In pursuing their studies, USC Annenberg students' work is guided by the four initiatives enumerated in the school's strategic plan:
- The Public Interest Initiative studies such issues as improving public discourse and political campaigns; using interactive technologies to improve public health news; and the coverage of sexual orientation issues in the news media.
- The Entertainment Initiative focuses on questions of entertainment content and its social impact, and on entertainment media as a window into culture and society.
- The Technology Initiative investigates questions of technology's impact on democracy, governance and public policy; workplace and business practices; production of, and access to, news and information; and community and diverse populations.
- The Global Initiative studies how the emergence of new communication technology, regulation and infrastructure changes government policies and patterns of communication internationally and examines the social and economic consequences of these changes.
Each of the
five focus areas of the doctoral program has groundings in elements of the four strategic initiatives.