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RHET 3450(3)-001:
CRITICAL STUDIES OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Department of Rhetoric, Writing, and Communications
University of Winnipeg
Winter 2020
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:00am-11:15am
Manitoba Hall, 3M57
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Social media and social networking websites, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat,
YouTube, TikTok and others, structure many of our experiences of the world, ourselves, and the
culture that surrounds us. Whether we use these sites to connect with friends and family, share
pictures and images, read and (re-)distribute interesting news items and information about
current events, play games, or share cat photos, social media have evidently become
embedded into our daily lives. For some, there is even a sense of stigmatization for non-users.
How can we make sense of this new media environment?
This course takes a critical, cultural, and rhetorical approach to the study of social media. Topics
include: the rhetoric of the public profile and persuasive constructions of social media selfhood
and identity curation; the language and meaning of social media “friendship” and “publicity;”
questions about the rhetoric of privacy under conditions of constant surveillance; the
relationship between discourse, algorithms, and platform logics; and, the role of social media in
framing the world of meaning and public discourse.
This year, we will focus on the rhetoric of “social media” and ask: is “social media” the correct
concept for thinking our digital communications? Despite the fact that mainstream social media
websites and apps are caught in the logic of neoliberalism and “communicative capitalism,”
wrapped up in problems of surveillance, control, and manipulation, can we still use the
metaphor of “social media” as a measuring stick for learning about those forces that may help
us to build a truly social media? Or, do we require a new concept or term; and, if so, what term
should we use?
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REQUIRED TEXTS:
• Alice E. Marwick, Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity, and Branding in The Social Media
Age (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2013).
• Richard Seymour, The Twittering Machine (London: Indigo Press, 2019).
• Nick Srnicek, Platform Capitalism (Malden, MA: Polity, 2017).
• Jodi Dean, Blog Theory: Feedback and Capture in the Circuits of Drive (Malden, MA:
Polity, 2010).
• Angela Nagle, Kill All Normies: Online Culture Wars from 4Chan and Tumblr to Trump
and the Alt-Right (Winchester, UK: Zero Books, 2017).
• Other course readings available on NEXUS
COURSE REQUIREMEMENTS:
GRADING SCALE:
A+ 90-100% C+ 65-69%
A 85-89% C 60-64%
A- 80-84% D 50-59%
B+ 75-79% F 0-49%
B 70-74%
All assignments and presentations must be submitted on their respective due dates. Written
assignments will be word-processed and submitted in hard-copy form only. Written
assignments submitted after the due date will be lowered one letter grade each calendar day
thereafter. Missed presentations will receive a zero. If you have a valid medical reason for
having missed an assignment, you will need to provide valid documentation. Email submissions
will only be accepted if extenuating circumstances prohibit the delivery of a hard copy.
Requests for extension or deferred assignment date must be submitted in writing by email at
least one week prior to the due date and decisions are at the discretion of Dr. Flisfeder (too
much work in other courses is NOT a valid reason for extensions).
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PARTICIPATION:
Students are expected to attend meetings regularly and be prepared to have informed
discussions about course materials, having completed assigned readings before the date for
which they are assigned. Top participation marks will be granted based upon consistent
perceptive and constructive contributions to meetings and class discussions, which
demonstrate knowledge and understanding of course concepts. Participation grades are also
based upon students’ efforts to be attentive and respectful when engaging with other speakers’
points of view. See Appendix 1.
EMAIL POLICY:
Please be reminded that only your University of Winnipeg email address (webmail) will be used
for course-related correspondence, such as class cancellations. You may wish to have your
webmail emails forwarded to another (personal) account. Instructions are available at
http://theuwsa.ca/academic-misconduct/webmail-forwarding/.
Dr. Flisfeder only responds to student emails during regular working days, between 9am-5pm.
Emails received after hours or on the weekend will usually receive a response on the next
working day. Please keep emails short. A longer email indicates that it might be a better idea to
make an appointment to meet with me to discuss the matter in person.
Research shows that students who use laptops, smartphones, tablets, and other digital devices
to multitask in class are far less likely to succeed in their courses. If you still wish to use
electronic devices in class, please be courteous and aware of others around you, and consider
how your use of technology might be distracting to your classmates and your instructor.
The deadline for withdrawing from this course without any academic penalty is March 13th,
2020.
READING WEEK:
Reading Week is February 16th-22nd, 2020. No classes are scheduled during this time.
The University will be closed on February 17th, 2020, for Louis Riel Day.
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Seymour, Chapter 3:
We Are All Celebrities
January 28th and 30th Privacy and Publicity Marwick, Chapter 6: Selfie Reflection
– Sharing is Caring? Lifestreaming – We Paper Due on
Live in Public January 28th.
Seymour, Chapter 5:
We Are All Liars
February 4th and 6th Understanding Stuart Hall,
Algorithms, Part I: “Encoding/Decoding”
Encoding, Decoding, (NEXUS)
and the Role of
Discourse Cathy O’Neil,
Introduction and
Chapter 1: What is a
Model (NEXUS)
Ed Finn, Chapter 1:
What is an
Algorithm? (NEXUS)
RHET 3450(3)-001 | Critical Studies of Social Media | Flisfeder 5
Cheney-Lippold,
Chapter 1:
Categorization –
Making Data Useful
(NEXUS)
February 18th and Winter Reading
20th Week – No Class
February 25th and Platforms Curate, Gillespie, Chapter 1: Essay Proposals Due
27th Too! All Platforms February 25th
Moderate (NEXUS)
Gillespie, Chapter 2:
The Myth of the
Neutral Platform
(NEXUS)
Ivan Manokha,
“Surveillance: The
DNA of Platform
Capital – The Case of
Cambridge Analytica
Put Into Perspective”
(NEXUS)
March 3rd and 5th Platform Capitalism Nick Srnicek,
Platform Capitalism
March 10th and 12th Communicative Dean, Blog Theory
Capitalism and the
Trouble with
Enjoyment
March 17th and 19th The (So-Called) Seymour, Chapter 4:
Digital Public Sphere We Are All Trolls
– Social Media and
the Culture Wars Nagle, Kill All Normies
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Lewis, “Alternative
Influence:
Broadcasting the
Reactionary Right on
YouTube”
March 24th and 26th Research
Presentations
March 31st and April Research
2nd Presentations
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
Important information for students in Rhetoric, Writing, and Communications courses at the
University of Winnipeg is housed on the department’s website. These statements include the
Senate Requirements, Deans’ Recommendations, and Department Requirements. They are all
important for students to read, be familiar with, and refer back to throughout a course. The
statements can be accessed by visiting the Department’s Webpage
(www.uwinnipeg.ca/rhetoric/), then clicking the “Courses” tab under the Department Links,
and then clicking the “RWC Course Statements” sub-tab, or by typing in the following link to a
web browser:
https://www.uwinnipeg.ca/rhetoric/courses/rhetoric,-writing,-and-communications-course-
statements.html
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APPENDIX 1
PARTICIPATION RUBRIC
A+ A B C D F
Chapnick, A. (2005). A Participation Rubric, The Teaching Professor, Volume 19, 3: p. 4. Madison, WI:
Magna Publications.
Note: Permission to distribute this rubric was granted by the author, Adam Chapnick.