GLOBAL AFFAIRS

Written Project Details
Using your imagination and creativity, you are invited to validate or challenge dominant theoretical approaches as well as identify the role the media can play in specific real-world scenarios.
In your written project, you are required to:
(1) Describe an original idea about a policy proposal, the employment of a medium or the design/ creation of some form of media content to achieve a specific aim
(2) Support your idea with theoretical evidence and critical analysis of the literature
(3) Read and use literature from across the syllabus
(4) Develop new theoretical ideas or models
Topics
1. You are a member of an activist group fighting against the inequalities created by globalization. Using theories and concepts from the ‘anti-globalization’ and ‘alter-globalization’ movements, you should design your own movement. You need to prepare a plan explaining the following: your ideology, what you are fighting against, your target audience and your strategies. You should also ensure that your strategies involve the employment of old and/or new media technologies. Support your ideas with theoretical evidence from the literature.
2. You are a member of a diaspora charity organization in the UK and want to contribute to the fostering of your national identity with the design of an internet portal. You need to prepare a plan where you describe the features of your portal and the way in which this would help you achieve your objective. Support your ideas with theoretical evidence from the literature.
3. You are a member of an anti-war social movement in the run-up to the Iraq War 2003 and you want to prepare a campaign to mobilise national and/or international publics to oppose the war. You need to prepare a plan explaining what your target audience is, how you would employ new media technologies to achieve your objectives and the challenges you are likely to face. Support your ideas with theoretical evidence from the literature.
4. You are an ethically and socially conscious entrepreneur in a developed economy who wants to set up an ethical small business. You want to develop a business proposal to apply for financial support from the government of your country. In your proposal, you should explain how you will make use of certain aspects of the network society/economy (such as knowledge and technology) and how your business will include and benefit the community. One of the main objectives of your proposal is to demonstrate how your business will contribute to the development of a more alternative and ethical global economic system. Support your ideas with theoretical evidence from the literature.
5. You are a member of the government in a developing country and you need to develop a proposal about the use of media and information technologies to help rural development in your country (beyond raising awareness). In this proposal you need to make specific recommendations. You also need to describe the challenges you are likely to face. You can focus on specific areas i.e. agriculture, health, education etc. Your proposal should be supported with evidence from the literature about development communication and participatory communication.
6. You are members of a UK-based NGO that promotes Fair Trade coffee from Latin America in the UK. Your mission is to design an internet portal that enables coffee growers based in Latin America to communicate with consumers in UK. Describe the design and features of this portal and explain how this portal will a) assist the producer-consumer dialogue and b) contribute to the sustainable development of the coffee growers’ community. You should support your ideas with evidence from the literature about development communication and participatory communication.
7. You are a small UK community sewing group that is trying to raise awareness of the ethical issues around ‘fast fashion’ and recruit new members to the slow fashion movement. You need to design a website and/or social networking page to achieve these goals and explain how the portal will both inform and facilitate real-world participation. This participation could involve craft/sewing/DIY fashion, or it might be in the form of encouraging alternative shopping habits. You should engage with literature when making the claims on your portal as well as think about how to appeal to people’s creativity and ethics.
8. You are members of an activist group fighting against powerful processes such as McDonaldization. You want to design a campaign to mobilise consumers to use their power of choice to modify market relations. You need to prepare a plan explaining what your target audience is, how you would employ new media technologies to achieve your objectives and the challenges you are likely to face. Support your ideas with theoretical evidence from the literature.
9. You are members of the Ministry of Education and Culture in your country. You want to design a campaign to educate foreign audiences about your national culture. Describe how you plan to design and run the campaign, paying particular attention to the use of the media. Support your ideas with theoretical evidence from the literature.