Doctoral Seminar

Advanced Issues in Media Theory and Ethics

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Course Description

This class analyzes the “interpersonal divide,” a concept that illustrates what happens at work and at home when we communicate too often electronically with each other, instead of face to face, and over-consume media. The course will investigate whether information technology and media systems have blurred boundaries of home and work, affecting our value systems. We also will study mass media’s effect on society and relationships from the Nineteenth Century to the present day, documenting how corporate ecosystems have changed the nature of communication and our understanding of “community.” A premise in the course is that media and technology are important to society; however, we also want to analyze how they are used and the role of marketing, profit margin and other concerns often excluded from scholarly discussions on mediated communication and media consumption.

The format of the class will be a combination of seminar and workshop. As seminar participants, students will lead presentations and discussions on readings. As workshop participants, they will help hone dissertation and paper proposals through collaborative and constructive critique sessions.

Content of Lectures and Presentations

Major topics include interpersonal communication, mediated communication, consumption of media and technology, the impact of marketing, theories of communication, diffusion of media and technology in society from historical and current-day perspectives, displacement, and moral, cultural, and social upheavals associated with technology networks and communication systems.

Goals

1. To prepare a document that can also serve as a dissertation proposal or paper proposal for a peer-review journal.

2. To prepare teaching modules based on readings and research. [See appended sample or visit http://www.interpersonal-divide.org/material.html .]

3. To base the above proposal on media ethics and/or technology in environments that impact human communication in one or several of its forms.

4. To analyze the diffusion of media technology from the Nineteenth century to the present, analyzing the impact on social change and incorporating that when appropriate in modules or the dissertation/paper proposal.

5. To apply the appropriate communication terminology and/or theories in your analyses of diffusion and social, moral, and cultural change.

6. To spark discussion via readings and case studies on the interpersonal divide, along with other dynamic communication and media ethics issues, generating innovative proposals for dissertations or publishable research papers.

Textbook

Required:

Interpersonal Divide: The Search for Community in a Technological Age by Michael Bugeja (Oxford, 2005).

Recommended:

Writing or Presenting Your Thesis or Dissertation by S. Joseph Levine, Ph.D., Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan. [Note: You can download the book for free at this link: http://www.lulu.com/learnerassociate .]

Readings:

Class presentations and discussions are based on readings. There are a preface and an introduction and nine chapters in Interpersonal Divide: The Search for Community in a Technological Age. You are to read the preface and introduction in the first week and then a chapter per week through the remainder of the semester. Pay special attention to end-of-the-chapter materials and suggested readings.

Each of you will lead a discussion on the readings, according to a schedule worked out during the first day of class. As we have 10 reading units (preface/introduction and nine chapters), there may be some overlap on content but not discussion, because effective discussants generate analyses and inspire feedback based on interpersonal skills, put into practice during these sessions. Presenting as a discussant not only sharpens interpersonal skills but also prepares you for the discussant role at conventions. <>

Assignments

1. You will be responsible for three teaching modules and one dissertation/ paper proposal. [Note: Guidelines for effective proposals are summarized in a handout from Claremont Graduate University appended to this syllabus.]

2. Each of you will lead a 15-minute discussion on readings and receive a grade for that. As this is an advanced doctoral class, you are expected to come prepared for these sessions as you might if conducting your own seminar as a professor.

3. Each of you also will have the opportunity to participate in seminar discussions and workshop critique sessions. You will receive a grade for that as well, based on content of your exchanges and constructive criticism associated with format, writing, methodologies, theories, terminologies, or other data.

Grading

Assignment Percentage

Teaching module #1 10

Teaching module #2 10

Teaching module #3 10

Discussion leader 15

Participation 5

Dissertation/Paper Proposal 50

Teaching Module Assignment

You are responsible for three teaching modules. Each module should average 300-400 words in length, based on a news report or current affairs issue, so that the information is timely—perhaps too much so for a journal or book. Teachers who create such modules do so to make theories applicable, enhance classroom discussion and give context and/or meaning to passages in the text. Your module should follow the format of the sample appended to this syllabus:

1. Begin with title, author and citation data so that teachers would be able to access the information.

2. Continue with a description of the news report or current affairs issue in question, noting why it is appropriate for an “Interpersonal Divide” seminar.

3. Conclude with talking points to stimulate class discussion, along with any appropriate notes.

After completing your teaching module, bring 20 copies to distribute in class according to the schedule in this syllabus.

Dissertation/Paper Proposal Assignment

See the appended handout from Claremont Graduate University upon which this syllabus section is largely based:

Your dissertation/paper proposal (typed and double-spaced) should contain:

1. A Project Description. Describe the proposed project, articulating the issue, the problem, and your plans to address it. (Length: 1-1 ½ pages)

2. A Hypothesis. State your hypothesis. 100-200 words. (Length: ½-1 page)

3. Research Questions. List the research questions that address the hypothesis. (Length: ½ page)

4. A Literature Review Bibliography. Annotate a bibliography of 5 or more citations that you will use for the literature review. (Length: 1 page)

5. A Research Design. Describe the research or theoretical design and/or methodology that you will employ, referring to previous scholars or theorists who have used similar approaches. (Length: 1-2 pages)

6. A Chapter Summary. Outline chapters or sections of your proposal, including but not limited to Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology, Results, Discussion, Findings, and Future Study. Add a sentence or two about what you hope to find or address in each of those sections. (Length: 2-3 pages)

7. Relevance. Discuss why your proposal is relevant to the discipline and how, precisely, it adds to the body of knowledge. (Length: 1-2 pages)

Total length of your proposal should be 7-10 pages. Note: After completing your proposal, bring 20 copies to distribute in class according to the schedule in this syllabus. (After your proposal and teaching modules are critiqued in the seminar, you may wish to revise them and share with your faculty adviser for further enhancement.)

Learning Environment

Academic Misconduct

Cheating, plagiarism, class disruptions are serious offences. You may not cheat or plagiarize or disturb the class with outbursts or other inappropriate behaviors. If you do, you may receive a failing grade and/or be reported to the appropriate academic authorities.

Constructive Discussions

As scholars and teachers, our goal is to critique work and discuss issues inclusively, civically and insightfully. Free expression is vital in a seminar/workshop environment, and so is opinion, with the goal of basing both on applicable information and enlightened dialogue.

Disabilities

Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the instructor if special consideration is needed to complete any assignment or to attend any class.

Attendance

Attendance is vital in a weeklong intensive class that emphasizes collaborative learning. Unexcused absences will result in a lowering of your grade by one mark for each occurrence. Deadlines must be met (see workshop schedule below). No late assignments accepted when absences are unexcused. Notify me via email if you must miss class, citing the reason. If it is a bonafide excuse according to policies listed in the Student Handbook, you will be excused from class with make-up assignments provided.

Class Schedule

First Week

Class overview and introductions

Assignment of seminar presenters [see appended form]

Lecture: Overview of media ethics

Second Week

Lecture: Overview of corporate media

Lecture: Overview of “interpersonal divide”

Seminar: Small-group discussions on modules, proposals

Homework: Begin work on teaching module #1.

Third Week

Seminar: Brainstorming sessions on proposal ideas

Fourth Week

Discussant: Presenters No. 1-5 on preface/intro and chapters 1-4

Homework: Complete Teaching Module #1 and make 20 copies for workshop distribution. Begin work on Teaching Modules #2 and #3.

Fifth Week

Discussant: Presenters No. 6-10 on preface/intro and chapters 1-4 <>

Seminar: Critique and discussion of teaching module #1

Homework: Complete Teaching Modules #2 and #3 and make 20 copies of each for seminar distribution. Begin work on dissertation/paper proposal.

Sixth Week

Discussant: Presenters No. 11-15 on chapters 5-9

Seminar: Critique and discussion of teaching module #2

Seventh Week

Discussant: Presenters No. 15-20 on chapters 5-9

Seminar: Critique and discussion of teaching module #3

Homework: Complete work on dissertation/paper proposal and make 20 copies for seminar distribution.

Eighth Week

Seminar: Critique and discussion of dissertation/paper proposals

Ninth Week

Seminar: Critique and discussion of dissertation/paper proposals

Tenth Week

Seminar: Critique and discussion of dissertation/paper proposals

Wrap-up and teacher evaluation

SAMPLE TEACHING MODULE

Title: "Now consumers of news are producing it, too"

Author: Paul Gilster

Citation: Raleigh News & Observer, posted 12 March 2005, published 27 February 2005

URL: http://www.newsobserver.com/business/technology/gilster/story/2163806p-8545343c.html

Description: Paul Gilster, correspondent for the Raleigh News & Observer, gives his take on author and journalist Dan Gillmor who "thinks digital technology is reshaping journalism, giving it a populist flair and turning it into what he calls 'roll your own, open-source news gathering.'" Gilster analyzes Gillmor's populist ideas about journalism with a somewhat skeptical eye, which working journalists develop over time, and concludes: "Technology allows a level of consumer engagement that flies in the face of media consolidation, and that's good news for getting the facts out no matter what your politics." Gilster's column was published a few weeks before a California court decision against three Web site operators who posted information about a pending product from Apple code-named "asteroid," with the judge ruling that the operators disclosed trade secrets and could not take advantage of the state shield law, protecting journalists from revealing anonymous sources.

Teaching Tip: Is a blogger a journalist ... or just a consumer who is producing news? This type of discussion allows the instructor to touch on First Amendment freedoms vs. responsibilities of journalists who primarily work in or cover physical place vs.bloggers who primarily operate in cyberspace. It also allows discussion on whether anyone with a computer who disseminates information should enjoy shield-law protection. This is particularly on point in Chapter Seven, "Icons and Caricatures," of Interpersonal Divide, which cites the work of Theodore Roszak, author of The Cult of Information, in noting that "information" used to mean "fact" but now because of technology means opinion or simply, "data." Fact is associated with objectivity, which is a process associated with physical place. Opinion can be targeted to a market.

[Note: Objectivity is often confused with "balance," citing two sides of a story. For more information on objectivity, see The Columbia Journalism Review's July/August 2003 article by Brent Cunningham, who states: "My favorite definition was from Michael Bugeja, who teaches journalism at Iowa State: 'Objectivity is seeing the world as it is, not how you wish it were.'"]

CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY: Writing the Dissertation Proposal

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All departments seem to have their own expectations for dissertation proposals. Some expect you to submit a first chapter and a literature review. Others expect three pages outlining the questions you hope to answer. Therefore, the rule of thumb is to find out what your department expects. And then proceed by looking at as many successful examples of ABD’s and PhD’s from your department that you can.

It is imperative that you ask your department for model dissertation proposals when you are preparing your own. Each department differs.

In general, the proposal serves as a recipe or a “map” for the thesis or dissertation. Therefore, you should be as detailed and specific as possible while still keeping your mind open to potential findings and shifts in your original hypothesis.

Qualities of Successful Proposals

Most successful proposals do the following things:

1. Clearly describe the issue of the dissertation in the first paragraph. Establish your intent.

2. State your working thesis clearly.

3. Outline the questions you plan to address in the dissertation or thesis.

4. Locate your topic and its focus in your field. This will often consist of a literature review in which you identify issues that need more attention or approaches that have not been exhausted. In addition, describe the angle of your approach within the context of existing literature.

5. Establish a strong research design, theoretical framework, or methodology for your study. Will your project be qualitative or quantitative? What scholars and theorists frame your approach? Include a discussion of sources; tell where they can be found and how they will be used.

6. Describe the topics you plan to cover in each chapter of the thesis or dissertation. It is beneficial if you can organize your proposal to reflect the structure of your dissertation and many grant applications will ask that you present the outline of your dissertation in chapter form. Check with your advisor to see if he or she wants a specific chapter outline or a more general sense of the topics you will cover.

7. Speculate upon potential results of your study.

8. Discuss the importance of your study to the field. Explore the relevance of your work to the “big picture.”

9. Keep a substantial running bibliography organized by useful categories.

10. Write your proposal to the experts in your field, not just to your advisor, for a proposal that can be more readily turned into a grant or fellowship proposal.

Additional Resources: Proposal Tips - From S. Joseph Levine’s page on Writing and Presenting Your Thesis or Dissertation. See: http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes/

Presentation Form