Courses

• COM CM 534: Communication Strategies in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution
  Addresses both strategies and theories of negotiation and conflict resolution. Emphasis on communication skills necessary in everyday business situations, including labor management disputes, international disputes, confrontation between interest groups, and resolution of conflict between an organization and its stakeholders. In addition to readings, there is an emphasis on case analyses, role plays, and guest lectures.
• COM CM 535: Politc Campaign
  This course description is currently under construction.
• COM CM 536: Sports Communication
  Introduces students to the tactics and strategies used in implementing sports information or public relations campaigns in the specialized areas of professional and amateur athletics. Students should have strong writing ability.
• COM CM 538: Event Planning & Management
  Students learn many aspects of organizing and managing special events including venue selection; preparing and managing a budget; scheduling and staffing; managing the marketing; obtaining media coverage; coordinating food & beverage, decor and themes; working with professionals such as PR/advertising firms and creative directors. The course will cover event planning for trade shows, weddings, charities, anniversaries, wakes/funerals and memorials.
• COM CM 539: Health Campaigns
  Health Campaigns involves the principles and practices of designing media campaigns to promote health behavior change, whether related to smoking and alcohol consumption, illicit drug use, physical activity and diet, condom use, public safety, and environmental issues. It centers on how health organizations and initiatives can achieve their goals for population-based health behavior change by strategically creating, distributing, and evaluating media campaigns and media messages. At the nexus of communication and public health, this course uses theory and persuasive elements as a basis for designing and implementing health media campaigns and media messages via different media, including traditional media, new media, and social media. With this foundation, students are tasked to evaluate extant health media campaigns and campaign messages and design their own original health media campaigns and campaign messages.
• COM CM 555: Adv Media Writ
  This course description is currently under construction.
• COM CM 557: Media Effects
  This course introduces the study of the effects of media on individuals and on society. This course will overview a broad range of media theories that have examined media as a social force, that have explored factors that affect individuals' selection of and perceptions of media messages, and that have studied how media affect viewers' attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. These theories will be used to examine a variety of different types of content, including media violence, portrayals of race and gender, politics, advertising, and entertainment, among others. 4 cr., 1st sem.
• COM CM 561: Special Topics in Mass Communication
  Topics change each semester. For Fall 2017: A1 Public Relations Management: Through visits by leading industry professionals, readings and case studies, students who are about to set out on their PR careers receive a comprehensive view of the many paths open to them (corporate comm staff, agency track, social/digital/analytics, entrepreneurial directions, sports/entertainment, not-for-profit) students learn about the competencies required in each, begin to formulate their career objectives and build plans for getting there; B1 Health Campaigns: Involves the principles and practices of designing media campaigns to promote health behavior change, whether related to smoking/alcohol consumption, physical activity/diet, condom use, public safety, and environmental issues. Uses theory and persuasive elements as a basis for designing and implementing health media campaigns via traditional, new, and social media. Students are tasked to evaluate extant health campaign messages and design their own health campaign messages; C1 Branding, Communications, and Reputation: The class will focus on tangible and intangible elements of branding, communications and reputation and will meet once each week, every Monday from 2:30 until 5:15 p.m. Among topics and organizations to be discussed are the Olympics, monarchies, heritage brands, The Nobel Prize, and women's professional sports. Active student participation is expected.
• COM CM 700: Financial & Strategic Management for Communication Professionals
  The focus of the course is on two critical domains of modern business: financial and strategic management. Through lectures, readings, case studies, and team projects, the course will introduce students to the complexities and challenges facing today's communications industry manager along with practical understanding of how businesses operate and even succeed despite the obstacles. The goal of the course is to help students understand the fundamentals of business enterprise with an emphasis on how these apply to the media industries. The course covers the fundamentals of a business plan, including revenue models, marketing, venture capital, finance, and accounting in the context of the media landscape. 1st sem.
• COM CM 701: Contemporary Public Relations
  Foundations of professional principles and practice in public relations for corporate, governmental, and nonprofit organizations. Includes history, organization, and scope of the field; its roots in social science; types of campaigns and programs; and professional ethics. Theories, strategies, and tactics in current practice emphasized. Explores opportunities and requirements for work in the field. 1st sem.
• COM CM 702: Advertising and Society
  Analyzes the impact of advertising on individuals and society and evaluates the ethical, moral, and legal questions relating to the advertising industry. The history of advertising and the rise of consumerism will be studied to create a paradigm for understanding the social effects of advertising. Students will study the issues of advertising in cyberspace and question of privacy and protection from intrusive communication messages. 1st sem.
• COM CM 704: Contemporary Mass Communication
  The history, practices, business models and technologies of contemporary mass media. Topics include mass media's forms, content, audiences and social effects; the state and fate of the printed word; the ups and downs of the Internet; media consolidation and the growing movement toward synergy; the future of independent media; and ethical and moral issues created by new technologies and old economic pressures. 1st sem.
• COM CM 705: Writing for International Students
  Introduction to basic formats, including news releases, editorials, features, profiles, articles, and other forms of writing. Emphasis on basic copy quality in American English. Students learn to analyze and rewrite their own copy. 1st sem.
• COM CM 707: Writing for Media Professionals
  Serves as introductory graduate level writing course. Exposure to a variety of off and online writing formats in communication including: news releases, e-pitches, blogs, features (off and online), microsites, websites, brochures, broadcast PSA's, slide shows, videos, off and online writing (including social media) strategies, editing, and interview techniques. Extensive writing and rewriting. Develops comprehensive writing skills for public relations, mass communication and advertising majors. 1st sem.
• COM CM 708: Principles and Practices of Advertising
  Overview of the nature, function, practice, and social, economic, and behavioral aspects of advertising. Student teams develop advertising plans, create campaigns, and explore problems of account management, creativity, production, and ethics. 1st sem.
• COM CM 709: Corporate Public Affairs
  Monitoring sociopolitical environment, managing corporate crises and confrontations, analyzing issues, formulating political strategies, developing programs of advocacy advertising, constituency communication, and public involvement. Case studies used. 2nd sem.
• COM CM 710: Communication Theory
  Examines origins, nature, and consequences of human communication. Reviews nature of verbal, nonverbal, and other types of group communication issues. Traces the development of speech, writing, printing, broadcasting, and digital media. Reviews theories of the process and effects of mass communication and how these theories apply to the work of media professionals. 2nd sem.
• COM CM 712: Consumer Insight & Account Planning
  Explores how to arrive at consumer insights that lead to better advertising and promotion. The course focuses on the set of skills necessary to create breakthrough advertising, including qualitative research, observation, interviewing skills, mapping and presentation tools. Students learn to write effective, creative briefs.
• COM CM 713: Law of Communication
  Study of the laws that apply to communication practitioners. Topics include the First Amendment, defamation, invasion of privacy, copyright, free press/fair trial, reporter's privilege, access to information, regulation of advertising and Internet law. 2nd sem.
• COM CM 714: Professional Presentations
  Study and application of the principles of oral presentation, persuasion, and interviewing. Ingredients of effective preparation for, and delivery of, informative and persuasive presentations. Emphasis on self-criticism for self-improvement. 1st sem.

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