The Media School will be offering the following honors classes to fulfill honors elective requirements in the Ernie Pyle Scholars program and Media Scholars program. (Please see your program’s specific course requirements at the links provided above.) The honors program also includes a mandatory capstone class or thesis project second semester senior year, which is not listed on this schedule but can be found in the course listings each spring. Any honors student who will be off campus during the spring semester of their senior year should contact the honors director and arrange for an independent study during their fall semester of senior year.
All the courses listed below are open to all Ernie Pyle/Media Scholars. MSCH-H 310 special topics courses are also open to Hutton Honors students on a space-available basis.
* This schedule is current as of February 2022, but is subject to future revisions. Students should check back for updates or changes on a regular basis. Questions about the honors courses or other honors requirements can be directed to Media School Honors Director Dave Groobert (groobert@indiana.edu) or to a Media School academic advisor.
Fall 2022
MSCH-H 300 - Communications Law
History and philosophy of laws pertaining to free press and free speech. Censorship, libel, contempt, obscenity, right of privacy, copyright, government regulations, and business law affecting media operations. Stresses responsibilities and freedoms in a democratic communications system.
Spring 2023
MSCH-H 310 - Television Sitcoms and Social Change
This class uses television sitcoms from the 1950s onward to explore depictions of social and cultural life in America. Issues examined include representations of family life, work life, gender roles, racial relations, and selected specific issues such as abortion and drug use.Theories and research that examine media both as reflection and as cause of social change are presented in the class.
Fall 2023
MSCH-H 310 - Power, Inclusion, and Organizational Communication
Examines organizational communication as a dialogic vehicle for forging decentralized, pluralistic, and inclusive organizational culture by examining intra, interpersonal, organizational, and societal factors.
MSCH-H 410 - Media as Social Institutions
Examine functions and impact of the mass media in society with primary focus on the United States.Discuss values of media organizations and professional and ethical values of journalists. Critical analysis of the relationship of media and society and the effect of political, economic, and cultural factors on media operation.
Spring 2024
MSCH-H 310 - Finding Patterns in Media Messages: An Introduction to Content Analysis
Have you ever wondered how often bad characters die at the end of a movie, what content characteristics make a Tik Tok video go viral, or what percentage of country music hit songs are about heartbreak? Perhaps you haven’t but if you think you are noticing patterns in media content and wondered if it is really there—this is the class for you. It is a hands-on workshop to learn how to do content analysis research. Students will each come up with a research idea and pitch it to classmates. A few ideas will be chosen and students will self-select into small work groups do conduct a study with the help of the instructor.
Summer 2024
MSCH-H 420 - Foreign Study for Honors Students
Three-credit summer course that is a required component of the honors Summer in London program and counts as one of the two required honors electives for Media School honors students. Summer in London is open to rising juniors in the Ernie Pyle Scholars and Media Scholars programs and is explained in detail at a call-out meeting during fall semester of student's sophomore year, with a registration deadline immediately after Thanksgiving holiday break.
Fall 2024
MSCH-H 300 - Communications Law
History and philosophy of laws pertaining to free press and free speech. Censorship, libel, contempt, obscenity, right of privacy, copyright, government regulations, and business law affecting media operations. Stresses responsibilities and freedoms in a democratic communications system.
MSCH-H 310 - History of Journalism
This course explores the relationship between the news media and American society from the colonial period through the twentieth century. In addition to reading the work of professional historians, students will create their own original historical works – in the form of traditional research papers, online exhibits, or podcasts – drawing from the broad array of media-related archival collections available on IU’s campus.
Summer 2025
MSCH-H 420 - Foreign Study for Honors Students
Three-credit summer course that is a required component of the honors Summer in London program and counts as one of the two required honors electives for Media School honors students. Summer in London is open to rising juniors in the Ernie Pyle Scholars and Media Scholars programs and is explained in detail at a call-out meeting during fall semester of student's sophomore year, with a registration deadline immediately after Thanksgiving holiday break.
Fall 2025
MSCH-H 410 - Media as Social Institutions
Examine functions and impact of the mass media in society with primary focus on the United States. Discuss values of media organizations and professional and ethical values of journalists. Critical analysis of the relationship of media and society and the effect of political, economic, and cultural factors on media operation.
Summer 2026
MSCH-H 420 - Foreign Study for Honors Students
Three-credit summer course that is a required component of the honors Summer in London program and counts as one of the two required honors electives for Media School honors students. Summer in London is open to rising juniors in the Ernie Pyle Scholars and Media Scholars programs and is explained in detail at a call-out meeting during fall semester of student's sophomore year, with a registration deadline immediately after Thanksgiving holiday break.