COMMUNICATION COURSES
COMM 101. Introduction to Mass Communication (3;
F, S)
Three hours per week. This course serves as an introduction
to the communication program. The study of the processes, elements, media, uses,
and impact of mass media. History, development, operation, and cultural effects
of books, newspapers, magazines, motion pictures, radio, television, sound
recording and related media.
COMM 201SI. Introduction to General Speech Communication (3; F,
S)
Three hours per week. This course will concentrate on speech
delivery techniques, organization patterns and content. Students will be
required to demonstrate competency in the delivery of informational, special
occasion, extemporaneous, and impromptu speeches. Speeches and other oral
communication presentations will be delivered in class for evaluation. Students
will be taught to develop and demonstrate skills in a variety of oral
communication situations. Attention will be given to each student regarding
styles of delivery and content of the message.
COMM 205. Introduction to Advertising (3; S)
Three hours
per week. This course offers an overview of the field of advertising, including
its history in the United States, advertising as a business, current career
opportunities in the field, and past and current trends in both broadcasting and
print media.
COMM 207WI. Newswriting (3; F, S)
Three hours per week.
Prerequisite: ENGL103 or consent of instructor. COMM 101 is suggested as a
corequisite. Introduction to the process of preparing news copy for mass media.
Emphasis on gathering information, writing leads, and organization for straight
news and feature stories. Students submit stories to campus media.
COMM 209. History of American Media (3; S)
Three hours
per week. Prerequisite: COMM 101 or consent of instructor. Covers the origin,
growth, and development of the communication and entertainment media in the
United States.
COMM 215. Public Relations Practices & Procedures (3; F)
Three hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 101 and ENGL 103. Survey
of principles, policies, and practice of public relations. Focus will be on
planning, determining publics, creating messages, researching and understanding
and managing public opinion. Students will participate in actual public
relations projects.
COMM 217. Introduction to Broadcast Journalism (3; F, S)
Three hours per week. The first course in the broadcast journalism
sequence, this course offers hands on skills focusing on the fundamental of
broadcast journalism. Topics include videography, digital non-linear editing,
lighting and audio production. Course objectives include creating news packages
for the student run Dolphin Channel broadcast. Students will work to demonstrate
competency in lighting, composition, framing, microphone placement and
recording. Special emphasis is placed on the basic skills identified by the
broadcast television industry.
COMM 301. Effective Communication Strategies (3; F, S)
Three hours per week. Admission is by permission of instructor. An
introduction to the principles of effective interpersonal communication explored
in a multi-cultural, experiential context. Emphasis is on putting into practice
theory and skills in perception, listening and verbal and nonverbal message
construction. Also included is an exploration of power and conflict in
communication and the development, maintenance, deterioration and repair of
relationships.
COMM 302SI. Persuasive Speaking (3)
Three hours per
week. Perequisite COMM 201SI. is course will require students to demonstrate
competency in the structure and delivery of persuasive speeches. Students will
be taught to develop and display skills in debate activities. Attention will be
given to each student regarding the benefits of persuasive speaking. Assignments
will include class discussion in addition to speeches. Students will deliver
speeches in class and will be given constructive evaluation in order to become
better communicators. Students will be taught speech delivery techniques,
organizational patterns and content. COMM 301 prepares student who intend to
pursue further studies in speech communication and serves as a prerequisite to
COMM 322 Argumentation and Debate.
COMM 307WI. Advanced Reporting (3; S, alternate years)
Three hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 207. Human interest
stories focusing on the arts, education, health, crime and the environment.
Students develop both news-feature and magazine-length pieces to be submitted to
local media outlets and for publication in Frontiers, a magazine
developed by the class containing original features.
COMM 315WI. Public Relations & Advertising Writing (3; F)
Three hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 207 and COMM 215.
Introduction to promotional, advertising, and public relations writing. Emphasis
is on writing news releases, brochures, speeches, reports, proposals, memos,
scripts and print and broadcast ad copy. Students will prepare promotional
material for actual clients.
COMM 317. Broadcast Journalism (3; S)
Three hours per
week. Prerequisite: COMM 217. Students participating in this class work in the
“news” class. Students function as part of a team producing a weekly newscast.
Students write, report, shoot, edit, anchor and produce television news.
Students in this class must have mastery of the basic skills taught in COMM 217.
Throughout the semester students will have opportunities to explore news story
ideas and cultivate leadership skills through the role of executive producer.
Television roles are rotated to provide opportunity in a variety of roles.
Students present their weekly work in the format of a student television
broadcast.
COMM 321. Copy Editing & Newspaper Design (3; F)
Three hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 207 and COMM 101. Editing
and preparation of news for print media. Includes study and laboratory work in
newspaper and magazines. Focus is on editing for audiences, evaluation of news,
editing principles, photo uses and editing, typography and layout principles,
news packaging, and ethical considerations.
COMM 322. Argumentation and Debate (3; F)
Three hours per
week. Prerequisite: COMM 301SI, or COMM 202 or permission from the instructor.
This course offers the opportunity to analyze a large variety of current issues,
and includes the use of reasoning, the making of argument briefs, refutation,
cross examination goals and techniques and persuasive rhetorical tools. This is
a communication class and therefore students will use effective content,
organization and delivery techniques as required.
COMM 331. Graphic and Publication Design (3; F)
Three
hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 321. The design and production of
publications from the concept stage through to finished product. Includes
newspapers, magazines, and various publications within public relations and
advertising organizations. Emphasis is on effectively combining content with
design. Topics include audience determination and appeal, design principles, use
of photography and art, typesetting and typography, printing processes and
budget considerations.
COMM 333WI. Broadcast Newswriting/Reporting (3; F)
Three
hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 207. Emphasis is on broadcast news reporting,
writing, and interviewing. Study of broadcast considerations for story
selection, length, and style. Lab exercises will focus on reporting and
writing.
COMM 335WI. Advertising Copywriting (3; S)
Three hours
per week. Prerequisite: COMM 205. An introduction to the field of advertising
copywriting. Emphasis is on writing and creating advertisements including print,
outdoor, radio and television advertising copy. This is a writing intensive
course. Students will prepare a variety of projects including a complete
advertising campaign for an actual client.
COMM 365. Communication Theory (3; S)
Three hours per
week. Prerequisite: COMM 101. An examination of the major theoretical
perspectives in mass communication, from the agenda setting functions of the
media to the ways audiences use and shape media messages. The course will cover
major theories and their practitioners with special attention to media
consumption and use, gender and race, and the inter-relationship between mass
communication theory and cultural studies.
COMM 395. Communication Practicum (1; F, S)
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing, permission of the instructor and COMM
207. May be repeated for credit. Total hours for this or other practica, singly
or in combination, may total no more than three credit hours. Students will work
as reporters, photographers, editors, and advertising sales representatives on
the staffs of the various media. Students will be assigned various jobs and be
graded on their performance. Laboratory work on the Navigator, the
weekly newspaper, and the Riparian, the yearbook.
COMM 401. Communicating to Diverse Publics (3)
Three
hours per week. An introduction to intercultural communication, this course
focuses on differences in interpersonal communication due to race, gender, age,
ethnicity and sexual orientation. An experiential approach will be used in
exploring and understanding these differences. Students will select a specific
targeted public for an in-depth study that will include a student guide and the
creation of a mini instructional workshop.
COMM 415. Public Relations Case Studies (3; S)
Three
hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 215. A case study approach to solving public
relations problems. Course will examine issues involving organizational image,
internal and external audiences, media relations and public affairs.
COMM 417. Advanced Broadcast Journalism (3)
Three hours
per week. Prerequisite COMM 317 or permission of instructor. This advanced level
course builds on the fundamental principles of broadcast journalism, story
development, production, and news writing. Students work independently and in
small groups utilizing digital non-linear equipment to develop, produce, shoot,
and edit fully contained projects to air on the student television station, the
Dolphin Channel. Students are encouraged to produce compelling documentary style
videos utilizing broadcast journalism skills and creativity.
COMM 445. Advertising campaigns (3)
Three hours per week.
Prerequisite: COMM 101, 205. This advanced level course in advertising explores
effective advertising campaigns. Students will learn the principles of
conducting campaigns, including research, setting objectives, writing
strategies, and accomplishing goals. Students apply the principles of effective
advertising to a campaign for an actual client.
COMM 450. Nonverbal Communication (3; F)
Three hours per
week. The course will concentrate on nonverbal communication in human
interaction. Students will be taught to observe and evaluate the nonverbal
language that interacts with verbal communication. The objective is to become
more sensitive to how people communicate by touch (haptics), space between
people (proxemics), personal appearance, environmental settings, group dynamics,
body movements (kinesics), vocal sounds (vocalics), smells (olfactions), time
(chronemics) and other channels of nonverbal communication. The course is taught
with discussions based on the professor’s and student’s oral presentations.
COMM 452. Special Topics in Communication (3; Su)
Three
hours per week. May be repeated for credit when the topic is different. Content
will change, centering on a particular topic or theme, which will be announced
each semester the course is offered.
COMM 455. Principles of Mass Media Law (3; S)
Three
hours per week. Prerequisite: COMM 209 or consent of instructor. Course opens
with a broad discussion of the American legal system, progresses to discussions
of specific key cases and issues involving freedom of the press and regulation
of broadcasting.
COMM 465. Communication Research (3; S)
Three hours per
week. Prerequisites: COMM 101, COMM 205 and COMM 215. Students will be exposed
to and will carry out different types of communication research, including
content analysis, surveys, focus groups, and laboratory experiments.
COMM 475. Media Ethics (3; S)
Three hours per week.
Prerequisite: Senior standing. An investigation of the conflicting
responsibilities facing communications professionals. Using a case study
approach, this course will focus on the craft of ethical decision-making within
current media guidelines. Topics of discussion will include the historical roots
of limitations on the media, changing social expectations for information
dissemination, and editorial leadership. Cases involving conflicts of value in
print, broadcasting, advertising and public relations will be analyzed.
COMM 485. Senior Communication Seminar (3; F)
Three
hours per week. Prerequisite: Senior communication major. A culminating
experience for senior communication majors, the seminar will focus on an
in-depth study of current issues in media. Students will produce a research
project in one of the three areas of specialization: news/editorial,
broadcasting and public relations/advertising.
COMM 490. Communication Internship (var. 3-6)
Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing; must have a 2.5 cumulative
GPA and a 3.0 GPA in their major. (GPA requirement may be waived in exceptional
or extraordinary cases only.)
- For internships in
journalism-public relations, students should have completed COMM 101,
207, 215, 315 and 320.
- In broadcast media, students
should have completed COMM 101, 209, 211 and 333. The course may be repeated.The
student will work a minimum of three (3) hours per week for each hour of credit
and earn a maximum of six (6) hours of credit. The student will register for no
more than 15 total hours during the semester in which the internship is
conducted, or nine (9) hours during the summer. The internship must be arranged
by a communication faculty member and be approved by the Division of Humanities
chair and the organization providing the work. The department is unique in the
South to offer a summer internship/academic experience in the entertainment
industry.