Not offered 2007-2008
LATS 346 Latinos/as and the Media: From Production to Consumption (Same as American Studies 346 and Comparative Literature 359) *
As Latina/o Studies and Media Studies scholars have long noted, the media plays a key role in the construction of (trans)national identities. As such, this interdisciplinary course will focus on the areas of advertising, print media, radio, television, media policy and audience studies in an attempt to answer the following: How do Latinos construct identity (and have their identities constructed for them) through the media? How are Latina/o community practices shaped by the media, and vice versa? What research methodologies best capture the complex relationship between consumer, producer, and media text? How are Latina/o stereotypes constructed and circulated in mass media? Where do issues of consumer agency come into play? How might media provide a means for affecting social change at both the local and global levels? In what ways do popular media impact our understanding of race, gender, sexuality, class and nation? Readings include literary and theoretical works by contemporary writers and scholars such as Arlene Dávila, Alberto Fuguet, Vicki Mayer, Yeidy Rivero, América Rodríguez, and Angharad Valdivia.
Format: discussion. Requirements: student participation, 1 student- led discussion period, several short papers throughout the semester (3- to 5-pages each), final exam.
No prerequisites. No enrollment limit (expected: 10).

CEPEDA