Class Media, Society and Culture I

The course aims to offer a bird-eye view of some of the most significant currents in Media Studies and Journalism, presenting a perspective on the development of the fields and their state of the art. Drawing on different scientific approaches, it focuses on central themes and issues in studies on communication and media, as well as on ongoing and past research conducted within the Research Unit. The course seeks to establish theoretical and conceptual bases for the positioning and development of individual students' projects.

Not applicable

1. The field of communication from media studies, social sciences and cultural studies. 2. Media systems and regulation. 2.1. Media systems. Problems and approaches. 2.2. Political economy of communication, media governance and regulation. 2.3. Regulation, ethics, deontology and social responsibility of the media. 3. Challenges of Journalism 3.1. Challenges of Journalism in Democracy. 3.2. Journalistic practices and routines. 3.3. Digital media and emergent journalistic formats. 4. Audiences, Publics and Fans. 4.1. Research traditions and normative conceptions. 4.2. Audiences: a concept in complexity. 5. Digital Cultures. 5.1. Digital platforms, data. Algorithms and content policing. 5.2. Influencer culture; visibility and obscurity. 6. Media and literacies 6.1. Historical and transdisciplinary perspectives. Conceptualizations and dimensions. 6.2. Interaction and participation. Research with children and young people.

Methodologies to support the teaching-learning process include lecture, debates, support and consolidation resources (scientific texts, lectures, reports, etc.). Each student can design their own path in the course by investing in the most relevant theme(s).

Allan, S. (2022). The Routledge Companion to News and Journalism (2.ª ed.). Routledge.  Bounegru, L., & Grey, J. (Eds.). (2021). The Data Journalism Handbook: Towards a critical data practice. Amsterdam University Press. D'Haenens, L., Sousa, H., & Trappel, J. (2018) (Eds.). Comparative Media Policy, Regulation and Governance in Europe: Unpacking the Policy Cycle. Intellect. D'Ignazio, C., & Klein, L. F. (2020). Data Feminism. The MIT Press. Elias, A., Gill, R., & Scharff, C. (Eds.) (2017). Aesthetic Labour: Rethinking beauty politics in neoliberalism. Palgrave Macmillan. Frau-Meigs, D., Pathak-Shelat, M., Hoechsmann, M., Kotilainen, S., & Poyntz, S. R. (2020). The Handbook of Media Education Research. Wiley. Nightingale, V. (2013). The Handbook of Media Audiences. John Wiley & Sons. Wahl-Jorgensen, K., & Hanitzsch, T. (Eds.). (2019). The Handbook of Journalism Studies (2ª ed.). Routledge.