Radio Books

This book covers virtually all aspects of government communications, including frequencies, PL tones, radio codes, and other various information.

In fact, far from being a 'maverick' view of broadcasting (that presentation can only have been a misjudged marketing ploy) this book is the result of the author's ( a renowned Irish film maker) forty years experience as an insider and outsider in Irish film making and broadcasting circles. It articulates clearly and with insider knowledge the crisis of broadcasting brought on by the phenomenon of 'the market'.
An indication of its powerful insight into public broadcasting in Ireland is the fact that discussion on it has been effectively censored by the best-known personalities in the incestuous world of Irish Public television and radio. The reason? Many of them are shown in this book as having a vested interest in the trivialisation of broadcasting.
The author's insights ( based on a four- year tenure on RTE's governing body) into the political and economic attitudes of such as Garret Fitzgerald, ex- premier of Ireland, Des Geraghty, head of the most powerful Union in Ireland, two Director-Generals of RTE are quite unique. The self-serving culture of Irish public broadcasting and its total subservience to the pressures of commercial and political expedience, have rarely been so clearly and worryingly dissected.
This book could only have been written by an artist who is a maverick only in the sense that he has not yet submitted to 'branding'

Explores fascinating, challenging and modern concepts and examples that academic and nonacademic readers can understand and appreciate. An inspiring way of thinking about the many connections among media, communication and culture. What makes this book so special is the original and provocative content and reader-friendly style. Lull guides the reader from basic concepts like ideology and the active media audience to sophisticated ideas like symbolic power, transculturation, and the superculture. This book sparks new ways of thinking globally about communication and culture and how media plays a role in both. Highly recommended.

I have always been a fan of Orson Welles on radio and television. Having collected a ton of radio broadcasts on CD and audio cassette and having watched most of his movies, I appreciate the genius of his work. I picked up a copy of this book recently and am amazed at the amount of research put into it. An aspect of Welles rarely discussed is his magic career. At the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention this September in Aberdeen, Maryland, I plan to attend the presentation about Orson Welles and his magic career so I can watch rare footage and films with Welles, and get an even deeper insight to his trickery. Book comes recommended.

This book is a excellent tribute to the public affairs program that spawned such programs as "Face the Nation" and "This Week". This book is a very interesting look at the political faces that have passed through "Meet the Press" in its first fifty years. This book is a must read for those who really enjoy this program.

John Giacobello's biography of Melissa Joan Hart is nothing short of astonishing. With clear prose he relays the struggles beset upon the star of "Sabrina the Teen-Aged Witch" with clarity, lucid detail, and not a little empathy.

From the early years of her Dickensian childhood, through her proceeding years as triumphant television star - we feel we've met Ms. Hart intimately, profoundly; had fries and Pepsi with her; spent quality time with a quality teen. The controversially "disputed facts" alleged in the cannon of Melissa Joan Hart biographies are laid to rest once and for all by John Giacobello.

The book is a revelation, and certainly the definitive biography of one, if not perhaps our most talented actress.

A very detailed account of the early days of radio telephone, radio broadcasting and television development in Newfoundland. This author was awarded THE ORDER OF CANADA (Canada's highest Civilian Award) for his contribution to Communications in Newfoundland.

This Sherlock Holmes volume has the awesome 'The Final Problem', with that dastardly evil supervillain Professor Moriarty being introduced, leading to the confrontation at Reichenbach Falls.

This is one of the Sherlock Holmes stories that absolutely should not be missed.

You also see Sherlock Holmes brother, the large Mycroft, in The Greek Interpreter, another must read. There is even a story there for the horse racing fans, with 'Silver Blaze'. More fantastic work.

Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 01 Silver Blaze - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 02 The Yellow Face - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 03 The Stock-broker's Clerk - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 04 The Gloria Scott - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 05 The Musgrave Ritual - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 06 The Reigate Puzzle - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 07 The Crooked Man - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 08 The Resident Patient - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 09 The Greek Interpreter - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 10 The Naval Treaty - Arthur Conan Doyle
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes : 11 The Final Problem - Arthur Conan Doyle


Fine Cotton Scam.

4.5 out of 5


Holmes a bit slow on the relational uptake.

3.5 out of 5


Fraternal foolhardiness.

3.5 out of 5


Judge's ship secret leads to cyphercide.

3.5 out of 5


Old university mate's request leads to trigonometric treasure hunt.

4 out of 5


Watson, robbery and murder rouse Holmes from his sickbed and leave him in much better spirits.

4 out of 5


Mendicant mongoose.

4.5 out of 5


A bit of criminal revenge

3.5 out of 5


A soujourn to the Diogenes Club, as Mycroft needs a hand from the little brother.

5 out of 5


Old school friend's Foreign Office frame-up.

4 out of 5


Moriarty. Cliff! Or, Don't Push Me Coz I'm Close To the Edge.

5 out of 5

An impressive documentation and tribute to the extraordinarily rich career of a legendary Hollywood survivor

For those interested in the welfare of the first, best and most-potentially democratic form of the electronic mass media (I'm speaking of radio of course) then this is a great book to add to your collection. If you are new to the issues facing LPFM and radio in general, this is a great place to start. Ruggiero does a great job of presenting the LPFM case, the roadblocks it faces and in a neat twist, tells us what we can do to help change things. Of course, you can only go so deep in 63 pamphlet-sized pages, but the book is definitely a good first step. For anyone who wants to dive in deeper, check out Chomsky, McChesney, Bettig or Jhally, just to name a few.

On the down side, the book is a bit dated in its description of the LPFM movement, but that shouldn't be held against it. The biggest problem I have with the book is the number of typos - I mean come on - if you want people to take your message seriously you should do a better job of proofreading. But if you are not so narrow-minded that you can't get past it, then the book is solid.

For me, the message is more important than picking at the mistakes. Radio has the unique power - over TV, computers, the internet - to be the world's best democratic force in terms of dissemination of messages, cost and portability. If the day comes where anyone can go to the drugstore, buy a *computer* for under five bucks, get free access to the outside world, and not get a hernia from carrying it around, then radio may have to hang it up. Since that won't happen anytime soon however, radio is still the way to go. Its just a shame that there is a need for the LPFM movement to exist, given the current dearth of truly public programming on the radio.

Anyone who wishes to debate this issue, feel free to email me - I need to sharpen my teeth a bit :)

Viva la radio! Power to the people!