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American Studies (AMST)
Dr. Diana Owen (202) 687-7194
American Studies Program website
FIRST SESSION (June 2-July 3)
History of U.S. Broadcasting
Lorenz
AMST-391-10 U.G. credit; -15 Grad credit
MWF 10:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
3 cr.
This American Studies course will examine the sociopolitical and economic factors that contributed to the rise and maintenence of radio, television, cable, and Internet industries in the United States. We will investigate institutional decisions that have affected broadcast media since their 1910 inception, particularly how such modern business enterprises have been guided by advertising interests. Focus will be racked on program development and how broadcast genres have evolved over time, as well as issues of censorship, audience reception, and social responsibility.
Politics of Information Technology in the U.S.
Keefe-Feldman
AMST-274-10
MTWR 3:40-5:40 p.m.
3 cr.
The Internet and personal electronic devices are changing the way we live, facilitating--or demanding--more rapid communication and decision-making while increasing the volume of information available to the average citizen beyond the wildest dreams of the science fiction writers of the past. The explosion of options promised by a more narrowly-targeted, user-driven digital television universe sits on the precipice of forever altering one of America's favorite pastimes--watching television--perhaps with significant cultural consequences. Database technologies are altering the way in which political candidates see public office, and the way in which we elect them. In consumer research, technology has enabled marketers to construct a profile of each of us based on our purchases that may simultaneously serve our convenience while eroding our privacy.
The Digital Revolution is in full swing, yet the rise of these and other information techonologies has caught most of us off guard. As techonological development accelerates, even our leading computer engineers often find that they must focus on how things can and will work, with little time to consider how things should work in the democratic society we would hope to pass on to future generations of Americans.
Our technological choices come laden with political and philosophical ramifications, many of which are not readily apparent without deeper scrutiny. As such, the goal of this course is to encourage students to develop critical and analytical frameworks for thinking about the information technology that is shaping our economy, politics, and culture. Students in the course will move beyond the black-and-white conception of technology as inherently "good" or "bad." Instead, students will develop their own political philosophy of technology.
