In this book, Martin Conboy explores the complex and dynamic relationship between the popular press and popular culture. Rejecting approaches to popular culture which restrict themselves to the contemporary, Conboy argues for the importance of an historical perspective in understanding the contemporary relationship between the popular and the press.

The Press and Popular Culture offers:

* A much-needed critical history of the popular press - from the Early Modern Period to the present day.

* A comparative analysis of the emergence of the popular press in the United States and Britain.

* An approach to the role played by the popular press in the formation of popular culture which emphasizes the use of language.

Moving beyond historical analysis to the present day, the book concludes with an analysis of the popular press in a globalized media environment. Drawing on contemporary examples and discussion from Britain, Europe and the United States enables Conboy to situate the debate outside of the narrow confines of national border, as part of a debate about how the popular is being reconfigured in the popular press as part of a global strategy while retaining its essential appeal to local readerships; and meeting challenges by recombining aspects of its traditional rhetorical appeal.