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SYLLABUS

Mass Communication Theory

MMC 6401-901

Fall 2004

Class: CIS 3014 Instructor: Dr. Marie Curkan-Flanagan

Office Hours:M/TR 10-1p, TR 4-6p E-mail: mflanaga@cas.usf.edu

(or by appointment) Office Phone: 974-6789

Office Location: CIS 3082.

“Communication theorists attack the assumptions of their predecessors and erect new theories that account for everything the earlier theory did and some new findings as well. This is adversarity with a high purpose. It is as much a matter of showing that what we thought we knew is wrong as it is a matter of finding what is right. New knowledge comes hard and it thrives on contest”. (Stempel & Westley)

|School of Mass Communications Main Office (CIS 3106) |

|PHONE: 813-974-2591 |

|FAX: 813-974-2592 |

OBJECTIVES OF THE CLASS

This is one of the core courses in the mass communication graduate program. This course is intended to introduce you to the key theories and concepts used in past and current mass communication research. We will survey the major theories of mass communication, including those originating from more established fields such as psychology, sociology, and management, through theories emerging from within this relatively young discipline. The course is organized along historical and thematic lines; perception, newsroom routines, influences on news content, media effects, cognitive processing and involvement, active audiences, and societal influences.

After taking this class, you will have a better understanding of various mass communication theories and be able to develop theoretical frameworks for future research projects. This class is designed to lay the foundation for taking more topic-specific seminars and for producing a thoughtful, theoretically oriented, and well-written thesis in the future. You may incorporate your research project in this class and get your conceptual foundation solidified with the help from the instructor and fellow classmates.

"The brain in each of us does literally create his or her own world….The eye is not a camera that simply records what is in front of it. The brain is not a simple recording medium like film. Many of our affairs are conducted on the assumption that our sense organs provide us with an accurate record, independent of ourselves. But we are realizing that this is an illusion that we must learn to see the world as we do. The point to grasp is that we cannot speak simply as if there is a world around us of which our senses give true information. In trying to speak about what the world is like we must remember all the time that what we see and what we say depends on what we have learned; we ourselves come into the process. What this means is that reality—as we experience it—is in this sense, a human creation. All our experience is a human version of the world we inhabit. (Young; J.Z., Doubt and certainty in Science, various quotes and paraphrases).

As you’ve already heard, you’re not in undergraduate school anymore. A graduate class is supposed to feature an exchange of ideas. This means you should be prepared to discuss the material in every meeting. Please don’t sit in your chair like a statute, silent and not contributing.

Required Texts:

Baran, S.J. and Davis, D.K. (2002) Mass Communication Theory:

Foundations, Ferment and Future. Wadsworth Publication, Belmont: CA

Galvan, J. (1999) Writing Literature Reviews: A Guide for the Students of the Social and Behavioral Sciences.Pyrczak Publications, Los Angeles, CA

Publication Manual of the American Psychological

Association, 5th ed. (2001) Washington, DC: APA

(The required style of the Mass Communications M.A. Program)

Supplemental Readings: Various articles that address different topics will be distributed in class.

Recommended Readings:

Curran, J. and Gurevitch, M (eds.) (2000) Mass Media and Society, 3rd edition. London: Arnold.

Mutz, D.C. (1998) Impersonal Influence: How Perceptions of Mass Collectives Affect Political Attitudes. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Shoemaker, P. and Reese, S. (1996) Mediating the Message, 2nd edition. White Plain, NY: Longman.

IMPORTANT POLICIES

These policies are extremely important to you. Please read carefully and remember that these policies will be upheld throughout the semester.

Plagarism

Any student found plagiarizing or misusing information will fail this course. Cheating on examinations will result in the same loss of class standing as reported above. Students, who don't do their own work, don't deserve a break. Please refer to the academic handbook, which clearly specifies how the university views this type of behavior.



Assignments

● If you cannot take an exam or submit an assignment on the scheduled date, you have the full responsibility to report to me in ADVANCE (not on the same day).

●You will be penalized if you turn in your assignment late (Note: it is deemed late even when you turn in your assignment after the class that exact day)---your grade on that given assignment will be subtracted 20 points for every day the assignment is late. You should also remember where exactly the assignment is due.

● Assignments turned in to other venues will not be graded.

● If you miss an exam without an acceptably document excuse, you will not be allowed to make up and your grade will be zero.

●All papers left with the instructor at the end of the semester will be discarded one week after the grades are posted.

●Other than the assignments and exams, you do not have the option to submit extra work to gain bonus credit. In addition, any class you miss will not be offered or summarized afterwards at a one-on-one basis-you are entirely responsible for any class you miss. I am assuming that you can grasp the material covered on the day (s) you miss. Therefore, you are strongly advised to follow the schedule and the handouts distributed in each class.

For those of you who are working full time, having part-time jobs, or participating in extra-curricular activities while taking this class at the same time, it is important to keep in mind that this class may be time-consuming and challenging. If your job or other commitments demand a lot of time and energy, you should be aware of the risk of getting a bad grade. Job or activities related excuses are not acceptable. Emotional distress, relationship crisis, or other family problems are not acceptable excuses. This class strives to be as fair as possible: each and every student will be evaluated in precisely the same fashion in the end of the semester.

Participation

I expect you to attend each and every class and to participate in in-class discussions. Attendance and participation can affect your borderline grade (say if you get 89.4).

Attendance

·No absences are excused.

·You are allowed two (1) acceptably documented excused absence for illness or transportation reasons, not for job or other class conflicts. Understand that without acceptably documented absences NO consideration will be given for a second cut. A third cut will result in automatically FAILING THE COURSE.

·You are allowed two tardy of not more than 10 minutes. Three tardies will be equivalent to an unexcused absence.

· No early departures from class are allowed or excused. Early departures from class will be prorated similar to tardies.

·In computing your final grades you will automatically lose points for each missed class, arrived late for class and these additional points will be deducted from your final grade.

·Students who anticipate the necessity of being absent from class due to the observation of a major religious observance must provide written notice of the date(s) and event (s) to the instructor by the second-class meeting.

SALE OF NOTES / TAPING OF CLASS LECTURES:

Lectures given in this class are the property of Dr. Marie Curkan-Flanagan and notes may not be sold, nor taped, nor used for purposes other than the academic (non-commercial) needs of each registered student. Taping class lectures is allowed only by the individual permission of the instructor, and only if the student formally agrees to all the following conditions:

1) Tapes are for the sole use of the individual student to whom permission is given in order to allow that student to enhance traditional note taking in class.

1) Tapes may not be transcribed, nor may they be sold nor loaned to any other person or organization.

1) Tapes may not be kept indefinitely ( use the same cassette and tape over each lecture with the next one)

Please see the professor outside of class time to secure formal permission for taping class lectures.

* Any student with a disability is encouraged to meet with me privately during the first week of class to discuss accommodations. Each student MUST bring a current MEMORANDUM OF ACCOMMODATIONS from the Office of Student Disability Services that is a prerequisite for receiving accommodations. Accommodated examinations through the Office of Student Disability Services require two weeks notice.

The USF School of Mass Communications complies with national accrediting standards designed to help prepare students to understand and relate to issues of interest to women and minorities in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-racial and otherwise diverse society.

GRADES

Your final grade will be based on the following components:

Critical Thinking 5% Mid-Term Paper 25%

Workbook Assignments (2) 10% Final Paper, critique & presentation 35%

Abstract and presentation 5%

Development Paper presentation 20%

Every assignment will be evaluated on a 100-point scale. Your final score will be calculated based on the above percentages and your final letter grade will be given based on the following formula:

100. A 60-69.9 D

9. B ................
................

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