Faculty textbooks FAQ

  1.  Is it OK for instructors to require a textbook that they have authored for a class?      
    Answer:   Yes, so long as it is approved by a university committee.
  2. What does it take to get committee approval?
    Answer: The textbook must be better and/or less expensive than others on the market.
  3. How is Revolutions in Communication better?   
    Answer: It covers all the disciplines like film and photography and broadcasting and computers, not just journalism.  It also tries to cover some of the international connections (so not just the US).
  4. Was the book peer reviewed?   
    Answer: Yes, in addition to the reviews on the dust jacket, there have been at least seven academic peer reviewers who were experts in their respective fields of public relations and media history.  Contents of some of the reviews are reflected in the “blurbs” or endorsements on the back.
  5. Is Revolutions in Communication cheaper?  
    Answer: There are several comparably priced theoretical works, but the nearest in terms of survey content is well over $100.   Revolutions in Communication is around $30.
  6. How much money does a textbook author make on a book?  
    Answer:  Not much.  In this case, the publishers pay Prof. K  about $1  for every book sold.  This means that in a class of 30 students, the remuneration isn’t enough for dinner and a movie for two people.
  7. So then why did you write the book, then? 
    Answer: I care about this subject (media) and this  discipline (history). These days, the media has an enormous amount of influence, but it is greatly resented and not very well understood.

    Many historians would tell you that some of that resentment is deserved,  but that the aspirations and ideals of the media also deserve to be better known.