This course is an entry point into the
Department of Communication’s Master of Communication in Digital Media
program, for those who want to
specialize and do research in this growing field.
The course focuses on the past,
present, and future of digital media, in contrast to traditional media
outlets studied in most communication programs. However, we will
examine the connections between new technology, traditional media
content, economics, social and individual influences, and
communications theory. In short, we will explore what may be truly new
and revolutionary about digital media, and what may be a continuation
of traditional technology, content, and audience uses. We will also
examine information and telecommunications technologies that play a
significant role shaping the modern society. These include the
Internet, broadband communications systems, cellular telephony,
wireless networking, and digital, cable, and satellite TV.
While we will examine these topics from a traditional “Who said What to
Whom through What Channel with what Effect” model of mediated
communication, we will also move beyond this traditional “transmission
approach” to explore a “ritual approach” to digital media and examine
how the technology itself shapes our concepts and mythologies about
self, culture and group membership.