Book excerpt: Darrell West argues against prevailing wisdom that the media has increased in influence in the past decade. Covering over 200 years of American history, beginning in colonial America and ending with the present day, The Rise and Fall of the Media Establishment provides an overview of the media in various key stages of American History, paying particular attention to the rise and fall in influence of the media elite. West organizes the book into five distinct media eras: the Partisan, Commercial, Objective, Interpretive, and Fragmented Media. Each chapter, organized around these media eras, includes case studies that illustrate the theme of that chapter. Ideal for the general reader as well as the academic, The Rise and Fall of the Media Establishment offers an accessible, engaging book with a challenging thesis.