Governing With the News: The News Media as a Political Institution

by Timothy E. Cook

The ideal of a neutral, objective press has proven in recent years to be just that—an ideal. In Governing with the News, Timothy E. Cook goes far beyond the single claim that the press is not impartial to argue that the news media are in fact a political institution integral to the day-to-day operations of our government. This updated edition includes a new afterword by the author, which pays close attention to two key developments in the twenty-first the accelerating fragmentation of the mass media and the continuing decline of Americans' confidence in the press.

"Provocative and often wise. . . . Cook, who has a complex understanding of the relationship between governing and the news, provides a fascinating account of the origins of this complicity."—James Bennet, Washington Monthly

"[ Governing with the News ] addresses central issues of media impact and power in fresh, illuminating ways. . . . Cook mines a wealth of historical and organizational literature to assert that the news media are a distinct political institution in our democratic system."—Robert Schmuhl, Commonweal

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Political Science

313 pages, Paperback

First published February 17, 1998

Reviews

[Keane Neal-Riquier]

This provided an interesting theory for the intricate connection between the media and government. However, it drly expanded in ways that seemed unneeded at times.

[Jacob Daniel]

This book is well-researched and the author provides ample evidence to support his claim that the news media is actually a political institution. Cook highlights the main bias of media, while associating news with political power. The author maintains that news media meets social science requirements for classification as an institution. I personally think that the author misses a bias that is evident is US media.

[Minjie Li]

This is definitely one of groundbreaking masterpieces in political communication.
"Media in United States today is not merely part of politics; they are part of government," Tim says.
It's a great loss for Manship School that Tim Cook passed away.

[Chris]

Not much to argue with here except that he conflates governmental institutions with political institutions. Otherwise, a well-argued, well-researched book.

[Gracie Clucas]

yay us ! somehow (sarcastic) it always comes back to capitalism !