Reflection #1 (50pts, DUE 1/24)

You will do research on one media/technology corporation and, in a 300 to 600-word document, summarize the following:

  1. Examine the company website to determine how it constructs (or contributes to) a corporate image. Rather than detailing what you see on the website (e.g. a pithy description of the company or links to information about media/technology products), describe how the company utilizes the site to convey a specific “image” and “identity” to the public (e.g. a corporate aesthetic/style; corporate priorities based upon information they choose to include/exclude; how featured stories and press releases emphasize what the corporation deems newsworthy; information provided to current/future investors in quarterly reports, etc.).
  2. What is the company’s mission statement? If it is explicitly stated, you can cut&paste (or summarize). If a mission statement is not explicitly stated, you need to determine what functions as an implicit mission statement (but make sure you have searched to verify if a mission statement exists).
  3. Pick the person at the top of the corporate ladder (typically a CEO or Chairperson). Locate this person’s biographical information from credible online sources and list her/his past three work positions (the company may not change if s/he changed ranks in the same corporation).
  4. What other companies or brands are included in the corporate portfolio? If the company has many subsidiaries, just include a few examples for each division of media/technology.
  5. Is the company currently hiring for any positions that describe a need/desire for entry-level college graduates? If so, what types of positions and do they require specific degrees or skill sets?

NOTE: It will be more difficult for you to locate all of this information about private companies because they are not obligated to report information to shareholders (or the public) when they are not publicly traded.

Reflection #2 (70pts, DUE 2/14)

You will choose one “product” created by a media/technology company and submit a 300 to 600-word document about how this product operates within the circuit of culture model (p. 134-136). The product you select will vary depending on the company you choose (e.g. a television network series sold on DVD, a new laptop, a comic book app for a mobile phone, etc.) and could be a product of the company you wrote about in the previous assignment.

Your explanation can begin with any process in the circuit of culture but you should determine the most logical/effective way to describe the following:

  • The inception of the product (as an idea or continuation of the company product line) and if this product provides a particular representation for the company or the consumer.
  • How this product impacts consumer or corporate identity.
  • The production of the object, which could include information about how it was made, the media/technological innovations necessary for its creation, etc.
  • At least one way regulation has played a part in the creation or selling of the product; you can address enforced (e.g. governmental), formal (e.g. industrial norms), or informal (e.g. company specific) regulation.
  • How the product is meant to be or has been consumed.

You must locate (at least) two popular articles/blog posts to support your explanation. Be sure to use in-text citations in your essay to note where you located the information about each of these elements within the circuit of culture and include a works cited/bibliography with full citations at the end of your assignment.

Reflection #3 (90 pts, DUE 2/23)

NOTE: This assignment is divided into three parts. Complete each part of the assignment before proceeding to the next.

PART 1, Instructions: Make a decision about the company/product you want to write about in assignments three through five.

PART 1, Assignment: Provide a question you want to explore about the economic conditions of the company/product.

PART 2, Instructions: You will explore how this question is addressed from the perspective of one industry trade publication (they are listed under the heading “Media Trade Publications” and include sources like Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Gamasutra, Computer Magazine, etc.). After you choose one publication, search for four articles published in the past two years about your company/product (I will only allow you to read articles published before 2016 if the product/company you have chosen was not written about in trade journals during the past year). The key to this assignment is your article selection. Do not just select the first four results from your search query; instead, browse through the results to find articles relevant to the research question you provided in PART 1 as well as your interests about the company/product.

PART 2, Assignment: Continuing after your research question in PART 1, provide the following:

  • One list of keywords / search terms used to locate articles. This list should be specific and should not change from one article to the next. (If you struggle to find articles about your company/product, try to search for different words, such as a director’s name, the name of a company executive, the category for your product, etc.)
  • A citation for all four articles you found most relevant to your research questions. [e.g. Author. “Article Title,” Name of Publication. Day Month Year. Page Number (if applicable). Weblink.]

Read these articles, select two and provide:

  • a 1-2 sentence summary about the subject of the article/post.
  • a 2-3 sentence argument about why the topic of the article is newsworthy (for the company/industry).

PART 3, Assignment: Continuing after your article summaries in PART 2, provide the following:

  • A 2-3 sentence assessment of this trade publication as a pertinent source for your topic. (e.g. Did a lot of articles seem relevant? What makes the articles seem objective or did something convey a limited point-of-view? etc.)
  • A 2-3 sentence description about how this research may (or may not) have addressed your question in PART 1 and how you will alter or enhance your search for information in the next research assignment. (e.g. Did you find different descriptions/keywords used amongst industry insiders? Was your company/product only discussed in particular contexts? Did you realize you would prefer to write about a different company/product? etc.)

Reflection #4 (90 pts; DUE 3/2)

Provide a question you want to explore about technological conditions (or technological changes) that affect the company/product you wrote about in Reflection #3. You will aim to find out more information about this question by doing research in the Nexis Uni Database (formerly Lexis-Nexis). Begin by searching for three relevant articles from different national news publications. After you have selected three articles,

  • Read each article and provide:
    • a citation using the Chicago style. [For a newspaper: Last Name, First Name. “Article Title,” Name of Publication. Month Day, Year. Page Number.]
    • a 1-2 sentence assessment of the publication.
    • a 1-2 sentence summary of the article.
    • a 2-3 sentence argument about why this topic is newsworthy (for the company/industry).
  • Provide a list of search terms that resulted in the articles you selected. This should be the final string of search terms rather than a random list of search terms you used in different searches.
  • In 3-4 sentences, describe what insight this research provided about your question.
  • In 3-4 sentences, clarify how you would describe these news sources as similar to and different from the trade journal you used as a source for research in Reflection #3.

NOTE: Part of the challenge in this assignment will arise while trying to determine/identify appropriate search terms. The most relevant articles will emerge when you refine search terms; these tips will help you construct a more refined string of terms when searching within most databases:

  • Use quotation marks to indicate when you are searching for an entire phrase (e.g. “Walt Disney Pictures”)
  • Use the word “AND” to combine two or more search terms (e.g. “Walt Disney Pictures” AND “Pixar” AND “Finding Nemo”)
  • Use the word “NOT” to exclude search terms—but use this with caution to avoid excluding pertinent articles (e.g. “Walt Disney Pictures” AND “Pixar” AND “Finding Nemo” NOT “Monster’s Inc.”)

Reflection #5 (150pts, DUE 3/21)

This assignment requires to you to revisit (or revise) what you wrote about the Circuit of Culture in Reflection #2. For this assignment, you will submit a 600 to 900-word document to address how the product/company you wrote about in Reflections #3 & 4 operates within the Circuit of Culture model. You will be expected to synthesize/revise information from your previous assignments and you will be required to integrate a variety of sources to support your descriptions and arguments.

As a reminder, address all five processes in the Circuit of Culture model: representation, identity, production, regulation, and consumption. You can describe these processes in any order, but aim to clearly and logically address when they interconnect and influence each other.

Your reference/source material should include (at least):

  • 2 blog posts
  • 2 newspaper articles
  • 4 trade journal articles
  • 2 scholarly/academic sources (these must be journal articles or books from the perspective of media/technology studies)

You should provide full, in-text citations using the Footnote format from the Chicago Manual of Style. You do not need to provide a bibliography at the end because you will be providing complete citations in the footnotes.