Thinking Digital Media

DIGI10051 Thinking Digital Media 20 Semester 1 Undergraduate Level 1 School of Arts, Languages and Cultures 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' First part HE study/Bachelors ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 10.0 In this foundational course, students will be introduced to key concepts, approaches and perspectives in the academic and public debates on the role of digital media in contemporary culture and society. Students will also learn about the history of digital media from a global perspective, which will enable them to qualify claims about the newness of so-called ‘new media’ and challenge universalising claims about the impact of digital media not only on Western but also on non-Western communities. The course will develop students’ understanding of the cultural, social, political, economic and technical contexts in which digital developments emerge and will help them think about digital media holistically, from their design and production to their content and use. Historical milestones in digital transformations will be highlighted, along with discussions of the very latest technological developments and their potential impact on diverse communities around the world. In this foundational course, students will be introduced to key concepts, approaches and perspectives in the academic and public debates on the role of digital media in contemporary culture and society. Students will also learn about the history of digital media from a global perspective, which will enable them to qualify claims about the newness of so-called ‘new media’ and challenge universalising claims about the impact of digital media not only on Western but also on non-Western communities. The course will develop students’ understanding of the cultural, social, political, economic and technical contexts in which digital developments emerge and will help them think about digital media holistically, from their design and production to their content and use. Historical milestones in digital transformations will be highlighted, along with discussions of the very latest technological developments and their potential impact on diverse communities around the world. The unit aims to: <ul><li>Introduce students to key concepts, approaches and perspectives on the role of digital media and technology in contemporary culture and society</li><li>Develop students’ ability to discuss digital transformations in their historical and global context</li><li>Develop students’ understanding of the cultural, social, political, economic and technical contexts in which technological developments emerge</li></ul> During this unit, students will develop a range of practical and transferable skills. They will develop critical thinking skills by discussing core readings and relating them to real-life case studies. They will also build their information retrieval, research and analytical skills, particularly in relation to the second assessment task, for which they will have to make a decision about which platform they want to focus on, research historical and contemporary information about it and summarize the information in their platform biographies.In relation to the first assessment form, students will develop communication skills as they will be asked to present complex information for a general public in a simple, coherent and attractive way. They will also learn how to use generative AI for writing in a critical and ethical way. <ul><li>Distinguish between competing definitions of digital media and recognise their assumptions and implications. </li><li>Demonstrate foundational knowledge and understanding of key concepts, approaches and perspectives on the role of digital media in contemporary culture and society. </li><li>Identify key historical developments in digital media from a global perspective.</li></ul> <ul><li>Evaluate the cultural, social, political, economic, and technical contexts in which digital media developments emerge. </li><li>Critically assess academic and public debates on digital media, applying analytical frameworks to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of different arguments.</li><li>Apply critical thinking skills to evaluate claims and arguments about the role, impact, and implications of digital media in various cultural and societal contexts.</li></ul> <ul><li>Communicate academic ideas and arguments effectively, tailoring them to non-academic audiences. </li><li>Gather, evaluate and analyse information from a variety of sources, and present key findings in a written form. </li><li>Develop critical and creative thinking skills necessary to reflect on social and cultural implications of digital media and its production processes.</li><li>Use generative AI tools for writing in a critical and ethical way.</li></ul> <ul><li>Exhibit independent learning skills, including time management, organisation, and self-directed study, necessary for continued professional development. </li><li>Display adaptability and flexibility in responding to feedback from peers and tutors. </li><li>Summarise and present complex material for academic and non-academic audiences in a clear and consistent manner.</li></ul> This unit consist of two main parts:1) In the first part, students will learn about the basic definitions of such terms as technology, media, mediation, digitality, social media, platforms, the internet and the web, thinking about differences between the terms and learning how to use them effectively. They will also discuss the history of digital media in the last century and learn about the current landscape of the big tech industry, identifying its geopolitical power relations and structural inequalities embedded in the industry. Major developments in digital media technology will be discussed, including platformization, datafication and appification as well as the rise of personal computers and mobile devices. 2) In the second part, students will learn about key concepts, approaches and perspectives on digital media, including the theories of media production, content and consumption as well as such keywords as technological determinism, technological solutionism and technological affordances. They will apply them to real-life case studies to critically reflect on contemporary digital media developments. The unit consists of 2h-long lectures and 1h-long seminars a week. During the lectures, students will be given information regarding the key content of the unit in a multimodal way (oral presentation, slides, short videos shown during the lectures). During the seminars, students will be asked to work individually, in pairs and in groups. The first hour of the seminars will be devoted to the discussion of the core readings. Since this is the first theoretical core unit in the programme, it is important to make sure that students understand the core readings and learn how to critically evaluate them. The core readings will normally include 1 academic piece and 1 popular media piece a week to help students apply academic knowledge to real-life case studies.In the second hour of the seminars, students will be engaging in a series of activities such as plenary debates, mini-research projects, or analysis of news, infographics and reports to deepen their understanding of the unit’s content and apply it to real-life case studies.The first form of assessment, a blog post, will require from students to demonstrate a knowledge of a particular concept relevant to digital media, culture and society (e.g. technological solutionism or technological determinism) and discuss it in relation to a real-life case study. In the second form of assessment, a platform biography, students will need to disassemble each platform to its ownership, business model, governance, design, content and use, and discuss the development of the platform in its historical and cultural context. 0 Other 100% <figure class="table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Formative Assessment Task</td><td>Length (word count/time)</td></tr><tr><td>Peer review of blog post ideas (individual)</td><td>5 min / per student</td></tr><tr><td>Platform biography plans (individual)</td><td>1 page</td></tr></tbody></table></figure><figure class="table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Summative Assessment Task</td><td>Length</td><td>Weighting within unit (if relevant)</td></tr><tr><td>Blog post (individual)</td><td>1,000 words</td><td>30%</td></tr><tr><td>Platform biography (individual)</td><td>2,000 words</td><td>70%</td></tr></tbody></table></figure> <figure class="table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Formative Assessment</td><td>How and when feedback is provided</td></tr><tr><td>Peer review of blog post ideas (individual)</td><td>Students will be working in small groups during seminars to comment on each other's ideas for blog posts. Seminar leaders will also offer their commentary.</td></tr><tr><td>Platform biography plans (individual)</td><td>Students will submit plans for their platform biographies to staff members who will offer their feedback within 15 working days.</td></tr></tbody></table></figure><figure class="table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Summative Assessment Task</td><td>How and when feedback is provided</td></tr><tr><td>Blog post (individual)</td><td>Online via TII in line with Faculty Policy within 15 working days.</td></tr><tr><td>Platform biography (individual)</td><td>Online via TII in line with Faculty Policy within 15 working days.</td></tr></tbody></table></figure> N Balbi, G., & Magaudda, P. (2018). A history of digital media: An intermedia and global perspective. Routledge.Burgess, J., Poell, T., & Marwick, A. E. (Eds.) (2017). The SAGE handbook of social media. Sage.Burgess, J., & Baym, N. K. (2022). Twitter: A biography. NYU Press.Chan, A. 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