Joel Penney offers compelling arguments for why 'soft news' should not be written off as frivolous or as having little public value, while also illuminating the potential dangers of conveying heated political issues via for-profit, click-bait-oriented entertainment journalism. Based on interviews with journalists and audiences, this insightful book will inspire lively class discussions about the colliding political and cultural spheres of our contemporary news media environment.
Joel Penney is an Associate Professor in the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University, specializing in new media, critical/cultural studies, and political communication and theory. His research focuses on the uses of digital media and popular culture for political expression as well as the construction of collective identities. His first book, The Citizen Marketer, is the winner of national book awards from the American Political Science Association and the National Communication Association.