second edition of Digging Deeper: A Canadian Reporter's Research Guide. Here's what they had to say.

Review: The End of Iceland's Innocence

May 12, 2011 - Posted by Lauren McKeon

In the opening pages of The End of Iceland's Innocence, author Daniel Chartier accuses media of sensationalizing the facts to "create an ethos" with readers, and, as a result, of making the situation worse for Iceland. Not so fast, writes reviewer Claude Adams.

When even narrow objectives fall short

May 10, 2011 - Posted by Lauren McKeon

A few months ago, Christie Blatchford released Helpless: Caledonia's Nightmare of Fear and Anarchy, and How the Law Failed All of Us. The best work in the book, writes reviewer David Swick, is thoughtful, well-researched, and delivered with punch .But what about the rest? And, why don't we hear from one occupational leader in all 258 pages?

Reporting for the Media, Canadian edition

Mar 01, 2011 - Posted by Dana Lacey

Reporting for the Media, Canadian Edition is the first ever Canadian edition of a American text that was developed nearly 35 years ago. Joy Crysdale reviews a traditional text's approach to modern day reporting.