100 Media Moments That Changed America

April 15, 2010
Willis is a prolific author (ten books on journalism) and a distinguished journalism professor who has also worked as a reporter. His "The Human Journalist" has won an American Library Association award as an outstanding academic book. This title is written in an engaging style, with the events chosen via a sound set of criteria (described in the book's preface). A time line of media history precedes the entries, which run approximately two pages each; many are illustrated with black-and-white photographs. The text concludes with a chapter describing ten additional events that might have been included had the author not been striving for a 100-item limit. A bibliography and index are also included. Overall, this looks like a generally interesting and possibly useful book, but, unfortunately, it is priced and marketed as an expensive reference. BOTTOM LINE Recommended as a text for a communications course or a general interest reader, although the price is prohibitive. As a useful source for the reference collection, it is an optional purchase.Denise Johnson, Bradley Univ. Lib., Peoria, IL

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2010
The influence of mass media on individuals and world events is not new, but it is growing as the variety of media and accessibility to more and more media formats increase. Author Willis identifies 100 media events in Americas past that produced the biggest ripple effects in U.S. culture and history. Some changed society, and some greatly influenced the development of media itself. The book begins with a time line of media events, some of which get their own sections later in the text. A chronological arrangement has the 100 events grouped into four eras, starting with The New Nation, 16901799. Number one is the first American newspaper. Among others are the first presidential press conference, Edward R. Murrows reports from London during WWII, the OJ Simpson trial, and the founding of Facebook. A final section includes 10 also-ran events that the author could not leave out, increasing the list to 110. Occasional sidebars expand on or provide stories related to the media moments. Each entry is two to three pages long and as such can only provide a very basic introduction. However, the entries can spark a readers interest in doing more research, and a selected bibliography provides some guidance for further study. This is different from other titles on mass media published in the past and would provide an excellent introduction for students. Most high schools include mass-media courses, and this book would be a useful addition to their libraries as well as being suitable for public and academic libraries. Also available as an e-book.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)