Approaching media criticism : Reflections on motives, material and methods

This paper will address the need for systematic analyses of various reactions against the media – in history and in the present. It will also deal with difficulties associated with this field of research; questions about suitable empirical material and methods. Media development, media production, and media content are well known fields of research that mainly study media-institutions/organisations and their products. Media history has also (for obvious reasons) been characterized by this focus. To some ex- tent, victorious media institutions have influenced their own history. We argue that it is necessary to take into account the fact that the media has always been embedded in the context of society as a whole – including those who might object to the consequences of media in society. An abundance of criticism – from various directions (religious, political, philosophical etc.) – has at all times surrounded the media. The criticism that media-organisations/content provoke offers a rich but often neglected source for thought on media and communication. This perspective opens up a wide horizon of possible studies and a number of theoretical and methodological ques- tions.