recreates the world
in the image of a global village."
- radical media scholar Marshall McLuhan Gutenberg Galaxy (1962)
The broad study of mass media introduced in this class will focus largely on American media in a global context with emphasis on the history, structure, organization, function, and effects of mass media in society.
Our discussion, research, and analysis will include issues such as:
- ethnic, racial, age, and sex-role stereotyping
- violence
- children and the media
- economic control and the role of government regulation
Additional areas of exploration include:
- the role of media in a modern democracy
- free speech and censorship
- new technology
- commercial consumer culture
- media literacy
