Course Overview

*HONORING NATIVE LANDS*

Long before the University of Oklahoma was established, the land on which the University now resides was the traditional home of the “Hasinais” Caddo Nation and Wichita & Affiliated Tribes.

We acknowledge this territory once also served as a hunting ground, trade exchange point, and migration route for the Apache, Comanche, Kiowa, and Osage nations.

Today, 39 tribal nations dwell in the state of Oklahoma as a result of settler and colonial policies that were designed to assimilate Native people.

The University of Oklahoma recognizes the historical connection our university has with its indigenous community and it is an institutional responsibility to recognize and acknowledge the people, culture, and history that make up our entire OU Community. As a teacher and scholar, I honor this important legacy by learning and sharing knowledge about our shared history in classes and research.

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Welcome to Race, Gender (Class), and the Media!

If you have signed up for Race, Gender (Class), and the Media [JMC 4853/5853.001], you need this syllabus. Keep reading and you should get an idea about how this class will work, combining a high technology interface with our discussion-based, in-class sessions.

The core principle of this class is to explore how mediated representations influence the way we all think about race, gender and class identities in the “real” world.

I like to think of this class as my “adrenalin group” since we are willing to tackle such potentially difficult conversations early in the day. Feel free to bring coffee/drinks and nibbles, as long as you clean up after yourself. [Seriously. I’m not your mom (-;].

We will have weekly deadlines and discussions, as well as a few group projects. We will have plenty to do. Successful students will want to use our class time to do their work in a supportive environment.

Along the way, there will be textbook readings, blog posts and discussions to help students navigate through the course material.

I am looking forward, though, to participating in this class with you. So, read the following information carefully and review the course expectations, course policies, course tools, assignments, calendar and more. Don’t hesitate to talk to me if you have any questions.

About Me

Instructor: Dr. Meta G. Carstarphen, APR. Call me Dr. C. I’ve been a magazine feature writer and public information specialist for the Federal Aviation Administration in my former lives. My research, writing and teaching interests converge around ways to talk across differences and to use media for these purposes.
Office: Gaylord Hall 3510C
Email: mcarstarphen@ou.edu

Office Phone: (405) 325-5227

Cell Phone: (405)-310-9081
Office Hours: Drop in any Tuesday from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. CST, or Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. CST. We can meet by appointment at other times for an in-person or virtual chat [phone or Skype].

Learning Management System: We will use the Canvas course site for announcements, assignments and grades. For more details, log on to https://canvas.ou.edu

Course Description

In this class, we will look at the history and contemporary practices involved in the representation of all people in the media, both in the United States and internationally.

We will explore portrayals, employment, ownership and access issues in populations according to their gender and racial identities. Finally, we will interpret our ideas through fundamental concepts in media literacy, rhetorical theory and persuasion, and identity constructions.

Course Rationale

This course is designed to help prepare students as future media professionals, as media consumers or as both to engage confidently in an increasingly multi-faceted and diverse world. Students can use the discussions and tools from this class to practice cultural competence in their professional lives.

Course Goals

GRADUATE STUDENT ONLY

Course Goals

The activities, content, and assignments in this course will help you be able to do the following:

There are two broad aims for this course.

One goal is to give students the tools to analyze the ways that social categories, such as race and gender, appear in various media performances, including news, entertainment, strategic communication, and social media.

The second goal is to help students become more ethical producers of media content that reflect authenticity in race, gender, and class representations.

Specific Course Objectives Include assisting you:

To Distinguish key concepts in media literacy, media theory, and identity concepts and be able to recall them and relate them to contemporary media performances;
To Interpret media performances across platforms and demonstrate an understanding of the roles of gender and race within them;
To Develop an ability to listen to, and share differences of opinions about challenging social topics through negotiated understandings;
To Produce media that reflect a civil engagement in conversations about social issues and the media;
To Analyze your work and that of others in thoughtful writing, discussion, and media exchanges.

As a graduate student, you will be required to complete all of the undergraduate assignments, plus an additional research assignment at the end of the semester. This will involve making a "video lecture" to the entire class, based on your own area of interest.

I will have more details about that in the modules on this "graduate student only" site. However, I will add you to the enrollment of the undergraduate class so you can get details about the course assignments there.

We will have additional online meetings to review these requirements after we get started. Watch notices from me via REMIND and/or on this site.

Your final grade will be based upon an average of your cumulative grades on the undergraduate assignments with the cumulative points earned for your graduate work.

I am so excited to have you in this class!

Weekly Roadmap

The course is divided into quarterly modules, each with a specific assignment. In addition to these, you will follow the undergraduate [JMC 4853] site for its weekly assignments.