What roles can and should governments play in communication policymaking? How are communication policies related to welfare politics? With the rapid globalization of commerce and culture and the increasing recognition of information as an economic resource, the grounds for defending the welfare state have shifted. Communication policy is now more widely understood as social policy. Communication, Citizenship, and Social Policy examines issues of communication technology, neoliberal economic policies, public service media, media access, social movements and political communication, the geography of communication, and global media development and policy, among others, and shows how progressive policymakers must use these bases to confront more directly the debates on contemporary welfare theory and politics.

Contributions by: Patricia Aufderheide, Andrew Calabrese, Nicholas Garnham, Andrew Graham, Gay Hawkins, Anders Henten, Wayne Hope, Robert B. Horwitz, Douglas Kellner, Brian McNair, Toby Miller, Vincent Mosco, Caroline Pauwels, Marc Raboy, Saskia Sassen, Dan Schiller, Thomas Streeter