This book intervenes in key debates within media and cultural studies by challenging Eurocentric perspectives and exploring the intersection of periodization, history, and geography. The authors, David Morley and David Morley, address the disciplinary challenges posed by emerging theoretical canons and methodological orthodoxies. They also examine the potential contributions of art-based discourses and offer critical insights into contemporary 'new media,' which they define anthropologically as the domain where old traditions and new technologies intertwine, characterized by the 'new, the shiny and the symbolic.'

The book is positioned as an intervention in established academic fields, aiming to broaden the scope of media and cultural studies beyond traditional Eurocentric frameworks. Its focus on geography and periodization suggests a text that challenges conventional approaches to understanding technological and media evolution. The inclusion of anthropological perspectives on 'new media' indicates an effort to provide a nuanced and cross-disciplinary understanding of contemporary symbolic and technological landscapes.