James Curran

Culture Wars charts the battle between two generations, one shaped by the immediate post-war period and the other by the cultural revolt of the 1960s. It was a clash that first exploded into life in the 1980s, when the Conservative press and government ridiculed radical young councillors as the 'loony left', and turned them into the pariahs of contemporary politics. This cultural victory proved shortlived. The values and political agenda of the urban left made significant advances in the 1990s and 2000s when the sixties generation moved into positions of power. The book offers key insights for different disciplines: *For media studies, it offers a compelling account of how the media represent, and influence, social change. *For cultural studies, it illuminates the way in which the culture of society is a battleground between generations and opposed value groups. *For the social sciences, it documents how the rise of women, immigration, gay liberation and concern about the environment were mediated, and became the subjects of debate, political conflict, and regulation. *For the general reader, it offers a very readable account of the entry of 1960s values into mainstream politics, and the culture wars that have been fought ever since.

Media and Power addresses three key questions about the relationship between media and society.*How much power do the media have?*Who really controls the media?*What is the relationship between media and power in society? In this major new book, James Curran reviews the different answers which have been given, before advancing original interpretations in a series of ground-breaking essays. This book also provides a guided tour of the major debates in media studies. What part did the media play in the making of modern society? How did 'new media' change society in the past? Will radical media research recover from its mid-life crisis? Is public service television the dying product of the nation in an age of globalization? Media and Power provides both a clear introduction to media research and an innovative analysis of media power.

Media and Power addresses three key questions about the relationship between media and society.*How much power do the media have?*Who really controls the media?*What is the relationship between media and power in society? In this major new book, James Curran reviews the different answers which have been given, before advancing original interpretations in a series of ground-breaking essays. This book also provides a guided tour of the major debates in media studies. What part did the media play in the making of modern society? How did 'new media' change society in the past? Will radical media research recover from its mid-life crisis? Is public service television the dying product of the nation in an age of globalization? Media and Power provides both a clear introduction to media research and an innovative analysis of media power.

Although there are plenty of books devoted to small business and management research, few give much attention to the small enterprise. This book focuses systematically on researching the small firm, from basic issues of definition, to selecting topics and research designs, to fieldwork problems, data analysis and finally, writing and presenting results. The discussion is set in the wider context of issues and problems in business research. Quantitative and especially qualitative approaches are explored and illustrated by drawing in depth on a wide range of research on the small enterprise. The result is an extensive resource book for researchers at all levels to draw upon in planning and conducting effective research.

Although there are plenty of books devoted to small business and management research, few give much attention to the small enterprise. This book focuses systematically on researching the small firm, from basic issues of definition, to selecting topics and research designs, to fieldwork problems, data analysis and finally, writing and presenting results. The discussion is set in the wider context of issues and problems in business research. Quantitative and especially qualitative approaches are explored and illustrated by drawing in depth on a wide range of research on the small enterprise. The result is an extensive resource book for researchers at all levels to draw upon in planning and conducting effective research.

This book is the first to seriously consider quality issues in smaller firms, based upon well-conducted research and careful theorizing. Subjects covered include: * the relevance of formal quality standards such as BS 5750 to small firms * definitions and implementations of 'quality' in a business context, from formal standards to Total Quality Management * interviews with a selected sample of over 150 owner-managers * detailed case studies of small firms * analysis of self-generated quality strategies * the variety of formal methods of quality control.

This book examines the relationships between small businesses, large businesses and their local economies. The wide-ranging examination is based on data collected from over 400 businesses in seven contrasting localities in the United Kingdom. All the owner-managers and large organization representatives were interviewed face-to-face and background data was collected from numerous other individuals and sources. The authors' findings have profound implications for theory and policy. They question the applicability of models of the changing economy such as 'industrial districts' idealized in much of the recent literature. The results also have implications for those agencies based on the locality attempting to reach small businesses as well as government policies attempting economic development.