Main Aim(s) of the Unit:

This course seeks to introduce some of the key debates about the changing nature of the social, economic and political relationships between media and society. It will deal with the traditional relationships between media and society, and then encourage students to consider the ways in which the digital revolution and convergence are impacting and are likely to do so in the future.

Main Topics of Study:

Media Institutions and their role in society

• Defining a media institutions
• Cinema- mainstream and Art House
• Regulatory bodies
• The Press and Journalism
• Television
• Case study – Photography
• History and development

Defining media genre

• Print
• Photography
• Film
• Radio
• Music and phonography
• Television
• Mobile
• Internet
• Video games

Media Genre

• Newspapers
• Magazines
• Photography
• Film
• Radio
• Television
• Telecommunications
• The Internet and the Web
• Music Recording
• Video Games

Media Industries

• Media -goods or service?
• Types of activities
• Comparative Business Models – live radio v. recorded music and film
• Stages of Media Production
• The Film Industry

The Television Industry

• History of television
• From monolith to pluralism
• financing television
• Public Service Broadcasting

Media Production

• Magazine production process
• Target audiences
• Budget and Funding
• Negotiating A Brief
• Preparing a Treatment
• TV Production process
• Creative personnel
• Technical personnel
• Copyright and permissions
• Post production

Production Techniques

• Technical codes
• narrative codes
• Electronic publishing
• Special effects
• Digital effects

Media Distribution

• Newspapers and Magazine distribution
• Radio and Television
• Analogue v. Digital
• Recorded music
• Games
• Film distribution
• Advertising led products

Media Representation and Misrepresentation

• Racism in the media
• historical context Stepin Fetchit
• Representation and gender
• Positive and negative images
• Stereotypes
• Migration and representation of migrants & asylum seekers

Ideologies and the Media

• Classification, propaganda and censorship
• The Global Village
• Growth and Development
• Cultural Imperialism v. Local Cultures

News values/media values

• Galtung and Ruge
• Content Research

Research

• Primary and Secondary
• Background research
• Content research
• Internet Research
• Production Research
• Audience research

Celebrity Culture

• What is Celebrity?
• Types of Celebrity
• Celebrity and Advertising
• Celebrity and broadcast
• online programming

Documentary and Reality TV

• Realism and Truth?
• Documentary
• Ethics and Documentary
• Reality TV

Globalisation

• The Global Village concept
• Global Brands and Local Brands
• Technology and globalisation
• Cultural Imperialism
• US Cultural Power
• Global Cinema

The Media and the Market

• Historical background
• Regulation versus Freedom of Expression
• Deregulation and liberalisation of media institutions
• what is a “free market”
• impact of the world wide web in breaking down boundaries and barriers

Learning Outcomes for the Unit

Knowledge and Understanding – having completed this Unit learners will have :

1. A general understanding of the key issues of the media and its social, economic and political significance
2. A general understanding of the relationship between media and society and some knowledge of international differences
3. An understanding of the wide range of media technologies
4. A general understanding of media production processes
5. A general understanding of online distribution of online distribution and social networking

The numbers in the boxes below show which of the above unit learning outcomes are related to particular cognitive and key skills.

Learning and teaching methods/strategies used to enable the achievement of learning outcomes:

Learning should take place on a number of levels, principally through lectures, but centres should also encourage seminars, presentation and class discussion, including review and analysis of current media issues.

Formal lectures should provide a foundation of information on which the student builds through directed learning and self managed learning outside the class.

Assessment methods which enable the student to demonstrate the learning outcomes for the Unit:

Examination: 3 hours duration 100%

Indicative Reading For This Unit

Main Text

Branston G. and Stafford R. (2010 – 5th edition) The Media Student’s Book. (London, Routledge)

Alternative Text and Further Reading

O’Sullivan, Tim and Jewkes,Yvonne – editors (2003) Media Studies Reader (London, Arnold)
Stokes, Jane and Reading, Anna – editors (1999) The Media in Britain ( London, Plagrave)

Suggested Websites

UK Film Council – www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/
British Phonographic Society – http://www.bpi.co.uk/
OfCom – http://www.ofcom.org.uk/
BBC – www.bbc.co.uk

Guideline for Teaching and Learning Time

Unit Content: this course will consider the key issues surrounding the media and media institutions in a social, political and economic context, and how these relationships are changing with the ever quickening pace of digital convergence. The course will examine some of the key debates about the relationship between ghd traditional elements of media and society, and the impact of the growth of networking and online distribution.

50 hours Lectures/ Seminars/Tutorials/Workshops
Tutorial support includes feedback on assignments and may vary from college to college according to local needs and wishes

50 hours Directed Learning
Advanced reading, research and preparation, background reading, Group study and portfolio

50 hours Self managed learning
Working through the course text and other recommended reading material, use of the web, interaction with other students and in the field research at relevant sporting events