- Presses and democracies / Daniel C. Hallin, Robert Giles
- American journalism in historical perspective / Michael Schudson, Susan E. Tifft
- The nature and sources of news / Robert M. Entman
- Definitions of journalism / Barbie Zelizer
- The minority press / Pamela Newkirk
- Journalism and democracy across borders / John Keane
- What democracy requires of the media / James Curran
- The marketplace of ideas / Robert Schmuhl, Robert G. Picard
- The agenda-setting function of the press / Maxwell McCombs
- The watchdog role / W. Lance Bennett, William Serrin
- Informing the public / Thomas Patterson, Philip Seib
- Mobilizing citizen participation / Esther Thorson
- Government and the press / Martha Joynt Kumar, Alex Jones
- Public policy toward the press / Timothy E. Cook
- The First Amendment tradition and its critics / Bruce W. Sanford, Jane E. Kirtley
- Legal evolution of the government-news media relationship / Jane E. Kirtley
- Communications regulation in protecting the public interest / Robert B. Horwitz
- Journalism and the public interest / Daniel Schorr
- The military and the media / William Prochnau
- Money, media, and the public interest / Robert G. Picard
- The market and the media / James T. Hamilton
- The press and the politics of representation / Mitchell Stephens, David T.Z. Mindich
- The legacy of autonomy in American journalism / Theodore L. Glasser, Marc Gunther
- What kind of journalism does the public need? / Carolyn Marvin, Philip Meyer
- The future of news, the future of journalism / John Carey, Nancy Hicks Maynard.
American democracy is built on its institutions. The Congress, the presidency, and the judiciary, in particular, undergird the rights and responsibilities of every citizen. The free press, for example, protected by the First Amendment, allows for the dissent so necessary in a democracy. How has this institution changed since the nation's founding? And what can we, as leaders, policymakers, and citizens, do to keep it vital? The freedom of the press is an essential element of American democracy. With the guidance of editors Geneva Overholser and Kathleen Hall Jamieson, this volume examines the role of the press in a democracy, investigating alternative models used throughout world history to better understand how the American press has evolved into what it is today. The commission also examines ways to allow more voices to be heard and to improve the institution of the American free press. "The Press", a collection of essays by the nation's leading journalism scholars and professionals will examine the history, identity, roles, and future of the American press, with an emphasis on topics of concern to both practitioners and consumers of American media.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)