ATS2440 - The public sphere - 2017

6 points, SCA Band 1, 0.125 EFTSL

Undergraduate - Unit

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

Faculty

Arts

Organisational Unit

Communications and Media Studies

Coordinator(s)

Dr Earvin Cabalquinto

Unit guides

Offered

Caulfield

  • Second semester 2017 (Day)

Clayton

  • Second semester 2017 (Day)

Synopsis

This unit introduces a key theoretical concept in the field of media and communications studies - the public sphere - and attends to key questions in media studies: what does media contribute to the realm of rational debate and how does this contribution facilitate public understanding of, and input to, policy and governance? In addressing these questions the subject raises important matters concerned with citizenship, individual response to public issues and the relationship between opinion and informed debate. It tracks the emergence of the theory of the public sphere, analyses the multiple uses and related applications of the concept, and explains how the public sphere relates to traditional and new communications and media environments.

Outcomes

Students successfully completing the unit will be able to:

  1. outline the emergence and historical development of the public sphere;
  2. apply research skills to a range of challenges related to the role of the media industries in public life and communication, especially with regard to how these industries mediate politics in both formal and informal contexts;
  3. nominate and explain contemporary media developments and issues that structure, inform and reflect the condition of the public sphere;
  4. produce a range of media, which may include printed work, photography, audio or video, to express an informed view on public issues;
  5. display critical thinking skills based around the theory of the public sphere, and related concepts and issues.

Assessment

Within semester assessment: 100%

Workload requirements

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

See also Unit timetable information

Chief examiner(s)

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Prerequisites

Twelve credit points of first-year Arts units.

Prohibitions

ATS3440