Course Catalog

The course is taught as a directed study by the chair of the CSMES department or by a faculty member appointed by the chair. The course requires students approaching completion of their Environmental Studies Major course sequence to assemble all their undergraduate academic achievements into a coherent body of work, linked by overarching themes and goals, leading to a proposal for a senior project

Internships may be taken for 1 or 4 credits. Students may do more than one internship, but internship credit cannot cumulatively total more than 4 credits.

Topics vary by semester.

Concentrates on the production, social reproduction and effects of the mass media, drawing on the theories of classical sociologists, including Marx and Weber, as well as more contemporary ones including Bourdieu, Habermas and Lazarsfeld, and Merton. Students learn to think sociologically and critically about diverse mass media, including the print media, radio, television and the Internet. Use of course Web site and small group discussions facilitates the accessing and understanding of peer-reviewed articles in contemporary media sociology. Students develop a reflexive awareness of their own role in media production and consumption.