EMORY UNIVERSITY. Sociology 343 MASS MEDIA AND SOCIAL INFLUENCES. 2:30 3: Tarbutton Hall Office Hours: 1:00-3:00 (T)

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1 EMORY UNIVERSITY Sociology 343 MASS MEDIA AND SOCIAL INFLUENCES Spring 2016 Dr. Timothy J. Dowd Monday / Wednesday 231 Tarbutton Hall (x6259) 2:30 3:45 tdowd@emory.edu 218 Tarbutton Hall Office Hours: 1:00-3:00 (T) Graduate Assistant: John Bernau; john.bernau@emory.edu COURSE DESCRIPTION In this course, we examine the history and nature of mass media in four sections. (1) We begin by considering the social implications of new forms of media, heeding the roles that competition, technology and regulation played in the historical spread of such forms. (2) We then examine how current media industries are organized and likewise consider the implications of the extensive commercialism that can accompany this current organization. (3) We focus next on the content of media products and investigate factors that promote or inhibit both the diversity of content and its consecration by critics and others. (4) Finally, we consider the audience for mass media products and inspect how they are affected by and actively use media content. A) Attendance COURSE REQUIREMENTS You are strongly encouraged to attend class, especially because we use class time to integrate the assigned readings and to present additional information not found in the readings. Regular attendance, moreover, will raise your final grade. If you miss only one class during the semester, I will add two points to your final grade. If you miss only two classes, I will add one point. B) Written Assignments You are required to complete four written assignments: one major paper and three short memos. The paper involves a research project that you will complete over the course of the semester. You may choose your paper topic from a list that I will circulate on February 29 or you may propose a topic of your own (subject to my approval) by March 16. In either case, an outline of your paper is due on April 6 and the completed paper is due on May 6 (although it may be submitted before that date). This 8- to 10-page paper is worth 25% of your final grade. The 1

2 memos will help you prepare for the examinations. In these 3-page assignments, you will synthesize the readings and the issues that emerge as the class progresses. The due dates for the memos, as well as the dates for when I distribute memo questions, are listed below. The memos will comprise 15% of your final grade (5% each). Note that I will distribute a total of four memo assignments, but you are required to complete only three. C) Final Paper You are also required to take two examinations a midterm and a non-cumulative final. Both exams consist of short-answer and essay questions. Prior to each exam, I will distribute a handout that will help you prepare for the test. Each exam will be worth 30% of your final grade. The midterm examination occurs on March 2 during class time. The final examination occurs on May 3 from 3:00 5:00 pm. D) Honor Code The Emory University honor code applies fully to this course. When you sign an exam or submit your assignments, you are pledging to the honor code. For reference, please consult: COURSE RESOURCES As the semester progresses, class materials (e.g., syllabus, overheads) will be posted on the Blackboard site for SOC 343 (see The assigned readings are drawn from many sources, so there is no textbook. Instead, the required readings will be available at both our Blackboard site and at Woodruff electronic reserves (see If you have any special needs, please contact me at the beginning of the semester and we will discuss the necessary arrangements (for additional information, visit the Emory Office of Equity and Inclusion website; see COURSE SCHEDULE (subject to revision) SECTION ONE: CONCEPTUALIZING THE IMPACT OF MASS MEDIA January 13: Introductions 2

3 Construction of Media Industries: Competition, Regulation & Technology at Play January 18: January 20: January 25: January 27: NO CLASS Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Heather A. Haveman Antebellum Literary Culture and the Evolution of American Magazines. Poetics 32: Stephen J. Mezias and Elizabeth Boyle Blind Trust: Market Control, Legal Environments, and the Dynamics of Competitive Intensity in the Early Film Industry, Administrative Science Quarterly 50: Jin Kim The Institutionalization of YouTube: From User- Generated Content to Professionally Generated Content. Media, Culture & Society 34: MEMO QUESTION #1 DISTRIBUTED SECTION TWO: MASS MEDIA PRODUCERS Organization of Current Media Industries: Consolidation and Bigness February 1: February 3: Janet Wasko Understanding Disney: The Manufacture of Fantasy. Cambridge: Polity Press. Chapter 3. Video Viewing: The Pixar Story MEMO QUESTION #1 DUE February 8: February 10: Amanda D. Lotz How to Spend $9.3 Billion in Three Days: Examining the Upfront Buying Process in the Production of U.S. Television Culture. Media, Culture & Society 29: Pacey C. Foster Mobile Project Networks: Regional Dynamics in the U.S. Film and Television Industry. Work & Occupations 40: Organization of Current Media Industries: Commercialism and Its Implications February 15: Kim de Laat Write a Word, Get a Third : Managing Conflict an Rewards in Professional Songwriting Teams. Work & Occupations 42:

4 February 15: MEMO QUESTION #2 DISTRIBUTED February 17: February 22: Daya Kishan Thussu The Murdochization of News? The Case of Star TV in India. Media, Culture & Society 29: Gabriel Rossman Elites, Masses, and Media Blacklists: The Dixie Chicks Controversy. Social Forces 83: MEMO QUESTION #2 DUE February 24: Video Viewing: Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing. TEST PREPARATION SHEET DISTRIBUTED February 29: Video Viewing: Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing. RESEARCH TOPICS DISTRIBUTED March 2: MID-TERM EXAMINATION March 7 & 9: SPRING BREAK (No Class Meetings) SECTION THREE: MASS MEDIA PRODUCTS Gatekeepers and the Diversity of Content March 14: March 16: Thomas Franssen and Giselinde Kuipers Coping with Uncertainty, Abundance and Strife: Decision-Making Processes of Dutch Acquisition Editors in the Global Market for Translations. Poetics 41: Janice McCabe, Emily Fairchild, Liz Grauerholz, Bernice A. Pescosolido and Daniel Tope Gender in Twentieth-Century Children s Books: Patterns of Disparity in Titles and Central Characters. Gender & Society 25: ALTERNATIVE RESEARCH TOPIC DUE 4

5 March 21: Junhow Wei Mass Media and the Localization of Emotional Display: The Case of China s Next Top Model. American Journal of Cultural Sociology 2: MEMO QUESTION #3 DISTRIBUTED Gatekeepers and the Consecration of Content March 23: March 28: Shyon Bauman Intellectualization and Art World Development: Film in the United States. American Sociological Review 66: Vaughn Schmutz Social and Symbolic Boundaries in Newspaper Coverage of Music, : Gender and Genre in the U.S., France, Germany and the Netherlands. Poetics 37: MEMO QUESTION #3 DUE March 30: Timothy J. Dowd, Vaughn Schmutz, Dan Semenza, Dionne Parris & Trent Ryan Consecration beyond the Mainstream: The Creation of a Progressive Rock Canon. American Behavioral Scientist (forthcoming). SECTION FOUR: MEDIA AUDIENCES The Active Audience: The Formation of Tastes and Opinions April 4: Melissa A. Milkie Social Comparisons, Reflected Appraisals, and Mass Media: The Impact of Pervasive Beauty Images on Black and White Girls Self-Concepts. Social Psychology Quarterly 62: April 6: Giselinde Kuipers Beauty and Distinction? The Evaluation of Appearance and Cultural Capital in Five European Countries. Poetics 53: RESEARCH PAPER OUTLINE DUE 5

6 April 11: Sam Friedman Cultural Omnivores or Culturally Homeless? Exploring the Shifting Cultural Identities of the Upwardly Mobile. Poetics 40: The Active Audience: The Formation of Connections and Communities April 13: John O Brien Muslim American Youth and Secular Hip Hop: Manifesting Cool Piety through Musical Practices. Poetics 41: MEMO QUESTION #4 DISTRIBUTED April 18: April 20: Steven J. Tepper and Eszter Hargittai Pathways to Musical Exploration in a Digital Age. Poetics 37: Eden Litt and Eszter Hargittai Smile, Snap and Share? A Nuanced Approach to Privacy and Online Photo-Sharing. Poetics 42: MEMO QUESTION #4 DUE April 25: Minjeong Kim, Yun-Cheol Heo, Seong-Cheol Choi and Han Woo Park Comparative Trends in Global Communication Networks of #Kpop Tweets. Quality & Quantity 48: TEST PREPARATION SHEET DISTRIBUTED May 3: FINAL EXAMINATION: 3:00 5:30 pm May 6: FINAL PAPER DUE (5:00 pm) 6