Cultural Studies, Common Sense and Communications

Abstract

This article addresses the ways in which cultural studies has transformed the premises of the study of communication over the last 30 years. It focuses on the interdisciplinary nature of cultural studies and offers a critique of contemporary attempts to replace the kind of grounded theory produce by the Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS) in Birmingham with an abstract sociology of an undifferentiated ‘globalised’ universe. It goes on to critique tendencies towards technological determinism, media-centrism EurAmcentism and cultural presentism in the field.

Keywords:

• abstraction
• interdisciplinarity
• particularity
• media-centrism
• EurAmcentrism
• presentism

Notes on Contributor

David Morley is Professor of Communications at Goldsmiths College, University of London. His previous work includes British Cultural Studies (edited, with Kevin Robins) Oxford University Press 2001 and his most recent book is Media, Modernity and Technology: the Geography of Newness Routledge 2007. He is currently working on a book about the changing relations of material and virtual geographies and forms of mobility.