COMM STEW
Newsletter of the Communication
Studies Program
American Studies
University of Massachusetts Boston
Editors: Mark
Schlesinger & Jessica LeClair
Vol. 4, #2, November 2003
Greetings to Communication students and alumni. We hope the fall has gone well for you, and that the approaching holidays will be a time of relaxation and peace. As we approach preregistration for Spring we’d like to share our plans for that semester, as well as other developments in Communication Studies.
The Communication Studies Minor in Relation to the Communication Studies Certificate Program
As many of you know, this fall saw the start of our new Communication Studies Minor, which replaces the Certificate Program for students entering the program after September 1, 2003. The Minor is more focused on communication and media studies issues, and involves a six course requirement. See the flyer enclosed with this newsletter.
Students in the Certificate Program may wish to switch over to the Minor. This change will not occur automatically. You should have Mark Schlesinger or his delegate sign a new “Declaration Form,” on which you drop the Certificate Program and Add the Minor. Consider carefully whether you wish to make the switch, and feel free to consult with Mark at any time.
Spring Semester Course Offerings
This spring will see a combination of the normal and the new, with much of the latter occasioned by the developmental work undertaken by Senior Research Fellow Ellen Hume. Consult the enclosed brochure for descriptions and more specific information.
Professor Hume will offer a special topics course (485B) on “News Media and Political Power,” which “tracks the journalist’s influence on the politician’s ability to gather and exercise power, from Weimar Germany to the 2004 presidential election.”
Another special topics course (485A) is in the offing, pending our ability to secure funds and personnel. We hope to involve students in radio journalism, in collaboration with WUMB FM. Students will learn aspects of professional radio production by making profiles of notable individuals in Boston communities. Some of these profiles may later be broadcast on WUMB. At this writing, we are not certain we can offer the course this spring, so contact Mark Schlesinger or Ellen Hume (addresses below) for confirmation.
The Capstone Seminar (480) will explore and critique writings on how mass media impact our lives as individuals and as participants in culture and society. As always, students will take an active part in running the class.
And finally, we are doing something different with respect to internships (COMSTU 484, AMST 490A) this spring. Communication and American Studies students will come together in an internship seminar (490A), in which they will explore their internships in relation to their academic work, the nature of work in their respective areas, and their future plans. See the attached letter from Lois Rudnick and Mark Schlesinger.
Planning for a Major in Media and Communication Studies
The process of establishing a new major is an arduous one, frequently taking two or more years. Approvals must be won from all levels of responsibility from the Department to the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education. Those approvals are based on the academic quality of the proposed major as well as the ability of the campus in question to actually carry it out. Staffing and budget issues have delayed our initiation of the proposal process this year, as the campus has not been able to replace two faculty who retired in 2002. However, we continue to do the research and gather the evidence to underpin a proposal process that will be initiated in fall 2004. With the help of our excellent advisory board (Professors Neal Bruss, Linda Dittmar, Reebee Garofalo, Lois Rudnick, and Nancy Stieber), and the support of the upper levels of the campus administration, we are optimistic about the future. We invite you to express any ideas you have about the major to us, to any of the members of the advisory committee, or to campus decision makers.
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Rusty Simonds Many Communication students have taken courses from Political Science Professor Rusty Simonds, who was a founder of the original Communication Program over two decades ago and who was a great friend of the program. His shocking death last month has saddened all of us associated with the program. Rusty was a great teacher and scholar, and was a leader in employing distance learning and other technologies to humanize teaching and learning – quite the opposite of what people sometimes expect when mixing technology with the classroom. We shall miss him – we already do – on our advisory board, in meetings and hallways, and as a friend. Our condolences to his family and to the Political Science Department. |
Student Corner
Anyone interested in contributing the Comm Stew newsletter can contact Jessica LeClair (jessburke5127@yahoo.com) or Mark Schlesinger (mark.schlesinger@umb.edu)
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Mark Schlesinger,
Director |
Communication
Studies 617.287.6770 |
Ellen Hume,
Senior Research Fellow |