The study of media processes and effects is one of the most central to the discipline of communication and encompasses a vast array of theoretical perspectives, methodological tools, and applications to important social contexts. In light of this importance--as well as the rapid changes in the media environment that have occurred during the past 20 years--this Handbook explores where media effects research has been over the past several decades, and, equally important, contemplates where it should go in the years ahead.

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