Several principles shape the forms of scholarship that take place within the department, and drive the way in which we teach developing scholars to investigate these complex media environments:
An interdisciplinary focus which draws on the relevant theoretical perspectives of a variety of cognate disciplines, presenting us with a more expanded horizon for a complex and rigorous examination of communication-related phenomena;
A multi-methodological approach that allows us to fuse a variety of tools to investigate, elaborate and critique human symbolic practices and ways of deriving meaning. While certain forms of quantitative/social scientific approaches are appreciated and sometimes used, we utilize more widely methods particularly suited to the domain(s) and perspective our research takes on such phenomena, including, but not limited to; audience studies, semiotics, ethnography, discourse analysis, archaeology, action research and other interpretive and critical approaches; and
A comparative outlook in explicating communication phenomena, investigating the intersections of historical development and contemporary practice, cultural differences in global contexts, and across varying domains of media.
Within this framework, the research areas available for doctoral students in the department are shaped by the scholarly expertise and current research of the faculty as broadly described under the following three headings. These research areas are in no way mutually exclusive, and we encourage our students to treat these areas as fluid and to take advantage of course offerings among each of the three areas:
Cultural Theory & Criticism
Taking the view that culture and communication are integrally related, this area focuses on general theories of cultural origins, development, the nature of cultural variability, and the variety of ways that culture is manifest in particular forms of concrete expression.
Particular areas of emphasis include: the relationship of media and technology to social interaction in particular contexts; the consequences of globalization on cultural maintenance and transformation in particular societies (including societies in history and those considered “developing”); critical examinations of the intersection of culture and power in matters of class, race, region, ethnicity, gender, ability, and sexuality; investigations into the contextual meanings of audio and visual cultures; and the performativity of cultures.
Media, Institutions & Technologies
This area focuses on various aspects of mediated communication, approached with the perspective that they can only be understood, and critically examined by exploring the vast networks of relationships involved in their creation, development, and use, and the reciprocal influence they have on all aspects of culture and cultures throughout the globe.
Particular areas of focus include: specific media formats such as print, television, radio, film and others; the innovation, development and diffusion of new media technologies and information systems; media education principles and practices; the political economy of media systems and the legal and regulatory regimes that underpin mediated and human communication. It also includes analysis of the two most fundamental concepts of media - space and time - including probing aspects of the built environment and the way understandings of time influence the structure and pace of public life. Finally, it focuses on areas of aesthetics and audio and visual communication including photography, graphic arts, digital media production, music and dramatic performance.
Rhetoric, Politics & Public Advocacy
While grounded in the study of classical and modern rhetorical theory, this area focuses primarily on contemporary processes and strategies of persuasion, public deliberation and advocacy which provide insight into the ways in which the public sphere is constructed through strategic and intentionally-biased discourse, whether speech, text, sound, image, or performance-based.
Specific areas of focus include: analyses of state-manufactured propaganda; legislative debate and shaping of public policy; legal argument and the expression of judicial opinions; rhetorics of science & technology; historical and contemporary social movements; special interest group advocacy, specifically that of non-governmental and non-profit organizations; processes of protest, public dissent and censorship; political campaign communication; public relations strategies in public administration; and the political uses of media and communication technologies.
An interdisciplinary focus which draws on the relevant theoretical perspectives of a variety of cognate disciplines, presenting us with a more expanded horizon for a complex and rigorous examination of communication-related phenomena;
A multi-methodological approach that allows us to fuse a variety of tools to investigate, elaborate and critique human symbolic practices and ways of deriving meaning. While certain forms of quantitative/social scientific approaches are appreciated and sometimes used, we utilize more widely methods particularly suited to the domain(s) and perspective our research takes on such phenomena, including, but not limited to; audience studies, semiotics, ethnography, discourse analysis, archaeology, action research and other interpretive and critical approaches; and
A comparative outlook in explicating communication phenomena, investigating the intersections of historical development and contemporary practice, cultural differences in global contexts, and across varying domains of media.
Within this framework, the research areas available for doctoral students in the department are shaped by the scholarly expertise and current research of the faculty as broadly described under the following three headings. These research areas are in no way mutually exclusive, and we encourage our students to treat these areas as fluid and to take advantage of course offerings among each of the three areas:
Cultural Theory & Criticism
Taking the view that culture and communication are integrally related, this area focuses on general theories of cultural origins, development, the nature of cultural variability, and the variety of ways that culture is manifest in particular forms of concrete expression.
Particular areas of emphasis include: the relationship of media and technology to social interaction in particular contexts; the consequences of globalization on cultural maintenance and transformation in particular societies (including societies in history and those considered “developing”); critical examinations of the intersection of culture and power in matters of class, race, region, ethnicity, gender, ability, and sexuality; investigations into the contextual meanings of audio and visual cultures; and the performativity of cultures.
Media, Institutions & Technologies
This area focuses on various aspects of mediated communication, approached with the perspective that they can only be understood, and critically examined by exploring the vast networks of relationships involved in their creation, development, and use, and the reciprocal influence they have on all aspects of culture and cultures throughout the globe.
Particular areas of focus include: specific media formats such as print, television, radio, film and others; the innovation, development and diffusion of new media technologies and information systems; media education principles and practices; the political economy of media systems and the legal and regulatory regimes that underpin mediated and human communication. It also includes analysis of the two most fundamental concepts of media - space and time - including probing aspects of the built environment and the way understandings of time influence the structure and pace of public life. Finally, it focuses on areas of aesthetics and audio and visual communication including photography, graphic arts, digital media production, music and dramatic performance.
Rhetoric, Politics & Public Advocacy
While grounded in the study of classical and modern rhetorical theory, this area focuses primarily on contemporary processes and strategies of persuasion, public deliberation and advocacy which provide insight into the ways in which the public sphere is constructed through strategic and intentionally-biased discourse, whether speech, text, sound, image, or performance-based.
Specific areas of focus include: analyses of state-manufactured propaganda; legislative debate and shaping of public policy; legal argument and the expression of judicial opinions; rhetorics of science & technology; historical and contemporary social movements; special interest group advocacy, specifically that of non-governmental and non-profit organizations; processes of protest, public dissent and censorship; political campaign communication; public relations strategies in public administration; and the political uses of media and communication technologies.