CMM 677 SPECIAL TOPICS: PROPAGANDA

                COURSE SYLLABUS FALL 2006

                              6:30 PM MONDAY

INSTRUCTOR: 

Dr. William N. Denman

Emeritus Professor of Communication Studies

Office: Smith Hall 254W (In the inside hallway of the department.)

Telephone: Campus: 696-2806, Home: 522-4585

E-Mail: denman@marshall.edu, wdenmanwv@yahoo.com

Office Hours: Monday 5:00—6:20 p.m.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

An exploration of propaganda as a communication construct with an emphasis on the uses of propaganda in contemporary society.

CREDITS:  3 course credit hours.

COURSE PHILOSOPHY AND THEMES: This course will explore the nature of propaganda as a form of communication allied with but different from persuasion. We will examine various concepts of propaganda, look at the history of propaganda, particularly in the Twentieth Century, critique current uses of propaganda, analyze various propaganda campaigns, and come to some conclusions about the role of propaganda in a democratic society.  The thesis of the course is that propaganda is a tool of organizations that must be understood and critiqued in order to prevent ourselves from being seduced by unethical uses of this form of persuasion.

TEXTBOOKS:

Garth S. Jowett and Victoria O’Donnell, Propaganda and Persuasion, 4th Edition, Sage Publications, 2006.

            Garth S. Jowett and Victoria O’Donnell, Readings in Propaganda and

            Persuasion: New and Classic Essays, Sage Publications, 2006.

CMM 677 Syllabus Fall 2006                                                                                      2

DESIRED LEARNER OUTCOMES/OBJECTIVES:

When finished with this course you should be able to:

a.         Define propaganda as a form of communication that is allied with but different from persuasion;

b.         Explain significant differences between persuasion and propaganda;

c.         Describe different historical uses of propaganda;

d.         Explain how propaganda has gained a dubious and often reviled place in societies;

e.         Analyze successful elements of a propaganda campaign;

f.          Critique a contemporaneous propaganda campaign.

g.         Explain defenses that can be used against propaganda.

EVALUATION/ASSESSMENT OF LEARNER OUTCOMES:

During the course you will:

a.         Complete short responses to readings, viewings, etc. of material used to illustrate

            aspects of the course subjects. Response papers will be worth 25 points each.

b.         Complete a book review of a volume dealing with some aspect of propaganda or particular propaganda campaigns. The book review will be worth 100 points.

c.         Complete an analysis of a contemporaneous propaganda campaign. The analysis will be worth 200 points.

Grading:

All work will be graded on the extent to which the assignment was fulfilled, written clearly and coherently, organized effectively, and without spelling or grammatical errors.

As this is a graduate level course work will be judged accordingly.

Specifically, a good response paper answers the question that is posed and does not wander afield. It should indicate thought about the question and not be a simple recital of facts about the subject. For example, we might view an episode of the “Why We Fight” series produced for soldiers in World War II. I would not want a description of the episode, but an analysis that discusses those aspects of the film that make it propaganda, in your view, with a reference to materials we have read at that point in the course. I will be looking for analysis and evaluation based on concepts from the course.

For the book review I will be looking for a discussion of the thesis of the book, some examples of the ways in which the author develops the thesis (the author’s use of evidence), the importance of the book to our study of propaganda (in other words, does it tell us something of value), and your summary evaluation.

For the campaign analysis I will look for a thorough discussion of the campaign, how and why it fits definitions of propaganda, examples of particular messages, a critique of the campaign and its effectiveness or lack thereof.