Spin doctor, soundbite, press secretary, digital, global village, cool Britannia. Politics today is saturated with the jargon and buzzwords of the mass media.

How important are they for the way we are governed? How can the ever-expanding impact of the media be controlled? In this up-to-the-minute book, a group of Britain's best-known journalists and media analysts tackle one of the most testing issues facing the nation in the next century. Each essay focuses on the central role of newspapers, broadcasting and information technology in our political life.

Peter...

Distinguished contributors from a range of disciplines explore the question of Britishness - past, present and future.

• A lively and authoritative discussion of an important, timely and contemporary issue
• Investigates how devolution has brought a new focus on the future of Britain and the nature of Britishness
• Discusses the challenge of a more diverse society, with the search for a basis of social cohesion and solidarity
• Examines Gordon Brown's Britishness project, with its aim of producing a statement of British values