University of Northern Iowa
Department of Communication Studies
Electronic Media Division

Leading class discussions

48E:121g Electronic Media and Culture                                                          Fall 2001

Instructor: Dr. Joyce Chen                                                             Office Hours: TTH 3:15-5:15 pm
                                                                                                                                W 1-2 pm
Office: LNG 321                                                                                                  or by appointment
Office Phone: 273-2574
Class meeting times: TTh 2:00 - 3:15pm, LNG 346

Required Textbook:

Newcomb, H. (Ed.). (2000). Television: The critical view, (6th ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.

Gottdiener, M. (Ed.). (2000). New forms of consumption: Consumers, culture, and commodification. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, INC.

Pre-requisites: 48E:021, and junior standing.

Course Objectives:

This course examines electronic media and their relationships to culture, society, and individuals. With a variety of research approaches, students will use electronic media as a cultural forum to define culture, analyze media products, discuss current issues, and anticipate the future job market for Electronic Media majors. Although the analyses will be focused on television, they are also applicable to radio, cable, the Internet, and other video and computer products. You are encouraged to integrate these topics into the class discussion. Through class discussions and assignments, this course will promote creative and critical thinking skills. And students are encouraged to conduct research projects and write academic papers for conference submissions. By the end of this semester, you will:

-- be aware of the relationship of cultural studies to your future career;

-- understand the relationship among media text, culture, society, and audience;

-- understand the cultural development or change in various electronic media;

-- be familiar with a variety of critical research methods or approaches used in contemporary mass media studies;

-- be able to employ one research method to write a research paper.

Class Organization:

The class sessions will be organized with a combination of lectures and discussions. There will be lectures which provide basic theoretical and methodological background for cultural studies. However, taking this class itself is a cultural practice. It encourages students’ participation and discussion. Leading class discussions and conducting research projects will be your main tasks for completing this class. In order to effectively integrate theoretical concepts with media analyses and class discussions, please bring the textbook with you for every class.

"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."

Grading:

The grading composition is shown as follows:

Attendance/Participation

10%

Media analysis Exercises

20%

Leading discussion

10%

Quizzes

20%

Final Research Paper

Abstract

20%

5%

Final exam

15%

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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-: 60-73%

F: < 60%

Assignments:

There are three kinds of assignments: leading class discussions, media analyses, and a final research paper. Leading class discussion is a group project, and media analyses are individual assignments. Although you are required to finish the readings before coming to the class, you will be assigned to read a specific chapter from the textbook in depth so that you will be able to present it to the class and lead the class discussion. You will be required to write several short exercises for media analyses. You will present your final paper in the class with the format of panel discussion. The requirements for these assignments will be described in handouts.

Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date, unless otherwise stated. The penalty for a late media analysis 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 University policy, plagiarism will result in FAILURE of the course and further DISCIPLINARY ACTION. Plagiarism includes "borrowing" other student's paper or other writer's work, submitting the papers that you wrote for other courses.

Final Research Paper:

Many of electronic major students do not take the research methods class that is very helpful for developing one’s skills in investigation and analysis. Therefore, the final research paper is an integrative project for you to learn both cultural theories and research methods. The details of writing the final paper will be described in handouts. Please pay attention to the procedure of developing and conducting a research project, and write an academic research paper.

Quiz & Exam:

There will be no midterm exam. Instead, several short quizzes, will be conducted before class discussions in order to examine your knowledge about the concepts and terminology employed in cultural studies. Each quiz consists of only one to two questions, taking about 5 to 10 minutes. The final exam will be a take-home test. It will help you summarize what you have learned during the semester, and demonstrate your critical thinking skills.

Attendance & Participation:

Since this is a critical thinking course, participating in discussions is very important. I do take your attendance and participation into account for your final grades. The fourth unexcused absence will result in the loss of 5% of the total grade. There is no way to make up the quizzes or leading class discussions because they are closely connected to the class schedule.

Tentative Class Schedule:

8/28 (T) Syllabus and assignment description

8/30 (Th) Lecture (Television and the Present Climate of Criticism)
                Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 1-12)
            Reading: (Gottdiener, Ch. 1, pp.3-32)

9/4 (T) Lecture (the model of Cultural Forum by Newcomb)
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 561-573)

9/6 (Th) Discussion (Culture & American Culture)
             Lecture (Communication as culture)
            Reference:

Carey, J.W. (1989). A cultural approach to communication. In J.W. Carey (Ed.), Communication as culture: Essays on media and society (pp. 13-36). Boston: Unwin Hyman.
            Media Analysis Exercise: #1

9/11 (T) Discussion (The Production Contexts of Television)
        Discussion Leader: Ford, Steinbron
      Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 17-33)

9/13 (Th) Lecture (Intertextuality)
            Reference:

Fiske, J. (1987). Intertextuality. In J. Fiske Television culture. New York: METHUEN.
            Media Analysis Exercise: #1 Due
            Media Analysis Exercise: #2

9/18 (T) Discussion (The Production Contexts of Television)
            Discussion Leader: Green
         Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 34-51)
            Quiz #1

9/20 (Th) Lecture (Encoding and Decoding)
            Reference:

Hall, S. (1980). Encoding and decoding in the television discourse. In S. Hall, D. Hobson, A Lowe, & P. Willis (Eds.), Culture, media, language. London : Hutchinson.

9/25 (T) Discussion (The Production Contexts of Television)
            Discussion Leader: Schuckman
         Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 52-72)
            Media Analysis Exercise: #2 Due
         Media Analysis Exercise: #3

9/27 (Th) Discussion (The Production Contexts of Television)
                Discussion Leaders (two): Drexler & Rhone
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 100-143)

10/2 (T) Discussion (The Production Contexts of Television)
             
   Discussion Leader: Barrows
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 144-168)
                Media Analysis Exercise: #3 Due
            Media Analysis Exercise: #4

10/4 (Th) Discussion (The Production Contexts of Television)
                Discussion Leader: Hammel
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 207-236)
                Media analysis presentation

10/9 (T) Discussion (Television Texts)
                Reference:

Fiske, J. (1987). Some television, some topics, and some terminology. In J. Fiske Television culture (pp. 1-20). New York: METHUEN.

10/11 (Th) Quiz #2
               
Discussion (Consumption)
                Discussion Leader: Hurley
                Reading: (Gottdiener, Ch. 2, pp.33-50)
                Media Analysis Exercise: #4 Due

10/16 (T) Lecture (Research Methods)
                Final Project Assignment

10/18 (Th) Discussion (Television Texts)
                Discussion Leader: Tsia
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 242-252)
                Discussion Leader: Blythe
            Reading: (Gottdiener, Ch. 8, pp.153-176)

10/23 (T) Lecture (Semiotics)
            Reference:

Seiter, E. (1992). Semiotics, structuralism, and television. In R. C. Allen (Ed.). Channels of discourse, reassembled: Television and contemporary criticism, (2nd ed.). Chapel Hill, NC: The University of North Carolina Press.
                Discussion (Final Project)

10/25 (Th) Lecture (Media & Cultural Presentation)
            Reference:

Hall, S. (1997). The work of representation. In S. Hall (Ed.). Representation: Cultural representations and signifying practices. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
                Discussion Leader: Breeden, Rouse
            Reading: (Gottdiener, Ch. 9, pp.177-202)
                Sign up for individual conference: final project

10/30 (T) Lecture (McLuhan: Medium theories)
            Reference:

McLuhan, M., Fiore, Q., & Agel, J. (1967). The medium is the massage. New York: Random House.
Discussion (Television Texts)
Discussion Leader: Miller
Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 253-265)

11/1 (Th) Discussion (Television Texts)
                Discussion Leader: Fienhold, Schmitt
            Reading: (Gottdiener, Ch. 10, pp.203-226)
                Discussion Leader: Kerr
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 282-305)

11/6 (T) Discussion (Television Texts)
                Discussion Leader: Kintzle
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 306-318)
                Discussion Leader: Prieto
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 319-329)
                Quiz #3

11/8 (Th) Discussion (Television Texts)
                Discussion Leader: Nash, Locke
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 330-353)
                Discussion Leader: Kress
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 354-366)

11/13 (T) Discussion (Television Texts)
                Discussion Leader: Underhill
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 367-382)
                Discussion Leader: Sheridan
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 383-400)

11/15 (Th) Discussion (The Reception Contexts of Television)
                Discussion Leader: Grady
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 425-438)
                Discussion Leader: Wise
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 439-450)

11/20 (T) Flexible

11/22 (Th) No Class --Thanksgiving Break--

11/27 (T) Discussion (Overviews)
                Discussion Leaders (two): Bjelland, Simmons
            Reading: (Newcomb, pp. 649-686)
                Final Project discussion

11/29 (Th) Discussion (Consumption)
                Discussion Leader: Smith
            Reading: (Gottdiener, Ch. 4, pp.71-92)
                Discussion Leader: Wilmer
            Reading: (Gottdiener, Ch. 5, pp. 93-110)

12/4 (T) Quiz #4
              
Panel Discussion (Final paper presentations)

12/6 (Th) Panel Discussion (Final paper presentations)

12/11 (T) Panel Discussion (Final paper presentations)

12/13 (Th) Panel Discussion (Final paper presentations)
                Taken-home Final Exam
                Final Paper Due
                Final Exam due: Before 5:00pm Tuesday (December 18)

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