ASCJ 220
GOING VIRAL
September, 2014
Professor: Jonathan D. Aronson
Email:
aronson@usc.edu
Office:
KER206
Office Hours: TH 3:30-5:00 and by appointment
Class:
Fridays 2:00-5:20 in KER 202
Background and Rationale: This experimental class considers why certain
people and ideas go viral and others do not. Its thesis is that the rise of the
Internet and social networking changes the ways people will get jobs and
succeed in careers in the future. These developments also are altering our
notions of privacy and digital visibility.
Start with two pre-Internet slogans -- Andy Warhol predicted that everyone
would be famous for fifteen minutes. The motto of the Benton and Bowles, a
real ad agency of the "Mad Men" era was "It's not creative if it doesn't sell."
Add the popular notion that "The Internet changes everything." Ok, but that is
not very helpful. How specifically does the Internet (and YouTube, Facebook,
LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) change the landscape and in this instance how can
students use these new tools to bolster the attention their ideas get, their
visibility in their chosen fields, and thus their job and career prospects? Why
do some people, ideas, and events garner attention while others are ignored?
How can students use these new tools to market themselves and their ideas
and creations broadly and what are the costs to their privacy, intellectual
property, etc. if they go down this path?
Requirements: This is a 2-unit credit/non-credit course. To receive credit
students must complete a series of in-class presentations, homework
assignments, and compete to take a website viral. Attendance and
participation are required. This class is built around developing analytic
capabilities and Internet skills that will serve students in their careers. There
will be a significant offsite training session, most likely at YouTube.
Academic Integrity: The Annenberg School is committed to upholding the
University’s Academic Integrity code as detailed in the Scampus Guide. It is
the policy of the ASCJ to report all violations of the academic code. Any
serious violation or pattern of violations of the Academic Integrity Code will
result in the student’s expulsion from ASCJ majors or minors. The University
may also decide on further consequences.
Disability Accommodation: Students requesting academic accommodations
based on disability are required to register with Disability Services and
Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved
accommodations can be obtained from DSP when adequate documentation is
filed. Please be sure the letter is delivered to me as early in the semester as
possible. DSP is open M-F, 8:30-5:00pm. The office is in STU 301 and their
phone is 740-0776.
Class Schedule
1.
(Oct 10)
Introduction, Analytics, and Assignments: The goals and the
assignments of the class will be laid out. Most of the session will involve discussing
YouTube video that went viral and others that did not. We ask what are the factors that
explain why certain people, events, or videos go viral and others do not? Students will be
asked to develop a short analytic paper or presentation that looks at the factors led to
success in various formats.
Assignments:
Read: Jonah Berger, Katherine L. Milkman (2012) What Makes Online Content
Viral? Journal of Marketing Research: April 2012, Vol. 49, No. 2, pp. 192-205.
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1509/jmr.10.0353
Amber Mac, “Jonah Berger On The Science Behind Why Things Go Viral,” Fast
Company, Available at: http://www.fastcompany.com/3030997/bottom-line/jonahberger-on-the-science-behind-why-things-go-viral
2.
(Week 2)
Individual Consultation: All students will be meet with the
instructor individually or in groups of 2 or 3 to discuss their paper and analysis before
papers/presentations in detail.
Assignments:
Read: Jonah Berger, Contagious: Why Things Catch On, (New York: Simon & Schuster,
March 2013).
3.
(Oct 24)
Analytical Session: Presentation of papers and discussion to draw
out and codify hypotheses and lessons explaining the reasons some people, books, phrases,
events, and ideas go viral. We will specifically consider how to measure “success” in
making something go viral.
Assignments:
Read: Mathew Ingram, “The Internet didn’t invent viral content or clickbait
journalism — there’s just more of it now, and it happens faster,” April 1, 2014.
Available at: <http://gigaom.com/2014/04/01/the-internet-didnt-inventviral-content-or-clickbait-journalism-theres-just-more-of-it-now-and-ithappens-faster/>
Caroline O’Donovan, “You won’t believe Upworthy’s new way of measuring
audience,” February 6, 2014, Available at:
http://www.niemanlab.org/2014/02/upworthy-has-a-new-way-of-measuringengagement/
4.
(Oct 31)
Field Trip to YouTube Headquarters for Training: The second task
of the class is for teams of students to select a person, event, video, or idea to go viral.
Fortunately, YouTube offices in Marina del Rey offer sessions to prepare would-be
YouTube star instruction to help them make better more attractive and more viral video.
The instructor will arrange for a special session to train this class at a time to be
determined.
Assignments:
Review: Mary Meeker, Internet Trends, 2014, May 28, 2014 Available at:
http://www.kpcb.com/internet-trends
5.
(Nov 7)
Creation of Teams and Development of “Going Viral” Challenge:
Building on the analytical work from sessions 1 and 2 and one week after the YouTube
training session the class will gather to form teams and propose who or what they would
like to make go viral and to develop metrics for judging success.
Assignments:
Mary Clare Fischer, “The Pay-Per-Visit Debate: Is Chasing Viral Traffic Hurting
Journalism?” March 27, 2014
http://ajr.org/2014/03/27/pay-per-visit-debate-chasing-viral-traffic-hurtingjournalism/
6.
(Nov 14)
Team meetings with the instructor to review progress – to be
scheduled. As the viral challenge goes forward the instructor will meet with each team at
least twice to review progress and fine-tune strategies.
Assignments:
Tony Danova, “The Science of App Marketing: How To Help Your App Stand Out And
Find Its Audience,” (pdf to be distributed).
Ann Friedman, “Going Viral: How to make content sharable” Columbia Journalism
Review, March 3, 2014. Available at:
http://www.cjr.org/feature/going_viral.php?page=all&print=true#sthash.HXuEncZ
o.dpuf
7.
(Nov 21)
Assignments:
8.
(Nov 28) Thanksgiving Holiday: No Class
9.
(Dec 5)
Presentation of Results and Discussion: Each group will present
their results and be critiqued by the instructor and other teams to see what worked and
what didn’t and to develop hypotheses about what could have been done
differently/better. Students will also be asked how the class might be improved if it is
offered again.