Global Communication and Social Change

This module aims to broaden students' knowledge and understanding of the key issues in the global South such as globalisation, poverty, capitalism, anti-colonisation, solidarity and intergovernmental development organisations. Dominant ideas about around, decolonization, communication media, politics of development and social change, and about epistemologies of the south, will be explored and examined. Drawing on experiences of people, organisations and from media and creative industries in the Global South students will explore broader debates on development, politics and popular culture. The module will offer comparative perspectives from areas such as Asia, Africa, MENA and Latin America, as well as marginalised groups in contexts such as the UK.

This module introduces theories and approaches to practice in communication, development and social change to critically explore the role of media and communication in a globalized and changing world. Dominant ideas about international development will be explored. Students will engage with the experiences of people from the Global South, and will explore broader debates on media, communication and social change.

The aim of this module is to understand the main features, concepts and practices of international negotiations. It provides an overview of the most important elements of negotiation and offers an application to a number of case studies.

The aims of this module are to understand the continuities and changes in work and employment in the media and creative industries internationally.

The aim of this module is to examine media representations of social identities with particular focus on gender, race, class and sexuality and its intersections. Combining key theories from critical theory, cultural studies, film, gender studies and communication studies, the module will explore processes and practices of production and re-production of social identities making emphasis on said productions on media, paying special attention to questions of racism, colonialism and capitalism.

The aims of this module are to equip students with the necessary academic skills to understand the challenges firms face in different developing countries and assessing different ways in which firms can overcome these challenges.

The aims of this module are to:

• Provide students with an opportunity to be exposed to project-based teamwork in diverse settings (understood in this context as involving a range of multidisciplinary, multicultural and demographic elements in differing configurations), aiming to strengthen their cooperative and collaborative working skills and competence, while raising awareness and appreciation of diversity itself.
• Provide students with hands on experience of identifying, framing and resolving practice oriented and real-world based challenges and problems, using creativity, critical enquiry and appropriate tools to achieve valuable and relevant solutions.
• Support the development of students' ability to engage in critical enquiry and individual reflection, as well as to apply individual strengths and skills, building on their own educational backgrounds.
• Provide students with opportunities for networking with stakeholders, organisations and corporations, aiming to enhance the competence and skills needed to connect to relevant parties and build up future professional opportunities.

The aims of this module are to become familiar with a range of methodologies for the analysis of structure, operation and output of media and cultural industries.

The module builds students' understanding of the principles of international marketing and provides an understanding of the key concepts and issues related to international marketing. This will enable students to develop their decision-making skills for the formulation, and implementation of international marketing plans.

The module aim is to prepare students to understand the key concepts and complexities of designing for user experience. The course focuses on innovation management and the creation of value in use as a means of customer acquisition and retention.
Students will be introduced the foundational concepts of human experience relevant to design innovation, building on interdisciplinary knowledge and principles from sociology, psychology, cognitive science and human-centred design. Theoretical concepts on cognition, perception, aesthetics and interaction will be presented through lectures and seminars to explore the complex interrelationships between usability, usefulness and desirability as experiential dimensions for value creation and decision-making, and understand their role in the development of meaningful innovation and quality user experiences.
Through research, analysis, visualisation students will engage with illustrative case studies to reflect upon how theories and concepts apply in practice, and understand how experience ecosystems function.

The aims of this module are to:

• To introduce, compare and contrast traditional and critical approaches to post-conflict peace-building;
• To undertake empirical case studies ¿ in lectures and via readings and class discussion -- as a means of illustrating and critically interrogating competing theories, concepts and debates on intervention, success and failure of contemporary peace-building.
• Introduce and interrogate recent trends in the practice of peace-building, and assess their political and ethical implications.

This module will consolidate students' knowledge on the global heritage sector and contemporary developments, with a focus on the impacts of digital media. The module has the following key aims:

• Introduce students to the heritage industries in the UK and across the world and explore their structure and operation alongside their sociocultural, economic and political impact;
• Provide a critical analysis of how these industries are shaped and constrained in contemporary times by social, cultural and economic policy and by technological change;
• Introduce and consolidate knowledge on key concepts and themes in heritage studies, with application areas on community heritage, GLAM institutions (Gallery, Libraries, Archives and Museums) and heritage tourism;
• Offer theoretical perspectives on heritage and culture, and the role of digital media in the production of cultural experiences, cultural participation and cultural learning;
• Develop understanding of and ability to use analytical and methodological tools for engaging with key issues and debates in contemporary heritage, from an interdisciplinary perspective.

The aims of this module are to introduce students to the major theoretical and methodological issues at stake in researching people's engagement with media, as audiences, users and consumers. The module examines the historical evolution of audience research; the key theoretical paradigms in the field; the practice of market research, and how it is employed within the media and creative industries; methodological and ethical dimensions of research; and the implications of new media technologies, both for the experience of audiences/users/consumers and for the practice of research. Case studies will be presented by visiting speakers from relevant organisations in the media and creative industries.

The module introduces issues around media and social movements, by tracing the theoretical evolution of media and social movements, understanding media within broader social movements in historical processes rather than merely focusing on media technologies or impact media. The model seeks to cover topics on control of media systems on different parts of the world, alternative media practices, media ecologies, networks, and social media. Whilst focused on grassroots or community activism, it considers the relationship between media, protest and democracy. The module uses a series of case studies to understand how diverse groups harness media to articulate their political voice.

This module explores the relationship between media, communication and the city by focusing on a variety of scenarios and case studies. These case studies will be framed within contemporary theories in sociology of media and communications, and cultural analysis (specifically globalization, cities and places). The module will invite students to critically reflect about the centrality of communication in urban life. It will explore cultural production, representation and consumption practices in urban contexts; and representations of urban settings in different media texts and formats.

The aims of this module are to:

• Equip students with an understanding of the role of companies in relation with their social and natural environment
• Generate an awareness of the ways in which companies take on a social- and environmental responsibility and their link to risks stemming from the natural environment.

The aims of this module are to give the student the opportunity to study a subject, or research question in depth and to research the issues surrounding the subject or background to the problem.
The module will equip the student with the relevant skills, knowledge and understanding to embark on their individual research project and they will be guided through the three options available to them to complete their dissertation:

• A desk based research project that could be set by an organisation or could be a subject of the student's choice
• A project that involves collection of primary data from within an organisation or based on field research
• A full professional placement within an organisation during which time they will complete a project as part of their role in agreement with the organisation (subject to a suitable placement position being obtained)

Students will achieve a high level of understanding in the subject area and produce a written thesis or project report which will discuss this research in depth and with rigour.