CDM 3214

The key purpose of the course is to familiarize the participants with the basic pillars of the historical evolution of the Mass Media as institutions of human society. Special interest is paid to the development of electronic media (20th century) and digital media (21st century). Beyond the historical landmarks, there is a strong focus on fundamental concepts and processes that define Media’s role and their relation to the public when it comes to the circulation of knowledge and the representations of the world. The main approach followed is the historical one with an emphasis on the pre-history of the Media (time of antiquity), the conditions (technological, social, political, economic and cultural) that marked the emergence of the Media, their evolution as well as their direction towards the future. Upon the completion of the course, the participants will be able to distinguish among the different conditions that marked the emergence of specific Media and the corresponding periods, to interpret their historical evolution, to correlate their evolution with specific contexts (regions, countries and continents) and to identify basic similarities and differentiations.