Urban Communication:Reinventing the Latinx City

Introduction to the Course

Welcome!

I am Dr. Manu Avilés-Santiago, andI’ll be your instructor for thissession.

– How to reach me?• I’m very accessible and respond to e-

mails pretty quick.– maviless@asu.edu

• If you want to have a face-to-facemeeting, we can arrange that.– My office is located at the Downtown

Campus - AZCNTR 386 C.» But…

• …we can meet at a moreconvenient location if itworks better for you!

Why study the city?

• The city has always been a medium.– Think of European cities:

• Grown historically around theirchurches.– Consider its relationship with its

square and bell tower; or, again, thegeometrical–and symbolic–relationship between the bell towerand the other buildings.

• Consider the audio-space configuredby the sound of the bells.– The sound of the bells have the ability

to organize bodies and goods in theurban space, and to signal the cyclicceremonial coincidence betweensacred time and sacred space whichwas (and to some extent still is) thecentral axis of city life in Europe.

In 2017, the music video for the #1 hit songDespacito showcased the neighborhood known asLa Perla, a candy-colored barrio of San Juan, capitalof Puerto Rico (a US territory).The selection of La Perla as a protagonist of thevisual grammar of the song was not a coincidence.According to the director of the video, theneighborhood represented “culture, sensuality,color, and dance.”But who got to decide that? What is it about thehistory of La Perla that reads those qualities?

Course Description

This course departs from the idea thatcities are a medium and that the waywe imagine a city (barrio, community,neighborhood, etc.) has mostly takenplace through media representations.But these representations do not takeplace on a vacuum; they are primarilyembedded in a series of relations ofpower between those who representthe city, those who are represented inthe city, and those who self-representthemselves within these urban spaces.

In this course, we will explorecontemporary representations ofLatinxs experience in cities in whichthese ethnic groups are now thebiggest minority group. We will payparticular attention to those portrayalsencountered in TV, film, music, art, andfood.

How are you going to be evaluated?

• I have designed this course in a verysimple way.– The course is divided into seven

modules.• Each module contains its own set of

readings, videos & assignments.

– You will have two assignments dueevery week (Sunday at midnight).• Quizzes & Media Critiques.

– For more information on thedeadlines, refer to Blackboard and/orthe syllabus.

– You will be engaging in activediscussion and debate on ourYellowdig Group.

• Let’s take a look at the gradingcriteria in detail!

Grading Criteria• Quizzes (40%)

– Every module contains a quiz that will evaluate your comprehensionof the assigned readings (available on Blackboard) and any otherinformative material available on the module (i.e., Slide ShowPresentations, external links, etc.).

– As each module opens throughout the session, a quiz will beavailable only for one week (from Sunday 11:59 PM to Sunday 11:59PM). The quiz will open at 11:59PM, and it will close after sevendays at 11:59 PM. This means that after seven days, the quiz willbecome unavailable.

– Questions will vary between multiple-choice, true or false, and/ormatching.

– Once completed, you will automatically receive a score for the quiz;that score will be recorded on Blackboard.

– Important: There are no makeup quizzes. You have seven days tocomplete the quiz, which means that if you fail to complete it, it willautomatically record as a zero on Blackboard. No exceptions.

Guidelines for the Quizzes

• Make sure you are using a compatible browser.

• Make sure you have a reliable and fast Internet connection

• Minimize interruptions

• Quizzes are Force Completion/One Attempt/Not Timed.

• Avoid multitasking

• Stay active in the test window

• Keep your computer on and awake

• Avoid the Back button and delete key

Grading Criteria

• Cultural/media critiques (40%)

– A cultural/media critique is a brief response to anassigned cultural/media text.

• Examples of cultural/media texts that you will explore areadvertising samples, movie scenes, short films, music videos,a photo essay, a documentary, a restaurant menu, etc.

– You will have to observe, explore, and problematizethe assigned cultural/media text using concepts andtheories discussed in that module. Based on thoseobservations, you will write a cultural/media critique.

Guidelines for the Media Critiques

• The length should be approximately 350 words – ormore - (a paragraph of around 5-6 sentences).

• You should put the cultural/media text that you willbe critiquing into conversation with the conceptsand/or theories discussed in that learning module.– You will have to incorporate concepts and theories

from the module to build your cultural/media critique.

– Do not just mention the concept; you have to use it tomake your argument. Your argument can be supportingor challenging the ideas of the author vis-à-vis thecultural /media text.

• Be creative!

Online Participation [20%]

• This is an online course; therefore, your presenceand active participation online is crucial for yoursuccess.

• Participation online does not mean onlyexchanging messages with the instructor,completing the quizzes, and/or completing theassignments.

• In an online environment, participation means activeinvolvement with the class material. For that reason, wewill be using Yellowdig as a preferred platform for onlineparticipation.

– What is Yellowdig?

Yellowdig

• Yellowdig is a student engagementtool that can be used withinBlackboard. It allows students andinstructors to easily share articles,web sites, and even videos thatrelate to the course content. Beingpart of the Yellowdig group ismandatory for this course. OnYellowdig, you will have theopportunity to participate in polls,post comments, share interestinglinks, and engage in meaningfuldebates concerning the modules oflearning.

Participation Yellowdig

• Yellowdig will be the platform that we will beusing to discuss content related to the class. Eachmodule revolves around certain themes andideas.

• On Yellowdig, we will be tackling, deconstructing,critiquing, and problematizing these themes withrelevant and current information (i.e., news, info-graphics, reports, videos, images, etc.).

– It is imperative that you will post only contentrelated to the class.

Participation Yellowdig

• This is how you will earn points on Yellowdig:– Creating a new Pin with a minimum of 100 words earns 10 points.– Adding a new Comment with a minimum of 50 words earns 5

points.– Upvoting a Comment or Pin (Like or Love) earns the author 1 point.– Receiving an Instructor Badge earns 5 points.

• This is reserved for outstanding pins.

– 100% participation is achieved after earning 100 points.– To guarantee that you will keep a track of your participation, you

have a maximum of 20 points per week and a minimum of 5 weeksto reach 100% of participation.

– This is primarily to discourage you from trying to earn all the pointsright at the beginning of the semester or waiting until the end.Students can participate as much as they like, but they only earnpoints to the weekly maximum in a given week.

Now proceed to read the syllabus formore details about the course.