Special Topics
Check back each semester for new Special Topic courses.
Fall 2024
Communication Studies
Research and theory organized around the inextricable link between communication processes (including message production and reception) and the development of romantic/intimate relationships emerged under the rubric “relational communication” in the early to mid-1980’s.
Cinematic Arts
CCA 394 section 5U
This course will explore a selection of Hollywood films released between the 1970s-2000s that were initially overlooked or underappreciated but have since gained recognition as modest/major masterpieces. Through in-depth analysis and contextualization within the social, cultural, and economic landscapes of their respective time periods, students will gain a deeper understanding of why these films failed to resonate with audiences initially and why they are now celebrated as cinematic treasures.
CCA 494/795 section 4J
This course explores the international history of cinema and media, with a particular focus on the pioneering cinematic innovations by people of African descent from the late nineteenth century to the present. In the course, we approach the practice of Black film, including the production and conceptual work of directors, performers, writers, and more, as part of a global, multi-locational system of circulation, citation, imagination, and exchange.
Podcast Storytelling affords students the opportunity to develop a new wave of audio content, create virtual gathering spaces and has the potential to create new audiences. Students will produce projects as either stand-alone or episodic and will publish their projects on a hosting site.
Interactive Media
Journalism & Media Management
JMM 306 section 4J
JMM 592 section S
Students will learn to create basic animations, special effects, and motion graphics using Adobe After Effects through project-based instruction relevant to both beginners and experienced users.
Strategic Communication
STC 290 section 1P
This class will examine the extraordinary success of the Taylor Swift brand, as well as the advertising, PR, social media, and business-oriented tactics Taylor Swift has used to build and grow her multicultural, multigenerational, worldwide fanbase. We will look at Taylor’s music and lyrics, her methods of communication, her planting of Easter eggs, and other unique ways she engages with, communicates with, and teases(!) her fans. The class also will apply the Taylor Swift phenomenon to help students understand important tenets of mass communication and freedom of expression, including the limits of the First Amendment, the right to privacy for public figures versus ordinary citizens, media coverage of celebrities and the proliferation of fake news, intellectual property, and defamation. And finally, we will discuss how Taylor Swift continues to use the power of her brand to help others in need, as well as to promote social, economic, and political good. The class has no prerequisites and is open to all majors!
This class introduces students to the workings of advertising in the digital era. In this class, students will learn strategic frameworks that apply to consumers in digital, learn the basics of digital technologies, platforms, and measurements. Students will also apply their knowledge by analyzing consumer behaviors in the digital era and developing a strategic advertising plan. You will learn how to approach digital platforms from the consumer’s perspective, and practice critical and strategic thinking skills to solve advertising problems as a strategist, using conceptual, technological, and analytical skills.