From Barbie to Beyoncé, from theater screen to smartphone, via local network or streaming platform, from fan fiction to fan convention, and traversing borders of nation and continent, popular media culture influences the everyday world around us. Making sense of the always shifting array of media-centered leisure activities and cultural expressions in this “everyday world” is the focus of the Concentration in Media and Popular Culture.
Popular media culture is also the place where contemporary issues often surface, so the ability to decode, interpret, and articulate informed assertions about this culture requires a specific set of analytical skills. The Media and Popular Culture concentration provides the theoretical knowledge, historical grounding, and methodological instruction for analyzing and understanding the appeal of cultural phenomena in cinema, television, music, and new media. The concentration also provides students with critical thinking skills that potential employers highly value.
In our interdisciplinary graduate seminars, students investigate such topics as media theory, fan culture, diversity and inclusion, media literacy, media histories and industries, and media and cultural politics. Incorporating both the aesthetic and the political dimensions of popular culture, our courses also examine the social impact of new media technologies and media’s role in the formation of identities.
The concentration will be interest to those who are preparing for Ph.D. programs in media studies, cinema and television studies, and popular cultural studies. Many of our graduates have also gone on to pursue careers in such areas as media content production, copywriting, and social media messaging. With its emphasis upon learning to structure defensible arguments and to excel at problem-solving, the program also serves as most suitable preparation for any career that requires such skills.
Course Requirements
The MA in Communication and Media with a concentration in Media and Popular Culture requires a total of 12 courses, 48 credit hours, for completion. Students must complete the following requirements:
- Three core courses
- One methods course
- Four Media and Popular Culture electives
- One Applied Communication elective
- Three graduate level electives
Media and Popular Culture Concentration Core Courses
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Students must take the following core courses: | 12 | |
| FOUNDATIONS IN GRADUATE COMMUNICATION STUDIES | ||
| APPLIED COMMUNICATION: THEORIES AND CASES | ||
| MEDIA AND CULTURAL STUDIES | ||
Media and Popular Culture Concentration Methods Requirement
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Students must take one methods course: | ||
| MPOP 503 | CRITICAL ANALYSIS | 4 |
Media and Popular Culture Concentration Elective Courses
Students must take a minimum of 4 Media and Popular Culture electives (16 credit hours). Topics courses can be taken multiple times for credit as long as the specific topic differs each time.
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Select four Media and Popular Culture electives: | 16 | |
| FILM AND MEDIA THEORY | ||
| DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN MEDIA | ||
| MEDIA LITERACY | ||
| TOPICS IN MEDIA STUDIES | ||
| TOPICS IN GLOBAL FILM & MEDIA | ||
| NEW MEDIA AND CULTURE | ||
| AUDIO DOCUMENTARY | ||
| TOPICS IN PRODUCTION | ||
| FANDOM AND ACTIVE AUDIENCES | ||
| DIGITAL MEDIA ETHICS | ||
Applied Communication Elective
Students in the Media and Popular Culture concentration must take a minimum of 1 Applied Communication Elective (4 credits).
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Students must take 1 Applied Communication elective: | 4 | |
| COMMUNICATION IN CULTURAL CONTEXTS | ||
| TOPICS IN APPLIED COMMUNICATION | ||
| GENDERED COMMUNICATION | ||
| INSTRUCTIONAL DEVELOPMENT | ||
| ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE | ||
| COMMUNICATION AND TECHNOLOGY | ||
| TEAMS, DIVERSITY AND LEADERSHIP | ||
| COLLABORATION FOR SOCIAL IMPACT | ||
| WORK/LIFE COMMUNICATION AND WELLNESS | ||
| DATA-DRIVEN DECISION MAKING IN COMMUNICATION | ||
| COMMUNICATION CAMPAIGNS FOR SOCIAL CHANGE | ||
General Electives
Students in the Media and Popular Culture Concentration must take a minimum of 3 general electives (12 credits). These electives can come from any of the Media and Popular Culture concentration electives, any of the Applied Communication concentration electives, and up to 2 electives can be an outside elective from a graduate program outside of Communication and Media. Outside electives must be approved by advisor or graduate program director.
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Students in the Media and Popular Culture concentration must take 3 general electives. | 12 | |
| FILM AND MEDIA THEORY | ||
| DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN MEDIA | ||
| MEDIA LITERACY | ||
| TOPICS IN MEDIA STUDIES | ||
| TOPICS IN GLOBAL FILM & MEDIA | ||
| NEW MEDIA AND CULTURE | ||
| AUDIO DOCUMENTARY | ||
| TOPICS IN PRODUCTION | ||
| FANDOM AND ACTIVE AUDIENCES | ||
| DIGITAL MEDIA ETHICS | ||
| COMMUNICATION IN CULTURAL CONTEXTS | ||
| TOPICS IN APPLIED COMMUNICATION | ||
| GENDERED COMMUNICATION | ||
| INSTRUCTIONAL DEVELOPMENT | ||
| ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE | ||
| COMMUNICATION AND TECHNOLOGY | ||
| TEAMS, DIVERSITY AND LEADERSHIP | ||
| COLLABORATION FOR SOCIAL IMPACT | ||
| WORK/LIFE COMMUNICATION AND WELLNESS | ||
| DATA-DRIVEN DECISION MAKING IN COMMUNICATION | ||
| COMMUNICATION CAMPAIGNS FOR SOCIAL CHANGE | ||