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Majors, minors + certificates

Minor in Media and Diversity (Minors) (MDIADIVMIN)The Media School

Students on Summer 2019, Fall 2019, or Spring 2020 requirements.

Description

The Media and Diversity minor approaches diversity as an important social principle that is continually examined, debated and circulated in a wide variety of media. The social concept of diversity has eclipsed concepts like "integration" in part because the older term was tied to a concept of proximity in space that could not anticipate the rapid evolution of virtual social spaces such social networks and fora. The growing importance and understanding of diversity as a broad spectrum of people, ideas and experiences has paralleled the rapid evolution of the connected world. Courses in this minor examine how media and mediated experience simultaneously break down old barriers at the same time that new types of digital divides arise. It connects The Media School curriculum with the teaching and research of faculty from many units. It also promotes a core feature of the Media School's mission: the study and analysis of the interaction of technology and media in the creation of new social, economic and entertainment networks.

Minor requirements

The minor requires at least 15 credit hours, including the requirements listed below.

  1. Introduction to Media. One (1) course from the .
    • Examines the role media play in our lives-at work, at school, among family members, friends, and lovers-and analyzes pressing issues in media and society today, such as privacy, globalization, and convergence. (3 credit hours.)
    • P: Must be an Ernie Pyle Scholar, Media Scholar, or Academic Honors student. Examines the role media play in our lives-at work, at school, among family members, friends, and lovers-and analyzes pressing issues in media and society today, such as privacy, globalization, and convergence. Credit given for only one of MSCH-C 101 or MSCH-H 101. (3 credit hours.)
  2. Introduction to Media and Diversity. One (1) course from the .
    • The goal of the course is for students to understand and articulate the issues in global journalism and the role of the media as a participant in shaping societies. Credit given for only one of JOUR-J 206 or MSCH-C 206. (3 credit hours.)
    • This course addresses the psychology of racial prejudice and stereotyping and uses this social-scientific framework to examine the impact of media portrayals. We will focus on how race influences our media consumption decisions and how exposure to certain media messages (in entertainment, news, music, video games) could change racial stereotypes. Credit given for only one of MSCH-C 214 or TEL-T 191. (3 credit hours.)
    • Surveys media industries, products, and publics outside the United States context (e.g., Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America). Analyzes regional media in relation to local/global historical, economic, and social processes. Screenings may be required. Credit given for only one of MSCH-C 219 or CMCL-C 202. (3 credit hours.)
  3. Advanced Media and Diversity Electives.
    1. Media School Elective. One (1) course from the .
      • (approved topics only; see academic advisor) P: CMCL-C 190 or MSCH-C 101; or consent of instructor. Topic varies: in-depth analysis of directors, producers, or creative individuals in the media, viewed as 'authors.' May be repeated with a different topic for a maximum of 6 credit hours in CMCL-C 326 and MSCH-F 326. (3 credit hours.)
      • Construction of race and gender identities across a range of media. Emphasis on the power of sound/image representations to shape and contest ideas about race and gender. Topic varies. May be repeated with a different topic for a maximum of 6 credit hours in CMCL-C 412, JOUR-J 375, or MSCH-F 375. (3 credit hours.)
      • Examines filmmaking in the black diaspora as a formally innovative visual and narrative art form in world cinema. Studies select films for their political and cultural significance and shared themes. Topics include colonialism and postcoloniality; race, gender and sexuality; migration and exile; modernity; and the dislocating processes of globalization. (3 credit hours.)
      • (approved topics only; see academic advisor) Topical course dealing with changing subjects and material from term to term. May be repeated for credit with different topics in JOUR-J 360 and MSCH-J 360. (1–4 credit hours.)
      • (approved topics only; see academic advisor) P: Senior standing in the Media School. Seminar exploring new developments and advanced research in media. May be repeated with a different topic for a maximum of 9 credit hours. (3 credit hours.)
    2. Additional Electives. Two (2) courses from the .
      • Additional course from the Media School Elective list above
      • Examines the historical and contemporary portrayals of African Americans in Hollywood and in independent narrative film focusing on the social and political functions of film, its legitimization of race, and its oppositional formations, interventions, and practices. Considers how film mediates and interrogates race and social relations in American society. (3 credit hours.)
      • A study in cross-cultural stereotyping as evidenced in the film medium. Analysis of Native American, Asian, black, Hispanic, and Jewish groups. Features, shorts, and animations screened to illustrate the "classic" stereotypes of each group and to demonstrate their impact on American society. (3 credit hours.)
      • Historical and critical overview of films produced by African American women from the 1940s to the present. The course emphasizes how black women filmmakers combine their creative abilities with a desire to capture dominant issues that affect black women's lives in America. (3 credit hours.)
      • Focuses on crime reporting in America, addressing the question of whether or not the media distort the picture of crime. In particular, this course explores the mass media treatment of African Americans in the coverage of crime. (3 credit hours.)
      • Explores the complex relationship between mainstream media constructions of Hispanics and the Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Cuban migrations to the United States. (3 credit hours.)
  4. GPA, Minimum Grade, and Other Requirements. Each of the following:
    1. At least 9 credit hours in the minor must be completed in courses taken through the Indiana University Bloomington campus or an IU-administered or IU co-sponsored Overseas Study program.
    2. At least 9 credit hours in the minor must be completed at the 300–499 level.
    3. Except for the GPA requirement, a grade of C- or higher is required for a course to count toward a requirement in the minor.
    4. A GPA of at least 2.000 for all courses taken in the minor—including those where a grade lower than C- is earned—is required.
    5. Exceptions to minor requirements may be made with the approval of the department's Director of Undergraduate Studies, subject to final approval by the College of Arts and Sciences.