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Communication Department

Media Studies Courses

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  • MDIA 301 Media Theory (3)
    Introduction to the theories of mediated communication, including theories based on critical/cultural, normative, and social scientific approaches. Explores the historical development of the major Western philosophical perspectives regarding the media and their role and impact in society.
  • MDIA 303 Histories of Media Technologies (3)
    A critical and historical examination of 19th, 20th, and 21st century analog and digital mass media/communication technologies. Introduces the role of media technology in human creative activity and examines the contexts in which new technologies come into use. Students will examine economic and political issues that have (and do) influence the selection of some technologies and standards over others. Students may have the opportunity to create media projects applying course concepts.
  • MDIA 304 Global Media (3)
    An exploration of "globalization" as an historical - as well as a contested - process, and of cultural, social, technological economic political processes at work in "mass media globalization". Case studies link discussions of specific forms (i.e., music, radio, video, journalism, internet/web cell phones, broadcast satellites, and points of origin) to old and new audiences. These case studies are contextualized in a consideration of specific communication processes associated with trade, war, community development, policy making and reform, and privatization/deregulation.
  • MDIA 322 Media Power (3)
    Illustrates how media power operates in culture through discourse in local and global contexts. Students examine the power dynamics among producers, subjects and audiences in and around mass media: who makes what for whom and how. Readings and discussions will explore power-inflected relations in mass media, along with discovering possibilities in how to reclaim media power. What happens when historical Others make work about themselves, their cultures and communities?
  • MDIA 360 Media and Society (3)

    Introduces theories, research methods, and empirical research findings related to the production and effects of the media on individuals and society. Surveys various forms of media, provides an overview of the historical formation of various media channels, and analyzes the impact of the media upon popular culture. Enrollment Requirement: COMM 100.  May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for COMM 360.

  • MDIA 365 New Media and Everyday Life (3)
    Explores various new media technologies and the role they play in our everyday lives. Takes a critical media studies approach in surveying the social, cultural, and political issues raised by the deployment and adoption of digital media. Will engage the implications of new media technologies on society and conduct everyday life. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for MASS 470-2.
  • MDIA 366 Mobile Media Cultures (3)

    Explores mobile media cultures through the history of mobile media technologies, the convergence of old and new media, the ubiquity of mobiles in everyday life, and the shift towards a global mobile society. Examines how mobile technologies are used in politics and social protest, intimacy and family relationships, and economic development.  Interrogates implications on culture, society, and everyday life such as identity, mobility, accessibility, privacy, and surveillance. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for MASS 470-5.

  • MDIA 370 The Internet and Digital Media (3)

    Examines the development of the Internet and textual, graphic, video, and audio digital media. Provides an overview of the personal, commercial, educational, and entertainment uses of the Internet. Explores the social and cultural contexts of digital media, and how they reflect social, economic, and political power related to gender, race, social class, ethnicity, education, and other social groupings. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for COMM 370.

  • MDIA 403 Critical Approaches to Children's Media (3)
    Examines the landscape of children's media from a critical media and cultural studies perspective. Explores the complexities of children's media through the communication circuit of production, text, and audience. Content introduces the major debates surrounding the role of media in the lives of children here in the U.S. and around the globe. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for MASS 470-3.
  • MDIA 410 Asian Americans and the Media (3)

    Examines what it is to be Asian and American within the contexts of US and globalized traditional and emerging media. Studies these texts in relation to the history of Asian Americans, the historical imaging and imagination of Asian Americans, and Asian Americans as distinct ethnicities in a shared racial subjectivity. Demonstrates how communities are created, identities are communicated, and how persuasive elements are employed in producing and contesting the historical and cultural memory of Asian Americans. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for COMM 420-2 or COMM 420.

  • MDIA 451 Media, Religion, and Commodification (3)

    Explores the theoretical foundations and the process of constructing religiosity and spirituality on electronic media. Examines construction of spirituality in secular media. Investigates the commodification of religiosity and spirituality in popular culture.

  • MDIA 452 Media Ethics (3)
    Examination of ethical standards and practices of the mass media. Focuses on the conduct as a future media practitioner and the impact students will have on others in particular and society in general. Includes development of ethical decision-making skills. 
  • MDIA 455 Television and Culture (3)

    Analyzes television programs to examine representations of race, ethnicity, social class, gender, sexual preference, and other related categories. Explores the practices, conventions, and ideologies that shape the production and consumption of television programs. Examines how television contributes to the interpretation and discussion of social activities that affect the ways people view society and social groups. Prerequisite: MDIA 301 or MDIA 360. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for COMM 455.

  • MDIA 456 Media and Popular Culture (3)

    Introduces theories and perspectives on the study of media and popular culture in the United States. Examines how media, pop culture, and systems of power contribute to representations of race, class, gender, sexuality, ability, and other related categories within the context of social, political, and economic realities in the United States. Analyzes a variety of pop culture artifacts to detect the role media play within constructing our understanding of popular culture and its impact in our lives. Prerequisite: MDIA 301 or MDIA 360. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for COMM 465.

  • MDIA 460 Political Economy of the Media (3)
    Theories and problems concerning systems of support and control of the mass media, with special reference to the role of special interest groups and the political state. Emphasis on allocations of spectrum, time, money, energy, materials, and human resources among agencies of mass communication systems. Consideration is given to questions of access to media institutions and the operations of such institutions in light of governmental regulations and policies. Some focus on the significance of mass communication in conducting foreign affairs, as well as the role of mass communication in developing nations. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for COMM 460.
  • MDIA 462 Political Communication and Media (3)

    Surveys theories and research in the area of media and politics. Covers such issues and themes as journalism and the public sphere, public opinion, political advertising and propaganda, political campaign discourse, entertainment media and politics, media and social movements. Prerequisite(s)/Corequisite(s): MDIA 301 or MDIA 360. May not be taken for credit by students who have received credit for COMM 470. 

  • MDIA 465 Media Policy and the Struggle for U.S. Democracy, 1776-1996 (3)
     Explores key debates, controversies, and problems in media and telecommunications policy in the U.S., from the nation’s founding to the birth of the modern Internet. Considers the relationship between laws and regulations governing media and democratic participation. Pays particular attention to media policymaking and movements for racial, gender, and economic justice.  May not be taken for credit by students who received credit for: MDIA 470-2.

    Prerequisite(s): COMM 360
  • MDIA 466 Digital Policy (3)
    Explores the questions around the regulation of media in the digital era. Particular attention will be paid to transformations in laws and policies surrounding ownership, copyright, privacy, hacking, and network management. Consideration will be given to how these changes impact media industries and the public, and how they connect with larger political, economic, and cultural trends. May not be taken for credit by students who received credit for: MDIA 470-1.

    Prerequisite(s): COMM 360 with a grade of C (2.0) or better.
  • MDIA 470 Topics in Media Studies (1-3)
    Focuses on a specific aspect of mass media which involves mass media production and/or media organization and systems and/or media uses and effects. Topics vary by semester. Students should check the Class Schedule for listing of individual topics and the areas. May be repeated for credit as topics change for a total of six (6) units.
  • MDIA 495 Media Studies Internship (3)
    Provides students with opportunities to examine organizational, intercultural, mediated, and other modes of communication during routine work activities in private and public enterprises outside of the classroom setting. Students complement classroom and laborary learning with that of the workk world. Internships may be paid or unpaid. May be repeated for credit for a total of six (6) units toward the MASS major in any combination from 495 and 499. Corerequisite: Internship placement. Enrollment restricted to students who have obtained consent of instructor. Enrollment Requirement: COMM 100. Prerequisite one of the following: COMM 300, 330, 360, 390, MDIA 303 or 304. Enrollment restricted to Communication or Media Studies majors with Junior or Senior status (more than 60 completed units) who have obtained consent of intructor. Mass majors advised in MDIA 495 not COMM 495.
  • MDIA 499 Independent Study (1-3)
    May be used by students who desire to do individualized projects with a professor. Number of units to be decided by the instructor. May be repeated for a total of six (6) units. MDIA 495 and MDIA 499 may total no more than six (6) units applied toward the major. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.