Media Realities: A West-Eastern Divan

Including essays by journalists, artists, philosophers, and theorists, this interdisciplinary volume exposes how mass media—old and new—shape not just what we know, but what we believe to be real. From Ukraine to China to Africa, from journalism to art to propaganda, this book asks: Who gets to define reality—and who gets left out?

Edited by scholars based in China, it challenges dominant Western portrayals of global politics and gives voice to perspectives too often dismissed or discredited. Contributions from the Global South, China, Germany, and beyond confront a simple truth: we don't all see the same world, and the media don't just reflect society—they perform it. Media Realities is not just a book about media. It is a book about reality itself—and how it is made, sold, and believed.

With contributors from across the fields of media, sociology, journalism, philosophy, political theory, and art, this volume will appeal to scholars and upper-level students with interests in the sociology of media and global political dynamics.