Communication Studies

Explores media's role in movements for social, economic, and cultural change. Specifically examines how people use media technologies to organize themselves and communicate their message to wider audiences to achieve social change. As a way to develop and improve ethical reasoning, students are asked to think about the accountability of media institutions and actions of groups and individuals who use media technologies and tactics in the name of social change.

Offers advanced training in video production techniques, emphasizing remote location shooting. Includes location scouting, production budgets, writing techniques, equipment location, postproduction editing, and content analysis. Covers the fundamentals of single-camera field production and the nonlinear editing process. Offers students an opportunity to work in teams to produce and direct television using remote video equipment.

Analyzes the narrative conventions of the true crime genre and explores the historical and cultural origins of true crime as a storytelling mode. Examines the industry conditions that affect true crime coverage and analyzes the social and political dynamics that shape and are shaped by true crime narratives in commercial media.

Introduces concepts and professional best practices in social media analytics. Offers hands-on instruction in analytic techniques for Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms, including experiments and observational analyses.

Develops frameworks and conceptual tools for understanding the world of sports marketing and promotion in an increasingly global and interconnected world. Drawing on examples from domestic and international sports promotional campaigns and academic literature, explores the promotion of sports at the professional, collegiate, and special event levels. Focuses on the role marketing plays in attracting fans and sponsors and communicating effectively with the public.

Explore crucial questions about emerging XR (extended reality) technologies in fields from psychiatry to education to gaming, including their promise and limitations for various industries. Develop analytical tools for understanding the social/institutional landscape of XR and gain experience with various digital content creation tools and presentation formats, including the creation of a prototype for an innovative XR application.

Provides students with an opportunity to better understand freedom and limits to freedom, particularly in the realm of speech and expression. Materials covered range from the philosophy of freedom to historical legal cases about free speech and the press to political correctness and the repression of dissent.

Examines theories, models, and strategies related to crisis communication and establishes ethical principles regarding what, how, and when essential elements must be employed for effective and ethical crisis communication. Offers students an opportunity to learn how to distinguish between an incident and a crisis; to analyze communication practices and methods applied during a crisis; to apply social scientific theory to explain how and why a crisis occurred; and to draw upon theory