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Understanding New Media
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Understanding New Media

Third Edition


March 2026 | 296 pages | SAGE Publications Ltd

The new media landscape touches every aspect of our social, political and cultural lives. It is more important than ever, therefore, that we are able to understand and explain the complexity of our digital world.

Understanding New Media gives you the tools and the knowledge you need to make sense of the relationship between technologies, media and society. This best-selling introduction:

  • Makes complex ideas accessible, clearly explaining the key thinkers, theories and research you need to understand.
  • Brings theory to life with a range of case studies, from platform economies to digital populism.
  • Helps get you started on projects and essays with suggested questions and activities.

Understanding New Media is the perfect guide to the past, present and future of the new media world. It is essential reading for anyone exploring new, social or digital media.

 
Chapter 1: Introduction: Media Old and New
 
Chapter 2: Political Economy
 
Chapter 3: Platforms as New Media
 
Chapter 4: Artificial Intelligence
 
Chapter 5: Politics and Activism
 
Chapter 6: Populism and Extremism
 
Chapter 7: Race and Gender
 
Chapter 8: Journalism and Misinformation
 
Chapter 9: Being Social in a Digital Age, Chapter
 
Chapter 10: Uses and Abuses
 
Chapter 11: Representation and the Visual
 
Chapter 12: Security and Surveillance

Eugenia Siapera’s Understanding New Media has long been essential reading for both students and scholars. The highly anticipated third edition of this landmark book is thoroughly up-to-date, reflecting the rapidly evolving media landscape dominated by digital platforms. Understanding New Media provides a solid foundation in new media theories, empirical research, and critical questions surrounding new media.

With a diverse array of perspectives, Siapera examines key topics such as platformization, artificial intelligence and digital wellbeing. Accessible and thought-provoking, it features insightful case studies and activities that deepen the reader’s understanding of the implications of new media on social, political and cultural life.

 

Mervi Pantti
Professor in Media and Communication Studies, University of Helsinki,

Eugenia Siapera

Eugenia Siapera is a Professor of Digital Technology, Society and Policy at University College Dublin where she is also the Director of the Centre for Digital Policy (with Elizabeth Farries). Her research interests are in the area of digital media and technologies and their intersections with questions of social justice. She has published widely on topics such as race and digital racism, platform governance, digital journalism, and online misogyny.   More About Author

For instructors