The Production of Modernization: Daniel Lerner, Mass Media, and 'The Passing of Traditional Society'

by Hemant Shah

Daniel Lerner's 1958 book The Passing of Traditional Society was central in shaping Cold War era ideas about the use of mass media and culture to promote social and economic progress in postcolonial nations. This book examines Lerner’s work and the intellectual trajectory of his thinking about mass media and modernization.