Theory of Media & Cultural Studies

This is a course designed to help students develop a critical understanding of the role that media has played in both the production of culture and as a cultural artifact in itself. The course begins by mapping some of the most critical cultural studies concepts, and proceeds to examine key theories from the defining periods within cultural and media studies, including the Frankfurt School, the Birmingham School, postmodernism, and cyberculture discourses. Readings include works by authors such as Adorno, Williams, Hall, Hooks, Gilroy, Kellner, Butler, Lacan, Baudrillard, and Bourdieu. Students encounter the emergence and impact of the burgeoning culture industry on society; the intervention of cultural studies in how we create "meaning" from the cultural artifacts produced and revered within our societies; and look at the role of the media in that production process.