Course syllabus

WELCOME to Politics 233 – Politics, Media, and Public Sphere. The ‘Fake News’ war of words in the United States and the British phone hacking scandal are among events that have placed the relationship between politics and media journalism under unprecedented scrutiny. Critics voice disquiet about the future of journalism and political deliberation, and about the lack of a unified public space where citizens can engage seriously with matters of collective concern. The course surveys the changing public sphere over time, from its early-modern emergence to the challenges of tabloid news and online fragmentation in contemporary media culture.

Semester One 2018 | 15 points | Tue 4PM – 5PM; Wed 2PM – 3PM

Lecture theatre: 106-100 (Tue); 201N-370 (Wed)

 

TEACHING STAFF 

Geoff Kemp
Lecturer/Convenor
g.kemp@auckland.ac.nz
Room 405, Social Sciences Building, Symonds St
Office Hour: Weds 3-4pm

Justin Phillips
Graduate Teaching Assistant
justin.phillips@auckland.ac.nz
Room: 9 Grafton Road
Office Hour: Weds 1-2pm

 

Class rep: Bailley Verry

 

PURPOSES AND OBJECTIVES

Politics 233 surveys the economics, epistemology, ethics and everyday realities of news media in the light of democratic ideals, with particular attention to tabloid-style news in relation to the public sphere of political deliberation. Students can expect to take away from the course a critical but nuanced view of popular journalism and political communication, including a grasp of its philosophical underpinnings and the practical challenges that recent developments pose for a robustly democratic public sphere. Students will learn basic techniques of news analysis and study contemporary news narratives. Class members will also be assisted in gaining an enhanced range of academic and critical skills of more general application, centrally the ability to locate and interpret relevant information and to articulate findings in discussion and in written assignments.

COURSE STRUCTURE

The course is taught through two lecture hours and one tutorial a week, with tutorials beginning in week two. A summary lecture programme can be found below. For further details, including readings, see under 'Modules'. The lectures are divided into four parts: Part one deals with core concepts and lays the groundwork for the rest of the course. Part two will introduce students to tools with which news discourse is analyzed. Part three introduces students to the historical and contemporary media forms that challenge the democratic role of journalism. Part four canvasses the political consequences. Some changes may occur as we respond to events but this will not markedly affect the range of topics covered.   

Tutorials will start in the second week of semester. You are strongly encouraged to attend all tutorials. Tutorial topics will generally reflect the same week’s lecture topics but your tutor will advise about readings and content. Please attend tutorials having read the relevant required reading(s). If you have any questions or comments about any aspect of the course, the tutor is your first point of contact.

OUTLINE LECTURE PROGRAMME (further details on readings will appear under 'Modules')

PART ONE: CORE CONCEPTS

1. February 27 & 28: Introduction: Journalism and the Public Sphere in Crisis?

2. March 6 & 7: Democracy, Deliberation and the Political Public Sphere

3. March 13 & 14: Journalism and Citizenship

 PART TWO: NEWS ANALYSIS

4. March 20: Test in class
   March 21: News Analysis: Theories and Methods

5. March 27 & 28: News Analysis: Framing, Content and Discourse Analysis

Mid-Semester Break

6. April 17 & 18: News Analysis: Political Economy and Other Explanations
   

PART THREE: POPULAR NEWS FORMS

7. April 24: The Rise of Popular Media
   

8. May 1 & 2: Tabloid News

9. May 8 & 9: Talk Radio, Talk TV, and Hybrid News
   

10. May 15 & 16: Online and Social Media
    

PART FOUR: POLITICAL CONSIDERATIONS

11. May 22: Gossip & Scandal

      May 23: Tabloid Politics

12. June 4: The Corrosive Effects

     June 5: New Ways to Fill the Void?

Study Break and Examination

 

COURSE ASSESSMENT

Course assessment is based on coursework worth 60% of the final grade and a two-hour final exam worth 40%.  The coursework component comprises tutorial assessment, a test in class, and two assignments which together constitute a research report on analysis of contemporary news media discourses. Summary details appear here, with further details to follow, on Canvas and in class.

Tutorial assessment

Value: 5% of final grade

Length: approx 250 words

Details: Under 'Assignments', with further guidance from tutor

Test in class

Value: 15% of final grade

Date: 4pm Tues 20 March (in class)

Length: approx 700 words

Details: test on content in course so far. See under 'Assignments'.

Assignment One

Value:  15% of Final Grade

Due:  4pm Wednesday 4 April (first week of break)

Length: 700 words

Details: The assignment will take the form of a proposal or 'Statement of Research Intent' for an exercise in media analysis. See under 'Assignments'.

Assignment Two

Value:  25% of Final Grade

Due:  4pm Thursday 17 May (week 10)

Length: 1,500 words

Details: This assignment will 'complete' the research study projected in the first assignment, supplying research findings, discussion and conclusion. See under 'Assignments'. 

Examination

Value:  40% of Final Grade

Date:  Time and location to be announced

Duration: Two hours

Details:  You will be required to write essays in response to two questions which you will choose from a list of questions reflecting themes and topics covered during the course.

 

In completing assessment work you are advised to read the latest version of the Politics & IR Coursework Guide, available on Canvas. This gives information on academic writing, late submission penalties, and plagiarism policy.

The Assignments should be submitted via Canvas. Submission through Canvas will run your essay through Turnitin, checking for any plagiarism problems.

Students should consult the tutor at the earliest possible opportunity if for any reason they face problems in completing any part of the coursework.

Workload and deadlines for submission of coursework:           

The University of Auckland's expectation is that students spend 10 hours per week on a 15-point course, including time in class and personal study. Students should manage their academic workload and other commitments accordingly. Deadlines for coursework are set by course convenors and will be advertised in course material. You should submit your work on time. In extreme circumstances, such as illness, you may seek an extension but you may be required to provide supporting information before the assignment is due. Late assignments without a pre-approved extension will be penalised by loss of marks according to the following scale:

Essays submitted up to two days late will lose 5 marks

Essays submitted three to five days late will lose 10 marks

Essays submitted six to ten days late will lose 25 marks

Essays submitted more than ten days past the due submission date will not normally be accepted but contact the lecturer if you wish to be considered for an exception.

READING AND RESOURCES

There is no required textbook for this course but a useful introduction to the ideas of Habermas is Luke Goode, Jürgen Habermas: Democracy and the Public Sphere, Pluto Press, 2005. Also useful for introductory reading are chapters in Geoff Kemp et al, eds., Politics and the Media (2^nd edn, Auckland: Auckland University Press, 2016).

Each week’s main readings are indicated in the lecture schedule, with links on Canvas to the reading list on Talis: see under 'Modules' or 'Reading List'. For each week’s readings, consult Canvas/Talis. I may provide additional readings on Canvas as we go along. You should also read more widely. A longer reading list will be added to Canvas and you are at the stage in your academic career where you can be expected to find reputable and useful books and articles through your own research.

You are also strongly encouraged to get to know the news media better, by reading and watching widely, taking in both New Zealand and international media, online and offline, including newspapers, television, radio and other sources of news and political commentary.

Canvas: will be used to post course materials and lecture presentations, and to post and email course notices. Lecture slides may not be posted until after the lecture but I’ll try to post an outline earlier.