MCD 1400 - THE WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS

credits: 3.0
Sporting events are among the most popular and profitable cultural products in our contemporary media environment. Their consumption frequently transcends national borders, but fandom is also frequently coded with national, as well as racial, ethnic, and gender allegiances. Will study the production, distribution, consumption, and reception contexts for several of the most globally popular sports, including baseball, basketball, hockey, racing, soccer, and tennis. Also, as comparison, will consider some idiosyncratic regional sports leagues and international cross-sports competitions, like the Olympics. In all cases, will be interested in the methods by which sports are codified and commodified, as well as the geopolitical ramifications of international mediation. Objectives: A) Practice systems analysis, integrating geopolitics, macroeconomics, and mass media, through case studies of international sport; B) Recognize and describe relationships between sporting events and the political economic systems in which they are embedded; C) Dissect the production, distribution, consumption, and reception contexts of cultural products. . Method of Instruction: Multimedia Curation, Collaborative Research, Discussion, and Lecture. Method of Evaluation: Short Writing Assignments, Research Prompts, Participation Surveys, and Multimedia Projects. Meets *GLP Distribution Requirement.