180.830 (16W) "What did [the media] ever do to you? It destroyed the electoral process": The 2016 US presidential elections and media criticism"
Überblick
- Lehrende/r
- LV-Titel englisch "What did [the media] ever do to you? It destroyed the electoral process": The 2016 US presidential elections and media criticism"
- LV-Art Vorlesung-Kurs (prüfungsimmanente LV )
- Semesterstunde/n 2.0
- ECTS-Anrechnungspunkte 4.0
- Anmeldungen 15 (25 max.)
- Organisationseinheit
- Unterrichtssprache Englisch
- mögliche Sprache/n der Leistungserbringung Englisch
- LV-Beginn 05.10.2016
- eLearning zum Moodle-Kurs
-
Anmerkungen
!!! FIRST BLOCK: INTRODUCTORY MEETING + FIRST SESSION (Oct 5) = DROP DATE !!!
(content: discussion of pragmatics, first contact with US elections, the candidates & mass media)This class includes graded participation at and contributions to TWO OUTREACH ACTIVITIES which will be co-organized with the Department of English and American Studies and the Austro-American Society:
1) Election Day evening event (Tue, Nov 8)
2) Inauguration Day (Fri, Jan 20)Additional extracurricular activities: movie nights and presidential debate screenings.
Zeit und Ort
LV-Beschreibung
Intendierte Lernergebnisse
During the 2008 elections, Stephen Colbert coined the term "truthiness" to describe in part the phenomenon that "anyone can read the news to you", while, he promised, to "feel the news at you". His largely satirical comment on the intersection between American political discourse, mass (entertainment) media and public opinion, seems eerily prescient of the challenges and new media frontiers ushered in by the 2016 US presidential elections. It turns out that "truthiness" was but a prologue for "Trumpiness".
We repeatedly hear that the 2016 election cycle is decidedly different (and, quite asymmetrical [read: crazy] at that). Together, we will attempt to understand why that is and how American media are as much taken aback by phenomena like Trump as they are complicit in making such phenomena possible.
The insights and knowledge students gain by way of self-directed research and subsequent processing will (among other things) serve a knowledge transfer at two dedicated public outreach activities.
Our forays into the vagaries of the US elections will be organized around two key dates:
1) Nov 8 (Election Day), and
2) Jan 20 (Inauguration Day).
Lehrmethodik inkl. Einsatz von eLearning-Tools
Using presidential rhetoric, ASK NOT WHAT THIS COURSE CAN DO FOR YOU; ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR THIS COURSE.
In short, as an advanced course in the MCM graduate program, students are expected to co-create the course.
Lecture/course-hybrid: lecture input, peer-expert lecture units, explicate&exemplify units, self-directed research, group discussions, interpretative activities, critical movie analysis/contextualization, work on Moodle, outreach events, extracurricular movie nights, etc.
Be prepared to critically formulate, present & discuss your own (!) thoughts on the topics/texts covered in class since a large part of this class will depend on your concerted input. This class will be peer-hosted/peer-generated and as such will require students to engage in self-directed research. All of the material you will need to get you started will be provided in digital form.
Inhalt/e
As an increasingly partisan US electorate speaks to the many unresolved issues that polarize the nation, and as the world looks onto the spectacle that is the US elections, our course will attempt to both 1) understand/map the intersections of American politics, (mass) media influence/control, and public opinion, and 2) simultaneously apply our newly gained knowledge to the current elections as they unfold.
Topics
* Getting our bearings: What do you know about the US elections? How do you perceive them? Introducing the candidates vis-à-vis questions of media bias.
* In brief: the American (mass) media geography
* What is public opinion, and why does it matter?
* Entertainment-news-politics (hard vs. soft news)
* Media bias
* Controlling/regulating (mass) media
* The power and vagaries of polling
* (Mass) media and the elections going to the movies
Literatur
Primary
Dagnes, Alison. 2010. Politics on Demand: The Effects of 24 Hour News on American Politics. Praeger.
Edwards, George C. et al. eds. 2014. Government in America: People, Politics, and Policy. Pearson.
Gainous, Jason and Kevin Wagner. eds. 2014. Tweeting to Power: The Social Media Revolution in American Politics. OUP.
Medvic, Stephen K. 2011. New Directions in Campaigns and Elections. Routledge.
Polsby, Nelson. et al. 2015. Presidential Elections: Strategies and Structures of American Politics. Rowman & Littlefield.
Secondary
Coyne, Michael. 2008. Hollywood Goes to Washington: American Politics on Screen. Reaktion Books.
Foy, Joseph J. 2008. Homer Simpson Goes to Washington: American Politics through Popular Culture. Univ. Press of Kentucky.
Ginsberg, Benjamin. et al. 2013. We the People, An Introduction to American Politics. W. W. Norton.
Jones, Charles O. 2016. The American Presidency: A Very Short Introduction. OUP.
Maisel, L. Sandy. 2016. American Political Parties and Elections: A Very Short Introduction. OUP.
Scott, Ian. 2011. American Politics in Hollywood Film. 2nd ed. Edinburgh Univ. Press.
A comprehensive transmedial bibliography/videography, which includes titles that are all available either in our library, via the class lecturer or on the internet, will be provided on Moodle. Making use of these resources will be part of the graded performance.
All relevant films along with a digital resource package will be available for you at the Self Access Center (SAC). EVERY student is directed & required to obtain and watch (!) all films which are tied to individual assignments in order to successfully participate in the class. Other course material (slideshows, reading assignments, other relevant material etc.) will be made available in digital form on Moodle.
Prüfungsinformationen
Prüfungsmethode/n
IN-CLASS:
1) Attendance/participation/outreach events/work on Moodle,
2) "Taking the pulse of the media"-news review
3) "Explicate&Exemplify" peer-lecture unit,
4) "Representation&Deconstruction" peer-hosted movie discussion,
WRITTEN:
5) An A1-Poster to be showcased at the Election Day event (tied to Explicate&Exemplify lecture unit).
Prüfungsinhalt/e
You will need to achieve a positive grade in ALL pillars of assessment (parts 1-5) in order to receive a passing grade for the class ("sudden death-rule").
Beurteilungskriterien/-maßstäbe
All assignments MUST be submitted via Moodle before the given deadlines. Late submissions of ANY assignments that have a deadline attached to them will generally NOT be accepted once the deadline has passed.
Any case of plagiarism will inevitably lead to immediate expulsion from the class.
Beurteilungsschema
Note BenotungsschemaPosition im Curriculum
- Masterstudium Geschichte
(SKZ: 803, Version: 11W.1)
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Fach: Freie Wahlfächer
(Freifach)
-
Freie Wahlfächer (
0.0h XX / 12.0 ECTS)
- 180.830 "What did [the media] ever do to you? It destroyed the electoral process": The 2016 US presidential elections and media criticism" (2.0h VC / 4.0 ECTS)
-
Freie Wahlfächer (
0.0h XX / 12.0 ECTS)
-
Fach: Freie Wahlfächer
(Freifach)
- Masterstudium Media and Convergence Management
(SKZ: 150, Version: 13W.2)
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Fach: Gebundene Wahlfächer I (Electives I) - Media and Communication (MC)
(Wahlfach)
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Special Topics in Media and Convergence Management I (
2.0h VK / 4.0 ECTS)
- 180.830 "What did [the media] ever do to you? It destroyed the electoral process": The 2016 US presidential elections and media criticism" (2.0h VC / 4.0 ECTS)
-
Special Topics in Media and Convergence Management I (
2.0h VK / 4.0 ECTS)
-
Fach: Gebundene Wahlfächer I (Electives I) - Media and Communication (MC)
(Wahlfach)