Concentration in Media Studies

Course Requirements

• MCM 105 – Introduction to Mass Communications
• MCM 201 – Journalism I
• MCM 207 - Mass Media and Popular Culture
• MCM 301 – Journalism II
• MCM 303 – Media Law and Ethics
• MCM 304 – Mass Media and Society
• MCM 310 – Women in the Media
• MCM 400 - Assessment Portfolio (.5 credit)
• MCM BB – Print Journalism Practicum (one credit)

Three courses (with at least one at the 300 level) from among the following:

• ENG 230 – Film Analysis and History
• ENG 232 – Modern Drama
• ENG 235 – Film Genres and Genders
• ENG 317 – American Literature Since 1945
• ENG 270/370 – Topics (when applicable)

Any MCM course at or above the 200 level.

Each student in the Media Studies Concentration is also required to develop a familiarity with a coherent subject area that could become a writing specialty by taking at least four courses from a subject area other than Mass Communications. Students can satisfy this requirement by: 1) constructing a coherent subject area from a single department or from multiple departments with approval from her advisor; 2) earning a formal Wilson College minor; or 3) declaring a double major in another subject area. A student who chooses this route may wish to declare the Professional Writing Concentration as her second major. The primary major will then satisfy her coherent subject area requirement, and the Mass Communications second major can be used to satisfy her TDS and WI requirements.

All students at Wilson are required to complete Assessment in their Major.

Assessment Plan for Mass Communications Majors

As a Mass Communications major at Wilson College, you are required to assemble a writing portfolio that demonstrates the learning you have accomplished. Its contents will address four general goals and thirteen sub-goals (see below) set by the program. In all, Mass Communications majors will be

Persuasive Professional Writers

Papers which meet this goal will show the student’s command of:

• A clear, logical, organized and precise writing style
• News media story structure (inverted pyramid, feature writing styles, etc.)
• Media writing protocol (Associated Press style, public relations guidelines, etc.)
  
• Proper attribution
• News judgment

Familiar with the Foundations of Media Studies

Papers which meet this goal will show the writer’s knowledge of:

• A school of thought, movement, or major author of media studies scholarship
• A period, style, or major author/producer of media
• The debate over the meaning of media messages and images

skillful interpreters of media

Papers which meet this goal will show the student writer’s ability to

• Read media studies texts closely
• Discuss the validity of various theories of mass communication study (i.e., content analysis, media aesthetics, demographics, political economy/media consolidation studies, media ethics, audience studies, technology and society approaches)
• Apply mass communication theories to media texts

Effective Synthesizers of Ideas

• Compare and contrast approaches to media study,
• Use socio-historical evidence and research to enter scholarly dialogue.

The first document in each portfolio will be a lengthy essay (typically 15-20 pages) that lists what is in the portfolio, names the course for which each item was produced, and explains its specific relevance to departmental goals. These materials may be written papers, journalistic assignments, even essay exams. Individual assignments can meet multiple goals. For instance, an article written for MCM 201 Journalism I would likely show a mastery of the “persuasive professional writers” criterion. Similarly, a paper for an upper-division class might demonstrate knowledge of the “foundations of media studies.” Papers produced for upper-division courses in other departments may also be applied to these criteria. As a whole, therefore, the portfolio essay will be a reasoned argument that treats the portfolio’s materials as evidence of your development as a student. Developed during the final semester of your senior year, the portfolio is likely to include six to ten accomplished articles, papers, and/or exams in all.