An introduction to sociological debates about the relationship between technological innovation, including especially that within the field of communications, and broader aspects of social life. Particular emphasis is placed on the theoretical and practical problems which result when the celebration of technological innovation is regarded as an explanation in itself. Includes an examination of such issues as the sociology of the future (including the future forms of work and leisure), the social role of aesthetic avant-gardism, the post-industrial society and information society (or superhighway) theses, competing conceptions of social change (e.g. technological innovation vs social movements), technological convergence and communications policy, and the social and political environments of policy-making.