GLS 521: Mass Media and Society
Instructor: Donna King
Wassily Kandinsky's
"Composition VIII"
1923; Oil on canvas; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/kandinsky
Texts:
Croteau & Hoynes, Media/Society . 2002. 3rd edition.
Gorham, editor, Annual Editions: Mass Media 04/05. 2004.
Stauber & Rampton, Toxic Sludge is Good for You! 1995.
Stauber & Rampton, Trust Us, We're Experts. 2002.
Weekly online readings are also required. See course outline below.
Course description:
In this course we will study the relationship between media, culture and society with special emphasis on the entertainment industry, news, advertising, and public relations. Specifically, we will look at the social, cultural and political consequences of the dominance of privately owned corporate media on a democratic society, and the role media play in the production, reception and representation of race, class, gender and sexuality.
Course requirements and grading :
In class writing assignments. Every couple of weeks you will be asked to write in class about the readings, lectures, class discussions and videos shown. These writing assignments will include both short answer and full essay questions. We will allocate approximately one-half of class time for writing on these days.
Your final grade for the course will be based on the average grade for all writing assignments.
Students with a documented disability should contact me on the first day of class to make any necessary special arrangements for the course.
Course outline:
Any changes in exam dates or reading assignments will be announced in class. It is the student's responsibility to keep up with any changes in the event of absence .
W 1/5 Introduction, syllabus, critical approaches to studying mass media and society.
Cultivation theory, new "personalized" media, and the question of democracy
Readings :
Media/Society, pp.3-6, 13-18, 246, 321-333
Read Part I of the online video study guide at the html version or pdf version:
Annual Editions, "The remote controllers," article 7, pp.43-48
Annual Editions, "Exposure to other viewpoints is vital to democracy," article 42, pp.218-220
Video : The Electronic Storyteller (30 min)
W 1/12 Violence, media, and the cultivation of fear
Readings :
Media/Society, pp.110-112, see also cartoon, exhibit 1.4 on p.17
Annual Editions, "Media violence and the American public," article 3, pp.17-29
Read the following articles in Part II of the online video study guide :
"Rethinking media violence," "The scary world of media violence," and "Why so much violence?" (See links above).
Video: The Killing Screens (30 min)
Last day to drop/add classes
W 1/19 Media, ideology, and the cultivation of violent masculinity
Media/Society, pp.159-164, 172-176
Read the online video study guide at the html or pdf links below:
http://mediaed.org/videos/MediaGenderAndDiversity/ToughGuise/studyguide/html
http://www.mediaed.org/videos/MediaGenderAndDiversity/ToughGuise/studyguide/ToughGuise.pdf
Read the online article , "When you're asked about the Kobe Bryant case":
http://www.jacksonkatz.com/bryant.html
Video: Tough Guise (excerpts)
W 1/26 Corporations, media ownership, and the music industry
Readings :
Media/Society, pp.33-47, 56-58, 344-354, 256-259, 153-156
Annual Editions, "Pay for play," article 34, pp.189-192
Read the online video study guide:
http://www.mediaed.org/videos/CommercialismPoliticsAndMedia/MoneyForNothing/studyguide/html
Video: Money for Nothing (48 minutes)
Video: Ammo for the Info Warrior - When the Smoke Clearz
W 2/2 Corporations, media power, and the deregulation debate
Media/Society, pp.33-47, 47-52, 77-83, 85-92, 116-119
Annual Editions, "Behind the mergers," article 20, pp.112-114
Annual Editions, "Low power, high intensity," article 41, pp.215-217
Annual Editions, "Reading between the lines," article 6, pp.39-42
Read online book review , "The media monotony," at:
http://slate.msn.com/id/2104777/#ContinueArticle
Read the online video study guide:
Video : Rich Media, Poor Democracy (30 minutes)
W 2/9 Propaganda model of news
Readings :
Media/Society, pp.46-47, 62-63,242-244, 169-172, see also cartoon, ex.5.1.
Annual Editions, "Myth of the liberal media," article 15, pp.86-88.
Annual Editions, "Live with TAE: Bernard Goldberg," article 16, pp.89-92
Read online article , "The Bias Wars," at:
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000585956
Video : The Myth of the Liberal Media
Video: Rich Media, Poor Democracy (excerpts from additional interviews)
Read online video study guide at the html or pdf links :
Video: Constructing Public Opinion (32 min)
W 2/16 Portrait of a media mogul
Media/Society, p.49 (review paragraph on Murdoch)
Read online article , "Murdoch's mean machine," at:
http://www.russbaker.com/CJR%20-%20Murdoch's%20Mean%20Machine,%20by%20Russ%20Baker.htm
Visit FAIR's online resource site for News Corps/Fox at:
http://www.fair.org/media-outlets/newscorp-fox.html
Look at online documents and studies from Outfoxed at:
http://www.outfoxed.org/Documents.php
Preview online interview clips from Outfoxed video at:
http://www.outfoxed.org/Clips.php
Video: Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism (77 minutes)
Recommended video: Who's Afraid of Rupert Murdoch?
W 2/23 Negative pressures on investigative journalism
Media/Society, pp. 67-73, 83-85, 121-135, 222-224
Annual Editions, "The information squeeze," article 26, pp.142-150
Read online article "Fear and favor 2000: How power shapes the news" at:
http://www.fair.org/ff2000.html
Read the online article , "Copyrighting the President," at:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.08/view.html?pg=5
Read online article , "Pentagon pressure behind CNN firing of Peter Arnett,"
http://wsws.org/articles/1999/apr1999/cnn-a22.shtml
Annual Editions, "The real computer virus," article 18, pp.98-103
Video: Myth of the Liberal Media (excerpts)
Video : Fear and Favor in the Newsroom (excerpts)
W 3/2 Spring break, no class
W 3/9 Investigative journalism breaking the mold
Read the online article , Unsung hero," at:
http://www.muckraker.org/one_investigation.php?id=1197&topic_id=11&show_all=0
Read online interview with Amy Goodman, "The exception to the rulers," at:
http://www.guerrillanews.com/war_on_terrorism/doc4587.html
Read online profile , "The truth is out there," at:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.08/start.html?pg=5
Visit GNN website and preview profile of Robert Sterling at:
http://www.guerrillanews.com/sterling/
Visit GNN website and preview, "The Diamond Life," at:
http://www.guerrillanews.com/diamondlife/
Visit GNN website and preview , "Crack the CIA," at:
http://www.guerrillanews.com/crack/links.html
Visit online resource for a wide variety of news magazines at:
http://www.world-newspapers.com/news-magazine.html
Video: Ammo for the Info Warrior - Profile of Robert Sterling; The Diamond Life; Crack the CIA
W 3/16 Journalistic ethics scandals
Annual Editions, "Ethically challenged," article 25, pp.134-141
Annual Editions, "All about the retrospect," article 27, pp.151-155
Annual Editions, "Important if true," article 28, pp.156-161
Read online article , "The Jayson Blair project," at:
http://slate.msn.com/id/2082741/
Read online article , "More reporting by Times writer called suspect," at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A27658-2003May7?language=printer
Read online article , "Janet Cooke and Jimmy's world," at"
http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/day/04_17_2001.html
Read online article , "Glass houses," at:
http://slate.msn.com/id/2074/#ContinueArticle
Read online article , "Barnicle resigns from Globe," at:
http://www.boston.com/news/daily/19/barnicle.htm
Read online article , "Panic and hysteria reign at the New York Times," at:
http://wsws.org/articles/2003/may2003/nyt-m12.shtml#top
Video: Shattered Glass (99 minutes)
W 3/23 Media coverage of war on terror and war on Iraq
Media/Society, pp.63, 115, 236
Annual Editions, "The view from abroad," article 12, pp.68-71
Annual Editions, "High anxiety," article 13, pp.72-79
Read online article , "After the attack, the war on terrorism," at:
http://www.monthlyreview.org/1101edit.htm
Read online essay , "The white man unburdened," at:
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/16470
Read online article , "Won't get fooled again?" at:
http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=24974
Read the online article, "Safe cracking," at:
http://slate.msn.com/id/2104846/
Visit GNN "War on terrorism" online website at:
http://www.guerrillanews.com/war_on_terrorism/
Visit online video website at:
http://www.mediaed.org/videos/CommercialismPoliticsAndMedia/Hijacking_Catastrophe
Video: Ammo for the Info Warrior - S-11 Redux
Video : Hijacking Catastrophe: 9/11, Fear & the Selling of American Empire
Video : Uncovered: The War on Iraq
Provisionally recommended video : Live from Baghdad (HBO production) [But first read online articles , "HBO recycling Gulf war hoax," at:
http://www.fair.org/activism/hbo-gulf-hoax.html
and "HBO film on Gulf war.," at:
http://wsws.org/articles/2002/dec2002/live-d28.shtml
W 3/30 Last day to withdraw with a W - graduate students
Alternative media coverage of war
Read online article , "Uncle Sam hustles to keep ranks filled," at:
http://www.natcath.org/NCR_Online/archives/032103/032103a.htm
Read online article , "Weapons of mass deception," at:
http://www.counterpunch.org/rampton07312003.html
Read the online article , "Attacking Neo-cons from the right,"
http://ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=24944
Read online article , "At last: A conservative magazine worth reading," at:
http://www.lewrockwell.com/harris/harris14.html
Read online synopsis of "The spoils of war," at:
http://www.muckraker.org/one_investigation.php?id=1193&topic_id=5&show_all=0
Listen to online radio expose , "The spoils of war," at:
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/features/iraq/
View Comedy Central online video , "CIA culpa" at:
http://www.comedycentral.com/tv_shows/thedailyshowwithjonstewart/videos_corr.jhtml
Read the online video study guide at the pdf link:
Preview online video: Independent Media in Time of War at:
http://www.democracynow.org/static/IMIATOW.shtml
Video: Ammo for the Info Warrior - The War Conspiracy
Video: Independent Media in Time of War (35 minutes)
Video: The Control Room
W 4/6 Hollywood goes hypercommercial
Annual Editions, "Virtual product placement," article 32, pp.177-180
Annual Editions, "The myth of '18 to 34', article 29, pp.164-167
Read online article , "The Lost Boys," at:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.08/lostboys.html
Read the online video study guide at the html or pdf links :
http://www.mediaed.org/videos/CommercialismPoliticsAndMedia/BehindtheScreens/studyguide/html
Video: Behind the Screens (37 min)
W 4/13 Advertising, self, and society - An apocalyptic approach
Read the online article, "Advertising at the edge of the apocalypse," at:
http://www.sutjhally.com/onlinepubs/apocalypse.html
Read online article , "A close reading of ads":
http://www.newsreel.org/articles/newmex.htm
Read the online video study guide at the pdf link:
Video: The Ad & the Ego
Video: Advertising and the End of the World
W 4/20 The hidden business of public relations
Toxic Sludge; Trust Us, We're Experts (pages tba)
Read online article , "HBO recycling Gulf war hoax," at:
http://www.fair.org/activism/hbo-gulf-hoax.html
Read online video study guide at:
http://www.mediaed.org/videos/CommercialismPoliticsAndMedia/ToxicSludge/studyguide/ToxicSludge.pdf
Video: Toxic Sludge is Good for You (45 min)
Last Update: Feb 10, 2008
