COM 250-02 (31278) / COM 250-04I (31807) Mass Communication and Society
JOUR C200-02 (31307) Mass Communications
Course Syllabus
Steven Alan Carr, Ph.D.
Summer II 2004

Course Content and Goals

This course surveys the rise of American mass media in its various formats, including electronic, recorded, broadcast, film, broadcast, and print. This course will show how "the media" 1) refers to the plural of "medium"; 2) are complex, diverse, even contradictory, and hardly monolithic; 3) exist as a part of society, not in opposition to it; and 4) can operate as a business, as a conduit through which other social forces operate, and as a significant and influential cultural force in its own right. Please note that the course is cross-listed with JOUR C200 Mass Communications, not JOUR J200 Writing for Mass Media. Our goal is not to mimic, praise, or condemn the media, but to think critically about it – as cultural anthropologists might do when encountering a civilization other than their own. Of course, our object of study is a familiar part of society that actively engages us, a condition that some might may say is more challenging than studying a culture different from our own.

Prerequisites and Intended Audience

There are no prerequisites for this course. The intended audience consists of freshmen and sophomores. The course fulfills Communication and Journalism major requirements, as well as General Education requirements for both majors and non-majors in Area III Culture and Society. There are three different sections of this course. Two of these sections, COM 250-02 and JOUR C200-02, will meet face to face on campus at a scheduled time. The third section, COM 250-04I, is for students enrolled in an Internet section through Continuing Studies. It does not meet face to face, but does require intensive online communication and a series of ongoing deadlines. Students in all sections will be expected to collaborate on assignments.

Course Requirements

Because this is a summer class, the assigned workload is extremely heavy. The normal schedule for reading assignments will be in excess of 100 pages per week. Consequently, students' primary responsibility will be preparing for daily discussions of the readings. To that end, there will be 16 quizzes worth 100 points each, due before 12:30 PM on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. In addition, you will subscribe to a class listserv and participate in an online discussion with students in both the face-to-face and online sections of the course. You will also be required to write a final, argument driven paper in which defend a position on a particular controversy concerning the media. Finally, you will be assessed on the basis of participation. For students in the face-to-face sections of the course, this participation will be assessed primarily on the basis of what you do during class. For online students, this participation will be assessed primarily on the basis of what you do during online discussions.

Assignments

Sixteen quizzes worth 100 points each for a total of 1600 points will be available by 8 AM on the date of an assigned reading, and due before 12:30 PM on that date. Quizzes will consist of ten (10) multiple-choice questions. You will take these quizzes online. You may retake a quiz for a higher grade only if you score 60% or better on that quiz.

You must post 3-5 original online discussion questions worth 100 points each for a total of 1600 points on the class listserv no later than midnight on the date of an assigned reading. You will not receive feedback from the instructor on these questions, unless specifically requested. However, the questions will be assessed on the basis of being excellent, satisfactory, or poor. You may not revise these questions.

You must write a final, argument-driven paper worth 400 points, and due by the last Thursday of Summer II.

Your participation is worth 400 points toward your final grade. For students in the face-to-face section of the course, this participation will be assessed primarily on the basis of what you do during our scheduled class meeting. You will not receive feedback on your participation unless specifically requested. For online students only, this participation will be assessed on the basis of your response to the online discussion questions that are posed by your fellow class members. These responses are due before 5 PM on the Monday, Tuesday, or Thursday following when the questions were posted on the listserv. You will use the listserv to post your responses. Your participation will be assessed on the basis of being excellent, satisfactory, or poor. You may not revise your participation.

Grading Scale

Assignment	Unit	Total
Quizzes	100	1600
Online Discussion Questions	100	1600
Argument-Driven Paper	400	400
Participation	400	400
TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS		4000

A	B	C	D	F
3600 – 4000	3200 – 3599	2800 – 3199	2400 – 2799	0 - 2399

Tentative Schedule

Date	Activity	Due
Mon, 28 June	Introduction and Overview	Read Course Policies and Syllabus Sign Course Agreement Sign Up for Class Listserv
Tue, 29 June	Media and Culture	Read Ch 1 Quiz 1 Post Ch 1 Discussion Questions
Wed, 30 June		Last Day to Drop Course for Full Refund
Thur, 1 July	Internet and New Technnologies	Read Ch 2 Quiz 2 Post Ch 2 Discussion Questions Post Ch 1 Responses (online students only)
Mon, 5 July	Break
Tue, 6 July	Sound Recording	Read Ch 3 Quiz 3 Post Ch 3 Discussion Questions Post Ch 2 Responses (online students only)
Thu, 8 July	Radio	Read Ch 4 Quiz 4 Post Ch 4 Discussion Questions Post Ch 3 Responses (online students only)
Mon, 12 July	Television	Read Ch 5 Quiz 5 Post Ch 5 Discussion Questions Post Ch 4 Responses (online students only)
Tue, 13 July	Cable	Read Ch 6 Quiz 6 Post Ch 6 Discussion Questions Post Ch 5 Responses (online students only)
Thu, 15 July	Movies	Read Ch 7 Quiz 7 Post Ch 7 Discussion Questions Post Ch 6 Responses (online students only)
Mon, 19 July	Newspapers	Read Ch 8 Quiz 8 Post Ch 8 Discussion Questions Post Ch 7 Responses (online students only)
Tue, 20 July	Magazines	Read Ch 9 Quiz 9 Post Ch 9 Discussion Questions Post Ch 8 Responses (online students only)
Thu, 22 July	Books	Read Ch 10 Quiz 10 Post Ch 10 Discussion Questions Post Ch 9 Responses (online students only)
Fri, 23 July		Last Day to Withdraw from Course
Mon, 26 July	Advertising	Read Ch 11 Quiz 11 Post Ch 11 Discussion Questions Post Ch 10 Responses (online students only)
Tue, 27 July	Public Relations	Read Ch 12 Quiz 12 Post Ch 12 Discussion Questions Post Ch 11 Responses (online students only)
Thu, 29 July	Economics and Globalization	Read Ch 13 Quiz 13 Post Ch 13 Discussion Questions Post Ch 12 Responses (online students only)
Mon, 2 Aug	Media Ethics	Read Ch 14 Quiz 14 Post Ch 14 Discussion Questions Post Ch 13 Responses (online students only)
Tue, 3 Aug	Media Effects	Read Ch 15 Quiz 15 Post Chs 15-16 Discussion Questions Post Ch 14 Responses (online students only)
Thu, 5 Aug	Media Regulation	Read Ch 16 Quiz 16 Post Chs 15-16 Responses (online students only) Final Paper Due All Revise and Resubmits Due