Media and Everyday Life

Subject 100-417 (2009)

Note: This is an archived Handbook entry from 2009. Search for this in the current handbook

Credit Points: 12.50
Level: 4 (Undergraduate)
Dates & Locations:

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2009:

For information about these dates, click here.
Time Commitment: Contact Hours: A 1-hour lecture and a 2-hour seminar per week
Total Time Commitment: 3 contact hours/week, 7 additional hours/week. Total of 10 hours per week.
Prerequisites: Students should be eligible for study at the 4th or 5th year level.
Corequisites: None
Recommended Background Knowledge: None
Non Allowed Subjects: None
Core Participation Requirements:

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

Contact

Robert Hassan

hassanr@unimelb.edu.au

Subject Overview: This subject is designed to provide students with a detailed understanding of various developments, perspectives and issues in the study of media and everyday life. Students begin by looking at the time-space arrangements of daily social life, before going on to consider the organisation of interaction and the construction of meaning in day-to-day media use. Several theoretical approaches (eg. structuration theory, phenomenology, social semiotics) and modes of inquiry (eg. discourse analysis, ethnography) are discussed and illustrated. Selected examples of media use in everyday life will include television viewing, Internet and telephone communications, and the reading of popular fiction and magazines. Students are encouraged to relate the academic work they encounter in this subject to their own experiences of daily social life, and they will also have the opportunity to carry out their own critical investigations of media use in routine social settings.
Objectives:
  • be able to demonstrate a detailed understanding of developments and issues in the study of media and everyday life;
  • be able to appreciate relevant theoretical approaches and/or modes of inquiry in this area of study;
  • be able to apply key concepts and methods in analysing a range of examples of everyday media use.
Assessment: An essay of 2000 words 40% (due mid-semester), a media report of 3000 words 60% (due at the end of semester). Students must attend at least 80% of classes to be eligible for assessment.
Prescribed Texts: A subject reader will be available.
Breadth Options:

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.
Fees Information: Subject EFTSL, Level, Discipline & Census Date
Generic Skills:
  • be able to demonstrate competence in reading relevant academic literature and in reflecting critically on that body of literature;
  • be able to demonstrate conformity to appropriate forms of written presentation in academic work;
  • be able to demonstrate a general awareness of the role of theory and method in understanding and investigating social life.
Related Course(s): Bachelor of Arts (Honours)(Media and Communications)
Master of Global Media Communication
Postgraduate Diploma in Arts (Media and Communication)
Related Majors/Minors/Specialisations: Media and Communications

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