Media Industries

Assignments

Course Participation (10%, 100 pts.)

• Preparation for class, in addition to the quantity and quality of your contribution to class discussions.
• Miscellaneous in-class assignments or quizzes.

Reading Reflections (10%, 100 pts.)

• Students will be directed to write short, informal reflections (150-200 words) to connect course content with readings about contemporary media industry dynamics.
• Students will be expected to share information from their reflections during class for part of this grade.

Short Writing Assignments (40%, 400 pts.)

• Throughout the semester, students will complete 5 short writing assignments, which will build toward the research paper due at the end of the semester.
• These writing assignments introduce various tools and methodologies to help students develop new levels of proficiency when doing research about media industries.
• These assignments are designed to be cumulative, asking students to focus research on one media company or product to consider how it operates in relation to specific industries and industrial practices.
• The point values of these assignments will increase incrementally over the duration of the course.

Research Paper (40%, 400 pts.) DUE on 12/7 by 5:00pm

• Students will write an 8-10 page paper, which will build upon material addressed in several short writing assignments. Your paper should:
  • Provide an argument/thesis developed from the questions you address in Short Writing Assignment #5. In other words, the research you collect in an effort to answer those questions should transform into precise assertions. You will be expected to support your argument through critical analysis, which demonstrates familiarity with the vernacular of media industry studies.
  • Illuminate at least two media industry conditions or practices that pertain to the company/product addressed in your paper.
  • Include a minimum of 12 sources, which should include at least 3 peer-reviewed/scholarly sources (located outside of assigned course readings), 3 trade journal articles, and 3 blog or popular press articles.
• Submission/Formatting Guidlines:
  • Length: 2000-2500 words, excluding footnotes/bibliography
  • File format: PDF
  • File name: Last Name First Name – Assignment Name
  • Document format: double spaced, 12pt font
  • References: you should use The Chicago Manual of Style to provide attributions for any information that does not originate from you (including all general/background information about media companies/products). You should use footnotes for each in-text reference to source material and include an alphabetized list of all sources in a bibliography. Refer to the course website for specific guides to this citation style, but remember:
    • Your first reference to an author/source should include a full citation and a page number (or paragraph number for web sources).
    • Any subsequent reference to an author/source should use a truncated, “short title” format but should still include a page number (or paragraph number for web sources).
    • Your bibliography should include all sources you have cited throughout your paper. These sources should be sorted alphabetically, should reverse the name order for the first author (“Last Name, First Name”), and should include the page range for the entire work if it is part of a larger collection (e.g. books do not include page ranges but you should include the page range for book chapters or journal/newspaper articles).

Grading Breakdown

Grading Criteria

“A” indicates truly exceptional work, which demonstrates command of concepts and theories, presenting them in a well-argued and logically structured manner. “A” work significantly surpasses the expectations of the assignment, is free of spelling and grammatical errors, and does not merely address the questions through a repetition of course material or lectures. It provides fresh, creative, and original perspectives with a unique voice, offering connections between the topic and broader issues and contexts. Superior research skills are demonstrated with relevant citations and quotations advancing the argument.

 

“B” indicates above-average work that clearly achieves the goals of the assignment, providing smart and solid analyses with thoughtful and organized arguments I expect any diligent student to be able to produce. “B” work offers some originality, contains few (if any) typos, spelling errors, or grammatical mistakes, and addresses most questions directly by citing specific materials from the texts and lectures to illustrate points being made.

 

“C” indicates meets the course requirements in an adequate fashion by addressing the questions without sufficient engagement with materials from texts or lectures. “C” work tends to recycle examples from discussion without providing connections to the analysis, contains unfocused, uncritical, or insufficiently supported arguments, and typically contains acceptable but awkward prose with various typos, spelling errors or poorly structured sentences that result in vague arguments.

 

“D” indicates work that is off-topic, poorly written, disorganized and, instead of the course materials, utilizes “personal experience” or inapplicable research materials or support (such as readings obviously applicable in other subjects or classes). In other words, the assignment shows little to no evidence that a student was paying attention in class, does not incorporate materials used in course readings or class discussion, and sounds like a summary or review of materials rather than critically engaged analyses. This type of work may also fall short or far exceed the page limits or time constraints for the assignment and typically contain many spelling and grammatical errors and/or show no signs of being proofread.

 

“F” indicates work that dramatically fails to meet the goals and expectations of the course. “F” work is incoherent, plagiarized, and/or never submitted.