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 Awarded by:
University of Leicester
MA Mass Communications
This programme provides you with the knowledge and research expertise to address a wide range of questions in media and communications such as the changing social uses of media; media production, organisation and control; issues of management, training
and ethics in media practice; media regulation; comparative cross-national studies of media; analysis of media texts; the implications of media for the knowledge, beliefs and behaviours of audiences; media technologies; the contribution of media to economic growth, nation-building, community development, and individual identity and well-being.
Programme Content
Year One Modules 1) Key Issues and Approaches in Media Study - 10 Credits
This module introduces a variety of influential, competing ways of thinking about the media within the broad area of social science research, but drawing also on other disciplines. On completing this module, you will be able to identify and critically evaluate the major different theoretical approaches to the media and how these approaches relate to broader theories of society .
2) Media History and Social Regulation - 10 Credits
Module 2 discusses key features and developments in media history, focusing on the histories of print and audio-visual media. The module examines issues in the debates that govern scholarly, ethical and political thinking about the actual or desired relationship of media to public life and considers the relative significance and benefits of private, public and mixed-ownership media.
3) Media in Global Context - 10 Credits
This module contains a comparative analysis of media systems. The study material explores significant global trends in media technologies, economics and markets, relating to the major geopolitical regions of the world.
4) Communications and Globalisation - 10 Credits
Through this module you will acquire a critical understanding of different approaches to the study of the media in relation to processes of political, economic and social development. Specific topics include nationhood, nationalism and national identity; imperialism, dependency, and globalisation and a critical evaluation of 'alternative' uses of media.
5) Investigating Media - 10 Credits
The 'methods' module of the course, designed to improve your ability to evaluate media research, learn some of the key research skills for the study of the media, and find out how to carry out your own research projects for academic or professional purposes.
6) Media Industries: Convergence, Divergence- 10 Credits
This module combines a study of the distinctive features of particular media organisations or industries with issues which are generic to all media industries. In terms of ownership, control, technology, markets and marketing, there has been growing convergence between these industries, yet these different media have distinctive histories, traditions and signifying systems.
Year Two Modules 7) Professional Practices - 10 Credits
A variety of viewpoints of professional practice are discussed in this module, drawing on a wide range of academic approaches and disciplines. Units explore issues of management, training and ethics in journalism and other aspects of media production.
8) Audience and Reception - 10 Credits
The audiences module presents a critical account and discussion of the significance of different ways of thinking about media influence, media use and patterns of media consumption. It examines the relationship between theory and research design and the influence of the different research approaches on the provision of education about the media.
Option Modules
1) Media Texts - 20 Credits
This module examines a number of different approaches to the study of media texts and includes discussions of studies of language use in media and the languages of media, the relevance of discourse analysis, and studies of genre and narrative in both written texts and the moving image.
2) Image and Representation - 20 Credits
This module explores how media representations depict features of the social, economic, and political worlds, examining issues of media content and professional practice. The module covers both 'fiction' and 'non-fiction' genres, considers the boundaries between them, and examines issues relating to gender roles and to ethnicity.
3) Film and National Cinema - 20 Credits
Examining the film and national cinema industries in six different and regional contexts, this module gives you an opportunity to engage not only with the range of different theoretical and analytical approaches to national cinema, but also with examples of films from the countries and regions examined. You will gain an understanding of the relevance of social, historical and cultural context in the study of film and an awareness of film language in each case.
4) Communication, Technology and Society - 20 Credits
This module introduces you to the broad theoretical perspectives and debates concerning the relationship between modern communication technologies and the nature of contemporary social structures and practices. It will provide you with a critical appraisal of the ways in which this relationship has been conceptualised and understood and will explore the potential social impacts of new communications technologies.
5) The Political Economy of New Media - 20 Credits
This module invites you to integrate the concerns traditionally associated with communication research with those arising from the changing communications industries. You will gain an understanding of the developing frameworks of government regulation in different national contexts and develop knowledge of current trends towards media convergence, new media audiences/users, the Internet and the 'attention economy', and the global digital divide.
6) Political Communication - 20 Credits
This module examines developments in theories and practices of political communication and places them in international context. It examines issues such as the increasing role of mass media in political systems around the world and its relationship to ideas of Americanisation and globalisation. The growing importance of political marketing in developed democracies is appraised alongside consideration of the evolution of political advertising as a primary means of communicating politics to a mass audience.
7) e-Governance and e-Democracy: Theory and Practice - 20 Credits
This module offers a comprehensive examination of global e-government developments, including the use of the Internet by parliaments and political parties, the impact of government web sites on civic engagement, the implementation of e-voting initiatives, and the growing importance of the Internet as a political news source and platform for political debate. It will also consider the potential significance of alternative technology platforms for electronic public service delivery such as digital interactive television and mobile telephony.
8) Journalism: News Access and Source Power - 20 Credits
This module aims to acquaint you with the fast-growing research literature and surrounding theoretical discussion about news access and source power. The module explores this interaction between the news media and sources in different contexts and provides up-to-date discussion and comparative materials that will help you to arrive at a better understanding of this critical relationship.
9) Critical Public Relations: Contexts and Issues - 20 Credits
What is PR? How does it contribute to democratic processes? This module explores the history and development of public relations, examines the different models it can follow, ethical concerns and codes of practice followed at national and global levels, and looks beyond media relations to examine the impact of new media technologies on political and corporate communications.
Dissertation - 60 Credits
Candidates for the degree of MA are required to complete a 12,000-15,000 word dissertation on an approved topic.
The MA Mass Communication is recognised at Level 7 by the Malta Qualifications Council (MQC) For course fee and other information, please contact eie on:Tel: +356 21 332804 or send an e-mail
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