International Public and Political Communication

This module is designed as an introduction to social scientific research methods as applied in the communications, media and journalism fields. The module provides an overview of key research methods, and the different ways in which research can be conducted. Topics covered include surveys, questionnaire design, focus groups, interviewing, ethnography, content analysis, discourse analysis and different aspects of information search, reserach design, project management and research presentation. The module is designed to make students aware of basic skills in these social science research methods and to equip them to conduct small scale projects on their own, or in groups.

Civil wars are the deadliest form of conflict in the contemporary world. In the 1990s 90% of those killed in wars were civilians (Paris 2004). Currently, 43-50% of post-civil war societies return to war within five years. No matter what the causes (economic, political, social, ethnic…) of a civil war ultimately violence occurs when there is a breakdown of communication. Without a communicative basis it is impossible to (re-)build civil society and achieve self-sustainable peace. This module analyses the communicative architecture of peace and explores how it can be re-build through hybrid communication. By hybrid is meant communication that spans across both representational (verbal) and non-representational (non-verbal) communication and reflects the range of means of communication within societies. Students will engage with the role and importance of communication for civil society and peacebuilding.

The module seeks to explore a range of ideas and issues within the very broad area of political communication. It starts with a basic introduction to the field and then moves on to look at key issues that feature in the discussion of politics, journalism and communication, and the intersection of these three fields of study. The module will also seek to explore how we should look at the field of political communication at a time when traditional media (newspapers) are in relative decline and different forms of communication (Twitter, Facebook, WeChat) exist in abundance. The discussion will take in comparative, global and historical contexts.

This module examines the relationship between media, political bodies, NGOs, and wider societal actors at the outbreak of international crises. It looks into particular cases of recent international crises and early reportage, questions the emerging media and political representations, and evaluates them in light of theories of perception, identity, and reactions to uncertainty. In this module students will conduct a research project into the early media coverage of a crises, interview journalists, participate in a modelling exercise of political, public and media reactions to an international crisis and relate early coverage to later narratives found in media and film.

This module offers a comprehensive review of public diplomacy and its broader field of soft power statecraft. As such, it provides students at post-graduate level with a compilation of approaches to, and studies of varying perspectives on the practice of public diplomacy. The module provides insights into international debates, draws on an emerging body of knowledge as well as societal trends impacting the field and the practice of public diplomacy. Focusing on the meta-theoretical, philosophical, and applied aspects of public diplomacy, the module will cover: conceptual foundations of public diplomacy; institutional and organisational dimensions of public diplomacy; implementation of public diplomacy; domains of practice in public diplomacy.

This module will provide students with knowledge and skills necessary to communicate messages through the media. Case studies and practical workshops will allow students to learn about the practice of media communication. They will learn how the media operates and how to communicate messages through interviews, press conferences and news releases. Topics covered in the module will include the development of communication strategies, the understanding of news values and news cycles and strategies for successful and ethical communication.

This module will introduce students to key conceptual/methodological debates concerning the role, function and impact of images and visual representations within contemporary forms of political communication. Focusing on a variety of communication, media and journalism-based media and contexts (i.e. photojournalistic coverage of war/conflict/terrorism, the role of images within political campaigns, political cartoons, visual representations of minority groups, etc.), and actors (e.g. politicians, NGOs, marketing and PR professionals, terrorist organisations, protest movements, etc), the module will to equip students with the critical and analytical skills for interrogating dominant modes and methods of visual political communication.

Conspiracy theory is a popular way to interpret the reality around us. Any major event that happens today immediately receives a 'conspiratorial' version which explains its origins as a result of malevolent actions of a secret group of people. No matter how wacky conspiracy theories may be at times, these ideas often have some solid roots in the historical and cultural backgrounds of communities. This module will bring together various theoretical approaches and popular culture products to study conspiracy theories in order to answer a number of questions: How do conspiracy theories emerge and spread on the national and global levels? What are the causes that make people believe in conspiracy theories? How can we prevent the spread of conspiracy theories in our communities? This module will provide a unique chance for students to explore an exciting phenomenon in detail, testing their critical thinking and developing a more rigorous approach to the information that surrounds us daily.

This module will require students to conduct their own research project utilising some of the methods they will have learnt in JNL6210 Research Methods which runs in the autumn semester and is compulsory for all students. Students will be asked to analyse a public or political communication campaign of their choice. Such analysis includes all elements of a campaign including the political marketing material. Students are required to submit a dissertation of not less than 12,000 words and not more than 15,000 words in length.