The courses in this track provide an overview to theories of media
studies, media effects and cultural studies, including both social
science methodologies of media analysis and humanities theories of
cultural analysis.
The area introduces students to a broad array of
theories of media and culture that provide the basis for analyzing
television, the Internet, new media forms, advertising and other
cultural artifacts and events. We explore the production, reception and
critique of visual culture in commercial, technological and popular
forms. Analysis focuses on the production practices and consumption
patterns of media within and across communities.
For example,
Metamorphosis is a long-term research study that trains
students in social research methods, thereby enabling them to explore,
in depth, communication uses and community in the mixed, ethnic-urban
environment of Los Angeles.