Current Events Media Interventions and Productive Analysis

Current Events: Media Interventions and Productive Analysis In this new exercise course for MA and advanced LA students, we will study news reports in various media (TV, print, web, film documentaries) to consider the roles played by the interface of the media itself. We can examine the disparate slants and images conveyed by, for example, printed newspapers vs. their online versions; television prime time news vs. feature broadcast; cinema documentary vs. YouTube contribution; FOXNews vs. Jon Stewart’s -Daily Show” (both outrageous in very different ways!) The fuzzy line – continually growing fuzzier – between YouTube -captured scenes” and YouTube pimped parody will be demonstrated and discussed. Close attention will also be devoted to the increasing influence of interactivity (news blogs, online surveys, virtual communities). How will we choose the themes of the news reports to be investigated? I plan to suggest a few theme clusters, such as – to elaborate on WS 2009/10’s findings in the -O2 Effect” seminar – topical images of ethnicity, linking this to Obama’s Second Year and possibly the aftermath of the Haitian disaster. Seminar participants will work out further clusters at the beginning of the new semester. The future teachers can take our strategies and the application of our findings on media intervention to their later school lessons into account. Anglistik - Sprachpraxis Universität Siegen SoSe 2010 Ph.D. Waegner Cathy Ph.D