New
Media and Society
NMC 437
Winter, 2008
Tuesday/Thursday, 10-11:20 AM
EDUC 301
Instructor: Dr. William E. Loges
Office: Oak Creek Bldg., Room 218
Office phone: (541) 737-9855
Office
hours: Tuesday, 3:45-5 PM; Wednesday, 10
AM to 1 PM; and Thursday, 11:45 AM to 1 PM, or by appointment
e-mail:
bill.loges@oregonstate.edu
Prerequisite:
NMC 101
COURSE
SYLLABUS
New
Media and Society is a three-unit undergraduate course that examines the
relationship between new media and culture, social interaction, social
organization, and social change. We will examine the ways that Americans have
greeted the arrival of new media from the telegraph to the Internet, tracing
the effect of these media on the culture and society they entered.
We
study media because they are the sources we rely on for obtaining so much of
our knowledge of the world and for sharing that information with one another.
This course prepares students to anticipate and address the social issues
raised by the introduction of media technologies and the experiences that they
make available.
This
course qualifies for the Social Science category of the
This
course is organized into three distinct parts. We begin with a look at the way
new media have influenced American society since the early 19th
century, focusing on some constants in the way Americans greet new methods of
communication. There will be a test on January 31, after that section of the
course concludes.
The
second part of the course will focus on the way electronic media (including
radio and television broadcasting, the telephone, and recorded music) affected
American society, including business, politics, youth culture, and courtship. A
second midterm will conclude this part of the course.
The
third part of the course will focus on the Internet and apply some of the
perspectives learned in part 1 and introduce some new ideas relevant to the
unique features of the Internet, particularly Internet gaming.
What is Required of Students?
The
final exam will focus on students’ ability to integrate material from the first
two parts of the course with the final part. By Feb. 14, students must create
an avatar in one of four games and write a brief paper about that experience.
Students
will write a term paper due in the last week of class that applies one or more
of the concepts from part 1 to understanding of the Internet.
What Could Go Wrong?
Students are expected to hold
themselves to the highest standards of academic integrity. Among other things,
this means: (1) preparing for class by completing the required reading before
class begins; (2) attending class faithfully, and taking part in class when the
opportunity arises; (3) taking tests honestly; (4) writing their papers with
proper attribution of quotes and information, and without otherwise
plagiarizing the work of others; and (5) supporting and assisting one another
when they can.
More information is available at http://oregonstate.edu/admin/stucon/achon.htm
Information about what constitutes
plagiarism and how to avoid it can be found here, among many other places: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/01/
Learning
Outcomes
Students who complete this course
should be able to do the following:
1.
Explain
the connection between technical innovation in media and other developments in
American history such as westward expansion, the industrial revolution, and
immigration;
2.
Compare
the development of the Internet to earlier technical innovations in media and
note similarities and differences in the impact of the Internet on American
business, politics, and other aspects of social life;
3.
Define
“communication infrastructure” and explain the role of the Internet in the
communication infrastructure of contemporary
4.
Explain
the decisions relevant to creating an avatar in a computer game.
Grades
Grades
will be calculated as follows:
Avatar
paper 15%
Term
paper 20%
Midterm
1 20%
Midterm
2 20%
Final
Exam 25%
The Books
Three
books are required and available in the bookstore. They are:
Cooper,
R. (2007). Alter Ego: Avatars and Their
Creators.
Czitrom,
D.J. (1982). Media and the American Mind: From Morse to McLuhan.
Czitrom’s
book will be the focus of the first half of the course, after which we’ll read
primarily from
The New
Media Reader is on reserve in the library under NMC 101. Selections from
that book are required reading. The first chapter required from that book is
required on February 14.
Other
articles that are required reading are on reserve in the library under this
course number. It could be that you could acquire those articles online through
OSU’s library, so feel free to do so. The first of those articles is assigned
for February 7. You’ll find bibliographic information for the reserve reading
after the syllabus calendar.
Regarding
Students with Disabilities
Accommodations
are collaborative efforts between students, faculty and Services for Students
with Disabilities (SSD). Students with accommodations approved through SSD are
responsible for contacting the faculty member in charge of the course prior to
or during the first week of the term to discuss accommodations. Students who
believe they are eligible for accommodations but who have not yet obtained
approval through SSD should contact SSD immediately at 737-4098.
Calendar
of Events
Week
1: Introduction
Jan. 8 Introduction
and Orientation
Jan. 10
Week 2:
Electronic Media
Jan. 15 The Telegraph
Read:
Czitrom, Chapter 1
Jan. 17 A Business Model for Delivering
Information
Week 3:
Storytelling Media
Jan. 22 The
Movies
Read:
Czitrom, Chapter 2
Jan. 24 The
Radio
Read:
Czitrom, Chapter 3
Week 4:
Community
Jan. 29 Media
and Community
Read:
Czitrom, Chapter 4
Week
5: A Communication Infrastructure
Feb. 5 Empirical
and Behavioral Media Studies
Read:
Czitrom, Chapter 5
Feb. 7 Communication
Infrastructure
Read:
Ball-Rokeach et al., on reserve
Read:
Morales, on reserve
Week 6: Continuities in Americans’ Thoughts about
Media
Feb. 12 Dialectical
Tensions
Read:
Czitrom, Epilogue
Feb. 14 Communication
and Corporations
Read:
Bagdikian, pp 471-483 in The New Media
Reader
Week 7:
Computer Gaming
Feb. 19 Digital Environments
Read: Krueger, pp.
377-389 in The New Media Reader
Read: Turkle, pp.
499-513 in The New Media Reader
Feb. 21 The World of Everquest
Read: Taylor, Chapters
1-2
Week 8:
Power Gamers
Feb. 28 Power
Gamers
Read:
Taylor, Chapter 3
Week 9:
The Impact of Games
March 4 Whose
Game?
Read:
Taylor, Chapters 4-5
Read:
Eastin (2006), on reserve
March 6 The
Interaction in Games
Read:
Williams et al., on reserve
Read:
Eastin (2007), on reserve
Week 10: Games and Real Life
Mar. 11 Understanding
Games
Read:
Taylor, Chapter 6
Read:
Williams, on reserve
Read:
Suellentrop, on reserve
Mar.
13 Media and the American Mind
Term Paper Due
Final Exam: Monday, March 17, 9:30 AM
Bibliography of Reserve
Ball-Rokeach,
S.J., Kim, Y-C, & Matei, S. (2001).
Storytelling neighborhood: Paths to belonging in diverse urban
environments. Communication Research, 28(4), 392-428.
Eastin, M.S. (2006). Video game violence
and the female game player: Self- and opponent gender effects on presence and
aggressive thoughts. Human Communication
Research, 32(3), 351-372.
Eastin, M.S. (2007). The influence of
competitive and cooperative group game play on state hostility. Human Communication Research, 33 (4),
450-466.
Morales
(2006, May 15). “The media is the mensaje,”
The Nation, pp 6-8. http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060515/morales
Suellentrop,
C. (Summer, 2006). Playing with our minds. The
Wilson Quarterly, 30 (3), 14-21.
Williams, D. (2006). Virtual cultivation:
Online worlds, offline perceptions. Journal
of Communication, 56(1), 69-87.
Williams, D., Caplan, S. and Xiong, L.
(2007). Can you hear me now? The impact of voice in an online gaming community.
Human Communication Research, 33 (4),
427-449.
The Papers
The Avatar Paper
The
paper you turn in on (or before) February 14 should be no longer than three
pages. Your assignment is to create an avatar in one of the following games: (1) World
of Warcraft, (2) The Sims 2, (3) Oblivion, or (4) Second Life. Each of these games is available in the Gaming Lab,
located in
Your
assignment is to describe the choices you have to make as you create your
avatar, with particular attention to the similarities and differences between
your real self and your avatar. Cooper’s book provides examples of people
making those comparisons. I want you to pay attention to every choice you have
to make as you create your avatar and describe in your paper the way your
selection corresponds to your real self. Here are some things to consider: (1)
Are you satisfied that the choices available to you in the game provide you a
chance to represent the real you? (2) Are you concerned that in order to create
an avatar that is most like you you’d have to compromise the avatar’s ability
to succeed in the game? (3) Are you able to give your avatar attributes that
you feel reflect your true self but that other people don’t always see in you?
You
will not have to actually play the
game with the avatar you create. For purposes of this assignment it’s more
important that you contemplate the connection between the avatar and you than
the potential for the avatar to help you in the game.
Your paper should be no longer than 3 pages (not including a title
page—which I don’t require—but including your bibliography—which I do require).
The fon
The
Term Paper
The
paper you turn in on or before March 13 should apply one of the key concepts we
discuss in the class to an application or Website on the Internet. The paper
should be no longer than 6 pages.
In order to
complete this paper you will certainly
have to consult material that is not on the syllabus. You should use the
bibliography in the syllabus material to point you toward other books or
articles that will provide more information about the Internet content you’ve
chosen. Any paper that fails to make
obvious and substantial use of at least two scholarly publications that are not
on the syllabus will receive a grade no higher than D. Let me know if I can
help identify other helpful resources.
In
the first month or so of class, we’ll be talking about such concepts as culture,
art, community, communication infrastructure, and business. (There will be others, and you
are free to be as open-minded as you wish when you choose the concept you use
for your paper.) In class I may refer to the Internet from time to time when we
discuss various concepts, but you should feel free to ask me questions in class
or in meetings about the ways the concepts we’re discussing relate to the
Internet.
Your
paper should begin by introducing the concept you’re primarily concerned with.
This introduction should include a definition of the concept. Next, your paper
should specify what part of the Internet you are writing about. The Internet is
a vast medium, and you must focus only on
a specific part of it in your paper. You can write about applications such
as e-mail or chat rooms, or about a specific Website such as The Onion or
Facebook. Your choice should be described in a paragraph in your paper.
Next,
your paper should draw explicit connections between the concept you introduced
and the part of the Internet you specified. This is the heart of your paper. Provide
examples, and don’t forget to explain your examples. By this I mean that you
should not just write: “There’s a Web site that includes links to all of
Picasso’s paintings” and say no more. What is the significance of that, as far
as you’re concerned? Don’t count on me to understand why that example is
relevant to the point you’re making until you explain it.
Don’t
hesitate to draw conclusions of your own. By that I mean don’t worry that I
won’t think you’re qualified to decide that an author is wrong, or that a Web
site is designed well, or to draw other conclusions. Support your conclusions
with evidence and examples. If you write: “Smith’s claims about the future of
the Internet are not credible,” I expect you to specify the reasons why you
believe that. (I know that other assignments you’ve had in other classes may
have discouraged this, and that’s why I’m making this clear here.)
Never
hesitate to ask questions about this assignment.
Your paper should be no longer than 6 pages (not including a title
page—which I don’t require—but including your bibliography—which I do require).
The fon
Rules for the Papers
1. Cite sources for claims of fact. If you
claim that research has shown that people design avatars to emphasize
dimensions of their personality that they can’t express in real life, cite a
published source to support that claim. You need not cite sources for common
knowledge facts (e.g., you don’t have to cite a source if you claim that
2. Do not cite my lectures. If you want to
use material from my lecture, first check if the reading for that date’s
lecture provides the published support you need. If that doesn’t work, let me
know what you’re looking for. I don’t make up the statements of fact in my
lectures, so I should be able to provide the citation you need.
3. Do not
include material in your bibliography that you have not cited in your paper’s
text.
4. Be EXTREMELY careful to indicate direct
quotes appropriately. Mostly this means using quotation marks. For quotes
longer than 40 words, indent the entire quote, and don’t use quotation marks.
If you fail to acknowledge direct quotes appropriately you are guilty of
plagiarism. Plagiarism makes me VERY angry.
5. Do not cite Wikipedia. You might find
Wikipedia helpful to get some background information on your subject, and its
entries frequently include recommended reading that might prove helpful, but
Wikipedia must not be the ultimate source of support for any claim you make. It
is hilariously unreliable and prone to hacks and pranks.
6. Do not
cite summaries you find on other professors’ Websites. Like Wikipedia, such
material might be helpful to you and it might lead you to helpful published
material, but you must find published support for any claim you want to make
based on what such a Website says. Too often those sites are archives of other
undergraduate students’ papers or presentations, not created or maintained by
the professor. That doesn’t make them unhelpful, only unreliable.
7. Remember
that the word “media” is a plural of medium. Students studying media should be
more sensitive to that than students in other areas of study.
8. Your
grammar should be flawless. You are media students.