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2021/2022

Digital Convergence and Communication Policies

Code: 42442 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
4313227 Media, Communication and Culture OB 0 1
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Maria Corominas Piulats
Email:
Maria.Corominas@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
spanish (spa)

Prerequisites

There are no special prerequisites.

Objectives and Contextualisation

Objectives

Overall objective

To study the evolution of communication and culture policies in the context of technological transformations and the growth in the supply of communications

Specific objectives

To describe and analyze the (mainly public) policies  of communication and culture in the digital context

To identify the main changes of media, linked to technological convergence, business convergence and multimedia convergence

 

Competences

  • Analyse the impact of media groups' strategies of social communication with the aim of promoting new, participative forms of culture and communication.
  • Continue the learning process, to a large extent autonomously.
  • Display a deep, detailed understanding of theoretical and practical principles within the field of communication and culture.
  • Lead and work in interdisciplinary teams.
  • Plan, direct and evaluate policies on culture and communication in both the local and the international fields using the new forms of social communication
  • Use acquired knowledge as a basis for originality in the application of ideas, often in a research context.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Advise on public policies for regulating the systems of communication and culture.
  2. Continue the learning process, to a large extent autonomously.
  3. Define the main features of access rights in the new environment of digital technologies.
  4. Demonstrate understanding of cultural studies theories applied to communication.
  5. Demonstrate understanding of the fundamentals of the political economy of communication.
  6. Demonstrate understanding of the policies of the evolution of communication policies and culture in the last four decades.
  7. Design, plan and direct communication policy actions to solve the problems posed in the new global communication scenarios.
  8. Develop skills towards cooperation between the cultural industries and the media.
  9. Identify the new forms that public service communication must adopt in the digital age.
  10. Lead and work in interdisciplinary teams.
  11. Plan communication actions that can influence the processes of social change.
  12. Plan communication policy actions to fit the new digital communication environment.
  13. Use acquired knowledge as a basis for originality in the application of ideas, often in a research context.

Content

Analysis of communication and culture policies in the context of globalization, digital convergence and new online communication systems.

Study of the evolution of these policies from the 'national communication policies' to the European Union's approaches, information society policies and the UNESCO Convention on cultural diversity.

The emphasis of the course is on the study of the incidence of convergence in the audiovisual field, the public service and the large media groups.

Thematic areas

1. Communication and culture policies. Theoretical aspects (3 sessions)

2. Digital convergence and media (2 sessions)

3. Audiovisual and Digital convergence. Case study (5 sessions)

 

The main geopolitical referents will be Europe and Latin America, with special emphasis on small-scale cultures and the effects that globalization can have on them.

This module guide includes a gender perspective as regarding syllabus content and approach. 

 

Methodology

The course is organized in ten weekly sessions of three hours, where lectures on theoretical contents of the syllabus will be combined with discussions about readings.

Active student participation is required in the form of presentation and commentary on readings.

The calendar detailing the content of the different sessions will be presented on the day of presentation of the module. It will be uploaded to the Virtual Campus, where students will also be able to access the the various teaching materials, and any necessary information for the proper follow-up of the subject.

During one of the classes, the teacher will provide students with 15 minutes to answer the surveys on the teaching performance and the subject or module.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Theoretical sessions and classroom discussions 30 1.2 13, 8, 9
Type: Supervised      
Tutoring sessions and assessment tests 15 0.6 1, 13, 8, 7, 11, 12, 10
Type: Autonomous      
Readings, personal study and written comment 105 4.2 1, 13, 3, 7, 9, 11, 12

Assessment

EVALUATION

The module consists of the following evaluation activities:

  1. Participation in (mimimum) one group presentation of one  reading class. It will represent 25% on the final grade.
  2. Individual written comment (2,500 words) on of a current affairs issue related to the topics of the module. The comment will be shared with the group by moodle. It will represent 20% on the final grade
  3. Assistance and participation in discussions in the classroom. It will represent 10% on the final grade.
  4. Final exam about the theoretical contents and the readings. It will represent 45% on the final grade.

Students will be entitled to the reevaluation of written comment and/or the final examination provided:

a)     They have submitted the comment; they have taken the final examination and they have failed in one or both cases

b)     The weighted grades average is 3,5 (or higher)

 

In the case of students who, according to these criteria, do attend second-chance activities, the final grade of the module will be calculated taking into account the qualification of these activities.

Due to their characteristics, there are no second-chance options for activities 1 and 3.

Evaluation and reevaluation dates will be announced on the day of the presentation of the module. Information will also be uploaded to Virtual Campus.

QUALIFICATIONS ORDINARY REVIEW
In case of disagreement with qualifications, students are entitled to ordinary review of evaluation activities qualifications with the lecturer responsible for the module. The date and time of the ordinary review will be made public in the Virtual Campus.

 

FINAL GRADE EXTROARDINARY REVIEW

In case of disagreement with the final grade qualification, students are entitled to extraordinary review. El alumno/atendrá que presentar, en el plazo de quince días naturales a partir de la publicación de la calificación final, una solicitud razonada al decanato de la Facultat de Ciències de la Comunicació, que se entregará en Gestión académica del Centro. La revisión se hará de acuerdo con las instrucciones sobre revisión extraordinaria aprobadas por la Junta de Facultad del día 5 de mayo de 2016, publicadas en el web de la Facultad: http://www.uab.cat/web/estudiar/grados/informacion-academica/evaluacion/revision-extraordinaria-de-la-calificacion-final-1345717361537.html

Within 15 calendar days of the publication of the final grade students will have to present a reasoned request to the dean of the Faculty of Communication Sciences, which will be delivered to the Academic Management of the Center. The review will be done in accordance with the instructions on extraordinary revision approved by the Faculty Board on May 5, 2016, published on the Faculty website: http://www.uab.cat/web/estudiar/grados/ academic-information / evaluation /revision-extraordinary-de-la-qualification-final-1345717361537.html

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Attending theroretical sessions and participating in classroom discussions 10% 0 0 3, 5, 4, 8, 9
Final examination 45% 0 0 1, 13, 6, 5, 4, 8, 7, 11, 12, 2, 10
Individual written comment related to module topics 20% 0 0 13, 3, 6, 5, 4, 9
Participating in (mimimum) one group presentation in the classroom of one reading 25% 0 0 13, 3, 6, 5, 4, 9

Bibliography

Acerbi, Alberto (2020) Cultural evolution in the digital age. Nueva York: Oxford University Press. Via UAB: https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb2084238?lang=cat

Becerra, Martín; Mastrini, Guillermo (2017). La concentración infocomunicacional en América Latina (2000-2015). Bernal: Universidad Nacional de Quilmes.

Birkinbine, Benjamin J.; Gómez, Rodrigo & Wasko, Janet (2016) Global Media Giants. Nova York; Londres: Routledge http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&AN=1271614 [Via UAB]

Bonet, Montse (coord.) (2016) El imperio del aire. Espectro radioeléctrico y radiodifusión. Barcelona, Editorial UOC.

Bulck, Hilde van; Puppis, Manuel; Simpson, Seamus (eds.) (2016) European Media Policy for the Twenty First Century. assessing the past, setting the agendas for the future. Nueva York: Routledge. Via UAB https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb1992312?lang=cat

Bulck, Hilde van den; Puppis, Manuel; Donders, Karen; Audenhove, Leo van (2019) The Palgrave Handbook of Media Policy Research. Nueva York: Palgrave Macmillan. Via UAB https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb2002966?lang=cat

Bustamante, Enrique (coord.) (2017). Informe sobre el estado de la cultura en España. Igualdad y diversidad en la era digital [ICE 2017] Madrid: Observatorio de Cultura y Comunicación. Fundación Alternativas. http://www.fundacionalternativas.org/public/storage/publicaciones_archivos/6cd717bd9f96c0d102a67139fa3ea3ac.pdf

Chadwick, A. (2013-09-03). The Contemporary Contexts of Hybridity. In The Hybrid Media System: Politics and Power. : Oxford University Press, https://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199759477.001.0001/acprof-9780199759477-chapter-4.

Consell de l’Audiovisual de Catalunya (2008-2009). Convergència tecnològica i audiovisual. Quaderns del CAC, 31-32. https://www.cac.cat/acords-recerca/revista-quaderns-del-cac (en català, en castellà i en anglès)

Corominas, Maria (2017). "La política audiovisual de la Unión Europea", a Fernández Alonso, Isabel (ed.) Austeridad y clientelismo. Política audiovisual en España en el contexto mediterráneo y de la crisis financiera, Barcelona, Gedisa, p. 69-93 Via UAB https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb2084646?lang=cat

Cuilenburg, Jan van; Denis McQuail (2003). Media Policy Paradigm Shifts. Towards a New Communications Policy Paradigm. European Journal of Communication, vol. 18(2), p. 181-207

Donders, Karen; Pawels, Caroline; Loisen, Jan (eds.) (2014) The Palgrave Handbook of European Media Policy. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.Via UAB https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb2084411?lang=cat

Dragomir, Marius; Thompson, Mark (eds.) (2014): Maping Digital Media Global Findings. Digital Journalism. Making News, Breaking News. New York:  Open Society Foundations, July <http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/sites/default/files/mapping-digital-media-overviews-20140828.pdf>

Dwyer, Tim (2010) Media Convergence. Maidenhead, Berks. : McGraw-Hill : Open University Press

Flew, Terry; Iosifidis, Petros; Steemers,Jeanette (2016). Global media and national policies: The return of the state. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Via UAB https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb2002966?lang=cat

Freedman, Des (2008) The Politics of Media Policy. Cambridge: Polity Press. 

Freedman, Des (2015) Paradigms of Media Power. Communication, Culture & Critique, 8, p.273-289

Hirst, Martin (2019) Navigating social journalism: a handbook for media literacy and citizen journalism. Nueva York: Rougledge. Via UAB: https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb2071839?lang=cat

Hunt, Robert; McKelvey, Fenwick (2019) Algorithmic Regulation in Media and Cultural Policy: A Framework to Evaluate Barriers to Accountability Journal of Information Policy , 2019, Vol. 9 (2019), p. 307-335 https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/jinfopoli.9.2019.0307

Iosifidis, Petros (2011). Global media and communication policy. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Jin, Dal Yong (2013). De-convergence of global media industries. Nova York-Londres:Routlegde. Via UAB: https://cataleg.uab.cat/iii/encore/record/C__Rb2084414?lang=cat

Lazer, D.M. et al (2018, 9 mar) The science of fake news, Science vol. 359:6380, p.1094-1097

Mosco, V. (2017). Becoming digital : Toward a post-internet society. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com

Pickard Robert (2017) Essential Principles for Contemporary Media and Communication Policymaking Oxford: Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism.

Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (2021): Digital News Report 2020 Oxford:Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. Universityof Oxford. http://www.digitalnewsreport.org/

Storsul, Tanja; Dagny Stuedahl (eds.) (2007). Ambivalence towards convergence: Digitalization and media change. Göteborg: Nordicom.

Shäfer, Mirko Tobias; van Es, Karin (2017) The Datafied Society. Studying Culture through Data Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.

Tresserras, Joan Manuel (2010). Polítiques de comunicació i cultura i construcció nacional. Barcelona: Generalitat de Catalunya.

Waisbord, Silvio (2013) Media policies and the blindspots of media globalization: insights from Latin America, Media, Culture & Society, 35(1), p.132-138

Software

Office