Chapter 1

Assignment --  blog comments

Respond to classmates' Media Autobiographies (their blogs from last week). These are the classmates at your table, not the whole class. Your response may include differences or similarities with your own Media Autobiography, something that resonated with you, something you learned. Two to three sentences recommended.

Make sure your own blog is set to accept comments.

Responses are due Sunday Oct. 5 at midnight.

Textbook:

I'm emailing the .pdf of Chapters 1 and 2. You don't need to read Chapter 1. There will be a quiz on Chapter 2 on Thursday, but not open book. Meanwhile, the bookstore has ordered more copies.

 

We discussed in class:

We talked about Chapter 1,  specifically the "Seven truths about the media 'they' don't want you to know." The "truths" are more like themes or patterns that will continue to appear as we study the eight forms of mass communication.

1: The media are essential components of our lives. 

  

 2: There are no mainstream media (MSM). What he seems to mean is more like "All media are mainstream." 

3: Everything from the margin moves to the center.

4: Nothing’s new: Everything that happens in the past will happen again. 

5: New media are always scary

6: Activism and analysis are not the same thing

7: There is no “they.” 

Introduction to Mass Communications

 Assignment -- first blog post

Set up your blog in Blogger. Write your short media autobiography. This should be a short essay (about 200-400 words) about you and your relationship with the eight types of mass media we are studying in this class:

• Books
• Newspapers/News
• Magazines
• Movies
• Audio
• Radio
• Television
• Internet

 Talk about your background with each these media, your experiences (use/habits) with them, your likes and dislikes of them, and which ones are important to you now and when you were growing up.

Tell if you have, had or would like a job or career in the media.

 If you have lived in another country, talk about the media there.

 Mention your major, if it is related to the media, and the name of the university you want to transfer to if you know.
Do not write about other aspects of your life, unless they relate to the media.

Suggestion: Use bullet points

 

We discussed in class:

• The difference between the four levels of communication
• Intrapersonal
• Interpersonal
• Group
• Mass

• Players in the mass communication process
• Sender
• Message
• Channel (could be a device, technology, etc.)
• Receiver 

• The concept of noise that can get in the way of the receiver getting the message the sender intended to send
• The concept of media literacy
• Link to the Kaiser Family Foundation video we viewed:  Profiles of Generation M2