Provisionally approved 6/18/ 02
Level II
RATIONALE: Much of the information we receive and act upon comes to us from television, radio, print materials, the Internet, and other sources we refer to as mass media, rather than through direct experience. Such information, whether it concerns people and places or pressing social issues, is literally mediated by the experiences and perceptions of those who interpret it, assemble it, and disseminate it.
As these media, and the information technologies associated with them, grow and converge, fewer and fewer transnational media and technology companies play an increasingly critical role in shaping everyday life for millions of people, potentially threatening the diversity of opinion and perspective that characterizes humankind. Other trends, however, including affordability and accessibility, may have a democratizing effect, placing sophisticated media and information technologies in the hands of even the smallest non-profits and community-based organizations. These latter organizations function according to a different mission, different patterns of ownership, different values and content in their productions, and a different relationship to the commercial media/technology system.
Making effective use of media and communication technologies has become a necessity in the pursuit of social goals. To do so, students should be able to analyze and critique the functioning and effects of media and communication technologies in relation to social issues, with a focus on the tension between centralized, profit-oriented patterns of ownership and new opportunities for meaningful access and democratic control.
COMPETENCY: Can demonstrate a systematic knowledge of and critically analyze how media and communication technologies are used to shape perceptions of social issues, public policies, and cultural groups.
CRITERIA:
1. Identify and describe specific elements, devices and techniques that are characteristic of a range of mass media.
2. Analyze how products of mass media use such elements, devices and techniques to create meaning.
3. Assess how effectively such elements, devices and techniques are used in the specific productions that were identified in Criterion 1 above.
4. Identify, summarize and compare key points in some of the major models and/or theoretical frameworks regarding how mass media function.
5. Selecting one of the models or theories from #4 above, utilize a range of appropriate research tools to locate and explore a current critical issue in mass media that relates to this particular model or theory.
6. Analyze a media product across a spectrum of mass media ranging from mainstream to alternative, with particular attention to:
a. the range and limits of ideological debate
b. instances of systematic bias and/or exclusion
c. accessibility of media for public interest or community use in relation to commercial goals or interests
d. significance of functions of mass media in broader societal contexts
PORTFOLIO LINKS: You are expected to use the Level II Communications Portfolio writing standards as guidelines for any writing products prepared for the criteria of this competency. At a minimum, writing must demonstrate Level I Communications Portfolio standards.
STANDARDS:
1. Examples of elements, devices, and techniques include such things as the use of irony in literature, flashback in film, and minor keys in music. Student should select an appropriate media production, approved by the evaluator, from at least 2 of the following media categories: print, audio, video, music, film, Internet, convergent media, etc. Student should then accurately identify 3 main elements, devices or techniques that are used within each production and then clearly describe how these are used to achieve certain effects.
2. Student should choose one of the examples from Criterion 1, and discuss how particular elements, devices and techniques are used to achieve particular meanings. The elements, devices and techniques should be the same ones identified and described in Criterion and Standard 1.
3. Using another example chosen for Criterion 1, the student should present a detailed critical assessment of its effectiveness. This assessment should be based on meaningful criteria for evaluating the quality of a mass media product, such as appropriateness for intended audience, clarity and/or complexity of ideas presented, verisimilitude, impact of graphic elements, vitality of dialogue, etc. Student may choose an alternative example to the ones used for Criterion and Standard 1, but this requires prior approval of evaluator.
4. Student must identify, summarize, and compare three different models or theoretical frameworks (approved by the evaluator) for how the mass media function. Identification must be accurate and should be drawn from appropriate literature on mass communications.
5. Student should use conventional and electronic search tools to locate a current issue in mass media that relates to the selected theory or model. Based on this research, the student should develop a preliminary bibliography of 10-20 items, including electronic as well as print sources. Student should be able to explain why the issue selected is significant and relate it to the theory with appropriate documentation.
6. Select a topical issue, cultural product, or media campaign as it is represented in at least three different media, ranging from mainstream to alternative, and discuss the topic in relation to ideology, bias, and profit orientation, as outlined in Criterion 6. Student should place the discussion in any one of the following broader social contexts:
a. economic, esp. the effects of patterns of ownership of mass media, including the concentration of ownership;
b. political, esp. the impact of media lobbying interests, legislation, regulation, or major court cases on mass media;
c. social, esp. representations of race, class, gender, sexual orientation in mass media;
d. cultural, esp. the representation of practices or beliefs of cultural groups, interactions between cultural groups, etc. in mass media.
EXAMPLES OF DEMONSTRATION:
1. Prior Learning: An example of demonstration of this competency from prior learning would be a student who has had the experience of being part of a production team working on a socially-relevant documentary film such as Eyes on the Prize. Such a person would have been part of a team effort that discussed the specific elements, devices, and techniques characteristic of print, photography, film, and music in the process of making critical decisions regarding the production of the documentary. Such a person would be knowledgeable about the economics of media production, the aesthetic and political choices that impact production, and the other challenges that accompany getting a story told. Appropriate documentation would include meeting minutes showing an analysis of critical choice points, funding proposals, film treatments, and promotional materials that demonstrate a knowledge of the criteria and standards outlined in the competency statement.
2. Independent Study: A student interested in demonstrating this competency independently may work with a faculty evaluator to assemble an appropriate bibliography and use those readings to write a research paper that covers the topics outlined below, as they apply to the competency criteria:
a. Models/theoretical frameworks of the mass media, including print, audio, video, music, film, Internet, with a particular emphasis on convergent multi-media.
b. Critical analysis of models and theories which covers at a minimum the effects of market orientation, profit motivation, and state regulation.
c. Coverage of specific elements, devices and techniques that are characteristic of the mass media outlined above.
d. Concrete examples of topical issues, cultural products, or media campaigns, as they are affected by these elements, devices and techniques.
e. An analysis of the ideology of, bias in, and public access to the mass media.
3. Course: Complete a CPCS course addressing the competency or an appropriate transfer.
4. Field Project. To demonstrate this competency via a field project, a student could get involved with a field-based research project on bias in the media. As part of the project the student would familiarize him/herself with models and theories of mass media, with a particular emphasis on the techniques used to shape perception and create meaning. The student would then apply this knowledge systematically to analyzing the biases in particular media.