Race, Nation, and Media Histories

Examination of the historical and technological developments of various media and their role in American society and culture. Critical of how history has been written, students must be attuned to the technological and sociocultural contexts of various media that include photography, cinema, and television. Through this history, examination of how different media technologies have contributed and shaped imaginings of nation and Americanness, and how artists have responded to this history. Analysis of how media and collective memory operate in tandem to shape understanding of the past. Readings of media history as a simultaneous history of the U.S., race, identity, and culture, while being attentive to the dynamics of power and narration within the writing of history itself.

P/NP or letter grading.