The College of Communication currently features multiple classes across many programs and curricula that all focus on the idea of "cult" media or subcultural audiences--that is, aspects of culture that are separate from, or differentiate themselves from the mainstream, or that present new ways of examining consumers and the emotional resonance of various media products on contemporary audiences. Courses that focus on genre films and television, audience analysis, affect, and cult products span the Media and Cinema Studies program, the Journalism program, the Public Relations and Advertising program, and the Communication Studies program. The Fandom, Cult Media, and Subcultural Studies minor will unite these courses under one banner in order to provide interested students with a focused concentration on fandom and cult media. The purpose of this minor is to allow students to understand how audiences and media producers design media texts to confront and challenge contemporary ideologies, to offer alternatives to the mainstream, and to engineer deliberate affective reactions in audiences.
A minor in Fandom, Cult Media, and Subcultural Studies requires students to complete a total of six courses (24 credit hours).
Course Requirements
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MCS 261 | INTRODUCTION TO FAN STUDIES | 4 |
| MCS 271 | MEDIA AND CULTURAL STUDIES | 4 |
| Select four of the following: | 16 | |
| TOPICS IN PERFORMANCE (requires departmental approval) | ||
| SPECIAL TOPICS IN JOURNALISM (requires departmental approval) | ||
| TRANSMEDIA STORYTELLING: BUILDING A NARRATIVE WORLD | ||
| COMICS STUDIES | ||
| BAH HUMBUG! CHRISTMAS MOVIES/TV AND MEDIA METHODS | ||
| TOPICS IN FILM GENRE (requires departmental approval) | ||
| TOPICS IN TELEVISION STUDIES (requires departmental approval) | ||
| TOPICS IN NEW MEDIA (requires departmental approval) | ||
| TOPICS IN MEDIA STUDIES (requires departmental approval) | ||
| TOPICS IN COMICS STUDIES | ||
| TOPICS IN CULT STUDIES | ||
| B-MOVIES | ||
| FANDOM & PARTICIPATORY CULTURE | ||
| TOPICS IN FAN STUDIES | ||
| MONSTERS IN POPULAR CULTURE | ||
| SPORTS FANDOM | ||
| MUSIC INDUSTRIES AND CULTURE | ||
| TIME TRAVEL ON TELEVISION | ||
| BOARD GAMES AS MEDIA | ||
| DIVERSITY & CURRENT ISSUES IN ADVERTISING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS | ||
| BRAND ACTIVATION AND CONSUMER PROMOTION | ||
| BRANDED CONTENT | ||