Media institutions analysis

Teacher(s)

Wiard Victor;

Language

French

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

The overall objective of the "Analysis of Media Institutions" course is to familiarize students with the world of media while developing their critical analysis skills in the media environment. The EU has the following specific objectives: 1. provide students with a set of conceptual tools and factual information to understand and analyse media institutions (Belgian, European, global), including their digital developments; 2. familiarize students with the social, economic, political and technological logics that permeate the world of media, including the major players of the Internet; 3. encourage students to follow current events in depth through regular and critical reading of the press, develop their skills in understanding and synthesizing news information; 4. offer the opportunity to exchange with media professionals in order to better understand the evolution and the factors defining their profession.

Content

The course covers the following topics:

- global and European media groups, their shareholders, their constitutive logics (diversification, concentration, financialisation, internationalisation), the social, cultural and political implications of these different logics (for example in terms of information regulation or pluralism);
- Internet players (Facebook, Google, etc.) and new content distribution platforms (e. g. Netflix), their business models (in relation to technical choices), implications for consumers (e. g. the issue of personal data collection);
- the media offer in Belgium: groups and titles of the written press, publishers, radio and television services and distributors (public, private, local...), new information players, the digital presence of the Belgian media..;
- the economic specificities of the "media" good, media costs and revenues, press subsidies, economic models of "free", the economy of attention;
- the advertising industry: the players (advertisers, agencies, regulators, etc.), audience research (audimetry, CIM, etc.), advertising on the Internet and social media, the influence of advertising on production, distribution and programming logic;
- media regulation: self-regulation (e.g. Council of Journalistic Ethics), regulatory authorities (CSA), regulation by the public, the question of the social responsibility of the media;
- knowledge and monitoring of social, political, economic, economic, cultural and media news, through news tests and a press review exercise.

Teaching methods

Description of the lecture course:

Presentation of the material with visual support and external resources (videos, documentaries, images, etc.)

Description of the PWs:

The practical sessions focus on a particular aspect of the teaching unit: knowledge and monitoring of current events, through current events tests, a press review exercise, and a contribution to a Facebook news group. Students will also be invited to a guided tour of the RTBF (if the pandemic situation allows it).

1/ Tests of knowledge of current events. On two occasions, students will participate in a current affairs test to assess their knowledge of social, political, economic, cultural and media news. Depending on the case, the test will include MCQs or true/false, dispatches or short stories, "who's who", questions such as "who said/did what", photos to be recognized... The instructions and "good practices" for monitoring and critical analysis of current events will be the subject of a PW session beforehand.

2/ A press review. Students, divided into groups of 3, select or suggest a specific issue (e.g. immigration, health or environmental policies, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, pension reform, tax-shift, etc.) that they should follow for one month to produce a written press review. Students will ensure that they synthesize, contextualize, reconstruct a diachronic process, use a variety of sources, introduce critical aspects, etc. Work instructions and "good practices" for writing a press review will be the subject of a PW session beforehand.

Evaluation methods

The evaluation consists of different components, weighted as follows :
1) A press review work subdivided into 3 phases: a first draft of the press review, the discussion of another team's draft and the submission of the final work (5% + 5% + 20% of the final mark).
2) Two current events tests (10% + 10% of the final grade)
3) A written exam (50% of the final grade)

In order for the course credits to be validated, the student must present all components. As provided for in the implementing provisions of the General Regulations for Studies and Examinations for the ESPO Faculty, failure to perform at least one of the planned evaluations will be sanctioned. In the framework of this course, the student will be awarded a 0/20 as final grade.

The set of instructions for the various components is in very detailed form on Moodle and will be explained in class and practical sessions.

In case of registration in the second session, the evaluation will be distributed as follows:
- A work of press review whose weight is adapted to correspond to that of the 3 phases the first session (30% of the final grade)
- Two current events tests (10% + 10% of the final grade)
- A written exam (50% of the final grade)

Bibliography

- Frédéric ANTOINE et François HEINDERYCKX (2011), État des lieux des médias d'information en Belgique francophone, Bruxelles, Parlement de la communauté Française de Belgique Wallonie-Bruxelles.
- Jean-Marie CHARON (2009), Stratégies pluri-médias des groupes de presse, in : Les Cahiers du journalisme, n°20, (« L'économie du journalisme »), automne, p. 54-74.
- Michel GASSEE (2005), L'aide directe à la presse en Communauté française (1973-2005), in : Courrier hebdomadaire du CRISP, n° 1873, p. 1-47.
- Patrick LE FLOCH et Nathalie SONNAC (2005), Économie de la presse, Paris, coll. « Repères », ed. La Découverte.
- Michel MATHIEN (2003), Économie générale des médias, Paris, coll. « Infocom », Ellipses Marketing.
- Franck REBILLARD et Nikos SMYRNAIOS (2010), Les infomédiaires, au cœur de la filière de l'information en ligne, in : Réseaux, n° 160-161, p. 163-194.
- Nadine TOUSSAINT-DESMOULINS (2011), L'économie des médias, Paris, coll. « Que sais-je ? », Presses universitaires de France, 8e édition.

Faculty or entity

ESPB