SOCI 265.51

William Hoynes

News Media in America

Spring 2004

Office: 306B Blodgett Hall

P.O. Box 552; ext. 7013

Office Hours:
Monday 3:00 - 4:30 pm
Tuesday 10:00 - 11:30 am
(or by appointment)

e-mail: wihoynes@vassar.edu

This course joins the ongoing debate about the meaning of press freedom and explores the
relationship between news and democracy. It will examine how the news media operate in
American society and will assess how well the current media are serving the information
needs of citizens.

Ultimately, this course is designed to provide you with the tools to be critical consumers of
American news media. As such, I expect each of you to be active media critics throughout
the semester&emdash;paying attention to broadcast, print, and online news media.

Required Texts
The following texts are available at the college bookstore:

Bagdikian, Ben. The Media Monopoly, 6th edition. (Beacon Press, 2000)
Bennett, W. Lance. News: The Politics of Illusion. 5th edition. (Longman, 2003)
Hunt, Darnell. Screening the Los Angeles "Riots". (Cambridge University Press, 1997)
Pavlik, John V. Journalism and New Media. (Columbia University Press, 2001)
Pedelty, Mark. War Stories. (Routledge, 1995)
Schudson, Michael. Discovering the News. (Basic Books, 1978)
Vavrus, Mary Douglas. Postfeminist News. (SUNY Press, 2002)
Ewen, Stuart. PR: A Social History of Spin (Basic Books, 1996).

Additional required readings, which I will distribute in class, will be marked ** on the syllabus.

Course Requirements

1.

Regular Attendance and Class Participation.

2.

Two Papers, 6-8 pages each
Tentative due dates: February 27, 2004 and April 16, 2004

3.

Take-Home Final Exam
Handed out the final day of class (May 3, 2004)

4.

Media Analysis Journal
See separate handout

Spring 2004
Course Schedule

Introduction
January 21-28

Studying the News
Read: Bennett, Introduction, Chapter 1
Gamson, "News as a Social Construction" **
Film: "All the President's Men"

Part I
February 2 - 11

Objectivity and News Sources
Read: Schudson, entire book
Bennett, chapters 4-6
Gans, "Sources and Journalists" **
Ryan, "Getting Framed: Media Shape Reality" **

Part II
February 16 -23

Ownership of Media
Read: Bagdikian, Preface, Introduction, Part 1
Bennett, chapter 3
Entman, "Newspaper Competition & Free Press Ideals" **
Film: "Fear and Favor in the Newsroom"

Part III
February 25-
March 3

The Impact of Advertising
Read: Bagdikian, Part 2, Afterword
Baker, "Advertising & Content of a Democratic Press" **

Spring Break: No Classes (March 6-21)

Part IV:
March 22 - 29

News and Public Opinion
Read: Hunt, entire book
Bennett, chapter 7
Neuman, Just & Crigler, "Constructing Meaning" **

Part V
March 22 - 29

News Content and Journalistic Practice
Read: Pedelty, Introduction, Chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 14
Film: "Race Against Prime Time"

Part VI
April 12-19

Gendered News and Media Activism
Read: Vavrus, Introduction, Chapters 1, 4, 5, Afterword

Part VII
April 21 - 28

Journalism in the Age of the Internet
Read: Pavlik, Introduction, Chapters 1,2, 3, 6, 8, 10, Afterword

May 3

Concluding Discussion