2018-2019 Undergraduate Academic Catalogue 
    
    Mar 28, 2024  
2018-2019 Undergraduate Academic Catalogue [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

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CM 368 - Entertainment, Media, and Politics

(3.00 cr.)

Today, entertainment media dominates our lives more than ever before. Content and platforms proliferate; people can listen to podcasts in the shower, watch YouTube clips while on the bus, and stream TV shows all night. This entertainment boom has occurred as democratic politics has become more fraught: U.S. electoral politics is dominated by partisan polarization and the rise of populist outsider candidates while Brexit is shaking the European Union. This course explores the relationship between these changes in entertainment media and democratic politics. How does the increasing proliferation of entertainment options and platforms shape political knowledge, civic engagement, and democratic citizenship? How is electoral politics affected by the rise of 'infotainment'? To what extent have television comedies and dramas shaped perceptions of crime and threat and helped drive changes in social attitudes about gender and sexuality? How accurate are fictional portrayals of politics on the big and small screen, and what do such portrayals teach the public about democracy? What does the future of entertainment and politics look like, and is it as dark as dystopian portrayals in pop culture might suggest? Same course as PS 368  



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