This course can be used towards the Sociocultural Dimensions major or minor requirements, or towards the Technology in Second Language Teaching minor or graduate certificate requirements. The course can only be used towards one of these requirements (Sociocultural major, Sociocultural minor, TSLT minor/certificate).
This course examines, through a range of topics and research frameworks, a relationship between language and digital media and the many ways language communication dynamics operates across changing mediascapes. The course provides a solid foundation in relevant theoretical concepts balanced with practical exercises and creative projects. The course adopts a broad interpretation of the term "media", focusing on existing online media platforms as well as on the issues that arise from various uses of digital media for social, political, and cultural purposes, including virtual community building, digital semiotics, memes, viral spreads, surveillance, political opposition and oppression, and propaganda, marginalization and liberation, participatory cultures, production dimensions, etc. The course is designed for graduate and undergraduate students in Russian sociolinguistics and second language studies interested in learning how to research digital media discourse. The course is taught in English; no knowledge of Russian language is required.
Identical to: GLO 597, SLAT 597
May be convened with: RSSS 497