Media and Popular Culture
UndergraduateMUR-COM2122027
Course information for 2027 intake
Popular culture grows and changes alongside media and technology. Analyse how cultural products find audiences, change with technology and carry social meanings. Then consider how people respond to the media they encounter.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- Subject may require attendance
- Enrol by
- 18 July 2027
- Entry requirements
- Part of a degree
- Duration
- 15 weeks
- Start dates
- 26 July 2027
- Price from
- $2,257
- Upfront cost
- $0
- Loan available
- HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available
Media and Popular Culture
About this subject
At the completion of this subject students will be able to:
- Gather, describe and analyse key theories, concepts and examples in relation to media and popular culture.
- Demonstrate ethical thinking about the processes and impacts of the globalisation process in terms of media and culture.
- Identify and apply critical and technical skills using traditional and digital media.
- Demonstrate cognitive flexibility by applying creative, technical and critical thinking to address complex issues.
- Communicate and engage with your peers in person and via media and communication platforms using voice, text, sound and image.
- Topics will be drawn from across the history of media-based texts from Gutenberg’s printing press through to current digital online examples such as short-form videos and vlogs, Booktok communities, episodic video streaming, Podcasts/Discord groups and ephemeral snap culture (such as via Snapchat and Be Real). The subject will begin with a broad introduction to key concepts and theories in the study of popular culture then dedicate key topics to particular types of popular culture or audience/fan cultural engagements with specific media forms, mediums or text examples. Possible topics include: Hallyu, Shakespeare, Hollywood/Bollywood, Booktok communities such as those focussed on science fiction and/or romance fiction, Superhero films and television.
This subject explores and critically analyses the relationship between the media, popular culture and audiences. We will consider the way popular culture phenomena emerge, find their audiences and evolve over time alongside technological change. This subject is particularly concerned with the many cultural and social meanings of media-based popular culture. At its heart, this subject reflects on the relationship between the media, the texts and cultural products that they circulate and the interactions and effects of them on those who encounter them. We will discuss and examine a range of media examples and their related culture(s) and cultural practices drawn from a range of mediums such as print (newspapers, magazines and literature), broadcast (radio/music, film and television) and the digital age (games, toys, streaming and entertainment media).
Please Note: All students studying at Murdoch University will need to complete the compulsory unit, Murdoch Academic Passport (MAP100), which only takes 2-3 hours to complete online. Find out more: http://goto.murdoch.edu.au/MurdochAcademicPassport.
Assessment in this subject includes an exam. Most OUA students will be required to complete their final exam remotely online (Remote eExam) via myMurdoch Learning (LMS), using Respondus LockDown Browser and Monitor. You will require a device meeting the minimum standards with a webcam, microphone, and stable internet connection and perform a one-time installation of ‘Respondus LockDown Browser’ using the unique Murdoch link. You are required to complete the mandatory practice quiz before the start of the exam period to ensure a smooth experience on the day. More information regarding Respondus can be found on the Remote eExam page: https://goto.murdoch.edu.au/RemoteExams
- AI fact checking assignment (25%)
- Engagement/participation (10%)
- Interactive oral presentation (25%)
- Final Invigilated Exam (Remote eExam using Respondus) (40%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
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Entry requirements
Part of a degree
To enrol in this subject you must be accepted into one of the following degrees:
Core
- MUR-COM-DEG-2027 - Bachelor of Communication
Additional requirements
No additional requirements
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.
Related degrees
Once you’ve completed this subject it can be credited towards one of the following courses
UndergraduateMUR-COM-DEG