Informació del Pla Docent

Presentació

This course draws on analytical techniques from Critical Discourse Studies to investigate critically a series of phenomena, both old and new, arising around the idea that we are currently living in hyper-mediatised, post-truth societies. These phenomena include:

1. The infosphere as the site of digitised phenomena
2. Mediatization and the age of spectacle
3. Surveillance capitalism and the colonization of human life by data.
4. Truth, post-truth and other signs of the times
5. Discursive devices, e.g. humbug, bullshit, lying, misleadingness, agnotology, fake news, gaslighting, deepfake, etc. 
6. Mindsets, e.g. emotions, faith, anti-expertise, anti-intellectualism, conspiratorial thinking, etc. 
7. Informational segregation, e.g. echo chambers, filter bubbles, etc.
8. Digitised identities, e.g. celebrity, the attention economy, celebrity, influencers, the info-sphere, info-selves, algorithmic identities, etc.
9. Political and other public discourses, e.g. populism, authoritarianism, nationalism, climate change denial, racism, sexism and misogyny, homophobia/transphobia, Islamophobia.
10. Information toxicity

These phenomena will be amply exemplified with cases studies based on current events.

The course will also examine a series of proposed solutions, or ways forward, to deal with problems arising that are specific to the digital age. Examples include the teaching of critical (social media) literacy skills in schools; the introduction of legislation allowing governments to intervene the internet on the grounds that the nation-state is imperilled by an opposition that is purportedly disseminating the ‘wrong’ information (‘fake news’ or ‘alternative facts’); and peer pressure, as when one party self-organises in the infosphere to combat or punish the ‘inappropriate’ behaviour of another party. 

Competències associades

During the course students will develop the following competences:

Critical reading, involving the ability to:

• process and organize information
• identify the ideological load of texts
• identify social and cultural content
• identify voice and intertextuality
• understand how different orders and genres of discourse work in context

Critical expression, involving the ability to:

• plan (conceptualize), organize and produce coherent and cohesive written arguments
• plan (conceptualize), organize and produce coherent and cohesive oral arguments
• negotiate meaning with others in oral interactions

Critical listening, involving the ability to:

• process information efficiently in real time.
• adopt the position of the other as a means through which richer understandings might emerge

Study skills, involving the ability to:

• prioritise
• plan workloads
• work autonomously
• work ethically
• work rigorously

Resultats de l'aprenentatge

Objectius de Desenvolupament Sostenible

This course contributes to the achievement of the following sustainable development objectives:

• quality education
• gender equality
• reduced inequalities
• peace, justice and strong institutions

Prerequisits

None

Continguts

1. Critical discourse studies/Critical discourse analysis
2. Technology, social transformation and the digital age
3. Data, mediatisation and the age of spectacle
4. Surveillance capitalism and the colonisation of human life by data
5. Truth, post-truth and other signs of the times in which we live
6. Discursive devices, e.g. humbug, bullshit, lying, misleadingness, agnotology, fake news, gaslighting, deepfake, etc. 
7. Mindsets, e.g. emotions, faith, anti-expertise, anti-intellectualism, conspiratorial thinking, etc. 
8. Informational segregation, e.g. echo chambers, filter bubbles, etc.
9. Digitised identities, e.g. celebrity, the attention economy, celebrity, influencers, the info-sphere, info-selves, algorithmic identities, etc.
10. Political and other public discourses, e.g. populism, authoritarianism, nationalism, climate change denial, racism, sexism and misogyny, homophobia/transphobia, Islamophobia.
11. Information toxicity
12. Issues arising

Metodologia docent

Avaluació

Bibliografia i recursos d'informació

Alperstein, N. M.  (2019). Celebrity and Mediated Social Connections: Fans, Friends and Followers in the Digital Age. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Baggini, J. (2017). A Short History of Truth: Consolations for a Post-Truth World. London: Quercus.

Ball, J. (2017). Post-truth: How Bullshit Conquered the World. London: Biteback.

Blackford, R. (2019). The Tyranny of Opinion. London: Bloomsbury.

Block, D. (2019). Post-truth and Political Discourse. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Castillo, D., & Eggington, W. (2017). Medialogies: Reading Reality in the Age of Inflationary Media. London: Bloomsbury

Cosentino, G. (2020). Social Media and the Post-Truth World Order. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Couldry, N. & Mejias, U. A. (2019). The Costs of Connection: How Data is Colonizing Human Life and Appropriating it for Capitalism. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

D’Ancona, M. (2017). The New War on Truth and How to Fight Back. London: Ebury.

Davies, E. (2017). Post-truth: Why We Have Reached Peak Bullshit and What We Can Do About it. London: Little, Brown.

Doyle W, & Roda, C. /eds.). (2019). Communication in the Era of Attention Scarcity. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Fairclough, N. (2010). Critical Discourse Analysis: The Critical Study of Language, 2^nd edn. Harlow, UK: Longman.

Fairclough, N. (2015). Language and Power, 3^rd edn, London: Routledge.

Farkas, J. & Schou, J. (2020). Post-truth, Fake News and Democracy: Mapping the Politics of Falsehood.  London: Routledge.

Floridi, L. (2014). The Fourth Revolution - How the Infosphere is Reshaping Human Reality. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Flowerdew, J. & Richardson, J. E. (Eds.) (2018). The Routledge Handbook of Critical Discourse Studies. London: Routledge.

Fuchs, C. (2020). Nationalism on the Internet: Critical Theory and Ideology in the Age of Social media and Fake News. London: Routledge.

Fuller, S. (2018). Post-Truth: Knowledge as a Power Game. London: Anthem.

Garbasevschi, (2021). Info-selves: The Value of Online Identity. Oxford: Wiley Blackwell.

Herman, E., & Chomsky, N. (1988). Manufacturing Consent. London: Vintage.

Keyes, R. (2004). The Post-truth Era: Dishonesty and Deception in Contemporary Life. New York: St. Martin’s Press

McIntyre, L. (2018). Post-truth. Boston: MIT.

Maddalena, G. & Gili, G. (2020). The History and Theory of Post-truth Communication. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Moore, M.(2018). Democracy Hacked: How Technology is Destabilising Global Politics. London: Oneworld Publications.

O'Neil, C. (2016). Weapons of Math Destruction. New York: Crown.

Overell, R. & Nicholls, B. (eds.) (2020). Post-Truth and the Mediation of Reality: New Conjunctures. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Proctor, R. N., & Schiebinger, L. (eds.). (2008). Agnotology: The Making and Unmaking of Ignorance. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

Saul, J. M. (2013). Lying, Misleading, and What is Said: An Exploration in Philosophy of Language and in Ethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Seargeant, P. (2020). The Art of Political Storytelling: Why Stories Win Votes in Post-truth. London: Bloomsbury.

van Dijk, T. (2014). Discourse and Knowledge. A Sociocognitive Approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Wodak, R. (2015). The Politics of Fear: What Right-Wing Populist Discourses Mean. London: Sage.

Wodak, R. and Meyer, M. (Eds.) (2016). Methods for Critical Discourse Analysis, 3^rd edn. London: Sage.

Zabala, S. (2020). Being at Large: Freedom in the Age of Alternative Facts. New York: Columbia University Press.

Zuboff, S. (2019). The Age of Surveillance Capitalism. New York: Profile Books.

Informació del Pla Docent

Presentació

This course draws on analytical techniques from Critical Discourse Studies to investigate critically a series of phenomena, both old and new, arising around the idea that we are currently living in hyper-mediatised, post-truth societies. These phenomena include:

1. The infosphere as the site of digitised phenomena
2. Mediatization and the age of spectacle
3. Surveillance capitalism and the colonization of human life by data.
4. Truth, post-truth and other signs of the times
5. Discursive devices, e.g. humbug, bullshit, lying, misleadingness, agnotology, fake news, gaslighting, deepfake, etc. 
6. Mindsets, e.g. emotions, faith, anti-expertise, anti-intellectualism, conspiratorial thinking, etc. 
7. Informational segregation, e.g. echo chambers, filter bubbles, etc.
8. Digitised identities, e.g. celebrity, the attention economy, celebrity, influencers, the info-sphere, info-selves, algorithmic identities, etc.
9. Political and other public discourses, e.g. populism, authoritarianism, nationalism, climate change denial, racism, sexism and misogyny, homophobia/transphobia, Islamophobia.
10. Information toxicity

These phenomena will be amply exemplified with cases studies based on current events.

The course will also examine a series of proposed solutions, or ways forward, to deal with problems arising that are specific to the digital age. Examples include the teaching of critical (social media) literacy skills in schools; the introduction of legislation allowing governments to intervene the internet on the grounds that the nation-state is imperilled by an opposition that is purportedly disseminating the ‘wrong’ information (‘fake news’ or ‘alternative facts’); and peer pressure, as when one party self-organises in the infosphere to combat or punish the ‘inappropriate’ behaviour of another party. 

Competències associades

During the course students will develop the following competences:

Critical reading, involving the ability to:

• process and organize information
• identify the ideological load of texts
• identify social and cultural content
• identify voice and intertextuality
• understand how different orders and genres of discourse work in context

Critical expression, involving the ability to:

• plan (conceptualize), organize and produce coherent and cohesive written arguments
• plan (conceptualize), organize and produce coherent and cohesive oral arguments
• negotiate meaning with others in oral interactions

Critical listening, involving the ability to:

• process information efficiently in real time.
• adopt the position of the other as a means through which richer understandings might emerge

Study skills, involving the ability to:

• prioritise
• plan workloads
• work autonomously
• work ethically
• work rigorously

Resultats de l'aprenentatge

Objectius de Desenvolupament Sostenible

This course contributes to the achievement of the following sustainable development objectives:

• quality education
• gender equality
• reduced inequalities
• peace, justice and strong institutions

Prerequisits

None

Continguts

1. Critical discourse studies/Critical discourse analysis
2. Technology, social transformation and the digital age
3. Data, mediatisation and the age of spectacle
4. Surveillance capitalism and the colonisation of human life by data
5. Truth, post-truth and other signs of the times in which we live
6. Discursive devices, e.g. humbug, bullshit, lying, misleadingness, agnotology, fake news, gaslighting, deepfake, etc. 
7. Mindsets, e.g. emotions, faith, anti-expertise, anti-intellectualism, conspiratorial thinking, etc. 
8. Informational segregation, e.g. echo chambers, filter bubbles, etc.
9. Digitised identities, e.g. celebrity, the attention economy, celebrity, influencers, the info-sphere, info-selves, algorithmic identities, etc.
10. Political and other public discourses, e.g. populism, authoritarianism, nationalism, climate change denial, racism, sexism and misogyny, homophobia/transphobia, Islamophobia.
11. Information toxicity
12. Issues arising

Metodologia docent

Avaluació

Bibliografia i recursos d'informació

Alperstein, N. M.  (2019). Celebrity and Mediated Social Connections: Fans, Friends and Followers in the Digital Age. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Baggini, J. (2017). A Short History of Truth: Consolations for a Post-Truth World. London: Quercus.

Ball, J. (2017). Post-truth: How Bullshit Conquered the World. London: Biteback.

Blackford, R. (2019). The Tyranny of Opinion. London: Bloomsbury.

Block, D. (2019). Post-truth and Political Discourse. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Castillo, D., & Eggington, W. (2017). Medialogies: Reading Reality in the Age of Inflationary Media. London: Bloomsbury

Cosentino, G. (2020). Social Media and the Post-Truth World Order. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Couldry, N. & Mejias, U. A. (2019). The Costs of Connection: How Data is Colonizing Human Life and Appropriating it for Capitalism. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

D’Ancona, M. (2017). The New War on Truth and How to Fight Back. London: Ebury.

Davies, E. (2017). Post-truth: Why We Have Reached Peak Bullshit and What We Can Do About it. London: Little, Brown.

Doyle W, & Roda, C. /eds.). (2019). Communication in the Era of Attention Scarcity. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Fairclough, N. (2010). Critical Discourse Analysis: The Critical Study of Language, 2^nd edn. Harlow, UK: Longman.

Fairclough, N. (2015). Language and Power, 3^rd edn, London: Routledge.

Farkas, J. & Schou, J. (2020). Post-truth, Fake News and Democracy: Mapping the Politics of Falsehood.  London: Routledge.

Floridi, L. (2014). The Fourth Revolution - How the Infosphere is Reshaping Human Reality. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Flowerdew, J. & Richardson, J. E. (Eds.) (2018). The Routledge Handbook of Critical Discourse Studies. London: Routledge.

Fuchs, C. (2020). Nationalism on the Internet: Critical Theory and Ideology in the Age of Social media and Fake News. London: Routledge.

Fuller, S. (2018). Post-Truth: Knowledge as a Power Game. London: Anthem.

Garbasevschi, (2021). Info-selves: The Value of Online Identity. Oxford: Wiley Blackwell.

Herman, E., & Chomsky, N. (1988). Manufacturing Consent. London: Vintage.

Keyes, R. (2004). The Post-truth Era: Dishonesty and Deception in Contemporary Life. New York: St. Martin’s Press

McIntyre, L. (2018). Post-truth. Boston: MIT.

Maddalena, G. & Gili, G. (2020). The History and Theory of Post-truth Communication. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Moore, M.(2018). Democracy Hacked: How Technology is Destabilising Global Politics. London: Oneworld Publications.

O'Neil, C. (2016). Weapons of Math Destruction. New York: Crown.

Overell, R. & Nicholls, B. (eds.) (2020). Post-Truth and the Mediation of Reality: New Conjunctures. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Proctor, R. N., & Schiebinger, L. (eds.). (2008). Agnotology: The Making and Unmaking of Ignorance. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

Saul, J. M. (2013). Lying, Misleading, and What is Said: An Exploration in Philosophy of Language and in Ethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Seargeant, P. (2020). The Art of Political Storytelling: Why Stories Win Votes in Post-truth. London: Bloomsbury.

van Dijk, T. (2014). Discourse and Knowledge. A Sociocognitive Approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Wodak, R. (2015). The Politics of Fear: What Right-Wing Populist Discourses Mean. London: Sage.

Wodak, R. and Meyer, M. (Eds.) (2016). Methods for Critical Discourse Analysis, 3^rd edn. London: Sage.

Zabala, S. (2020). Being at Large: Freedom in the Age of Alternative Facts. New York: Columbia University Press.

Zuboff, S. (2019). The Age of Surveillance Capitalism. New York: Profile Books.