American Magazine March 2015

syllabus
COMMUNICATION 515
Children, Youth, and Digital Culture
Ever since George Gerbner fired up
the RCA Victor in 1960 to study the
impact of TV on kids, researchers
have been riveted by the role of
media in children’s lives. But a half
century after the University of
Pennsylvania professor published
his pioneering cultivation theory, it’s
Twitter, tablets, video games, and
Google that have the attention of
researchers like Margot Susca.
“Digital media changes so rapidly.
As academics and policy makers,
it feels like once we’ve solved one
issue, a new technology has emerged
in its place,” says the School of
Communication professor.
In her popular course—developed
by another giant in the field of
children’s digital media, SOC’s
Kathryn Montgomery—Susca
explores the cognitive, behavioral,
social, and emotional effects of 24/7
connectivity on kids. The class delves
into controversies over violent video
games, sexual and indecent content,
Internet safety, and online privacy and
examines the role of youngsters as
digital media participants, content
creators, and consumers.
“These students grew up with
media, they know media—or they
think they do,” Susca says. “It’s
exciting to explore how media has
shaped their view of the world.”
Perhaps not surprisingly, Susca
created a hashtag (#COMM515) to
encourage real-time discussion
among her 24 tech-savvy students.
“We can debate after-hours. Or if
students are watching TV or reading
an article, they can tweet me in the
middle of the night. It’s all about
meeting today’s digital students
where they are.”
Next swipe
INTERNATIONAL SERVICE 633
Digital Diplomacy
Students explore new digital
diplomatic tools being adopted by
governments around the world in
the wake of developments such as
WikiLeaks and Arab Spring.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 466
Cyber Security Risk Management
Data security wonks study the
risks associated with information
management in the digital
economy—and the best practices
to mitigate those risks.
4 AMERICAN MAGAZINE MARCH 2015