Journalism 400: History of Journalism Fall 2015 ONLINE For Undergraduate Students Only Instructor: Jack Young Office: Comm 1202 (inside SOJ main office) Phone/email: 618 453-­‐3280 jayo001@siu.edu Objectives: JRNL 400 covers the “Development of American newspapers, magazines, and radio-­‐
television (Advertising, comic books, movies, etc.) with an emphasis on cultural, technological, and economic backgrounds of press development. Current press structures and policies will be placed in historical perspective.” (2011 SIUC UG Catalog) More specifically, this course will examine the development of American journalism/media from its roots in Western Europe through to its modern forms including “new media”. Students will be encouraged to focus on the significance of journalism’s role in documenting, shaping, and marketing the major historical changes in America that became, given the global status America has achieved since its inception, changes in the larger world. Why has journalism/media in the broadest sense mattered in America? Why does it matter today? Finding these answers by studying journalism’s past will help us better imagine its future. Required Text: Wm. David Sloan, The Media in America: A History (7th Ed.), Vision Press, 2008 or any newer version. You can find this edition much cheaper online. Additional readings (articles) will be assigned and required for added content/context and comparative essays in the course. These will be available as web links or imbedded documents on Desire 2 Learn. Required Lectures: Audio lectures will be available for each week of the course divided roughly in to two segments: 1) the contextual history of the period/subject being covered, and 2) the specific media/journalism history of that same era or subject. I have recorded these lectures using mp3 format and they can be listened at your computer or downloaded and put on an iPod or other playback device. All material covered in lectures will be fair game on exams of course and will help you understand the broader historical context in which journalism/media history developed and figure out the primary focus of the course. Assignments: (assignments are generally due with a “midnight” deadline. Because of the formatting I put “12:01 am” the next day in D2L. Don’t be confused and think it is due the next day. For example, an assignment due “by midnight Sunday” will show up as “12:01am with a Monday date” in D2L because of how the dates must be entered. Remember that as it can be confusing at first for some.) There will be a mid-­‐term exam and a final exam. The tests may be a mix of true/false, short answer and essay questions. Expectations for these exams will be high since students will have an “open book” format to utilize. The exams are timed though, so you will have to study prior to the exam to be successful. The research paper will be 8-­‐10 pages using a combination of primary and secondary sources. The cover page and bibliography page(s) do not count toward the page minimum. A separate handout will be given covering the paper requirements and objectives but it is important to remember that your topic must be historical and not be primarily focused on anything media related that happened after 1990. It is also important to remember that the TEXTBOOK for the course should not be a main source used for this research paper. It is very useful to use the bibliography in the textbook for source ideas, but not the textbook itself. I’ve already read that plenty of times and that’s not “research” for a paper ;-­‐) The research paper topic proposal is worth as much as 20 points and will be awarded based on the proposal quality when your paper topic is approved. The paper itself will be worth the remaining 100 points providing the combined 120 points listed below. The research paper is due by the end of the 7th week of the course. Late papers will lose 10% for each day they are late and any paper turned in more than 4 days after the due date will get “zero” points! Get them in on time. It is very important in this short of a course. Six lecture/reading question responses (at least one paragraph) and 2 news comparison essays (2-­‐3 pages minimum) will be given throughout the semester. Each of the first six weeks a group of questions will be available on D2L (Desire to Learn) covering all the readings assigned for that week and material in the audio lectures. Each student is required to answer (respond) to one question for each week that will be turned in through D2L. The answer should be roughly a paragraph and answer the question in full. Participation is required in this course. Since there is no “attendance” in this online structure, students are allowed to miss two of lecture question responses without penalty. If you turn in all required responses you can receive up to 20 points of extra credit! The comparison essays should be at least 2-­‐3 pages in length. I will assign articles to read and compare and you will be expected to critically analyze the articles and tie in their relevance to the information in the chapters/lectures provided in the course, noting how the articles inform us on trends in media today and how events today relate to media/journalism history in general. A prompt for the comparison papers is located in the dropbox area for each one as well. Grading: Exam 1…………………………………………………………………………….100 points Exam 2………………………………………………………………………….....100 points Research Paper (and proposal)………………….........................................120 points Comparison essays (two)……………………………………….120 points (60pts each) Lecture Question Responses………………………………………………60 points Grading Scale: (Standard) A=90%, B=80%, C=70%, D=60% system (below 60%=F) Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated in this course. I only care about your ideas and want to see your original work. Both cheating and plagiarism are grounds for dismissal from the University and failure of this course. *Schedule of readings and assignments below may change based on course progress or unforeseen events. Course Schedule D2L “dropbox” area gives you a date timeline for all exams/assignments (other readings as assigned) WK 1 Readings: SLOAN ch.s 1, 2 & 3 WK 2 Readings: SLOAN ch.s 4, 5 & 6 WK 3 Readings: SLOAN ch.s 7, 8 & 9 (Comparative Essay (1) Due) WK 4 Readings: SLOAN ch.s 10, 11, & 12 (Mid-­‐Term Exam and Paper Topics Due) WK 5 Readings: SLOAN ch.s 13, 14, 20, 21 & 22 (Paper Topics Due Monday!)
WK 6 Readings: SLOAN ch.s 15, 16, 17 (Comparative Essay (2) Due) WK 7 Readings SLOAN ch.s 18, 19, & 23 (Research Paper Due) WK 8 Readings SLOAN ch.s 24, & 25 (Final Exam) SIUC’s Building Emergency Response Protocols
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