Course information contained within the Bulletin is accurate at the time of publication in July 2024 but is subject to change. For the most up-to-date course information, please refer to the Course Catalog.
MMC 8985. Teaching in Higher Education: Communications. 3 Credit Hours.
A practical course in pedagogical methods. Students learn to plan course objectives, design syllabi, develop classroom techniques, establish assessment methods, and acquire polish as instructors of communications. Required course for all MM&C students. Requisite course to earn Temple's teaching in higher education certificate.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9001. Communication Theory I. 3 Credit Hours.
Introduction to the field through a review of theoretical frameworks that have served as foundations for and shaped the study of mass communication. Required course for MM&C students in their first semester.
Field of Study Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Majors: Mass Media and Communication.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9002. Researching Communication I. 3 Credit Hours.
Introduction to the processes of communication research, common quantitative research methodologies, and concepts of statistical literacy. Required course for MM&C students in their first semester.
Field of Study Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Majors: Mass Media and Communication.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9003. Doctoral Colloquium. 1 Credit Hour.
Introduction to doctoral study, the field of communication, and the MM&C program. Fall semester: Current problems and opportunities in the field, discussions and presentations of current research, and presentations by senior scholars and students. Spring semester: writing workshop. Required of MM&C students in fall and spring of their first year.
Field of Study Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Majors: Mass Media and Communication.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9004. Teaching Communication. 3 Credit Hours.
A practical course in pedagogical methods, i.e., how to teach communication. Students learn to plan course objectives, design syllabi, develop classroom techniques, establish assessment methods, and acquire polish as instructors. Required course for all MM&C students.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9005. Colloquium II. 1 Credit Hour.
Following Colloquium I, this course is designed to deepen M&C doctoral students' understanding of the field of media and communication, to facilitate their progress through the PhD program, and to prepare them for success in their post-degree career. It is designed for students in their 2nd and 3rd years in the program.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may be repeated for a total of 2 credit.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9003.
MMC 9087. Cultural Analytics Practicum. 0 to 1 Credit Hours.
This course is the concluding experience for students enrolled in the Cultural Analytics graduate certificate program. The Practicum brings together all students and guides them toward completion of their final project. Because students come from multiple disciplines and their projects are varied in nature, the course instructor will assign a mentor from staff in the Digital Scholarship Center to work with the student on the technical skills required to complete their project. This includes active consultation on scoping the project, recommendations and introductory training for specific tools, and ongoing consultations to ensure the work is completed successfully by the end of the semester. In addition, all students participate in a weekly meeting with the course instructor to receive information on best practices for data management, intellectual property issues, and other topics of importance to the full group. One student will give a detailed presentation on their project each week, so they can receive feedback from the full practicum group, and so that all members of the group can learn how to successfully structure a research or creative project in cultural analytics.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in (CLA 5019 or HIST 5152)
MMC 9101. Communication Theory II. 3 Credit Hours.
Survey of the principal social sciences and humanities approaches that have led to the emergence of mass communication as a field in the modern academy. Includes review of the history of the study of the modern media as well as the perspectives guiding behavioral and social effects studies related to mass communication. Required course for MM&C students in their second semester.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in (MMC 9001 and MMC 9002)
MMC 9102. Researching Communication II. 3 Credit Hours.
Introduction to qualitative research approaches applicable to the study of mass communication. Includes consideration of philosophical and conceptual approaches, epistemological and ethical concerns, and practical methodologies and tools. Required course for MM&C students in their second semester.
Field of Study Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Majors: Mass Media and Communication.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in (MMC 9001 and MMC 9002)
MMC 9202. Statistics II. 3 Credit Hours.
This course is designed to offer students a foundation in advanced statistics. This course builds directly off of
MMC 9002.
MMC 9002 focused on analyses of no more than four variables. A quick review of the literature will indicate that most statistical analyses undertaken by communication scientists involve the use of more than four variables simultaneously. This course will offer students a foundation in conducting analyses of this kind, with movement from data reduction procedures (e.g., PCA, EFA, CFA) to hybrid (i.e., combination of measurement and path estimates) structural equation modeling. A quick overview of meta-analysis is also provided.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9002.
MMC 9203. Survey Design. 3 Credit Hours.
This course is constructed to offer students an up-to-date account of major issues associated with survey research design. The class begins with a summary of core measurement issues (e.g., concept explication, open- and closed-ended items). Attention is given to sampling frames and current difficulties with generating quality probability-based samples. Focus then turns to various types of survey designs (e.g., cross-sectional, rolling cross-sectional, panel), with summaries offered of their strengths and weaknesses. Special attention is then given to web-based survey designs given their prevalence in today's research environment. The course closes with a summary of approaching survey research from a Total Survey Error (TSE) perspective.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9002 and MMC 9202.
MMC 9204. Experimental Design. 3 Credit Hours.
The course will offer the basics in traditional lab experimentation. A range of designs and factors will be focused on in the opening weeks. In addition, the course will cover such advanced topics as nested models and split-plot designs. In addition, the latter portion of the course will focus on field experimentation, a technique growing in popularity in the social and behavioral sciences given its ability to maximize internal and external validity. Finally, students will wrestle with and debate the relative strengths and weaknesses in traditional lab and field experimentation.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9002 and MMC 9202.
MMC 9205. Content Analysis. 3 Credit Hours.
This seminar-style course explores various approaches to analyzing the content and potential effects of documented communications--written materials (such as news articles, print ads, or transcripts of conversations), audio/visual forms (such as movies, TV programs, commercials, photographs, or videos of nonverbal behaviors), and interactive media (such as gaming and online applications). Content analysis is a systematic way of analyzing message content. In addition to "human coding" of topics such as TV violence, this course introduces you to a number of software options for computer text analysis, an evolving set of techniques for analyzing the written word in an era of unprecedented digital retrieval capability. The course's emphasis is on the design and execution of actual content analysis studies--methods of producing meaningful data to answer critical questions about all types of messages.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9001.
MMC 9206. Digital Qualitative Research Methods. 3 Credit Hours.
This course is designed to introduce students to the specific theoretical, methodological, ethical, and technical aspects of conducting qualitative research both on and in digital realms. It will draw on humanistic and social science approaches to studying the internet broadly, virtual worlds, social media, digital media and cultures, digital distribution technologies, etc. We will consider the challenges posed by digital technologies to traditional forms of textual analysis, ethnography, interviewing, and historical analysis. The course will cover studies of digital texts/objects, audiences, and producers, as well as consider how new technologies blur these traditional media and communication boundaries. In addition, we will look at how digital tools can aid analysis of qualitative data and offer new forms of research dissemination and publication.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9102.
MMC 9207. Critical Textual Analysis. 3 Credit Hours.
The text is a foundational object in the study of media: it is what we consume as audiences, what our educations and professional routines are organized around producing, and the artifacts that carry the various meanings of culture that persist over time. The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the various methodological approaches that take texts as their central point of inquiry, and to develop your skill and expertise in deploying these methods, with the goal of producing your own conference-ready piece of research by the end of the semester. Textual approaches to the analysis of media have developed in diverse fields such as anthropology, history, literature, rhetoric and philosophy; mass communication has been one place of their intellectual convergence. Therefore, readings in this class will span Modernist through Post-Modernist movements focusing, not on progress from one approach to another, but on the spiral interplay of those movements, intellectual frameworks, and their uptakes in various disciplines. There is a deep convergence of theory and method here, and as such, a robust interest theory is needed in order to guide the interpretation of media texts.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9208. Historical Methods for Media and Communication Research. 3 Credit Hours.
This is a graduate class in which students learn about and analyze the methods with which scholars investigate the media past. We will survey how researchers have approached a range of types of public communication, including but not only journalism, advertising, persuasive communication, photography, broadcasting, etc. Whenever possible, we will examine actual historical media artifacts, so that we can get a more tangible and audiovisual sense of what researchers encounter. We also will discuss how digitization of historical artifacts has transformed the nature and possibilities of historical research. We will pay special attention to both the digital and the material artifacts held in Temple University's Urban Archives. During most weeks, we'll be reading original works of media-history research, and our goal will be to assess what those scholars have done methodologically. This scholarship will include studies of historical media content, oral-history research done with media producers and audiences, and analyses of industry data and business records. We'll also explore logistical and ethical issues of the preservation, accessibility, and uses of historical evidence. Finally, we'll consider how media themselves are increasingly sources of public knowledge about history. This learning process will lead to the final assignment: a work of original historical research on a topic relevant to each student's individual interests.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9102.
MMC 9209. Media Ethnography. 3 Credit Hours.
This advanced topic course is designed to help students deepen their knowledge of the purpose, politics and practices of ethnography for the study of media and communication. Focusing on key methodological, epistemological and ethical questions, the course digs deep into how ethnography can be employed in different ways to study media institutions, on-line interpretive communities, and media reception and use in various cultural settings. While touching on the multiple and diverse influences in the theoretical development of ethnography, this course is organized primarily around the practical challenges and dilemmas of "doing" media ethnography, such as initiating a study, establishing ethnographic authority, the politics of representation, conducting fieldwork, observation versus participant observation, the practice of taking fieldnotes, the writing of media ethnographies, the difference between "thin" and "thick" description, and "traditional" versus "virtual" ethnographic inquiry.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9102.
MMC 9503. Advanced Quantitative Methods. 3 Credit Hours.
Study of parametric and non-parametric statistics and electronic data processing in the context of mass communication research problems, with an emphasis on multivariate analyses.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9002.
MMC 9505. Psychological Proc/Media. 3 Credit Hours.
Research and theory concerning the contemporary psychological significance of media. Topics include attention, memory, comprehension, emotional response, arousal, picture perception, unconscious processing, and person perception as they relate to traditional (radio, TV, print, film) and emerging (virtual reality, teleconferencing) media.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9525. Communications Institutions. 3 Credit Hours.
Examination of the structure and function of the media in today's global society, including consideration of patterns of corporate ownership and control, political economy of media, democratic theory, globalization, governmental regulation of media, new technologies, and the nature of various media industries.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9605. Visual Communication. 3 Credit Hours.
Critical examination of the ways photographs inform our everyday lives, focusing on photography's relationship with "truth" and "reality." Consideration of the uses of photographs for informative, interpretive and persuasive communication.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9612. Critical Analysis of Mass Media. 3 Credit Hours.
Examination and application of sociological, anthropological, literary studies, historical and cultural studies approaches to the analysis of media. The course surveys the major theoretical perspectives and explores content themes that have shaped contemporary media.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9625. Sem/Communication Abroad. 3 Credit Hours.
Participation in one of Temple University's study abroad programs, including Temple/London, Temple/Japan, etc.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9647. Political Communication. 3 Credit Hours.
Introduction to how communication scholars study politics and the media. The course considers prevalent political communication theories and trends, the relationship between political institutions and the press in the US and in other countries, elections, debates, political campaigning and advertising, new media and politics, political socialization, education, politics and popular culture.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9700. Advanced Topic/MMC I. 3 Credit Hours.
Consideration of advanced and timely topics in Mass Media and Communication.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may be repeated for additional credit.
MMC 9707. Social Influence. 3 Credit Hours.
This course is concerned with understanding social influence, including the determinants of and models of attitude, belief, and behavior change, and norms, social networks, and interpersonal strategies. Students will become familiar with some current theoretical and empirical studies of social influence, including problems of measurement and research design, as well as some models of attitude and influence. Students should become aware of the tactics of social influence, their theoretical basis, and their effectiveness when that information is available. Current research being done by the instructor will be presented as relevant.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9709. Media Globalization. 3 Credit Hours.
This course examines the role of the media in the economic, political and cultural transformations that have come to be known as globalization. We will review and examine key concepts central to the understanding of globalization and explore the relationship between these concepts and the media. We will also discuss the historical and cultural debates that have shaped the development of global media studies and the theories that have emerged from these debates.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
Pre-requisites: Minimum grade of B- in MMC 9101.
MMC 9725. Media, Identity and Representation. 3 Credit Hours.
This course examines the relationship between representation and the production of meaning as it relates to identity, both individual and community identity. This is achieved through analyzing of a diverse range of contemporary socio-cultural themes, sites and texts.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9735. Emerging Media and Communication. 3 Credit Hours.
Examination of theory and research related to emerging media and technology. This course will examine theories related to the design and affordances of new media technologies, new forms of communication that are made possible by these technologies, and ways of understanding the economic, social, cultural, and political dimensions of new media technologies.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9744. Public Information Campaign. 3 Credit Hours.
Exploration of techniques and issues used in information campaigns regarding health, energy conservation, environmental protection, and other topics, and the effects of campaigns on public knowledge and behavior. Students conduct an actual campaign on campus.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9748. Media and Social Memory. 3 Credit Hours.
Examination of the role of mass media in the creation and revision of collective (or "social") memory and the role of collective memory in the creation and revision of mass media.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9749. Social Media Analytics. 3 Credit Hours.
The seminar offers an introduction to theoretical and methodological procedures for social scientific research that relies on social media and online content as primary data. Students will learn how to conceptualize a social scientific research project that uses online media as a main source of data about human behaviors, attitudes, and communication processes. Students will also learn how to use specific tools (R, NodeXL, scrapers, QDA Miner, etc.) to download content from social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc.), organize it as datasets, and analyze it using simple statistical, text mining, and qualitative techniques. A brief introduction to downloading data from secondary data sources will also be provided. Student proficiency in basic statistical analysis and a higher level of computer literacy are expected. The main goal of the graduate seminar is to help budding social scientists step over their disciplinary boundaries when collecting and analyzing data generated by social media. At the same time, the seminar learning activities will ensure that procedures and methods reflect sound and theoretically grounded research practices.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9882. Directed Projects/Comm. 1 to 8 Credit Hour.
Tutorial course supervised by a specific MM&C faculty member. Obtain required form from SCAT Graduate Office (344 Annenberg Hall).
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may be repeated for additional credit.
MMC 9883. Directed Readings/Comm. 1 to 4 Credit Hour.
Tutorial course supervised by a specific MM&C faculty member. Obtain required form from SCAT Graduate Office (344 Annenberg Hall).
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may be repeated for additional credit.
MMC 9946. Theory and Research Seminar (STARSS). 1 Credit Hour.
Students attend the SCT Theory and Research Seminar Series (STARSS) and write a short paper. May be repeated for credit.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may not be repeated for additional credits.
MMC 9994. Preliminary Examination Preparation. 1 to 6 Credit Hour.
Students prepare to take preliminary examinations.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may be repeated for additional credit.
MMC 9998. Pre-Dissertation Research. 1 to 6 Credit Hour.
Students write their dissertation proposal.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Repeatability: This course may be repeated for additional credit.
MMC 9999. Dissertation Research. 1 to 6 Credit Hour.
Open only to Ph.D. candidates in MM&C. Students may register only after a dissertation proposal is officially approved. At least one credit must be taken each semester until the dissertation is successfully defended.
Level Registration Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Graduate.
Student Attribute Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Student Attributes: Dissertation Writing Student.
Repeatability: This course may be repeated for additional credit.
