New Open Access Book: Early Media Effects Theory & the Suggestion Doctrine
mediastudies.press is a scholar-led, nonprofit, diamond open access publisher in the media, film, and communication studies fields. We are excited to announce the publication of Early Media Effects Theory & the Suggestion Doctrine, edited by Patrick Parsons.
While much has been written on the history of media effects research in the United States, a casual review of the literature could reasonably lead one to believe that little if any such work was conducted until the 1940s. The anthology, consisting of over 30 public domain works originally publishing from the late 19th century to the mid-1930s, demonstrates the rich and varied study of media effects before mid-century—much of it centered on the concept of “suggestion.” What media scholars know today as “persuasion,” social psychologists of the early 1900s would have understood as the process of suggestion. The works collected in Early Media Effects Theory & the Suggestion Doctrine include the original statements on the subject from many of the leading social theorists of the age, among them figures such as Gabriel Tarde and Gustave Le Bon in France and James Baldwin, Edward Ross, and Floyd Allport in the United States.
The book is available online, and as a free download in PDF and ePub. A paperback version is also available.
Early Media Effects Theory & the Suggestion Doctrine appears in the Public Domain series. Scholars interested in proposing volumes in this or other series are encouraged to reach out with a query. You can learn more about mediastudies.press, including our operations and OA principles, on our site. The press is a member of the Open Book Collective and the ScholarLed consortium, and also publishes the History of Media Studies journal. Please contact us at press@mediastudies.press.