From the day World War II broke out in Europe to the morning of August 6, 1945 when the Hiroshima bomb ended the war in the Pacific, the voices of CBS News reporter Edward R. Murrow and the "Murrow Boys" not only kept the nation informed, but positively riveted to their radios. Their accounts ring out again in World War II On The Air: Edward R. Murrow and the Broadcasts that Riveted a Nation, an outstanding 284-page book with an accompanying audio CD containing 47 original radio reports of World War II events. A superb primary source for all grade levels of social studies. Also, a great gift to spark intergenerational conversations with grandparents or veterans of World War II.

Digital Expressions: Media Literacy and Language Arts centers on the impact that popular media and digital technologies have on the reconstructed and expanded English/language arts curricula. Contributors are teachers, teacher educators and scholars, all with an interest in exploring how media, can be incorporated into the classroom in interesting, exciting and educationally meaningful ways. A major chapter on Assessment by media literacy's top assessment specialist, Chris Worsnop, incorporates the latest thinking from this noted educator. This book is another well-researched, practical collection of case studies by teachers who are on the front lines of media education in Canada. US educators need not reinvent the wheel.

For years, media literacy teachers have been asking for a low-cost "textbook" to help teach kids 8-12 the basics of advertising. Now there's Made You Look: How Advertising Works and Why You Should Know, by Shari Graydon, a cleverly written and entertainingly illustrated book for kids ages 8-12, helping them to recognize and think about the advertising that surrounds them. Strongly influenced by media literacy principles, Made You Look does not talk down to its readers, but engages them with simple, clear text, fact-studded sidebars, great quotes, engaging hands-on activities, and fun thought-experiments. A perfect class text to go with Buy Me That!

There are numerous books on postwar television — but precious few on postwar television advertising. Lawrence Samuel fills this gap with Brought To You By a comprehensive explanation of how TV advertising rose to be one of the most influential forces in American culture. What is the American Dream and how do we attain it? Samuel argues that postwar television ads helped shape these ideas for a nation hungry for peace and prosperity. An engaging and thought-provoking work.

In this small but mighty manual, Faye B. Steuer and Jason T. Hustedt, the authors of TV Or No TV? A Primer on the Psychology of Television explore all the arguments for and against television but without the rancor and rhetoric that usually come from books purposefully written to 'bash' TV or promote a 'turn off the tube' lifestyle. Thoroughly researched but written in a non-academic style, it belongs on the bookshelf of teachers, parents, pastors, counselors and all others whose job is to help families make decisions about television use in the home.

How do we learn to watch TV? The Televiewing Audience: The Art and Science of Watching TV, by Robert Abelman and David J. Atkin, offers fascinating insights into how we watch, why we watch - and more. Some call it " a user's guide for the only household appliance that does not come with one!" Thoughtful but not academic, it is written for the millions who simply watch TV -- and it reminds us that nothing is simple about watching TV. Comprehensive. Creative. Enlightening.

Too often any critique of the news media focuses on the issue of bias in coverage — whether right, left or center. The Press Effect: Politicians, Journalists, and the Stories That Shape the Political World posits that the problem with news is not bias but that media make the stories in the very way they report them! Written by Kathleen Hall Jamieson, chair of the Annenberg School at the U. of Pennsylvania, and frequent TV commentator on political media, with co-author Paul Waldman, the book outlines how the press take on different "roles"-- storyteller, amateur psychologist, soothsayer, patriot, etc.- thus influencing how a story takes shape. As we gear up for another political season, this is an important new resource to deepen our understanding and challenge our teaching about news and politics. Highly recommended for journalism and social studies teachers at all levels.

Carefully deconstructing both American society and modern journalism, Herbert J. Gans' Democracy and the News offers a clear and nuanced examination of one of the most important issues in discussions of media today: what does it mean to be an informed citizen? This update of the author's 1979 classic Deciding What's News, is an insightful exploration of the "decline" of critical news analysis in the US and offers thoughtful suggestions for a "healthier" news media and a more informed citizenry.

Rated "The Best" on the web in political satire by Yahoo's Internet Life, American Newspeak: The Mangling of Meaning for Profit and Power, brings Orwell's doublespeak up to date for the 21st century. What began as a weekly column on the Internet is now a humorous paperback collection of contemporary doublespeak that will both amuse and delight educators, activists and everyday citizens trying to navigate our media culture with some sense of sanity. A gem of a creative resource for language arts, social studies, journalism!

Many teens are watching and reading more news now than they ever did before 9/11. Others are turning off due to overload and fear. Media Literacy: Get The News explores how the news coverage on TV, on the Internet, and in print has impacted the way teens are coping with their changed world. It also helps them understand how to select, compare, and interpret what they see and read in the news. What is bias? A primary source? A leading question? Why is it important not to be cynical but involved and critical? Another useful resource from the critically-acclaimed PBS series for teens, In The Mix.

Boy v. Girl: How Gender Shapes Who We Are, What We Want, and How We Get Along is a very kid-friendly resource for introducing and exploring gender issues with students 10-15. Energetically written, with plenty of lively graphics and photographs, the book's engaging, hands-on activities and journaling exercises encourage young readers to explore their experiences, notice what influences their feelings, beliefs and choices, and decide what matters to them. A full chapter on media provides excellent discussion and analysis of gender stereotyping in TV, movies, music, magazines, and advertising.

We're surrounded by a multitude of media images that glamorize and sexualize girls and women, often unrealistically. Picture-Perfect, a new documentary video by Carol Tizzano, examines how these images shape our behaviors, attitudes, and values. Interviews from a racially and culturally diverse group of girls and women are interwoven through the video, discussing how they see themselves and how the media routinely portrays females. Organized in segments, Picture Perfect is useful with diverse audiences and can be easily geared up or down to show to any age group from middle school through college and beyond. Leader's Guide available online.

In Playing Unfair: The Media Image of the Female Athlete, sports media scholars Mary Jo Kane, Pat Griffin, and Michael Messner examine the quality and quantity of coverage given to women's sports by today's media. Despite the increasing visibility of female athletes and women's sporting events, these scholars persuasively argue that media coverage continues to represent female athletes -- and women's sports -- in terms of classic gender stereotypes. Explore notions of masculinity and femininity.

A new hard-hitting video documentary challenges its viewers to pay attention to the growing popularity of so-called "professional" wrestling among male youth and asks us to probe the social values that sustain wrestling as a powerful cultural force. Wrestling With Manhood: Boys, Bullying and Battering presents richly illustrated analysis with numerous (and sometimes disturbing) examples. Sut Jhally and Jackson Katz — the award-winning creators of the videos Dreamworlds and Tough Guise, respectively — offer a new way to think about the enduring problems of men's violence against women and bullying in our schools. A timely resource for teachers, parents and counselors.

Language arts teachers can now save significantly with the paperback edition (only $19.95) containing the original novel plus Orson Wells' radio script of The War of the Worlds. Like the hardback, it includes the audio CD containing the original 1938 broadcast the panicked the nation. For a comprehensive cross-media comparison, add the 1953 Oscar-winning movie, available on video for $14.95.

Also the wonderful resource, I Wanna Take Me A Picture: Teaching Photography and Writing to Children is now available in paperback with a reduced price of $18.00.