JOUR 375-10 Media Criticism

Roosevelt University

School of Communication

Spring 2009

Peter K. Fallon, Ph.D.

Contact me:

pfallon@roosevelt.edu

http://faculty.roosevelt.edu/Fallon/

http://rujournalism.blogspot.com

Statement of Philosophy

Ideally, journalism is concerned with more than just "the news." It is concerned with the pursuit of truth and its publication. The pursuit of truth demands critical thought. Critical thought facilitates intellectual, ethical, spiritual, and social development. In addition, it helps us to recognize quality-of-life issues in both the social and natural environments. Critical thought manifests itself academically not only in the assimilation and practical use of knowledge, but also in an ability to examine the world around us, speculate, and investigate relationships among human beings, their institutions and the world at large. This is the nature of that process we call "education."

In order truly to attain proficiency in journalism and other forms of mediated communication, it is necessary to look critically at 1] the technologies of communications; 2] the economic, political, and social structures which support them and which they, in turn, support; 3] the structures of thought they facilitate and the structures of thought they inhibit; 4] and the institutions which grow around them and for which they become foundations.

In doing so, we come closer to "truth" than in blind acquiescence to social/cultural assumptions. And more important then attaining mere proficiency in the skills of a discipline, critical thinking skills can help us become better citizens and better human beings.

Course Description and Format

This course seeks to present students with two broad tools: 1] a structure for critical thought about mediated communication, and 2] models of media criticism in real-world case studies. In the beginning of the semester, classes will be broken into two parts; a "lecture" section, where the instructor presents certain objective "content" and a discussion/debate session, where students and instructor talk about what that content "means," and try to relate it real-world events. As the semester progresses, there will be less emphasis on "lecture" and more on facilitated discussion of media events in our mass society. In both the early and later parts of the semester, reading and writing assignments will be integral to the learning process.

Texts

Media/Society, David Croteau & William Hoynes, third edition, (Thousand Oaks: Pine Forge Press, 2003).

We the Media, Don Hazen and Julie Winokur, eds., (New York: The New Press, 1997).

Additional Materials

Chicago Tribune

Chicago Sun-Times

New York Times (on-line or paper)

Sunday New York Times (paper only)

Class hand-outs

Magazine editions TBA.

Media journal/diary/log.

Course Goals and Objectives

The over-arching goal of this course is to get students to think critically about the meaning and functions of mediated communication in their lives as individuals, and in our life as a society. But thinking critically does not mean merely making fun of, or satirizing, or complaining mindlessly about the media. It does not mean harping on "media bias" without having any idea what that phrase might mean.

The phrase "critical thinking" implies systematic, broad, and deep thinking. It implies questioning things we might assume beforehand to be true. It implies taking NOTHING for granted without some sort of "truth-testing." It's not easy, and not many people are used to doing it.

And so our objectives for the course center around those three characteristics of critical thought: the systematic nature, the breadth, and the depth. The successful student will achieve the following objectives:

1] learn and remember the system of six principles through which all media operate;

2] exhibit comprehension or understanding of each of the six principles and what it means;

3] apply the principles to readings, writing assignments, media journals, and classroom debate or discussions;

4] create, research, and write a critical examination of some mediated event (news story, entertainment spectacle, cultural phenomenon, etc.) of the student's choice.

Grading Criteria

Based on the above objectives, I have determined the following criteria for grading:

Reactions to readings, written assignments, media journals: 25%

Midterm examination:                          10%

Final paper/presentation:                      25%

Attendance and participation:                40%

TOTAL:                                          100%

Tentative Class/Topic Schedule

Week One, September 3: Media Criticism

 Different Perspectives

 "Media Ecology"

 Six Principles of Media (part 1)

Assignments: Buy all texts; begin reading assigned newspapers on a daily basis; write a brief (1.5-3 page) paper outlining your most serious criticisms of mass communication, due week 2.

Week Two, September 10: Media Criticism

 Six Principles of Media (continued from week 1)

Assignments: Read Media/Society, chapter 9, pp. 299-334. Media journal: Do a self-evaluation of your success thus far in assimilating the information presented in class and in this first set of readings. Does it make sense to you? All of it? Some of it? None of it? Are there ideas that need clarification or further illustration? This media journal assignment is your chance to further explore concepts which appear muddy, and to consolidate those which seem crystal clear. Due week three.

Week Three, September 17: Symbolic Form

Assignments: Read Media/Society, chapter 8, pp. 265-298. Media journal: do a self-evaluation of your success in assimilating the concept of symbolic form. Due week four.

Week Four, September 24: Physical Form

Assignments: Read Media/Society, chapter 2, pp. 31-76. Media journal: do a self-evaluation of your success in assimilating the concept of physical form. Due week five.

Week Five, October 1: Conditions of Attendance

Assignments: Read We the Media, ch. I and II, pp. 4-96; ch. IV., pp. 141-176.

Week Six, October 8: Conditions of Attendance, continued

Assignments: Continue readings from week five. Media journal: self-evaluation on the concept of conditions of attendance. Due week seven.

Week Seven, October 15: Speed, Quantity, and Direction of Information Flow

Assignment: Read Media/Society, ch. 10, pp. 335-372. Media journal, due week nine.

NOTE: From this point on, until the end of the semester, all journals will be your attempts synthesize and apply ideas flowing from your own understanding of the principles we have learned and continue to learn. I expect students to be aware of and curious about their mass-mediated world, and to take "educated guesses," based on the six principles, about how and why we understand and interact with our culture in the particular way(s) we do.

Week Eight, October 22: Review and Midterm Examination

Assignment: Identify a case study you would like to explore for your final paper. An in-depth explanation and discussion of this paper will take place in class, but for now let me mention that the case study can be an over-all comparative, qualitative look at the coverage (or lack of coverage) of a story by one medium as opposed to another, or by the entire assembled media.

Week Nine, October 29: Temporal and Spatial Biases

Assignment: Read Media/Society, ch. 5, pp. 159-194. Media journal: identify our culture in terms of its "space bias" or "time bias." Are there monopolies of knowledge clustered around one medium or another? Is there a dominant medium and a consequent dominant ideology? Is the dominance total, or are there "islands" of competing ideology? Wrack your brains and give as much feedback as you can. Due week eleven.

Week Ten, November 5: Sensory Biases

Assignment: Read We the Media, ch. III, pp. 98-140. Media journal, due week twelve.

Week Eleven, November 12: Social, Political, and Economic Biases

Assignment: Refresh your memory of We the Media, ch. I and II, pp. 4-96; read Media Society, ch. 6, pp. 195-228. Media journal: Evaluate American culture in terms of its dominant medium/media; analyze American culture in terms of its presentational or propositional orientation, its conditions of attendance for information use, its temporal/spatial bias, sensory bias, and social, political and/or economic biases. Due week thirteen.

Week Twelve, November 19: Review of Six Principles, Readings, Controversies, etc.

Assignment: As a group, we will schedule class presentations of final papers.

Weeks Thirteen, December 3, and Fourteen, December 10: Class Presentation of Final Papers, Discussion, and Feedback