Examinations

Quizzes

This type of exam consists of 5 short answer questions, each worth 20 points. You have 90 minutes to complete the exam. Please, be aware that the time starts running when you begin the assessment. You can perfectly answer every question in about 200 words.

Final Exam

This exam consists of 10 short answer questions, each worth 10 points. You have 3 hours to complete the exam. Please, be aware that time starts running when you begin the assessment. As a reference, you can perfectly answer each one of the questions in around 100-150 words.

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General Considerations:

Grading Table:
A (94-100); A- (90-93); B+ (86-89); B (83-85); B- (79-82); C+ (76-78); C (73-75) C- (69-72); D+ (66-68); D (63-65); D- (60-62); F (0-60)

Both quizzes and final exam will be available the whole day. Still, the time to complete them is limited (90 minutes for the quizzes and 3 hours for the final exam). Be aware that time starts running when you begin the assessment.

PLEASE, DO NOT USE ANY QUOTE IN YOUR ANSWERS. THE GOAL OF OPEN ENDED OR ESSAY QUESTIONS IS TO FIND OUT TO WHICH EXTENT YOU UNDERSTOOD THE IDEAS AND CONCEPTS DISCUSSED IN THE COURSE AND ARE ABLE TO EXPRESS/ARTICULATE THEM WITH YOUR OWN WORDS.

If you have any technical issue during the completion of the exam, please contact immediately the help desk to report the incident (860 832 1720).

Case Study

COMM 431 Mass Media and Society in basically a theoretical course. A theory is a systematic attempt to explain any aspect of the reality. The aspect of the reality we study is the effect of mass media in our society.

We discuss classic theories and authors in the field of mass communication. The work of Walter Lippmann, Marshall McLuhan, Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann, or Neil Postman is studied in depth. At the same time, the course analyzes classic theoretical frameworks, such as agenda setting, framing, or cultivation to explain the actual impact of mass communication. We also examine the effect of TV contents on very specific areas, for instance, how explicit violence or sexual contents can affect different audiences, or how new digital technologies are changing the classic mass communication paradigm

This assignment is based on your own research. You have to find out in the contemporary mass media world a specific example, a particular instance that help explain and understand any of the theories, concepts or authors discussed in the learning units and the readings. In your entries, you have to describe the case you chose and the reasons why you think that case explains particular media phenomena studied in the course.

The assignment should be structured as follows:

1 – Description of the theory or concept your case study will be based on. (20%)

2 – Description of the case, the particular instance you are studying. (20%)

3 – Discussion of why you think your case can be considered an example of this theory or concept. (30%)

4 – Conclusions (20%)

The paper should follow the APA style guidelines. You can perfectly write your case study in 6-8 pages (doubles spaced, Times New Roman size 12) (10% of the assignment’s grade).

Papers MUST be delivered online through this page. I will not accept papers sent through any e-mail system. Make sure that you attach your paper as a PDF or Microsoft WORD document. If you send the assignment in any other format, I may not be able to open it.

Example:

Framing the tragedy of the Sandy Hook Massacre

1 – In the first section of the paper, I would have to explain what framing, the theory I chose, is all about.

2 – In the second section of the paper, I would describe what happened at the Sandy Hook Elementary School and what was the media reaction.

3 – In this section of the case study, I would have to analyze how the different media, based on their ideological background, used particular frames of reference to present the news about the tragedy, and how those frames of reference might have influenced the way audiences perceived the events.

4 – In my conclusion, I would have to state to which extent my case helps us understand the theory of framing.

As sources for your case studies you can use:

Academic articles appeared in journals on communication sciences or books
Mass media artifacts (newspaper articles and op-eds, TV or Radio news
Statistics from media or public opinion research institutes (Rope, Gallup, Shorenstein, …)