The unit introduces students to theories and fields of practice organised around 'getting attention' in and through the media. It focuses particularly on celebrity and fashion as two paradigmatic fields in which this is central. It provides students with a theoretical and historical understanding of publicity as a general field, from the emergence of the movie star and the development of magazine journalism to celebrity Twitter feeds and contemporary public relations. It will consider arguments about the 'noise' or 'clutter' of contemporary media and the increasing importance of an 'attention economy'. It will also introduce some of the major fields of professional practice which have... -- Course Website
Instructor: Mark Gibson