This book presents a unique perspective on the relationship between politics and the media in different political regimes. The conclusions challenge conventional wisdom concerning the political roles and effects of the mass media on regime support and change, on the political behavior of citizens, and on the quality of democracy.

1. The media in democratic and non-democratic regimes: a multilevel perspective Anthony Mughan and Richard Gunther; 2. Politics and the media in Spain: from dictatorship to democracy Richard Gunther, José Ramón Montero and José Ignacio Wert; 3. Institutional incapacity, the attentive public and media pluralism in Russia Ellen Mickiewicz; 4. Democratic transformation and the mass media in Hungary: from Stalinism to democratic consolidation Miklos Sükösd; 5. The modernization of communications: the media in the transition to democracy in Chile Eugenio Tironi and Guillermo Sunkel; 6. Media influence in the Italian transition from a consensual to a majoritarian democracy Carlo Marletti and Franca Roncarolo; 7. The United States: news in a free-market society Thomas Patterson; 8. Japan: news and politics in a media-saturated democracy Ellis S. Krauss; 9. The Netherlands: the media in a depillarized society Cees van der Eijk; 10. Great Britain: the end of the 'News at Ten' and the changing news environment Holli S. Semetko; 11. The media and politics in the New Germany Max Kaase; 12. The political impact of the mass media: a reassessment Richard Gunther and Anthony Mughan.