Faculty of: Arts, Business and Law School of: Communication and Creative Industries Teaching Session: Semester 1 Year: 2018 Course Coordinator: Dr Karen Sutherland Office: D1.40 Phone No: (07) 5456 5277 Email: KSutherl@usc.edu.au Course outline Code: CMN276 Title: Social Media 1. What is this course about? 1.1 Course description This course offers a critical understanding of ways social media affects the political, business and sociocultural spheres of our everyday lives. The course explores online communities and corporations and discusses how transnational and transcultural identities and relationships are trans-acted and negotiated in the virtual-real realms. Ethical and legal issues on privacy, truth and deception are analysed. Through interdisciplinary lens, you will engage with social networking sites such as Wordpress, Yammer, Facebook and Twitter to identify patterns of production and consumption. 1.2 Course content internet media and globalisation: concepts and theories technology and culture: debates researching social networking sites (SNSs) regulation, gatekeeping and ethics-case studies corporate online promotional strategies: advertising and marketing public communication campaigns and global humanitarianism multiplatform journalism transnational citizen journalism grassroots activism and change 2. Unit value 12 units
3. How does this course contribute to my learning? Specific Learning Outcomes Assessment Tasks Graduate Qualities On successful completion of this course you should be able to: You will be assessed on the learning outcome in task/s: Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming: To understand, narrate and debate key public issues through creative and responsible online construction and discussion. To engage in critical argumentation on the ethical, political and cultural impact of social networking sites on individuals and communities. To learn methods of researching the Internet and develop skills in interpreting social media data. To develop collaborative learning skills. 1 and 3 Creative and critical thinkers. 1 and 3 Ethical. Knowledgeable. 2 Empowered. 3 Empowered. 4. Am I eligible to enrol in this course? Refer to the Coursework Programs and Awards - Academic Policy for definitions of pre-requisites, corequisites and anti-requisites 4.1 Enrolment restrictions 4.2 Pre-requisites 4.3 Co-requisites 4.4 Anti-requisites 4.5 Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills 5. How am I going to be assessed? 5.1 Grading scale Standard High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL) 5.2 Assessment tasks
Task No. Assessment Tasks 1 WordPress/YouTube Blogging/Vlogging Project 2 Social media research project 3 Yammer Community Participation Individual or Group Weighting % What is the duration / length? Individual 45% 750 words and 1 video (1 x 500 words 1 x 250 words with 1 2 min vlog) When should I submit? Week 4 & Week 8 Individual 40% 1800 words Week 13, Friday 5pm Individual 15% Weeks 1-13; At least one post and one interaction with another s post per week 100% Weeks 1-13, Friday 5pm Where should I submit it? Own WordPress blog/youtube channel. Submit link via Blackboard. Blackboard Blackboard Assessment Task 1. WordPress Blogging Project Goal: Product: Format: This assessment requires you to set up your own personal blog using WordPress and YouTube channel. You will write two blog posts exploring different aspects of, and attempting to spark discussion about, one of the lecture topics from the semester. The second post will also incorporate a vlog (video blog) with you discussing the topic and providing additional information. Both posts (and vlog) must relate to the same lecture topic, investigating a different angle in each piece. One 500 word WordPress blog post and One 250 word WordPress blog post incorporating a 1-2 minute YouTube vlog. Each post must contain: A succinct and relevant headline An image (captioned with its source) A professional yet conversational tone In-text links to three different, relevant online sources References if citing offline sources Encouragement to readers to continue discussion Blog post two must incorporate a 1-2 minute vlog that must contain: Additional information on the chosen topic conveyed in a conversational pieceto-camera by the student Quality production skills (clearly audible sound, appropriate lighting and composition). Criteria Competent demonstration of Content Management System (WordPress) and YouTube. Clear communication using blogging writing and vlogging style to explore chosen topic Adherence to the assigned format Evidence of research and content curation Generic skill assessed Skill assessment level
Applying technologies Communication Applying technologies Assessment Task 2: Social media research project Goal: You will be required to carry out a content analysis of a public campaign on social networking sites and present an individual written report in week 13. Product: Research Report Format: You will pose critical questions on the use of social media in public campaigns and select one online political, social or commercial campaign prominent on social networking sites and carry out a content analysis of its contents. You will submit individual written research reports of 1800 words using the preferred Harvard referencing style. This task is weighted at 40% and due in week 13. Criteria Quality of questions posed Appropriate research method Use of literature Analysis of findings Recommendations and or implications. Clear communication Generic skill assessed Skill assessment level Problem solving Organisation Assessment Task 3: Yammer Community Participation Goal: This task is designed to encourage your active in an online using Yammer, a social media tool for internal communication within large organisations. Product: Yammer posts and interactions Format: From Weeks 1-13 you will be required to post at least once per week about the lecture topic or reading for that particular week. Posts can involve sharing a relevant article or video or starting a conversation. The focus will be on you making a valuable and relevant contribution to the each week. You will also be required to interact, at least once, with another student s post for the week by posting a relevant comment to participate in the discussion. Criteria Competency in using social media platform (Yammer) Community : At least one post and one comment on another student s post per week from weeks 1-13. Relevancy of contribution Generic skill assessed Skill assessment level Collaboration Communication 5.3 Additional assessment requirements Plagiarism In order to minimise incidents of plagiarism and collusion, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Blackboard, are electronically checked through SafeAssign. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work that SafeAssign has access to.
Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying: a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4% b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale c) You have not failed an assessment task in the course due to academic misconduct 5.4 Submission penalties Late submission of assessment tasks will be penalised at the following maximum rate: 5% (of the assessment task s identified value) per day for the first two days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. 10% (of the assessment task s identified value) for the third day 20% (of the assessment task s identified value) for the fourth day and subsequent days up to and including seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. A result of zero is awarded for an assessment task submitted after seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. Weekdays and weekends are included in the calculation of days late. To request an extension you must contact your course coordinator to negotiate an outcome. 6. How is the course offered? 6.1 Directed study hours On Campus Students On campus lecture: 1 hour per week On campus : 2 hours per week Online Students Online recorded lecture: 1 hour per week Online workshop: 2 hours per week Optional two-hour Blackboard Collaborate session per week. (There is no on-campus attendance requirement for online students) 6.2 Teaching semester/session(s) offered Semester 1
6.3 Course activities Teaching What key concepts/content will I Week / learn? Module 1 Introduction: Understanding the New Digital World and Media Futures. In this lecture, you will be introduced to the internet as global social media and to the changing and converging nature of digital screen technology. Following this lecture, you are expected to question the extent to which technology is a determining factor in your life. 2 Citizen journalism and building a digital brand. This week we shift to look at events around the world involving citizen journalists. You will examine open source reporting, alternative and grass root DIY sites, opinion blogs and online news portals such as www.ohmynews.com www.aljazeera.com; www.malaysiakini.com; www.crikey.com.au; www.indymedia.org.com What activities will I engage in to learn the concepts/content? Directed Study Independent Study Activities Activities Readings selected from a range of journals and book chapters for each week and made available on course Blackboard site and library. Yammer.. You will also identify and explore the building blocks of what constitutes a positive digital brand. 3 Internet Media, Globalisation and the Network Society. This lecture will first examine the notion of globalisation. Second, it will invite you to explore the role of the internet in the intensification of the globalisation process and then engage you in debates on the impact of internet social media on cultures, corporations, identities and boundaries. You will engage with the notion of 'power' and 'power-making' and explore the relationship between 'techno-capitalism' and 'cyberstruggles'. You will question and debate the role of the internet as a 'potential equaliser' through critical analysis of activist (NGO), state and corporate websites. Formative Feedback: provided on blog draft. On-Campus Students: In class Online Students: Via email.
4 Corporate/State Promotional Strategies and Transmedia Storytelling This lecture continues to engage you with the notion of 'power' by examining how resource-full corporations and nation states strategically integrate traditional and emerging social media to achieve bottom line objectives such as profiting, gaining votes, advocating a cause or controlling damage. 5 Friday 30th March Good Friday Public Holiday Citizen Activism and Culture Jamming. This lecture in turn will engage you with 'power-making' or 'counter power'. The class will explore how the resource-less engage in various forms of online protests to challenge corporate/political bottom line motives, ideologies and values. Mid Semester Break 6 Corporate Social Responsibility, Cause Marketing and Humanitarianism. In this lecture you will look further at the fluidity and shifting constellation of 'power' and explore selected case studies of corporations that deploy blogs, Facebook etc. to showcase corporate social work. You will examine the networking that takes place between and among institutions and communities in managing global catastrophes and injustices that plague the world. 7 Social Media Ethics: case studies. In this week's lecture you will be introduced to various online ethical issues impacting politicians, corporations, young people and social media related professions. You will debate the advantages and disadvantages of cyberspace for individual self-expression and protests. Through case analysis you appreciate the need for ethical conduct in the virtual-real realms for professional standards of practice, human dignity and self-respect.. Blog post one due this week by Friday 5pm.. Yammer Readings Yammer. 8 Regulating the internet-case studies.
Wednesday 25th April ANZAC Day Public Holiday Here you will be introduced to the legal implications of social media to an enormous range of users and how rapid transformation of media technology has created multiple, complex issues that can and cannot be dealt with by existing laws and policy frameworks. You will examine countries where policies and laws are already in place to deal with terrorism, security, privacy and intellectual property issues. 9 Researching social media: content analysis. The lecture will discuss various methods of analysing discourses, narratives, signs and symbols that are represented in and through various online sites. You will be trained to use a range of tools and techniques to carry out qualitative and quantitative internet textual analysis. 10 Monday 7th May May Day Public Holiday Using social media to inspire others and manage stakeholder relationships This week we draw on research and case studies to identify elements of social media that resonate with users and how stakeholder relationships can be cultivated and maintained using social media. 11 Multiplatform journalism. This lecture will discuss the impact of social media on journalism practices and news convention styles. Students will examine the changing notions of 'news values' 'agenda setting' the 'expanding public sphere' and critically engage with current issues on social media source credibility, news bias and ethics. 12 Researching social media: virtual ethnography and online surveys. Continuing from week 11, you will now shift to look at how and why people use social media. The lecture will introduce a range of qualitative and quantitative methods to enable you to research and build an understanding of the patterns, regimes, processes and contexts of. -Internet research methods and primary virtual data collection. -Internet research methods and primary virtual data collection. Blog post two incorporating 1-2 minute vlog due by Friday 5pm. Blog post three due this week by Friday 5pm.
internet usage among various groups of users. 13 Conclusion: Rethinking power, globalisation and technological determinism. In this concluding lecture we return to discuss the main themes and take positions in our arguments with internet social media. Tutorial Please note that the course activities may be subject to variation. Revision. Yammer. Task 3-social media research project due this week by Friday 5pm 7. What resources do I need to undertake this course? 7.1 Prescribed text(s) 7.2 Required and recommended readings Lists of required and recommended readings may be found for this course on its Blackboard site. These materials/readings will assist you in preparing for tutorials and assignments, and will provide further information regarding particular aspects of your course. 7.3 Specific requirements Students enrolled in this course will need access to: A reliable internet connection A computer (https://usc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1371) A Smartphone with: a reliable internet connection video and photo capabilities 7.4 Risk management Health and safety risks have been assessed as low. It is your responsibility to research and understand risks of specific courses and to review the USC s health and safety principles by viewing the online induction training for students. 8. How can I obtain help with my studies? In the first instance you should contact your tutor, then the Course Coordinator. Additional assistance is provided to all students through Peer Advisors and Academic Skills Advisors. You can drop in or book an appointment. To book: Tel: +61 7 5430 2890 or Email: student central@usc.edu.au 9. Links to relevant University policies and procedures For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including: Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs Review of Assessment and Final Grades Supplementary Assessment Administration of Central Examinations Deferred Examinations Student Academic Misconduct Students with a Disability http://www.usc.edu.au/university/governance-and-executive/policies-and-procedures#academic-learningand-teaching
10. General enquiries In person: Sippy Downs - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C USC SouthBank - Student Central, Building B, Ground floor (level 1) USC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie USC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Building A Tel: +61 7 5430 2890 Email: studentcentral@usc.edu.au