ABSTRACT
In considering what might be the most pressing unanswered question for health communication scholars, the author finds it as both struggling and resisting the task. Critical scholars have started to ask questions about power and inequality, documenting the ways in which unequal distributions of power in society contribute to the poor health of marginalized communities. In this backdrop, one of the most pressing questions for health communication scholars relates to the role of communication in addressing the fast increasing global health inequalities. Even as unemployment and poverty continue to rise globally, a small percentage of the global elite continues to amass wealth and consolidate power. This vast inequality in the distribution of power plays out in the largely uneven burdens of health, large gaps in morbidity and mortality, and overall poorer health outcomes within highly unequal societies.
