Media Law and Institutions

Catalog description

The course concentrates on the legal and economic environment of U.S. mass media. Topics include examination of major doctrines of media law, organization and operation of individual media industries, the economic structure of U.S. media markets, the role of media watchdogs and advocacy organizations, as well as media users' forms of collective action. The course's content is approached through an institutional analysis perspective, intended to facilitate students' understanding of institutions as dynamic points of confluence for organizations, norms, and individual agents. As part of the course's requirements, students conduct a research project exploring recent developments in media regulation and/or decision-making processes within one of the major media institutions covered during the semester.