None. CMNS 301 or a course in communication theory is recommended but not required.
Precluded:
GOVN 444 is a cross-listed course—a course listed under 2 different disciplines—CMNS 444. (GOVN 444 may not be taken for credit by students who have obtained credit for CMNS 444 or HSRV 444).
This course is intended for students of media relations, practitioners, and those with a more general or theoretical interest in the subject. It relies on theories of the mass media in order to address the role of media relations in organizations and the practice of media relations in the context of both old and new media. The course discusses current issues and topics in order to explore the historically complex relationship between journalists and media relations practitioners.
Outline
Unit 1—Producing the News: The Role of Media Relations
Unit 2—News Media and Public Relations: A Mutual Evolution
Unit 3—Effective Media Relations: No Accident
Unit 4—Constructing the News: Tools and Strategies
Unit 5—“New Media” Relations
Unit 6—Corporations, Critics, and Other Challenges
Objectives
Media Relations is intended to
Define the role and nature of media relations within organizations
Explain the interconnected history of journalism and media relations
Discuss the sociology of news production
Discuss the fundamental role and nature of the news media
Understand the design of information in the context of media and audience
Describe media ownership and convergence in Canada
Build an effective media relations plan on which to base practice
Describe key media drivers and the role of the news release
Describe the growing role of “new media” in news gathering and dissemination, and their impact on traditional media
Identify best practices in citizen-generated media
Evaluation
To receive credit for GOVN 444, you must pass each assignment and the final examination with a minimum grade of 50%. The weighting of the composite mark is as follows:
Activity
Weight
Assignment 1
10%
Assignment 2
35%
Assignment 3
25%
Final Exam
30%
Total
100%
The final examination for this course must be taken online with an AU-approved exam invigilator at an approved invigilation centre. It is your responsibility to ensure your chosen invigilation centre can accommodate online exams. For a list of invigilators who can accommodate online exams, visit the Exam Invigilation Network.
To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.
Materials
Carney, W. W. (2008). In the news: The practice of media relations in Canada (2nd ed.). Edmonton, AB: The University of Alberta Press. (Print)
Other Materials
Most of the course materials for GOVN 444 are available online through the course website. These materials include on online Study Guide, Student Manual, and assigned readings.
Challenge for credit
Overview
The Challenge for credit process allows you to demonstrate that you have acquired a command of the general subject matter, knowledge, intellectual and/or other skills that would normally be found in a university-level course.
Full information about Challenge for credit can be found in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Evaluation
To receive credit for the GOVN 444 challenge registration, you must achieve a grade of at least D (50 percent) on the examination.
Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice. Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized study counterparts.
Opened in Revision 2, April 19, 2017
Updated July 15, 2021, by Student & Academic Services