This course examines the shaping of information in popular media, with special emphasis on the creation of news. Examining institutional configurations and conglomeration, it focuses on the role of news media within national discourses, on the shaping of ideological consensus and the marginalization of dissent. It asks questions about the limitations of political discourse, about bias and objectivity, about how news is defined, presented, and disseminated. Prerequisites: None. (F;S;SS)