Week |
Subject |
Related Preparation |
1) |
Introduction to the course |
Overview of the syllabus, main questions in the literature on media and politics.
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2) |
News, Truth and the Construction of Social Reality
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• Walter Lippmann, “The World Outside and the Pictures in Our Heads,” and “The Nature of News”, Public Opinion, New York: Free Press Paperbacks, 1997, pp. 3-20 and pp. 214-225.
• Anthony Pratkins and Elliot Aronson, Age of Propaganda: The Everyday Use and Abuse of Persuasion, New York: Holt Paperbacks, 2001, pp. 71-93.
• Robert M. Entman, “The Nature and Source of News,” in The Press, Oxford: Oxford University Press, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005, pp. 48-65.
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3) |
Media and Democracy
|
• Shanto Iyengar, Media Politics: A Citizen’s Guide, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016, Chapter 2, pp. 19-50.
• James Curran, “What Democracy Requires of the Media,” in The Press, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005, pp. 120-140.
• Robert Schmuhl and Robert G. Picard, “The Marketplace of Ideas,” in The Press, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005, pp. 141-155.
• In class-viewing of the movie All the President’s Men
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4) |
Quality of News, Media Bias and Democracy
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• W. Lance Bennett, News: The Politics of Illusion, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2016, Chapter 2, pp. 28-57.
• Geneva Overholser, “What is Good Journalism?” Vital Speeches of the Day, 69:4, December 1, 2002.
• Hunt Allcott and Matthew Gentzkow, “Social Media and Fake News in the 2016 Election,” Journal of Economic Perspectices, 31:2, Spring 2017, pp. 211-236.
• Lisa Wedeen, Authoritarian Apprehensions: Ideology, Judgment, and Mourning in Syria, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2019, pp. 77-106.
• Robinson Meyer, “The Grim Conclusions of Largest-Ever Study of Fake News,” The Atlantic, March 8, 2018.
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5) |
New Media, Citizen Engagement and Mobilization
|
• Shanto Iyengar, Media Politics: A Citizen’s Guide, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016, Chapter 5, pp. 113-147. |
6) |
Media and Authoritarian Regimes: Case Study of Arab Spring
|
• Killian Clarke and Korhan Kocak, “Launching Revolution: Social Media and the Egyptian Uprising’s First Movers,” British Journal of Political Science, 2018, pp. 1-21.
• Robert Orttung and Christopher Walkerm “Authoritarian Regimes Retool Their Media Control Strategy,” The Washington Post, January 10, 2014.
• Recommended: Daniela Stockman and Mary E. Gallagher, “Remote Control: How the Media Sustain Authoritarian Rule in China,” Comparative Political Studies, 44:4, 2011, pp. 436-467.
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7) |
Media, Campaigning and Elections
|
• Shanto Iyengar, Media Politics: A Citizen’s Guide, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016, Chapters 6 and 7, pp. 148-229.
|
8) |
Q & A Midterm Exam |
|
9) |
News and Public Opinion
|
• Shanto Iyengar, Media Politics: A Citizen’s Guide, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016, Chapter 8, pp. 230- 269.
• Marshall McLuhan, The Medium is the Massage, California: Gingko Press, 2001.
|
10) |
The Problem of Partisan News |
• Kevin Arceneaux and Martin Johnson, Changing Minds or Changing Channels? Partisan News in an Age of Choice, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2013, Chapters 1-4, pp. 1-90.
|
11) |
The Political Economy of the Media |
• Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky, Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media, New York: Pantheon Book, 2002, pp. 1-35.
|
12) |
Media and War: Case of 2003 Iraq War |
• Shanto Iyengar, Media Politics: A Citizen’s Guide, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016, Chapter 4, pp. 93-112.
• W. Lance Bennett, Regina C. Lawrence, and Steven Livingston, When the Press Fails: Political Power and the News Media from Iraq to Katrina, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2007, pp. 1-130.
• “From the Editors: The Times and Iraq,” The New York Times, May 26, 2004,
• Daniel Okrent, “Weapons of Mass Destruction? Or Mass Distraction?” The New York Times, May 30, 2004.
• In-class viewing of the documentary Control Room
|
13) |
The CNN Effect
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• Piers Robinson, The CNN Effect: The Myth of News, Foreign Policy and Intervention. London: Routledge, 2002, pp. 1-6; 93-132.
• Lyse Doucet, “Syria & the CNN Effect: What Role Does the Media Play in Policy-Making?” Daedalus, 147:1, Winter 2018, pp. 141-157.
|
14) |
The Future of Media and Politics? |
• W. Lance Bennett, News: The Politics of Illusion, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2016, Chapter 8, pp. 207-239.
• Francis Fukuyama, Barak Richman, and Ashish Goel, How to Save Democracy from Technology: Ending Big Tech’s Information Monopoly, Foreign Affairs, 100:1, January/February 2021, pp. 98-110.
• Overview of the course
|
|
Program Outcomes |
Level of Contribution |
1) |
Grasp basic theoretical and conceptual knowledge about the field and relations between them at the level of practice. |
5 |
2) |
Possess basic knowledge about the causes and effects of political transformations in societies. |
3 |
3) |
Possess knowledge about quantitative, qualitative and mixed research methods in social and behavioral sciences. |
3 |
4) |
Recognize historical patterns while evaluating contemporary political and social developments. |
3 |
5) |
Demonstrate interdisciplinary and critical approach while analyzing, synthesizing and forecasting domestic and foreign policy. |
3 |
6) |
Conduct studies in the field professionally, both independently or as a team member. |
3 |
7) |
Possess consciousness about lifelong learning based on Research & Development. |
3 |
8) |
Communicate with peers both orally and in writing, by using a foreign language at least at a level of European Language Portfolio B1 General Level and the necessary informatics and communication technologies. |
5 |
9) |
Apply field-related knowledge and competences into career advancement, projects for sustainable development goals, and social responsibility initiatives. |
3 |
10) |
Possess the habit to monitor domestic and foreign policy agenda as well as international developments. |
5 |
11) |
Possess competence to interpret the new political actors, theories and concepts in a global era. |
5 |
12) |
Evaluate the legal and ethical implications of advanced technologies on politics. |
5 |