By the end of this course, students should be able to:



1. Apply the communication theory in order to: analyze their own social environment´s public opinion and mass culture phenomena; understand and explain the reality in where they live; value the theoretical approach on communication.



2. Elementally determine mass communication methods and research techniques, practice them, and derive their social implications.



3. Differentiate and relate multiple perspectives on mass communication theory, from the traditional approaches to the ones emerged in the network society.



4. Estimate the market as a core player in the development and expansion of mass communication and culture.



5. Achieve a critical analysis of the social, political and cultural implications of the communication modalities emerged in the information society.

1 Theoretical thoughts about communication



2 Information and society



3 Communication and Culture



4 Public Opinion

This is a 6 credits' course, which means an estimate workload of 150 hours: 60 of them are face-to-face sessiones with the teacher, and the other 90 are for autonomous work. This workload is organised as follows:



Classroom activities (60 hours):

-Lectures

-Group work: small groups working about readings, problem solving, etc.

-Plenary: discussion within the main group



Autonomous work (90 hours)

-Reading and working with other sources: articles, material for exercices, etc.

-Diary: organising collected information, making exercices, etc.

-Other activities

The student will be marked through continous evaluation, and final grading will be based on that. T that end they will have to complete the practical exercises and presentations during the course. 50 % of the final mark will be based on exercises, and other 50 % on presentations.



If the student, according to the regulations of the UPV/EHU, chooses not to be marked by continous evaluation, she or he will be able to complete a final assesment. This assesment will have two partes. The fistr one based on questions to be explained, and it will be the 60 % of the mark; the rest will be based on exercices and presentations during the course (20 % each modality) and presented at the same time of the first part.



If the student chooses to be evaluated through the last option, she or he will have to let it know to the teacher one month in advance from the date for the final assesment.



In the case of extraordinary calls, final assesment will be used for evaluation.

Basic bibliography

Adorno, T. W., Horkheimer, M. (1997) Dialectic of enlightment. New edn. London: Verso Books.



Hall, S. (1996) ‘Who needs identity’. in Questions of cultural identity. ed. by Hall, S., Du Gay, P. Rep. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.



Martin-Barbero, J. (1993) ‘A nocturnal map to explore a new field’, ‘The popular that appeals to us from the mass’. in Communication, culture and hegemony: From the media to mediations. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.



Noelle-Neumann, E. (1974) ‘The spiral of silence: A theory of public opinion’. Journal of Communication, 24, 43-51



West, R., Turner, L. H. (2010) Introducing communication theory. Analysis and application. 4th edn. New York: McGraw-Hill, 11-15.

In-depth bibliography

Adorno T.W. (1966): Televisión y Cultura de Masas. Córdoba (Argentina), Eudecor.West, R. y L.Turner (2005): Teoria de la comunicacion.analisis y aplicacion, Madrid, Mcgraw Hill

Levy, P. (2007): Cibercultura. Barcelona, Anthropos

Sartori, G. (2003): La sociedad multiétnica. Madrid, Taurus

Sennett, R. (2006): La cultura del nuevo capitalismo. Barcelona, Anagrama

Journals

http://www.ehu.es/zer
http://www.felafacs.org/rederevistas/
http://www.portalcomunicacion.com/esp/d_doc_rev.asp
http://web.usal.es/-abadillo/recursosdeinvestigacion.htm