The statement from publishers, Nicholas Brealey Publishing, said: “Our society is shaped by our media – more than at any other time in modern history. They play a crucial role in culture, commerce and politics alike. The Ascent of Media is the first comprehensive history of its type, and the first book to look at the new digital era in the context of all that has gone before, building on the past to describe the media landscape of the future.
From the Clay Tablet to Tabloids to the Tablet Computer
Roger Parry takes us on a journey from the earliest written story - the Legend of Gilgamesh etched on clay tablets - to the Gutenberg press, and from the theatres of Athens to satellite TV and the coming semantic web. Tracing 3000 years of history. He shows how today’s media has been shaped by the interaction of politics, economics and technology. He explains why Britain has the public service BBC whilst America developed the private broadcasting networks ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC. He profiles the people and organizations that have created the media world and reveals the often surprising stories behind the such ubiquitous items as the keyboard and telephone dial and the odd etymologies of now-common words like tabloid (named for a brand of small pills with medicinal properties) and the cliché (a box in which type-printers would keep over-used phrases like “as night follows day”, as labour-saving tools)
The book shows that issues of today such as a sensationalist press, phone-hacking, piracy, monopolies, walled gardens, and balancing advertising and subscription revenue have all happened before. Each upheaval in the media world – the development of moveable type printing in the 1450s; the telegraph network in the 1850s; radio broadcasting in the 1920s; and digital distribution in the 2000s – created huge fortunes, challenged authority and raised fundamental issues of copyright, privacy and censorship. But, as history shows us, traditional media then adapt, evolve and go on to thrive in the face of competition.
The convergence of the internet, mobile phones and tablet computers is now transforming the culture. Established media giants are struggling, while new firms like Google and Apple are thriving. The superabundance of media, with increasing amounts generated by consumers themselves, means that media professionals are becoming curators as much as creators of content.The Ascent of Media traces the story from clay tablets to tabloids to the tablet computer. It relates how we got where we are and, based on the experience of history, where we are likely to go next.
Peter Bazalgette, President Royal Television Society, Chairman of Endemol said: “Whatever the technology, mankind has always enjoyed a good story. The Ascent of Media tells a cracking story with a cornucopia of insights. Read Roger Parry and you’re equipped to imagine where digital media might take us next.”
James Palumbo, founder of the global multi-media business Ministry of Sound, said: "Media are going through huge changes. This book provides a fascinating insight into how we got to where we are now and where media might go next."
About the author
According to the publishers, Roger Parry began his career working for Saatchi & Saatchi, then worked as a journalist for the BBC, LBC and ITV and a consultant with McKinsey and Company. Chairman and CEO of the international division of Clear Channel Communications Inc between 1998 and 2006, he has always sat in the upper echelons of the global media industry. As it stands he is Chairman of four publicly listed companies, representing every aspect of the media from publishing to market research to Shakespeare's Globe Trust.
