Description
Purpose: 1. Gaining a better understanding of the theories used to describe and explain the interactions between the media and politics in advanced western democracies. 2. Gaining skills necessary to carry out research that employs careful, critical analysis of media content and evaluates its impact on democratic politics
Content: Many scholars and commentators have raised an alarm about an apparent decline in political engagement among citizens of advanced western democracies, and a number have suggested that this decline can be attributed, at least in part, to changes in the media landscape. Consolidation of media outlets into large, corporate, and global conglomerates reduces the ethic of “social responsibility” among media institutions and actors, some argue. Market impulses turn news into “infotainment” and thereby harm citizens’ political knowledge, others contend.
This course will examine the interaction between media and politics in Western Europe and the United States, with a primary concern for the way media practices impact the functioning of representative democracy. We will apply theories of democratic deliberation, journalistic practices, political economy of the media, and political behavior to better understand this interaction. And we will ask questions such as: What is the impact of the media on citizen attitudes and beliefs? Whose voice is heard through the media? Is the media becoming more sensationalist, and, if so, how does this impact democracy?
The last third of the course will explore the changes in the relationship between media and democratic politics that have emerged with the expansion of the internet and social media. We will critically assess the ways in which these tools have altered traditional media policies and practices, as well the potential the internet and social media hold for reinvigorating citizen engagement and democratic politics more broadly
Methods of Instruction
Class sessions will be primarily discussion-based, with some short lectures.
Study Material
Davis, Aeron. 2010. Political Communication and Social Theory. New York: Routledge.
Allan, Stuart. 2006. Online News: Journalism and the Internet. Berkshire, UK: Open University Press.
Other material will be posted on Blackboard.
Examination
Grades will be based on four components: In-class participation: 20%; Brief presentation: 15%; Short reading reflection papers: 25%; Research paper: 40%
Schedule
Dinsdag 7 februari van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 14 februari van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 21 februari van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 6 maart van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 13 maart van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 20 maart van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 3 april van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 10 april van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 24 april van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 1 mei van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 15 mei van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal
Dinsdag 22 mei van 20.15 – 22.00 uur Noordeindezaal