Spring 2021

Social scientific inquiry into human communication; core theories of message production and reception in interpersonal, group and organizational contexts.

Principles and practices of effective oral communication; analysis of the speaking-listening process; selection and organization of speech materials; use of new presentation technologies.

Examines cultural institutions, ideologies, artifacts, and productions; role of culture in everyday life; cultural studies as methodology; culture and power.

Economic and political economic principles for the analysis of communication and media industries including broadcasting, newspapers, motion pictures, music, video games, advertising and public relations.

Theoretical foundation for understanding the construction, consumption, and consequences of entertainment from classical to contemporary times; situates entertainment within the ecology of information and communication.

Experimental and survey methods for communication study; basic statistical concepts, procedures, and tests.

Analysis of face-to-face interaction; role of communication in the development, maintenance and destruction of relationships; communication processes in managing interpersonal conflict.

Students learn to be consumers rather than creators of social science research. Examines the challenges and opportunities of communicating research through mass media.

Explorations of innovation in the entertainment business. The effects of digital mobile media on TV, movies, music, advertising, social networks and art.

Nature and functions of communication in human conflict; development of communication skills for managing conflict productively in interpersonal, organizational and intercultural contexts.

Cultural, social, political, and economic dynamics of communication technologies, including internet architecture, social media, participatory cultures, privacy, surveillance, networked journalism, big data, algorithms, online activism.

Interplay between media and society, including family and children's socialization, inter-group relations and community, pornography and violence, gender and race, media ethics, conduct of politics.

Employs the concept of "celebrity" as an optic through which to view and assess some of the key aspects of the communication revolution.

Survey of mass communication research; history, content, effects, theories, and policy implications of various media.

Group process theories relevant to communicative behavior in small group/team settings, including information exchange, decision making, leadership, and meetings; student team projects testing theoretic propositions.

Social media within the broader social, political, and historical contexts; key themes include labor, Web 2.0, self-branding, celebrity, participation, privacy, online shaming, and activism.

Basic argumentation theory including analysis. Research and evidence, case construction, refutation; discursive and visual argument; diverse fields of advocacy including law, politics, organizations, interpersonal relations.

Cultural variables and social psychological processes that influence intercultural interaction; relationship between communication and culture in diverse settings including business, medicine, and education.

Communicating with partners, friends, parents and health care professionals about sexual behavior; interpersonal and mediated contexts; understanding of sexual scripts; current theory and research.

Explores the role of the media in the LGBTQ revolution that transformed the lives of sexual and gender minorities in the United States.

Cultural implications of computer-mediated communication and related media. Ideological responses to media innovation; debates over artificial intelligence, virtual communities, and virtual reality. Recommended preparation: COMM 339.

Social and economic impacts of information and communication technologies; social factors that shape technological change; issues include access, privacy, freedom of expression, productivity, democratic control.

Advertising as a mode of communication; US advertising history and institutions; economic and policy contexts (domestic and global); critical analysis of advertising texts

Representations of Los Angeles communicated in diverse media; the city as a rhetorical text; analysis of cultural identities, art, architecture and representations in popular culture.

Engage with Communication professionals; visit, analyze and evaluate the working practices of media organizations in the UK.

Theoretical approaches to the study of media consumption and audiences; examines international media and consumption practices; explores new media's impact on consumption.

The impact of conflicting images of reporters in movies and television on the American public's perception of newsgatherers in the 20th century. A decade-by-decade evaluation.

Oral and written communication skills demanded in the workplace including informative and persuasive speeches; interviewing; team communication; and training material preparation. Recommended preparation: COMM 204

Directed individual research studies of contemporary problems. Supervised laboratory experience. Open only to members of the University debate squad.

Explores social, political and ethical issues in elite sports and how issues are addressed through popular media; examination includes the relationship between sports and politics.

An inside look at the important stories, topical issues, trends and historical developments related to the growing influence of business and media on college and professional sports; identifying the key components and meeting the influencers in class that help shape the business side of sports, while recognizing the role the media plays in providing daily coverage across multiple platforms.

Rhetorical and critical approaches to sports and public discourse; application to sports organizations, the news and popular media; representations of gender and race in sports.

Popular culture as an indicator of cultural values, a producer and reflection of cultural meaning, and a means of communication; theory and case studies.

How communication processes both create organizations and are constrained by them. Theory and research into topics such as culture, technology, power, leadership and decision-making in a variety of organizational contexts.

Application of critical, sociological and rhetorical theories to sports events and sport media; examination of the role of sports in enacting social change.

Issues of gender in communication, including: mediarepresentations of femininity and masculinity; and gender's rolein communication at the interpersonal, public, and cultural levels.

Fashion as a form of communication and culture; fashion's role in identity, body politics, art, nationhood, celebrity and Hollywood culture, youth cultures and subversive practices.

Advanced readings in communication theory and research (broadly defined); specialized interest areas of individual faculty on the frontiers of knowledge; seminar topics change each semester.

Explores food communication as a facilitator of human interaction and cultural diplomacy; controversies regarding food production/consumption; and evolution of food entertainment programming.

Methods and functions of criticism in forms of public communication; historical-contextual, textual and interpretive procedures; diverse theoretical approaches including formalism, dramatism, genre and ideology.

Seminar examining the relationship between propaganda, ideology, critical thinking and rhetoric; application to contemporary controversies, both domestic and global; role of public argument.

How lawyers and judges communicate in the courtroom; how legal issues are discussed by lay people; how lawyers and judges are viewed in popular culture.

Examines laws and regulatory policies shaping new media, especially the Internet; impact of regulation on development and use of communication technology.

Survey of economic, political, and cultural dimensions of the global entertainment marketplace; focuses on the international production and distribution of media products and services.

Focuses on global technologies, media, money, and labor in the sport sector. Investigates both deviant and regulatory networks of sport in the context of globalization.

Examines issues of visual images in communication related to history, modernity, cityscapes, news media, advertising, evidence, science, digital technology, and globalization.

Exploration of youth media and culture, including television, movies, video games, toys, magazines, music, social media. Examines representations of youth and youth as audience.

Theory and research; examination of the influence of environmental factors, physical behavior, and vocal cues on human behavior.

Individual research and readings. Not available for graduatecredit. Available to juniors and seniors only.

Students gain research experience in the design, implementation, analysis, and reporting of communication research. Students serve as research assistants to faculty members. Not available for graduate credit.

Writing of the honors thesis. Not available for graduate credit.

Examines social and political controversies over conflicting ethical standards for communication in a variety of media: mass-media, communication technology and entertainment.

Selected topics in communication.

Issues of culture in recent rhetorical theory; in-depth examination of representative idealist, pragmatist, structuralist, critical, and postmodern accounts of the symbolic construction of cultural forms. Not open to M.A. in Communication Management majors.

Studies the contributions of Kenneth Burke, among the most significant figures in the development of contemporary rhetorical theory and criticism. Not open to M.A. in Communication Management majors.

Overview of humanistic and social scientific approaches to the study of communication; emphasis on macro and micro social scientific, symbolic, and structural perspectives. Not open to M.A. in Communication Management majors,

Epistemological assumptions, design, and beginning methods of quantitative analysis in communication research.

A survey of scholarship about the relationship between money and culture, with emphasis on poststructural accounts of neoliberalism.

Introduction to the field of Science and Technology Studies; examines sociotechnical models of knowledge, power and society as related to communication and media.

Research leading to the master's degree. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the school. Graded CR/NC.

Development and assessment of research into global communication; selection of appropriate research methodologies; production of scholarly research; and completion of an internship/practicum.

Current problems in communication theory and research; advanced, specialized interest areas of individual faculty on the frontiers of knowledge.

Advanced research seminar examining the interaction between communication technology, society, economy, politics, and culture from interdisciplinary and cross-cultural perspectives. Not available for degree credit for M.A. in Communication Management students. Not available for Communication Management M.A. students.

Examines the historical emergence of ideas about race, modernity and colonialism and the role of culture in shaping how we understand race today.

A supervised course tailored to specific student interests. The professor and student develop a syllabus that permits exploration of advanced or specialized topics. Graded CR/NC.

Independent research designed to demonstrate the student's ability to conceptualize, conduct, and present scholarly research. Parallel to COMM 794. Graded CR/NC.

Research leading to the doctorate. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.