Communication science

Teacher(s)

Patriarche Geoffroy;

Language

French

Learning outcomes

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

To move, act and interact in a more critical and responsible way in the contemporary media and digital environment. To identify and understand the main theoretical approaches that have contributed to the growth and development of media and communication studies. To relate media and communication studies to other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, both in terms of specificity and continuity. To apply theoretical concepts and approaches for analyzing concrete objects or situations in the media and communication environment. To gain a better understanding of the requirements and skills involved in being a university student.

Content

What is information? What is communication? How do media and social network sites influence our understanding of the world? How does a message produce meaning? What are the mechanisms of propaganda and disinformation? Do political communication campaigns have an impact? What competences do we use when we interpret a message? Why can we say that media and algorithms raise issues of political and ideological struggle?
These questions, and many others, will be addressed through a series of different approaches that help to elaborate them in a scientific way and provide elements of response. The course is organised in the following chapters:

• Basic concepts
• The “Lasswell formula”... or how to structure an Information and communication course
• Gatekeeping by the media: foundations and renewals
• Framing as an operation of meaning production
• Communication and meaning: structural approaches
• The mathematical theory of information
• The emergence of audience studies: crowds and masses in the early 20th century
• Propaganda and disinformation
• The Frankfurt School’s critical theory and ideological domination
• Functionalist audience research: “limited” and “complex” effects
• Cultural studies and media reception

Teaching methods

The teaching unit consists in lectures and practical work sessions (4 in total).
Regarding the lectures, the professor explains the content of the course in a concise way, using visual presentations. Each lecture allows for interactions with/among the students, for instance through online quizzes (via Wooclap) with live responses by the students (who use their smartphone or any other device), followed by an evaluation of the responses by the professor. The objective of those interactive moments is twofold: first, to go in-depth into the subject matter of the course, second, to help the students figuring out what kind of learning is required from them. During the last lecture, there will be a moment dedicated to the students’ questions on the course content and to the presentation of the guidelines for the final exam.
The students have at their disposal a complete syllabus, which allows the professor to focus on key or more difficult aspects during the lectures, as well as to allocate some time for interaction with/among the students. The visual presentations are also provided to the students.
The four practical work sessions are complementary to the course. They have two main objectives: 1) to provide occasions for an active use of the course content by students, through exercises in which the students have to apply the theories and concepts to concrete objects or topical subjects, and 2) to help the students perceiving what kind of learning is required in the context of the course, through simulations of exam questions and collective debriefings. The exercises carried out during the practical work sessions are corrected collectively.

Evaluation methods

Be it face-to-face or at a distance, the assessment method is a written exam covering the different aspects of the content and competences addressed in the lectures and the practical work.
The exam includes “theoretical” questions as well as more “practical” questions. It evaluates the following dimensions:
- one’s comprehension of the theories and concepts;
- one’s capacity to explain precisely in writing the theories and concepts;
- one’s capacity to synthesize the course content and make links between the different parts of it;
- one’s capacity to apply the theories and concepts to media and communication phenomena;
- one’s capacity to adopt a critical stance toward common sense on media and communication.
In a face-to-face situation, the exam will include closed questions as well as open-ended questions. If the exam has to take place at a distance, it would only include open-ended questions and the students would be allowed to use their course material (course notes provided by the professor, personal notes, and resources available on Moodle. Accessing other materials is strictly prohibited.
The exercises completed during the practical work sessions are not graded but may result in “bonus points” for the first session exam: for each of the three practical work sessions with exercises, the student who conscientiously completes the assignments obtains a bonus of 0.5 points for the final grade of the January exam. The student who actively complete the assignments during the three dedicated sessions therefore obtains a total bonus of 1.5 points for the January exam. Participation in the practical work sessions is not taken into account in the calculation of the final grade for the June and September exams.

Online resources

The teaching unit has a course website on Moodle.

Bibliography

Parmi de nombreux ouvrages d'introduction aux sciences de l’information et de la communication, citons :

• BENGTSSON S., ERICSON S. & STIERNSTEDT F. (dir.), Classics in media theory, Londres & New York, Routledge, 2024.
• BOUGNOUX D. (dir.), Sciences de l’information et de la communication, Paris, Larousse, 1993.
• BRETON P. & PROULX S., L'explosion de la communication, Paris, La Découverte, 1996.
• CARAH N. & LAOUW E., Media & Society. Production, Content & Participation, Londres, Sage, 2015.
• CERVULLE M. et QUEMENER, N., Cultural Studies. Théories et méthodes, 2ème éd., Armand Colin, Paris, 2018.
• FUCHS F., Social Media: A Critical Introduction, 4ème éd., Londres, Sage, 2024.
• HEINDERYCKX F., Une introduction aux fondements théoriques de l'étude des médias, 2ème éd., Liège, Céfal, 2002.
• LOHISSE J., en collaboration avec PATRIARCHE G. et KLEIN A., La communication. De la transmission à la relation, 4ème éd., Bruxelles, De Boeck, 2009.
• MAIGRET E., Sociologie de la communication et des médias, 2ème éd., Paris, Armand Colin, 2007.
• MATTELART A. & MATTELART M., Histoire des théories de la communication, Paris, La Découverte, 1995.
• MEUNIER J.-P. & PERAYA D. Introduction aux théories de la communication. Analyse sémio-pragmatique de la communication médiatique, Bruxelles, De Boeck, 2004.

Teaching materials

• Information et communication - Syllabus

Faculty or entity

> ESPB