John B. Thompson 
Media and Modernity [PDF ebook] 
A Social Theory of the Media

Preface.
Introduction.
1. Communication and Social Context.
2. The Media and the Development of Modern Societies.
3. The Rise of Mediated Interaction.
4. The Transformation of Visibility.
5. The Globalization of Communication.
6. The Re-mooring of Tradition.
7. Self and Experience in a Mediated World.
8. The Re-invention of Publicness.
Notes.
Index.

John B. Thompson is Reader in Sociology at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Jesus College, Cambridge.