Degree Overview:

This MA program, delivered 100% online, offers flexibility for students to study from anywhere in the world. It is designed for professionals seeking career advancement and a real impact, equipping them with the confidence to lead change and challenge the status quo. The program focuses on the transformative power of digital media, exploring how it shapes the world and serves as a medium for positive change. It teaches students how to utilize digital media meaningfully to address social justice issues across various sectors. The course delves into the intersection of three key phenomena in modern societies:

The desire for social change
The role of digital media in facilitating or hindering change
The ethical principles guiding interactions with individuals, the world, and digital technologies

Outline:

The program is structured around three key areas:

Critical media studies: This area examines the theoretical frameworks and critical perspectives surrounding media, including its impact on society and culture.
Journalism studies and practices: This area focuses on the principles, practices, and ethics of journalism, particularly in the digital age.
Creative media practice: This area explores the use of media for creative expression, activism, and participatory engagement, including the development of activist media practices and participatory media strategies.
Activist Media Practice: This module explores various forms of cultural resistance, strategies, and histories to evaluate and plan effective activist media interventions.
Digital Media Ethics: This module examines ethical debates and practices within digital media industries, covering issues such as data abuse, disinformation, fake news, copyright, and fair use.
New Developments in Digital Media: This module provides a systemic understanding of new media, innovation dynamics, and the role of key technologies driving change.
Media Theory: This module investigates key theories, debates, and methods relevant to the study of media industries.
Public Relations: This module explores theoretical and critical debates surrounding public relations (PR) and surveys PR practice as a strategic communication function.
Gender, Sexuality and Digital Media: This module explores digital culture through the lenses of gender and sexuality, drawing upon Feminist and Queer theory and Cultural Studies.
Digital Media: Theory and Critique: This module explores techno-cultural transformation through a practical prism and key multidisciplinary critical debates.
Race, Culture and Media: This module examines the intersection of race, culture, and digital media, exploring the origins and transformations of debates around the topic.
Producing Media for Social Change: This module introduces practical skills in various media (podcasting, social media, journalism, PR).
Media, Film and Climate Crisis: This module focuses on the representation of the climate crisis and its intersection with social issues, including uneven effects on race, gender, migration, resource scarcity, and more.
Participatory Media: This module introduces practical ways of working with activists, communities, and NGOs, demonstrating how to incorporate diverse voices into the journalism process.

Assessment:

The program utilizes multiple assessment methods to evaluate students' knowledge, competence development, and engagement through individual and groupwork exercises. These methods include:

Written reports
Simulations
Essays
Project reports
Multiple-choice questions (MCQs)
Portfolios

Teaching:

The program is delivered 100% online through Canvas, a state-of-the-art online learning platform. Students can access course materials and engage with their peers and instructors through various digital tools. The program is taught by leading academics from the School of Media, Arts and Humanities, who are experts in digital media, social activism and justice, journalism, digital culture, and technology. Their research-led teaching ensures that students benefit from the latest research insights.

Careers:

The program is designed to equip students with the skills employers seek in the digital media landscape. Graduates are well-positioned for careers in:

Digital marketing
Journalism
Activism
Creative and cultural industries
Non-profit organizations
Charities
Commercial organizations

Other:

The program emphasizes interdisciplinarity, drawing on perspectives from media theory, sociology, journalism studies, and ethics. This approach equips students with the tools to understand the impact of media content in various contexts. The program encourages students to produce media content driven by a constructive and ethical approach to challenging social issues faced by societies around the world.

Course fee: £12,660 Cost per module: £1,055 You are required to pay the first module fee of £1,055 to secure your place on the course. You may also consider corporate sponsorship and employer funding. Course fees will remain fixed for 24 months from your initial course start date. Thereafter, the course fee will rise at a rate of 2.5% per calendar year (subject to rounding for administration purposes). 20% alumni discount

T&Cs apply.

Media, Ethics and Social Change MA

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