This book represents a distinctive approach to cultural analysis, using multi-dimensional methods for addressing issues of public interest. The approach, which deploys Jim McGuigan's original concept of the cultural public sphere, is demonstrated in several case studies, including: Celebrity death Festivals and urban regeneration Race and multicultural controversy Popular television (for instance, Little Britain and The Apprentice) Social significance of the all-purpose mobile communication device in a privatized and individualized way of life Riskiness and uncertainty at both the levels of environmental politics and working life in the creative and media industries