COMM 101: The Media Past and Present (4 credits)
This class provides an introduction to the evolution and impact of the mass media and digital media on American culture. Because the media have been, since the late 19th century, the major storytellers of our time, we will focus on the stories they have told us over the years, and provide you with important stories about the media, past and present. We will review the ideological, technological, industrial, and regulatory developments that have produced our existing media ecosystem, and consider how media content has, over the years, inspired considerable controversy over who should get to tell stories through the media and should not. Our goal is to provide you with a sense of the strong connections between the history of the mass media and their present-day formations and uses in the United States, and to provide you with the critical tools and language to deconstruct their storytelling assumptions and techniques.
COMM 102: Media Processes and Effects (4 credits)
Despite dramatic changes in the media landscape, we still take the media for granted. Having access to information, communication, and content through media is an increasingly important part of the social landscape. Starting with its historical roots, this class traces the uses and consequences of mediated messages and communication technology. The class emphasizes research that has developed within the social science tradition. In that sense, it complements COMM101, which emphasizes developments from critical and cultural studies. Throughout the term, students will have opportunities to both learn and directly experience social science research on the uses and consequences of today’s and yesterday’s media.
More information on the current offerings of COMM 101 and COMM 102 can be found in the LSA Course Guide.
