Admission requirements
This course is designed for the minor Global Affairs. It is not possible to follow single courses of this minor. You need to be enrolled in Usis for the minor to be accepted to this course. There are 180 places open for registration, on a first come first serve basis, where LDE students are given priority.
This course is also open for inbound exchange students if they wish to take the entire minor Global Affairs; it is not possible to take single courses from this minor. Exchange students must be admitted by the FGGA International Office prior to the start of the minor; priority will be given to direct exchange partners of FGGA. For more information about the application procedure for exchange students, please contact the FGGA International Office at international@fgga.leidenuniv.nl.
Description
Through studying the wars in Afghanistan, Yugoslavia, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq from the 1980s onwards the course will focus on how the coverage of such conflicts has significantly changed over the past forty years in a now globalized world, whilst also confronting students with both the positive and negative sides of the extraordinary changes the media and public communication have undergone.
The course will start with an introduction to the media landscape in the 1980s and its role in national and international politics. By looking at the various conflicts and assessing the change in coverage, students will gain insight into the role of the (social) media play and the power they have, but also how they can be abused and indeed even controlled in ways previously unthinkable. In all of this the political decisions underpinning the wars and outside interference, the economic interests involved and the wider regional and international repercussions will also feature.
Course objectives
At the end of this course, students will be able to:
Describe the complex relationship between modern (primarily Western) media and the conflict it covers;
Explain how war has changed and evolved over the past quarter of a century since the end of the Cold War, and identify the major conflicts which have contributed to this evolution;
Describe the impact of globalization on warfare and its coverage in the media, and discuss how this dynamic has contributed to the challenging nature of the conflicts in Afghanistan, Syria, and Iraq;
Provide critical, concise analysis on the topic of warfare, utilizing relevant academic research and literature to build an argument.
Timetable
The schedule 2019 will be published asap.
The timetable will be displayed with a link on the website, blackboard and on the front page of this minor programma.
Mode of instruction
9 lectures of 2 hours by instructors and guest lecturers.
Participation in lectures, discussions and exercises is required in order to obtain a grade. One lecture may be missed. Being absent more than once may likely lead to expulsion from the course.
Course Load
The total study load for this course is 140 hours, consisting of:
18 hours for attending lectures
122 hours studying – work on assignments
Assessment method
2 Essays
Short essay (25%)
Long Essay (75%)
Details for submitting papers (deadlines) are posted on Blackboard.
Late hand in penalty: 0,5 minus per day, and after seven days we do not accept papers any longer.
Compensation rule: Only assessments with the weight of 30% and lower are compensable. This means that one does not have to pass an assessment if it weighs 30% or less in order to pass the course, if the average of all assessments combined is at least a 5.5. In addition, assignments weighing up to and including 30% are not re-sitable, meaning that if one failed an assessment of 30% or less one is not allowed to redo it.
The Course and Examination Regulation Security Studies and the Rules and Regulation of the Board of Examiners of the Institute of Security and Global Affairs apply.
Blackboard
Blackboard will be used.
Reading list
TBA on Blackboard
Registration
Registration in uSis is possible from four weeks before the start of the course.
Also register for every course in Blackboard. Important information about the course is posted here.
Contact
globalaffairs@fgga.leidenuniv.nl
Remarks
All sessions will be in English.
Papers need to be written in English.