Ford Risley Assistant Professor
College of Communications
211 Carnegie Building
(814) 865-2181 (Office)
Office Hours: Monday & Tuesday, 1-3 p.m.
PURPOSE
The course provides an overview of the historical development of America's mass media. We will explore how the mass media have influenced and been influenced by the events that have shaped American history. We also will look at examples illustrating the mass media's contributions to society, as well its failure sometimes to respond appropriately at critical times in history. The goal is to have an understanding of how the mass media came to be the institution it is today and what we might expect in the future.
TEXTBOOKS
The textbook for the course is Mightier than the Sword by Rodger Streitmatter (Westview Press, 1997). As noted in the schedule, handouts will be used to supplement the readings from time to time.
ATTENDANCE
Class discussion is a major part of the course, so regular class attendance is essential to your success. Repeated absences will have an adverse effect on your grade. Only legitimate and documented excuses are acceptable reasons for missing a class. If you have to miss a test or assignment for a legitimate reason, you must notify me before class.
GRADING
Course grades will be based on the following: Exam #1 (25 percent); Exam #2 (25 percent); Exam #3 (25 percent); Journal / Participation (25 percent).
No extra credit assignments will be given under any circumstances. Mid-term grades are not posted, but if you have any questions about how you are doing in the class at any point during the semester, please do not hesitate to talk to me.
MEDIA HISTORY JOURNAL
Everyone will keep a weekly media history journal. The entries for the journal will be posted on the class web site at least one week in advance and will vary according to the topic we are covering. Some weeks you will be asked to respond to the reading from the text. Other weeks you will need to find an article in a scholarly journal, read an old newspaper, or search a media history web site. All journals must be kept in a folder and the assignments identified with the entry date. Journals will be turned in every Friday in class. No journals can be turned in later without a documented excuse.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly and creative activity in an open, honest and responsible manner, free from fraud and deception, and is an educational objective of the College of Communications and the university. Cheating, including plagiarism, falsification of research data, using the same assignment for more than one class, turning in someone else's work, or passively allowing others to copy your work, will result in academic penalties at the discretion of the instructor, and may result in the grade of "XF" (failed for academic dishonesty) being put on your permanent transcript. In serious cases it could also result in suspension or dismissal from the university.
As students studying communication, you should understand and avoid plagiarism (presenting the work of others as your own). The rules and policies regarding academic integrity should be reviewed by every student, and can be found online at: www.psu.edu/ufs/policies/47-00.html#49-20, and in the College of Communications document, "Academic Integrity Policy and Procedures." Any student with a question about academic integrity or plagiarism is strongly encouraged to discuss it with his or her instructor.
SOME FINAL THOUGHTS
I am a big believer that anyone interested in going into the mass media as a profession should have an understanding and appreciation of its history. And even if you are not interested in working in the mass media, you will be consumers of the media all your life, so you need to be aware of the media landscape back when most cities had competing newspapers or when television burst onto the scene. Your participation is key to the success of the class. I encourage you to come to class prepared to discuss, ask questions, and argue. I want to make studying mass media history enriching and interesting.
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Last modified August 14, 2001.