CJN 771

NEW MEDIA, NEW MARKETS (Graduate Level)

This course interrogates the ways in which new media are shaping contemporary communication systems and, correspondingly, how markets (audiences, consumers, publics, communities) are responding to and influencing those shifts. In particular, we will pay close attention to our visual culture and the developing field of visual communication as it relates to new media technologies. In this class we will explore visual literacy, interface design, web usability, critical evaluation of the visual experience, and ethics as they relate to the use of images and information in new media. Using case studies and examples from an array of fields (graphic arts, photography, film, publishing, industrial engineering, product design, advertising, branding and marketing, etc…), we will employ a diversity of theories to help us decipher how meaning is created, communicated and interpreted.

Syllabus: Course purpose, attendance policy, grading structure and contact information (PDF document).

Assignments: Weekly reading assignments.

Overheads: Visual and audio examples from class.

Mid-Term Exam (35%): Take-home essay exam due in class on October 11th.

Visual Ethnography (30%): Due in class on November 15th.

Final Exam/Portfolio (35%): Due in class on December 13th.

Class Gallery: Excerpts from students' final exam portfolios.