Mass media : Intimacy at a distance
(2022) p.155-187- Abstract
The mass media constructs authority by creating 'intimacy at a distance' (John B. Thompson) between public figures and the people. This chapter argues that, over the course of the long nineteenth century, rulers both gained new possibilities for staging their authority through the emerging mass media, and lost control over this mediated staging under specific circumstances, often turning from master of mediated intimacy into its slave. This argument rests on three points of entanglement: the liberalization of the press paradoxically reinforced rulers' ability to present their authority on the public stage; technological innovations enabled them to do so on an increasingly 'industrial' scale; and the commercialization of the press and... (More)
The mass media constructs authority by creating 'intimacy at a distance' (John B. Thompson) between public figures and the people. This chapter argues that, over the course of the long nineteenth century, rulers both gained new possibilities for staging their authority through the emerging mass media, and lost control over this mediated staging under specific circumstances, often turning from master of mediated intimacy into its slave. This argument rests on three points of entanglement: the liberalization of the press paradoxically reinforced rulers' ability to present their authority on the public stage; technological innovations enabled them to do so on an increasingly 'industrial' scale; and the commercialization of the press and changes in journalistic culture led to the personalization and celebritization of their authority.
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- author
- van Waarden, Betto LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2022-10-24
- type
- Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Celebrity politics, Commercialization of media, Intimacy at a distance, Journalistic culture, Liberalization of the press, Mass media, Personalization of politics, Public opinion
- host publication
- Staging Authority : Presentation and Power in Nineteenth-Century Europe. A Handbook - Presentation and Power in Nineteenth-Century Europe. A Handbook
- pages
- 33 pages
- publisher
- De Gruyter
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85141960865
- ISBN
- 9783110571141
- 9783110574012
- DOI
- 10.1515/9783110574012-006
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 4e629dc6-3a3c-4f2a-bb49-668010772b2f
- date added to LUP
- 2023-01-19 15:19:56
- date last changed
- 2024-07-12 01:47:58
@inbook{4e629dc6-3a3c-4f2a-bb49-668010772b2f, abstract = {{<p>The mass media constructs authority by creating 'intimacy at a distance' (John B. Thompson) between public figures and the people. This chapter argues that, over the course of the long nineteenth century, rulers both gained new possibilities for staging their authority through the emerging mass media, and lost control over this mediated staging under specific circumstances, often turning from master of mediated intimacy into its slave. This argument rests on three points of entanglement: the liberalization of the press paradoxically reinforced rulers' ability to present their authority on the public stage; technological innovations enabled them to do so on an increasingly 'industrial' scale; and the commercialization of the press and changes in journalistic culture led to the personalization and celebritization of their authority.</p>}}, author = {{van Waarden, Betto}}, booktitle = {{Staging Authority : Presentation and Power in Nineteenth-Century Europe. A Handbook}}, isbn = {{9783110571141}}, keywords = {{Celebrity politics; Commercialization of media; Intimacy at a distance; Journalistic culture; Liberalization of the press; Mass media; Personalization of politics; Public opinion}}, language = {{eng}}, month = {{10}}, pages = {{155--187}}, publisher = {{De Gruyter}}, title = {{Mass media : Intimacy at a distance}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/9783110574012-006}}, doi = {{10.1515/9783110574012-006}}, year = {{2022}}, }