University of Northern Iowa
Department of Communication Studies
Electronic Media Division

48E:138g Broadcast and Cable Programming                                         Spring 2002

Instructor: Dr. Joyce Chen                                                             Office Hour: 11-12:30pm TTh
Office: 321 LNG                                                                                                 1-3pm W
Office Phone: 273-2574                                                                                    or by appointment
Class meeting times: 6:00 - 8:50 pm M, 346 LNG

Required Textbook:

        Eastman, S.T., & Ferguson, D.A. (2002). Broadcast/cable/web programming: Strategies and practices (6th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

Course Objectives:

The goal of the class is to expose students to the fundamentals of programming in radio and television broadcasting, cable and satellite systems, and online video and audio. We will discuss the framework for programming strategies first and then focus on each of these media industries.

Since media programming is the interface between an electronic media organization and audiences, and between advertisers and an electronic media organization, the discussion will be related to the knowledge you have learned from other classes, such as audience analysis, electronic media industries, management, production, media ethics and regulations, and media cultural studies. In order to promote your learning, class discussions, lectures, and practical projects will be arranged during this semester according to your background knowledge and career expectations. By the end of the semester, you will:

-- understand the concepts, terminology, and strategies of broadcast/cable/web programming;

-- gain skills of programming for broadcasting stations or cable systems, as well as the usage of Internet for programming;

-- be able to apply, or at least articulate, the knowledge of programming to your future career, such as programming assistant, program researcher, and traffic assistant.

Assignments:

There will be four assignments. Two are individual projects. You are required to investigate the programming strategies of one TV station and one radio station in the Waterloo/Cedar Falls market. Two are group projects. One is TV program genre analysis. Your group is going to analyze the pattern, structure, or rules, of a specific television genre. The other is a programming proposal. Your group is supposed to help a program manager in a local station write a programming proposal for a new season in order to compete with the station that has the highest rating in the market.

"The University of Northern Iowa is an Affirmative Action Equal Opportunity Institution. Students with disabilities and other special needs should feel free to contact the professor privately if there are services or adaptations which can be made to accommodate specific needs."

Exams:

According to my teaching philosophy, exams are part of the learning process, which help you review the knowledge you learn from this class. You will take two quizzes and a final exam. The quizzes will be a combination of multiple choices and essay questions, examining your knowledge about programming. The final will be a take-home exam that emphasizes creative and critical thinking based on your skills and knowledge of programming.

Grading:

Grading for each component will be as follows:

Attendance/Participation 10%
TV Programming Report #1 10%
Radio Programming Report 10%
TV Genre Analysis 20%
Programming Proposal 20%
QuizX2 20%
Fine Exam 10%
===========================
Total 100%

The grades will be weighted by the percentages shown above and combined to result in your final course grade. The letter grading scales are shown as follows:

A: >95%

A-: 92-94%

B+: 88-91%
B: 85-87%
B-: 80-84%
C+: 77-79%
C: 74-76%
C-: 70-73%
D+: 67-69%
D: 64-66%
D-: 60-63%
F: < 60%

Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date, unless otherwise stated. The penalty for a late paper is 1 percent deduction for each day late up to 5 percent (i.e. 5 days late). After 5 days late no paper will be accepted for grading.

According to the university policy, plagiarism will result in FAILURE of the course and further DISCIPLINARY ACTION. Plagiarism includes "borrowing" an other student's paper or other writer's work, submitting the papers that you wrote for other courses.

Attendance & Participation

Since this is a practical and creative thinking course, participating in the discussion is very important. According to the University policy, I do take your attendance into account for your final grades. Since there is only one class each week, the second unexcused absence will result in the lowering of your final grade by one-half letter.

Presentation:

In order to share knowledge and experience with each other and encourage class discussion, all the assignments and projects will be presented in the class.

Tentative Class Schedule:

Part 1: Programming Resources and Constraints

1/14 (M) Syllabus and Introduction
                A framework for programming strategies (Ch.1)
                Investigate local electronic media (CF/Waterloo): radio stations, TV stations, cable
                Assignment #1: TV Programming Report

1/21 (M) Martin Luther King Birthday (No class)

1/28 (M) Program & audience research (Ch.2)
                Domestic and International Syndication (Ch.3)
                Assignment #1 Due

2/4 (M) TV Programming Report Presentations
                TV ratings & parental guidelines
                Assignment #2: TV Genre Analysis (Group)

Part 2: Broadcast television strategies

2/11 (M) TV Genre Analysis (Group)

2/18 (M) Prime-time networks (Ch.4)
                Nonprime-time networks (Ch.5)

2/25 (M) Quiz #1
            Television Station Programming (Ch.6)

3/4 (M) Assignment #2 Due
                TV Genre Presentation
              
Public Television Programming (Ch.7)

Part 4: Radio Programming

3/11 (M) Music Radio Programming (Ch.11)
                Information Radio Programming (Ch.12)
                Assignment #3: Radio Programming Report

3/18 Spring Break

3/25 (M) Public radio programming
                Radio Programming Presentation
                Assignment #3 Due

4/1 (M) Quiz #2
                Managing the program department
                Assignment #4: Programming Proposal

Part 5: Cable Programming Strategies

4/8 (M) Cable system & Satellite Programming (Ch.8)
                Visit CFU cable system or KWWL

4/15 (M) Subscription and premium programming (Ch.9)
                Online video and audio programming (Ch.10)

4/22 (M) Programming Proposal Presentations

4/29 (M) Final Exam