The role of the media and cultural industries in our society is a key source of academic and policy discussion with political events and media stories constantly drawing our attention to their powerful role in society. The purpose of this module is to introduce students to these debates through the sociological study of media and culture. The module will explore theories, concepts and methodologies from sociological and wider interdisciplinary approaches to help us understand the production and consumption of media and culture. The module begins by examining what we mean by culture and media, the interdisciplinary study of the subject, the policy context of these industries and explore theoretical perspectives to the consumption and production of media and culture. The module will then explore how social inequalities -based on factors such as social class, gender and ethnicity - are perpetuated through the production and consumption of culture. We will explore who gets to work in these industries, and who gets to be seen in these industries. The module will then explore a number of contexts within the media and cultural industries, including: TV & film; fashion; music; news production; and reality TV.