Formal Assessment: Each student is required to write a 4,000 word essay, proving that the student is capable of critically approaching a relevant question concerning new media studies. It is also necessary to prepare at least a 15-minute long presentation (individually, or as a group consisting of 3 individuals at the most--in such a case the presentation shall take about 30 minutes) summarising the reading of a week or deeper exploration of the chosen issue with relation to the courses themes.

Attendance and active class participation (based on the readings prior the classes) are both required.

* Week 1
* o New media studies: Introduction

* Week 2
* o New vs. old media, Evolution of digital communication
O LIEVROUW, L. A., LIVINGSTONE, S. (2006) Introductions. In: L. A. Lievrouw, S. Livingstone (eds.) The Handbook of New Media. London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi: Sage, (See p. 1-32) ISBN 1-4129-1873-1

Recommended Readings:
o LIEVROUW, L. A (2004) ´What’s changed about new media? Introduction to the fifth anniversary issue´. In New Media & Society. Vol. 6(1), p.9-15. ISSN 1461-4448
o Poynter Institute: New Media Timeline (1969-2010) created by David B. Shedden, Library Director at Poynter Institute. Available online
o ´What’s New about New Media?´ (1999) Special themed section of New Media & Society. Vol. 1(1), p.10-82. ISSN 1461-4448

* Week 3
* o New media concepts (Part 1): Network, Information, Interface
o JENKINS, H. (2008) Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. London, New York: New York University Press. (See Introduction p.1-24) ISBN 978-0-8147-4281-5

* Week 4
* o New media concepts (Part 2): Archive, Interactivity, Simulation
o KIOUSIS, S. (2002) Interactivity: A Concept Explication. In: New Media & Society. Vol. 4(3), p.355-383. ISSN 1461-4448
o MANOVICH, L. (2001) The Language of New Media. Cambridge. MA: MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-13374-1 (Look for Manovich´s approach to interactivity; what does he mean by the ´myth of interactivity´?)

* Week 5
* o ´Old´ theories in new media (traditional media concepts shaped by new media): New media and Culture studies, Frankfurt School, Technological/Media determinism
o BENJAMIN, W. (1968) The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. In: Illuminations. New York: Harcout Brace & World. p. 217-251. ISBN 0-8052-0241-2; available also here
o MCLUHAN, M. (2001) Understanding Media. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-25397-7 (See chapter 2: Media Hot and Cold)

* Week 6
* o Reading week: This week is for students to decide upon their reading and their assignments. Initial ideas for essays and reading summaries should be sent to the Guantor-Teacher (Radka Kohutova) at radka_kohut@yahoo.com before midnight Monday 11th November.

* Week 7
* o New media in everyday life, Do we need to rethink postmodernity?
o MEYEN, M. et al. (2010) ´The internet in everyday life: a typology of internet users´. In: Media, Culture & Society. Vol. 32(5). p.873-882. ISSN 0163-4437
o SAMUELS, R. (2010) New Media, Cultural Studies, and Critical Theory after Postmodernism: Automodernity from Zizek to Laclau. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. (See p.27-51) ISBN 978-0-230-61981-4

* Week 8
* o Information society, First and Second media age, From Web 1.0 to Web 2.0
o VAN DIJCK, J., NIEBORG, D.(2009) ´Wikinomics and its discontents: a critical analysis of Web 2.0 business manifestos. In.: New Media & Society. 11(5), pp. 855-874
o POSTER, M. (1996) the Second Media Age. Cambridge, Oxford, Cambridge, MA: Polity press. (See chapter 1) ISBN 0-7456-1396-9

Recommended Reading:
o VAN DIJK, J. A: G. M. (2006) The Network Society. Social Aspects of New Media. London, Thousand Oaks, CA, New Delhi, Singapore: Sage Publications, Ltd. (See chapter 6) ISBN 1-4129-0868-X

* Week 9
* o Digital storytelling, New media and literary studies, Electronic literature
o HAYLES, K. (2007) Electronic literature: What is it? Available online http://eliterature.org/pad/elp.html

Recommended Readings:
o MURRAY, J. (1997) Hamlet on the Holodeck: The Future of Narrative in Cyberspace. Cambridge: MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-63187-3
o RYAN, M.-L. (2001) Narrative as Virtual Reality: Immersion and Interactivity in Literature and Electronic Media. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press. (See a difference between immersion and interactivity) ISBN 0-8018-6487-9

* Week 10
* o Political engagement with new media, Digital Republic?
o WRIGHTS, S. (2012) Politics as usual? Revolution, normalization and a new agenda for online deliberation. In: New Media and Society. Vol. 14(1), p.244-261. ISSN 1461-4448

o GERHARDS, J., SCHÄFER, M. S. (2010) Is the Internet a better public sphere? Comparing old and new media in the USA and Germany. In: New Media and Society. Vol. 12(1), p.143-160. ISSN 1461-4448

* Week 11
* o Online journalism vs. blogging
o CARPENTER, S. (2010) A Study of content diversity in online citizen journalism and online newspaper articles. In: New Media and Society. Vol. 12(7), p.1064-1084. ISSN 1461-4448
o EKDALE, B., NAMKOONG, K., FUNG, T., PERLMUTTER, D. (2010) Why blog? (then and now): exploring the motivations for blogging by popular American political bloggers. In: New Media and Society. Vol. 12(2), p.217-235. ISSN 1461-4448

* Week 12
* o Intellectual Property Online - what should we be aware of as citizens, journalists or media practitioners? Liability in the Internet world. Possible legal problems with YouTube, Blogs etc.
o No Readings for this session.

Optional Readings:
AARSETH, E. J. (1997) Cybertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press. (Learn what Aarseth calls as ´ergodic literature´) ISBN 0-8018-5579-9
BELL, A. (2010) The Possible Worlds of Hypertext Fiction. Hampshire, New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-54255-6
BUSH, V. (1945) As We May Think. In: Atlantic Monthly, 176(1), p.101-108.
CARLSON, M. (2007) Order versus access: news search engines and the challenge to traditional journalistic roles. In: Media, Culture & Society. Vol. 29(6). p. 1014-1030. ISSN 0163-4437
CARR, N. (2008) ´Is Google making us stupid?´ In: The Athlantic MonthlyFISKE, J. (1989) Reading the popular. Boston: MA: Unwin and Hyman. ISBN 041507875X
GANE, N. (2006) When We Have Never Been Human, What Is to Be Done?: Interview with Donna Haraway. In: Theory, Culture & Society. Vol. 23(7), p.135-158. ISSN 0263-2764
GANE, N., BEER, D. (2008) New Media: The Key Concepts. New York: Berg Publishers. ISBN 978-1-84520-132-6
GERHARDS, J., SCHÄFER, M. (2010) Is the internet a better public sphere? Comparing old and new media in the USA and Germany. In: New Media and Society. Vol. 12(1), p.143-161. ISSN 1461-4448
HANSEN, M. B. N. (2006) Media Theory. In: Theory, Culture & Society. Vol. 23(2), p.297-306. ISSN 0263-2764
HOOFNAGLE, CH. (2009) ´Beyond Google and evil: How policy makers, journalists and consumers should talk differently about Google and privacy´ In: First Monday. 14(4). ISSN 1396-0466.
LANDOW, G. P. (2006) Hypertext 3.0: Critical Theory and New Media in an Era of Globalization. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-8257-5
LISTER, M. et al. (2003) New Media: A Critical Introduction. London: Routledge. (See chapter 1) ISBN 0415223776
LIVINGSTONE, S. (2007) On the material and the symbolic: Silverstone's double articulation of research traditions in new media studies. In: New Media & Society. Vol. 9(1), p.16-24. ISSN 1461-4448
MACKENZIE, D. A., WAJCMAN, J. (1999) [1985] The Social shaping of technology: how the refrigerator got its hum. Buckingham: Open University Press. ISBN 0335150276
MANOVICH, L. (2001) The Language of New Media. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT
Press. ISBN 0-262-13374-1
MARSHALL, P. D. (2004) New Media Cultures. London: Arnold. ISBN 0-340-80699-0 (See chapter 1)
McQUAIL, D. (2010) McQuail´s Mass Comunication Theory. 6th edition. London, Thousand Oaks, CA, New Delhi, Singapore: Sage Publications, Ltd. (Chapter ´New Media - New Theory?´ p.135) ISBN 978-1-84920-291-6
MEADOWS, M. (2002) Pause and effect: The art of interactive narrative. Indianapolis: New Riders Press. ISBN 0735711712
NEWHAGEN, J. E., RAFAELI, S. (1996) Why Communication Researchers Should Study the Internet: A Dialogue. In: Journal of Communication. Vol. 46(1), p.4-13. ISSN 0021-9916
PAUL, CH. (2003) Digital Art. London: Thames & Hudson.
POSTER, M. (1990) The Mode of Information: Poststructuralism and Social Context. Cambridge: Polity Press. ISBN 0-7456-0326-2
RAFAELI, S. (1988) Interactivity: From new media to communication. In: R. P. Hawkins, J. M. Wiemann, & S. Pingree (eds.) Sage Annual Review of Communication Research: Advancing Communication
REED, CH. (2004) Internet Law: Text and Materials. Cambridge: C