Communication and Politics (JKM001)

The main focus of the course is to understand and analyze the mutual relationship between politics, communication, and media. It will focus on the introduction to the discipline of political communication from a theoretical, historical and comparative approach. Students will learn the specifics of political communication and its role in the media and political system. The course will focus on the Czech Republic; however, we will use the comparative approach too (with an accent on Central and Eastern Europe). The course will provide practical examples and we will use various case studies to explain theoretical processes with real-life examples. The course will require student’s engagement, teamwork, and preparation for sessions (including writing position papers, working on presentations, etc.).

Knowledge Acquisition: Students will be required to keep up with the required readings (there will be specific literature assigned to lectures), actively participate in classes, write position papers and engage in discussions. 

Requirements: The students will work on four short essays and present their conclusions. It is expected that they will consult the selected topics of their essays with the teacher. They will get detailed feedback on these essays and in some cases, they may be obliged to re-write them. To complete the course student must hand in 3 out of 4 position papers (each paper is 3 pages) and pass the final exam. Each paper is awarded 20 points and the written test is 40 points. The performance and active engagement in the class represent 60 percent of the final score, and the exam represents 40 percent. 

 Assignments: 3 papers, final test, active participation in the classes.