Overview

This unit examines the history of media and politics. With a primary emphasis on the ways that governments impede, censor or manipulate the news media, students are encouraged to consider how propaganda becomes news, through the framing and manipulation of information. An examination of these processes in an historical context enables students to gain an understanding of the tenuous nature of freedom of information and the complexities of mediated democracies.

Requisites

Teaching Periods
Location
Start and end dates
Last self-enrolment date
Census date
Last withdraw without fail date
Results released date
Semester 2
Location
Hawthorn
Start and end dates
29-July-2024
27-October-2024
Last self-enrolment date
11-August-2024
Census date
31-August-2024
Last withdraw without fail date
13-September-2024
Results released date
03-December-2024

Learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:

  • Critically review the competing paradigms about mass media, politics, public opinion and propaganda
  • Illustrate patterns of bias in the media and the relationship between media bias and propaganda
  • Demonstrate how mass media organisations influence the political process
  • Evaluate manipulation of news content by governments and media
  • Construct an informed, critical appraisal of the role of the media and propaganda in democratic societies

Teaching methods

Hawthorn

Type Hours per week Number of weeks Total (number of hours)
On-campus
Lecture
1.00 12 weeks 12
On-campus
Class
2.00 12 weeks 24
Specified Activities
Various
5.83 12 weeks 70
Unspecified Activities
Independent Learning
3.67 12 weeks 44
TOTAL150

Assessment

Type Task Weighting ULO's
EssayIndividual 40% 1,2,3,4,5 
Research ProjectIndividual 40% 1,2,3,4,5 
Tutorial PaperIndividual 20% 1,2,3 

Content

Themes examine case studies in the construction of propaganda and the relationship between media and politics in their historical contexts.

Study resources

Reading materials

A list of reading materials and/or required textbooks will be available in the Unit Outline on Canvas.