Media, politics and society

What you will study

You'll find out about the relationship between media, politics, and society, a dynamic that impacts you and every other person you meet every single day. ‘The media’, as a subject of academic study, is sometimes underplayed, but understanding the media is of the utmost democratic importance. The media, whether newspapers, television, film, or social media, impacts our lives: our understanding of politics past and present, our democratic engagement, our opinions. Of course, it’s not a one-way street; as much as the media impacts politics and society, politics impacts the media, through regulation and law. Society – people, you – also impacts the media and politics. In this course, you'll examine the overall dynamic between media, politics, and society.

You'll explore key themes including:

• Week 1: An introduction to the course, the media, and media theory – giving you the background you need to study on.
• Week 2: Propaganda – how the media-politics relationship is used to promote a political cause or point of view.
• Week 3: Moral panic – how the media-politics relationship seeks to structure social expectations about citizens’ rights/responsibilities.
• Week 4: Media and memory – how the media-politics relationship shapes conceptions of the past.
• Week 5: Fake news – how the media-politics relationship structures the supposed ‘facts’ about the world.
• Week 6: The media and its impact on democratic politics.

As well as enhancing your knowledge and understanding about the topic and themes generally, you'll get a grounding in key concepts and theories, enhance your communication and self-reflection skills, and gain an understanding of future study opportunities. You will complete activities and engage with other students in the forum, with access to BFI and other visual and audio resources.

You will learn

After completing this course you will have gained:

Knowledge and understanding of the:

• relationship between media, politics, and society.
• four key themes (propaganda, moral panic, fake news, media and memory).
• key theories from media and political studies.

Cognitive skills with the ability to:

• understand and use key concepts and theories from media and political studies when engaging with real-world media and politics.
• use examples, illustrations and case studies when assessing an argument.
• reflect on your standpoint and the standpoint of others with respect to the content discussed in the course.

Key skills with the ability to:

• effectively communicate information accurately and appropriately to the subject, purpose and context.
• communicate with and learn from others in an online environment.
• use feedback and self-reflection to improve own learning.

Practical and professional skills with an:

• ability to plan, study and manage a sequence of work that meets a deadline.
• understanding of future study opportunities.

Vocational relevance

This course has relevance for those interested in working in politics, the media, or journalism. It teaches skills including critical analysis, self-reflection, time management, and engaging in forums.

Outside the UK

There are no restrictions to studying this course. While you will not be able to access the BFI Player if you are studying outside of the UK, all videos and other assets are embedded in the module materials with full access to all registered students.

Teaching and assessment

Assessment

There's no formal assessment, although there will be three ‘review and reflect’ points built into the course which you'll use to reflect on your understanding.

Regulations