SUNY Fredonia Department of Communication. COMM 244 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL MEDIA Fall 2018 Tuesdays 6:00 PM Thompson Hall E316

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1 SUNY Fredonia Department of Communication COMM 244 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL MEDIA Fall 2018 Tuesdays 6:00 PM Thompson Hall E316 Professor David Norman Phone: COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course will introduce students to the various means of social networking, its effect on the practice of communication and its broader implications in a modern world. Students will engage in hands-on applications as well as explore and analyze the role of social media in today s global society. Students will analyze how social media is continuing to transform the ways we interconnect and interact. LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students successfully completing this course should achieve the following outcomes: Meaningful understanding of the foundations and implications of social media on communications. Ability to apply public relations and communication principles in the field of social media. Skills to creatively explore public relations cases related to social media. Ability to construct and evaluate social media communications for individuals and organizations. DEPARTMENTAL GOALS: Students must demonstrate the ability to: Understand, evaluate and communicate creatively within and across technically and culturally diverse systems in ways that responsibly confirm the value of all system members. Evaluate and creatively consider communication locally, globally and historically through perspectives relevant to their specific major. Extend and apply skills and knowledge to create community connections beyond the university that foster professional, civic and developmental engagement. Understand and apply ethical principles to the practice of communication in research, interactions and creative processes in diverse social, cultural and professional spheres. Develop and implement creative, knowledge-based solutions across a variety of communication contexts within and beyond the university. Forge connections between the skills and knowledge acquired in their communication major with their lives and careers beyond the baccalaureate. REQUIRED BOOKS: Social Media Communication, Second Edition, Jeremy Harris Lipschultz (Routledge, 2018), ISBN: (pbk); Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now, Jaron Lanier (Henry Holt and Company 2018) ISBN: ; Additionally, selected case studies will be assigned during the course of the semester. REQUIRED READING: You are required to subscribe and comment weekly to Professor Jeff Morosoff s blog "Public Relations Nation" at 1

2 CLASS EXPECTATIONS: When you are employed by in a professional organization, you re expected to meet deadlines, follow procedures, come to work on time, participate and take notes at meetings, and contact your workplace if you ll be late or absent. The same is expected of you in class. Refer to this syllabus often to stay on track with reading and assignments. PARTICIPATION: Reading the assignments are an important element of this class. This will give you the full benefit of the course and the information provided. This class involves discussion and feedback, and the reading will supplement discussions. Your attitude, participation and a demonstrated interest in the subject matter will be included in your grade. Extra help is always available, and meetings with me regarding your progress are welcomed and encouraged. ATTENDANCE: You are expected to attend and be on time for every class. More than two (2) unexcused absences or more than three (3) latenesses will result in points deducted from your grade (one point for each excessive absence, one half-point for each excessive lateness) for the semester. Excused absences are given only when I am notified before class. Please me as soon as you know you will be absent or late. COMMUNICATIONS: To contact me outside of class, please me at david.norman@fredonia.edu and I will respond to you within 24 hours. PERSONAL MEDIA: There is NO USE of electronic devices for personal use (cell phones, laptops, tablets, digital players, etc.) permitted during class time. You will be asked to leave the classroom if you ignore this policy. This being a social media class, there will be times when we will be using our devices as part of the class discussions. ASSIGNMENT POLICIES: Assignments must be submitted on the due date or will not be accepted. Missed assignments will result in the loss of points from your final grade. All written assignments must be typed, double-spaced and stapled. Please put your name on the first page and number each page. Save the Word file. Spell check, proofread and do your work as professionally as possible. No work or a previous paper done in another class will be accepted. All written work may be tested against Turnitin and other tools for originality and proper citations of all sources. I reserve the right to discuss your work with my colleagues to assure originality. Sources, when required, should be noted in AP style. Here are some easy references: COURSE ACTIVITIES: Current activities in social media: Each week, you will be asked to identify and discuss real-time social media activity. What is going viral, what subjects or individuals are trending? Students will be expected to showcase and discuss the best social media activities of the week. Follow news about social media platforms. For example, what are the new changes in privacy policies that many platforms have put in place? Have they been effective? What is Twitter doing to combat trolling? As these platforms are constantly evolving, social media marketers must stay up-to-date. 2

3 Social media analysis: You will be asked to follow the social media activity of an individual, organization or cause during the course of the semester. Each week, you will review and summarize the activity, key messages, outcomes. Analyze the activity. Was it effective? Was it controversial? Is it achieving the desired results? How do brands respond to major cultural events such as awards ceremonies or the World Series to drive engagement through reactive, timely content? Personal blog: You will start a blog, based on whatever topic or issues you find interesting. Blog will be evaluated based on content as well as how you promote your blog. Students will regularly comment and respond to each other s blogs. Live event coverage: You will be asked to cover and promote a live event through social media in realtime. You will be judged on how effectively you get the word out, how engaging and creative you are, and the overall quality of your work. Social media consultation: You will work in groups with a campus or community organization and analyze the organization s social media needs and make recommendations in a presentation in class. GRADES: You are entitled to fairness, consistency and clarity. You are not entitled to a good grade. You earn good grades by mastering the content and subject matter, producing quality work, and making an effort to go beyond course minimums. Current activities in social media/participation: 20% Social media analysis: 20% Personal blog: 20% Live event coverage: 20% Social media consultation: 20% You re far more likely to earn an A or A- when your work exceeds expectations. Work meeting basic competencies and expectations will most often receive grades in the B+ to B- range. Work that is either below par, omits some of the requirements or is late will usually earn a C+, C or C-. Students poorly executing and/or missing assignments may receive a D or F. Keep a record of all your work and activity as a means to track and ensure accuracy on grading throughout the semester. You should also record your own attendance and lateness; both are part of the calculation of your final grade. NUMBER/LETTER GRADE EQUIVALENTS: = A = A = B = B = B = C = C = C = D = D = D- Below 60 = F Academic Integrity Policy Students are expected to review and abide by SUNY Fredonia s policy regarding academic integrity. Compliance with strict standards of academic honesty is expected. Academic misconduct/plagiarism will not be tolerated and may be grounds for failure of a course and suspension or dismissal from the university. Note that plagiarism is the failure to correctly site/reference any ideas or words that are not 3

4 originally your own; you should always reference the sources of your information. Plagiarism also includes the using others' (or sharing your own) essays, quizzes, etc., as well as the use of pre-written, purchased or downloaded materials. Please review the Fredonia Academic Integrity Policy at Accommodations for Disabilities Policy Students with disabilities who may need reasonable accommodations to have equal access to this course must contact the Coordinator of Disability Support Services, Reed Library (4th Floor), The Coordinator will review your disability documentation and make determinations about what accommodations and/orservices you are eligible for. Disability support services can be found at 4

5 COMM FALL 2018 COURSE CALENDAR (subject to change) Tuesdays 6:00 PM Class: AUG 28 Course introduction and overview -- Review of course objectives, policies, procedures, activities and assignments. What is social media? How do you use social media in your daily life? What is news? What is social media s role in creating and disseminating the news? What s all this about fake news? Is social media having an inverse effect on connecting people? Has the siloing of the Internet had unanticipated consequences? The work of Jaron Lanier-- Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now. How has social media contributed to its prevalence and growth? Is social media a good or bad thing? The end of the mass audience and the rise of niche content and messaging? The advent of social media- a brief history. Before Facebook, there was MySpace. Before MySpace, there was Friendster. What were the expectations for social media and how have they changed and evolved? The social media stories of the week will begin each session. Importance of participation in class. Reading: Chapter- Introduction to Social Media Concepts (1) SEPT 4 The growth of social media. What are the benefits for society? How has social media changed the nature of communication? How has it impacted public opinion, the news and public relations? Trust, influence and engagement CMC and SNSs Social media and the First Amendment Social media and interpersonal relationships, growing communities. Reading: Chapter- CMC, Diffusion and Social Theories (2) SEPT 11 The top social media platforms: deep dives into leading social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. The outsized role of Google? Acquisitions and industry consolidations. Best practices in social media. Social media influencers-- case studies of celebrity use of social media --athletes, musicians, evangelists, Youtube creators, etc. Why does stuff go viral? Building a brand through social media. Monetizing social media. Importance of good content. How brands are becoming more strategic. Rise of the micro-influencers. Reading: Chapter- Best Practices in Social Media (11) 5

6 SEPT 18 Social media and journalism. How does the media use social media? The rush to breaking news first in today s 24/7 news cycle good or bad? Why it s often wrong or inaccurate. Case studies how do media professionals use of social media. Reading: Chapter- Social Media in Journalism (3) SEPT 25 Social media and public relations. How do public relations use social media in their daily activities? How to leverage media relations on social media? How social media can create PR problems: Twitter-made crises. PR and social media on campus. Reading: Chapter- Social Media in Public Relations (4) OCT 2 Social media and the dark side trolling, doxxing, slut-shaming, cyber-bullying, identify theft, increasing use of bots and all that stuff. How social media is ruining reputations and enabling the widespread dissemination of fake news. Ethics and social media Case studies bad stuff Jaron Lanier Reading: Chapter- Social Media Ethics (10); Jaron Lanier OCT 9 OCT 16 FALL BREAK - NO CLASS Social media and privacy/security/data protection Laws and regulations/gdrp Net neutrality Reading: Chapter- Big Data and Privacy (8); Chapter- Law and Regulation (9) OCT 23 Social media and business. Using social media at work to grow a business. Relationship with PR and marketing mix. Content- best practices. Personal brand development Research and Metrics. How brands use metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure social media success. Reading: Chapter- Social Media Metrics and Analytics (6); Case Studies 6

7 OCT 30 Social media and advertising/marketing Sports and entertainment. Content and programming. Niche platforms. The secondscreen experience. What leagues and teams do a great job integrating the second-screen into the overall viewing experience? Automated digital advertising the dangers. Social media and e commerce. Direct to consumer-- Amazon and other online giants. Reading: Chapter- Social Media in Advertising and Marketing (5) NOV 6 Social media and politics. How social media is shaping the political discourse. The President and Twitter. The Russians and our elections. How have campaigns changed? Reading: case studies and online NOV 13 NOV 20 NOV 27 TBD- Course review and catch-up THANKSGIVING BREAK - NO CLASS The future of social media. Where is it heading for good or for evil, or somewhere in between? Evolving ways we interact and interconnect with each other and the world. Reading: Chapter- Future of Social Media and Information Literacy (12) DEC 4 DEC 11 Team project presentations Team project presentations, cont. 7