Schedule

Module I: Narratives, Identities, Exhibits

Class	Topic	Description	Readings Due Before Class	Assignments Due Before Class
M 8/22	Introduction	What topics would you like to explore this semester?
W 8/24	Trends and Demographics	Share: what method(s) did you use to track your social media usage? Share your findings.		Track your social media usage for 1 hour. What do you notice?
F 8/26	Trends and Demographics	In groups, write instructions for how to use a social media platform (Snapchat, Instagram, etc) targeted at a specific age range demographic. Collect demographic information about the members of your group. See also: Pew Research Center on Social Networking	Pew Report on Social Media Usage Ian Bogost, “The Cigarette of This Century” (2012)
M 8/29	Trends and Demographics	Produce narratives of your personal social media history based on specific memories of social media use.	“The History of Social Networking” (2016)
W 8/31	Trends and Demographics	Conduct interviews with a partner about their access to social media, friends, and public spaces as an adolescent.	danah boyd, “Addiction” from It’s Complicated (2014)
F 9/2	Research	No Meeting. Happy Labor Day Weekend!		Revisit danah boyd’s article on Addiction. Look up articles and studies she cites or refers to and post them on the Blackboard Discussion board.
M 9/5	Labor Day	No Meeting. Happy Labor Day Weekend!
W 9/7	Narrative Psychology	Explore: “These Gorgeous Drawings Show What Women Do When No One’s Watching on Instagram” (2016) “These Pictures Show What Really Happens in the Background of Stylized Instagram Shots” (2015)	“How Social Media Affects Our Self-Perception” (2014) “The Tyranny of Other People’s Vacation Photos” (2016) Jill Walker Rettberg, “Serial Selfies,” from Seeing Ourselves Through Technology (2014)
F 9/9	Narrative Psychology	Explore: The World Well-Being Project	“Predicting Well-Being Through the Language of Social Media” (2016) “What an Introvert Sounds Like” (2014)
M 9/12	Narrative Psychology	Finding Your Why activity: making meaning through stories	“Life’s Stories” (2015) “This Is Your Life and How You Tell It” (2007)
W 9/14	Social Media Narratives	Using Storify to build your social media exhibit.	“The Stories We Tell: Social Media as Narrative Psychology” (2011) “Consider the Catfish” (2015)
F 9/16	Social Media Narratives	No meeting. Use this time to work on your social media exhibit.		Project 1 due Sunday, 9/18, by 11:59pm on Blackboard: Social Media Exhibit

Module II: Spreadable Media

Class	Topic	Description	Readings Due Before Class	Assignments Due Before Class
M 9/19	Viral Media	Watch: Kevin Allocca, “Why Videos Go Viral” (2011)	Maria Konnikova, “The Six Things that Make Stories Go Viral” (2014) Marta Figlerowicz, “The Gatekeepers Aren’t Gone” (2016)
W 9/21	Viral Media		“8 Simple Design Hacks to Improve the Shareability of Your Content” (2015) “Student Choice and Viral Videos” (2016)
F 9/23	Viral Media	No meeting. Post a comment on the Discussion Board on Blackboard.		Post on Blackboard Discussion board for Friday, 9/23: Post a link to your favorite viral video or meme. Referring to “The Six Things that Make Stories Go Viral,” briefly describe what characteristics make it a viral sensation.
M 9/26	Algorithms	Watch: Eli Pariser, “Beware Online ‘Filter Bubbles,’” (2011)	“Your Facebook News Feed Really Is an Echo Chamber” (2016) Wall Street Journal‘s Blue Feed, Red Feed
W 9/28	Algorithms		Jill Rettberg, Filtered Reality, from Seeing Ourselves Through Technology (2014)
F 9/30	Algorithms	No meeting. Post a comment on the Discussion Board on Blackboard under “Occasional Fridays” Sep. 30.		“Filter” can mean to remove impurities, removed unwanted materials, or otherwise alter the aspect of something. Jill Rettberg discusses many ways in which technological and cultural filters impact our engagement on social media, including apps, photography, and blogging. For this Friday, I’d like you to analyze one way in which “filters” impact your social media presence. Post an image/example and briefly connect it to Rettberg.
M 10/3	Culture		Zynep Tufekci, “What Happens to #Ferguson Affects Ferguson: Net Neutrality, Algorithmic Filtering and Ferguson” (2014) Zynep Tufekci, “The Real Bias Built in at Facebook” (2016)
W 10/5	Culture		Bergis Jules, “Some Thoughts on Ethics and DocNow” (2016)
F 10/7	Black Lives Matter Symposium	No class meeting. Attend the Black Lives Matter Symposium at the CDSC (4th floor Holland Library) (alternative option: read Beyond the Hashtags) In either case, submit a discussion post on Blackboard		Attend an event at the CDSC ; write a discussion post on Blackboard
M 10/10	Bullying		“Twitter Is Running Out of Time to Get Real About Fighting Abuse” (2016)
W 10/12	Bullying		The Internet Ruined My Life
F 10/14

Module III: Communication and Rhetoric

Class	Topic	Description	Readings Due Before Class	Assignments Due Before Class
M 10/17	Spreadable Media	Discuss spreadable media project.
W 10/19	No meeting	No meeting.
F 10/21	Spreadable	Discuss spreadable media project.		Project 1 due Sunday, 10/23, by 11:59pm on Blackboard: Spreadable Media Project.
M 10/24	Nonverbal Communication		“Mixed Signals: Why People Misunderstand Each Other” (2015)
W 10/26	Nonverbal Communication		“Smile, You’re Speaking Emoji” (2014)
F 10/28		Hybrid: Post response to discussion board	“Lost in Translation: Study Finds Interpretation of Emoji Can Vary Widely” (2016) “9 Emojis That Look Completely Different on Other Phones” (2016)	Blackboard Discussion Prompt Compose your own phrases, sentences, or stories in emoji. Translate your message. Reflect on the correlation between emoji and the translation in words. Consider the affordances and limitations of communicating through emoji.
M 10/31	Halloween		“Inside Facebook’s Decision to Blow Up the Like Button” (2016)
W 11/2			“Classifying the Emotions of Facebook Posts Using Reactions Data” (2016)
F 11/4			Nancy Baym, selection from Personal Connections in the Digital Age (2015)
M 11/7
W 11/9
F 11/11	Veteran’s Day	—		—
M 11/14	Future of Social Media	Group work
W 11/16	Future of Social Media	Group work
F 11/18	Future of Social Media	Group work
11/21-25	Thanksgiving Week	—	—	—
M 11/28	Workshop	Discuss portfolios, form groups, schedule workshops, submit drafts to Blackboard
W 11/30	Workshop	Groups 1 & 2
F 12/2	Workshop	Groups 3 & 4
M 12/5	Workshop	Groups 5 & 6
W 12/7	Workshop	Groups 7 & 8
F 12/9	Wrap-Up	Reflection and Course Feedback
12/15, 11:59pm	Portfolio	Portfolio due on Blackboard		Project due, Thursday, 12/15, 11:59pm.