Public Opinion

In what is widely considered the most influential book ever written by Walter Lippmann, the late journalist and social critic provides a fundamental treatise on the nature of human information and communication. As Michael Curtis indicates in his introduction to this edition, Public Opinion qualifies as a classic by virtue of its systematic brilliance and literary grace.The work is divided into eight parts, covering such varied issues as stereotypes, image making, and organized intelligence. The study begins with an analysis of "the world outside and the pictures hi our heads," a leitmotif that starts with issues of censorship and privacy, speed, words, and clarity, and ends with a careful survey of the modern newspaper. The work is a showcase for Lippmann's vast erudition. He easily integrated the historical, psychological, and philosophical literature of his day, and in every instance showed how relevant intellectual formations were to the ordinary operations of everyday life.The field of public opinion research has produced much since this 1922 classic, but no work is more compelling in its argument or lasting in its impact. Lippmann's conclusions are as meaningful in a world of television and computers as in the earlier period when newspapers were dominant. Public Opinion is of enduring significance for communications scholars, historians, - sociologists, and political scientists

In what is widely considered the most influential book ever written by Walter Lippmann, the late journalist and social critic provides a fundamental treatise on the nature of human information and communication. As Michael Curtis indicates in his introduction to this edition, Public Opinion qualifies as a classic by virtue of its systematic brilliance and literary grace.The work is divided into eight parts, covering such varied issues as stereotypes, image making, and organized intelligence. The study begins with an analysis of "the world outside and the pictures hi our heads," a leitmotif that starts with issues of censorship and privacy, speed, words, and clarity, and ends with a careful survey of the modern newspaper. The work is a showcase for Lippmann's vast erudition. He easily integrated the historical, psychological, and philosophical literature of his day, and in every instance showed how relevant intellectual formations were to the ordinary operations of everyday life.The field of public opinion research has produced much since this 1922 classic, but no work is more compelling in its argument or lasting in its impact. Lippmann's conclusions are as meaningful in a world of television and computers as in the earlier period when newspapers were dominant. Public Opinion is of enduring significance for communications scholars, historians, - sociologists, and political scientists

Public Opinion is Walter Lippmann's groundbreaking work which demonstrates how individual beliefs are swayed by stereotypes, the mass media, and political propaganda. The book opens with the notion that democracy in the age of super fast communications is obsolete. He analyses the impact of several phenomena, such as the radio and newspapers, to support his criticisms of the sociopolitical situation as it stands. He famously coins the term 'manufactured consent', for the fomenting of views which ultimately work against the interests of those who hold them. Lippmann contends that owing to the masses of information flung at the population on a daily basis, opinions regarding entire groups in society are being reduced to simple stereotypes. The actual complexity and nuance of life, Lippmann contends, is undermined by the ever-faster modes of communication appearing regularly. News by nature presents or emphasizes only some of the facts.

"The manner of presentation is so objective and projective that one finishes this book almost without realizing that it is perhaps the most effective indictment of democracy... ever penned." --John Dewey, The New Republic (1922) Public Opinion , written in 1922, is one of Walter Lippmann's most influential works. This original replica has been called "the founding book of modern journalism," and is a classic textbook for political science, journalism, and media studies. Lippmann states in this critique of democracy, that "the average citizen lives in a world he cannot see, does not understand and is unable to direct." Moreover, the speed and sensationalism of the mass media (in the 1920s ) would make things worse not better. More information does not produce better-informed citizens, as is often assumed. According to Lippmann, the solution needs to be found in a governing class, a "specialized class of men," with the required knowledge to deal with the major challenges of the state. In essence, the traditional concept of democracy was impossible. In an era of increased criticism of governments, from Brexit in Great Britain and the yellow vests in France, to the youth protests in Hong Kong and the "deplorables" in Trump's United States, Public Opinion is a must-read for journalists, historians, and all who are interested in the media and current affairs.