The purpose of this class is to develop critical sociological tools for the analysis of mass media and popular culture. Mass media and popular culture are often treated as a given, a backdrop for everyday life. Public talk usually centers on elite criticism of popular entertainment, or popular consumption that flies in the face of such elite disdain. We shall attempt to move beyond this artificial drama to develop an understanding of how media and popular culture impacts our lives, to engage in a critical analysis. This process will not just involve reading books and articles but also watching TV news, and film, and examining other non-verbal media (e.g. buildings, everyday environments). We are going to develop analytical ways to "read" popular culture and mass media for what it may tell us about the sociology of everyday life and the sociology of culture.

Class Objectives:

1. Students will learn about the political economy of media and the role that language, politics and representation play in the development of race, class, and gender stereotypes.

2. Students will learn about the relationship between the sociology of culture and cultural studies.

3. The class will examine the role that marketing and advertising play in the development of mass media. - the "feedback" loop.

4. We will examine a wide range of media types, including film, television and print news, sit-coms, and the built environment as media.

5. The class will examine the "framing" and social practices of news gathering and presention.

6. The class will also examine the way masculinity and femininity is socially constructed in film, advertising, and television programs.

Class Format and Requirements:

The format of this class will emphasize student participation and discussion of the readings and of contemporary aspects of mass culture. The class will consist of both lectures and discussion, however, the responsibility to learn this material is in your hands. All students therefore are expected to do the required reading and come to class prepared for discussion. Videos/DVDs will be shown on occasion. There will also be an assignment that will require a trip to a shopping mall or toy store. The purpose of this class is to encourage critical thinking not just test your memory. You will be graded upon your understanding and expansion of the concepts discussed in class. This will require your attendance in class.

Course evaluation:

A mid-term take home exam will be assigned (20%). You will have one week to complete the exam, answering one question out of a possible five. In addition, you will have to complete a final project (40%) which will consist of a topic of your own choosing related to the course content and a field project (20%) consisting of a critical analysis of either a toy store or a shopping mall applying what you have learned in class and using your readings to inform your analysis. In addition, you will be expected to turn in a total of ten reaction papers (20%) to demonstrate your mastery of the written material for the class.

Required books for the course:

McChesney, Robert W. 2004. The Problem of the Media: U.S. Communication Politics in the Twenty-First Century . Boston : Monthly Review Press.

Hall , Stuart . 1997. Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices . Thousand Oaks , Ca.: SAGE.

Entman, Robert M. and Andrew Rojecki. 2000. The Black Image in the White Mind: Media and Race in America . Chicago : University of Chicago Press.

A reader containing other required readings is available in the Sonoma State University bookstore.

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