International Communication Guideline
Module Aims
In the field of International Communication, Media Globalization has become a prominent
source of discussion and debate for both the communication scholar and professional. This
course will seek to educate the student about different aspects of Media Globalization
through Four segments. The course begins by giving a background to the concept of Media
Globalization. We will then proceed to the prominent theories that are used to discuss and
understand this subject. Students will then study the effect media globalization is having on
different channels of information. We wrap up by examining some representative debates
that are currently taking place regarding the process of International Communication through
media globalization.
The module’s specific aims are to:
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The course in International Communication is designed so as to make students
understand the concept of Media Globalization and its impact on the communication
industry.
In addition students will be familiarized with the theoretical framework of both
International Communication and Globalization so they can partake effectively in the
debates being generated in the contemporary arena.
The focus of this course will be to enable students to think objectively and logically while
observing the intricate patterns of global communication flows.
In addition by the end of the course students will become proficient enough to formulate
their own views whilst analysing the different trajectories in Media Globalization.
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International Communication Guideline
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this module, students will be able to:
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Recognize the various theories that apply to the field of International Communication and
Media Globalization.
Engage with the debates that typify the field of Media Globalization.
Write coherently and persuasively about the concepts in Media Globalization.
Take a personal perspective on the discussions taking place in the field.
Teaching and Learning Methods
A variety of teaching methods will be utilized which will include, lectures, discussions on
case studies, workshops, viewings, group-work, presentations and analyzing the impact of
international events by means of the coverage they receive through global media news
channels. By the end of this course students will be able to analyze and formulate opinions,
critically and astutely on the subjects they are endeavored to research upon in their careers as
journalists and analytical experts.
Assessment.
There are seven assignments that students will be assessed on and which they have to submit
during their course.
1) Assignment 1: Understanding the effects Globalization on the Pakistani
Media
Students will be required to participate in a presentation combined with a critical
debate based on the readings and theoretical questions posed to them through the
chapters they have read. They will be awarded points for the number, coherence
and strength of their arguments and counter arguments.
2) Assignment 2: Analytical Paper I
This will be an individual assignment in which students will be asked to answer a
question based on their understanding of the International Communication
concepts covered till then. Students will be advised to write only in the APA
proscribed format.
3) Midterm : Analytical Paper II
This will be an individual assignment in which students will be asked to analyze
an ongoing international situation and apply the theories of International
Communication covered till then in their course. Students will be advised to write
only in the APA proscribed format.
4) Assignment 4: Presentation
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International Communication Guideline
Students will be divided into groups of 3 and required to give a presentation
elaborating on the query posed to them by their instructor.
5) Assignment 5: Analytical Article
This will be an individual assignment in which students will be asked to answer a
question based on their understanding of the concepts and mediums of
communication.
6) Assignment 3: Critical Debate
Students will be required to participate in a critical debate based on the readings
and theoretical questions posed to them through the chapters they have read. They
will be awarded points for the number, coherence and strength of their arguments
and counter arguments.
7) Final Paper
Students will be required to give a written exam based on all the topics covered in
their course till then. Final term assignment topics will be provided at the end of
the midterm.
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MCOM 412 International Communication
Study Hours.
Students will be required to study for a total of 150 hours on this module. The division of time
will be as;
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Lectures, presentations, seminars and workshops – 36 hours.
Self-directed study – 72 hours.
Preparation for assessment – 37 hours.
Self-review of assessment after receiving feedback – 5 hours.
Reading.
Students will be provided with a list of material to read designated as “Core Reading”. These
will be allocated for each week and students will be required to read from these before coming
for the lecture so that they are prepared for the topic. They are encouraged to form an opinion on
the subject to be discussed so that an participation in discussion during class can be possible.
Another set of readings listed as “Additional Reading” has also been given for each topic being
covered weekly. Students are advised to read at least one or two of these in addition to the “Core
Reading”.
At this point it is important to remind students that they should not limit themselves to the
lectures and suggested reading material only. They are advised to research the topics being
taught independently as well so that they acquire deeper knowledge and command over the
subject.
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Key Texts for the Module:
A list of specific reading will be provided for each topic that is covered. However other reading
materials will be delivered in the form of notes, in class handouts, books and websites at the time
of particular lecture.
1. International Communication by Daya Kishan Thussu, (2006). The historical
context of international communication, International Communication: Hodder
Arnold.
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Additional General Reading:
Some other reading material in the form of articles will also been provided to the students which
they can read to get an in-depth understanding of the discourse.
Mattelart, A. (1979). Multinational Corporations and the control of culture, Harvester Press,
1979.
McMillin, D. C. (2007). International media studies, the fixity of nation in international media
studies, Wiley-Blackwell Publishing.
Said, E. (1978). Orientalism, London, Penguin, 1985.
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Schiller, H. I. (1969). Mass Communication and American Empire, Publications, 1955-2000
Books, New York: Augustus M. Kelley.
Schramm, W. (1964). Mass media and national development. Stanford, CA: Stanford university
Press.
Tehranian, M. & Tehranian, K.K. (1997). “Taming modernity towards a new paradigm’, in A.
Mohammadi (ed) International Communication and globalization, Sage, London, Thousand
Oaks, CA, and New Delhi.
Unesco, (1982). Transnational Communication and Cultural industries, Unesco: France.
Wallerstein, I. (1974). The Modern World System: Capitalist Agriculture and the Origins of the
World-Capitalist Economy in the Sixteenth Century, Academic Press: NY.
Overview of Module Content.
Globalization and the Media
Week 1: Historical Perspective
Week 2: International Communication Theories I
Week 3: International Communication Theories II
Week 4: Global Media Theories and Globalization as a Myth
Theoretical Perspectives
Week 5: Infrastructure
Week 6: Counter Arguments
Week 7: Exemplar, Critiques and Discussions
Week 8: Midterm
Media Globalization Effects
Week 9: Cinema
Week 10: Television
Week 11: News
Week 12: Internet
Debates on International Communication in Global Media networks
Week 13: Nations as a Player
Week 14: Global/Local in Global Media
Week 15: Culture and Globalization
WEEKLY MODULE CONTENT
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Week One: Globalization and the Media. A Historical Perspective
This introductory session will begin by providing a historical context for the study of
international communication, examining how communication had an international dimension for
centuries before the modern colonial empires emerged.
Key Objectives:
At the end of this session students should be able to:
 Explain the role international communication played in the expansion of European capitalism
around the world.
 The use of the radio by the Capitalist and Communist blocs during their ideological
confrontation of the Cold War.
 The use of covert international communication fought over the airwaves by US secret
propaganda to establish ideological hegemony.
 Understanding the relationship between international communication and development. What
factors instigated the debate for a New World Information and Communication Order
(NWICO) and the critique on a bipolar view of international relations.
 Inquiring into the use of satellite technology for education and development.
Core Reading:
Unesco, (1982). Transnational Communication and Cultural industries, Unesco: France.
Case study of the rise of British news agency Reuters.
Case study of India’s satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE), program.
Week Two: Exploring Theoretical Perspectives. International Communication Theories I
The aim will be to provide students with a theoretical overview of competing theories that
inform the study of international communication, from Marxist to culturist and postmodernist
analyses of the subject.
Key Objectives:
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Students will be able to understand a range of theoretical perspectives on international
communication over the past century.
They will be able to cognize the arguments of the main theorists and their approaches to its
studies.
Core Reading:
Wallerstein, I. (1974). The Modern World System: Capitalist Agriculture and the Origins of the
World-Capitalist Economy in the Sixteenth Century, Academic Press: NY.
Week Three: International Communication Theories II
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This will be a continuum of the previous weeks discourse where additional theories of
international communication will be studied.
Key Objectives:
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Students will learn about a range of perspectives that are discussed in these theories.
They will start from traditional Marxist analysis to dependency, neo-Marxism, modernization
theories and its critics.
Core Reading:
Schramm, W. (1964). Mass media and national development. Stanford, CA: Stanford university
Press.
Week Four: Global Media Theories and Globalization as a Myth
Key Objectives:
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Students will be able to discern between theories of globalization and of the information
society, as well as cultural studies approaches.
These are new concepts related to the development of new technologies and theories which
are going to be applicable to contemporary settings.
Core Reading:
Tehranian, M. & Tehranian, K.K. (1997). “Taming modernity towards a new paradigm’, in A.
Mohammadi (ed) International Communication and globalization, Sage, London, Thousand
Oaks, CA, and New Delhi.
Week Five: Global Communication Infrastructure
In this session the expansion of transnational media and telecommunication corporations in the
post-Cold War era of free-market capitalism will be studied. These will be analyzed within the
macro-economic context of liberalization, deregulation and privatization. The ideological and
policy shifts in international institutions, from state-regulated to a market-led environment will
be studied.
Key Objectives:
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To help students understand the policies of multilateral institutions such as the World trade
Organization (WTO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
To make students analyze the convergence of telecommunications, computers and media
industries and their effects on the phenomenon of transnational and global expansion of
western media corporations.
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Core Reading:
Schiller, H. I. (1969). Mass Communication and American Empire, Publications, 1955-2000
Books, New York: Augustus M. Kelley.
Three case studies will be analyzed which are:
1. Murdochs News Corporation.
2. Intelsat
Week Six: Counter Arguments on the effects of Globalization
A continuation of the exploration of the unprecedented global satellite industry, the hardware for
international communication continues in this section. The consequences of liberalization and
privatization and the benefit derived from this process by media conglomerates.
Key Objectives:
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To help students recognize how the liberalization and privatization of the satellite and
telecommunication industry has changed the landscape of international communication
further.
How this phenomenon has facilitated the expansion of certain transnational corporations.
Core Reading:
Mattelart, A. (1979). Multinational Corporations and the control of culture, Harvester Press,
1979.
Week Seven: Exemplar, Critiques and Discussions on the Globalization phenomenon
In this session different critiques offered on the globalization phenomenon by renowned scholars
internationally will be scrutinized. Their interpretations on the changes occurring on the global
media landscape will be explored.
Key Objectives:
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To help students think critically about the assumptions made on the subject of media
globalization.
To make them question established beliefs and make them construct their independent
analysis on issues.
Core Reading:
McMillin, D. C. (2007). International media studies, the fixity of nation in international media
studies, Wiley-Blackwell Publishing.
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Week Eight: Midterm Assessment.
Students will be assessed through a descriptive exam regarding their clarity on the subject of
international communication.
Week Nine: Media Globalization Effects through Cinema
This session will examine the questions of homogenization and promotion of a Western
consumerist lifestyle by the US media industry. We will also explore how mass media interact
with and influence consciousness, media cultures and cultural identities within the framework of
cultural imperialism. The creation of a one-way flow of information and dominance of
international communication by the US through its films.
Key Objectives:
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To make students understand the implications of media conglomeration and concentration of
power.
To equip them sufficiently to analyze the one-way flow of information being carried out by
US media industries.
How media products such as films help influence the socio-cultural fabric of the host nation.
Week Ten: Media Globalization Effects through Television
Having established that the US overwhelmingly dominates the international flow of information
and entertainment, these sessions will take into account the exports of US television across the
world. The internationalization of US-based children’s TV channels and Music television are
discussed as examples of how culture is being promoted through the powerful medium of
television.
Key Objectives:
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To make students understand the effects of cultural homogenization that occurs through
global television.
Case Studies
1. Disney’s Entertainment and Sports Network (ESPN).
2. MTV Music television
Week Eleven: Media Globalization Effects through Internet
In this section the impact of new technologies such as the Internet on contemporary media
culture will be examined. The use of alternative communications in an international context will
be discussed to contextualize the potential of new technologies to empower citizens.
Key Objectives:
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MCOM 412 International Communication
To make students realize the link between the journalist, the community and the media so
that they can be successfully integrated within each other.
Case Study
1. Microsoft Corporation, the world’s biggest computer software maker will be discussed.
Week Twelve: Media Globalization Effects through News
The rapid expansion of new communication technologies, notably satellite and cable have
resulted in the formation of a global media market. This includes cultural industries such as
advertising, film, music, publishing, television and news agencies. The aim of these sessions will
be to discuss the strategies of the world’s most powerful communication companies and their
synergy with other corporations.
Key Objectives:
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Students will be made cognizant of the role the Internet has played in creating global
homogeneity.
The need for students to broaden analysis of international communication by incorporating a
variety of approaches to it.
Case Study
1. CNN – The Worlds News Leader.
Week Thirteen: Debates on International Communication in Global Media networks.
Nations as a Player.
In this portion the role of regional actors and the growing reverse flow in media products will be
investigated. It will be demonstrated how the transnationalization of media organizations has
profoundly altered the market in global communications.
Key Objectives:
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Since the favorite mode of communication in contemporary times is the Internet, it should be
put to good use as a medium for communication.
Case Study
McMillin, D. C. (2007). International media studies, the fixity of nation in international media
studies, Wiley-Blackwell Publishing.
Week Fourteen: Global/Local in Global Media.
The promotion of culture homogenization will be questioned in this part of the discourse. It will
be argued that the homogenization of cultural products has been counterbalanced by
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heterogeneous tendencies leading to a hybrid form of global-local interaction. It will also be seen
that the trend towards the movement of cultural products from global South to the media-rich
North has begun.
Key Objectives:
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To help make students understand the new trends in globalization taking place around the
world.
Students will be asked analyze the complexity of international cultural transactions that are
taking place currently.
Case Study
1. Zee TV and hybrid television.
2. Middle east Broadcasting Center MBC.
3. The other Hollywood – the Indian film industry.
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