In order to prepare a successful research project, a qualitative researcher often must consult media documents of various types. Authors David L. Altheide and Christopher J. Schneider show readers how to obtain, categorize, and analyze these different media documents in this entry in the Qualitative Research Methods series. They look at traditional primary documents such as newspapers and magazines but also at more recent forms--television newscasts and cyberspace. The use of student examples of research protocols makes this book a useful primer in deriving meaning from the bombardment of media documents a qualitative researcher faces.

"It’s the only “how to” book of its kind out there." - Editorial

"It explains how to do qualitative textual analysis in a way that is laid out step-by-step, making it clear to students how to do it." - Editorial

"It’s short and to the point, covering a lot of ground quickly. I have always been able to justify it on a syllabus because it reads well and fast, it not too expensive, and it gives novices clear guidance. Personally, I’m also 100 percent simpatico with Professor Altheide theoretically and philosophically. More important, he does make it relevant to communication theory as well as practice." - Editorial

"The main strength is its focus on “media”, applied researchers are rapidly shifting their attention to multiple sources of data and focusing on how people and organizations communicate. Social media is also influencing marketing and public relations activities. It IS the hot topic….helping researchers figure out how to target, capture, analyze and interpret these new forms of media is essential." - Editorial

"The key strength of Qualitative Media Analysis is that it provides students and scholars with a rigorous, social science-based, qualitative alternative to quantitative content analysis, allowing for better and deeper interpretation of media texts. The methodology outlined by Altheide is particularly useful for the examination of previously unstudied media, where no theory and/or previous data exist to inform content analysis protocols." - Pre-published review