This classic volume on media effects theory and research has been updated and expanded to reflect new and current directions in research and theory. New topics, chapters, and contributors give a fresh take on this perennially popular subject. Reflecting recent developments in this rapidly evolving area, editors Jennings Bryant and Dolf Zillmann have expanded this second edition to 22 chapters from the original 16. All the chapters from the previous edition are included here, extensively revised and updated. Newly added chapters reflect areas of current or renewed interests in media effects study: media consumption and its underlying reception processes; intermedia processes; educational and prosocial effects; individual differences in media effects; new effects on issue perception; and third person effects.

With contributions from some of the finest scholars in the discipline, Media Effects serves not only as a comprehensive reference volume for media effects study but also as an exceptional textbook for advanced courses in media effects. As this area of study continues to evolve, Media Effects will serve as a benchmark of theory and research for current and future generations of scholars.