Course Title Journalism 8001 Topics: Journalism,
Religion and Public Life (3 credit hours) Public Affairs 8001 Topics: Journalism,
Religion and Public Life (3 credit hours) General Honors 3070H: Journalism,
Religion and Public Life (3 credit hours)
Edmund B. Lambeth
Schedule
Winter 2006
Tuesdays, 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Location
202 Lee Hills Hall Instructor
Professor Emeritus Edmund B. Lambeth Course Description
An interdisciplinary examination of the
interplay of citizens, journalists and other
professionals as they seek to understand
and relate effectively to the growing salience
of religion to public life at home and abroad.
Enrollment
Requirements
Graduate standing, Honors College seniors,
and others with instructor's permission.
Purpose
The presence of religion in the news media
has increased significantly since the terrorist
attacks on September 11, 2001. However,
other factors are at work. The 1990s witnessed
the rise of the "culture wars" among domestic
religious groups, a development that continued
during the 2004 presidential campaign. Meanwhile,
during the same period, a record number
of immigrants entered the United States
from countries with diverse cultural and
religious traditions.
How well journalists
cover the social, political and international
dimensions of these developments is important
not only to Americans, but to new American
immigrants and others across the globe.
Equally important is how knowledgeably journalists,
other professionals and citizens understand
and interact with newcomers to the United
States. The course will cover these and
related issues. It is offered by the Missouri
School of Journalism and cross-listed by
the Honors College, the Truman School of
Public Affairs, and the Department of Religious
Studies.
Goals
The goals for the course are to
sharpen and focus our
understanding of the news media's coverage
of religion and of professions that play
important public service roles in a democracy;
relate the readings
and insights of the course to professional
practices within the vocations students
are pursuing;
identify possible changes
that could improve coverage of religion
as well as communication between journalism
and the professions; and
consider measures that
might lift the quality of public life,
including proposed reforms within the
particular professions and in the relationship
of professions to the citizens they are
obligated to serve.
Requirements
The course requires the following:
in-class discussions,
brief, periodic essays
(two pages, double spaced) that critically
evaluate and/or apply the content of assigned
readings to weekly topics, and
a research paper.
At appropriate points,
we also will include in the seminar discussions
with citizens from the Columbia area. They
will add depth and realistic connections
to public life and to professional practices
related to the weekly topics of the course.
Grades
The grades will be distributed across the
requirements as follows:
Attendance: 15%
Periodic essays: 30%
Participation in discussion: 15%
Research paper: 40% Periodic Essays
Graduate students enrolled in the seminar
are expected to write seven of the ten assigned
essays in response to the questions listed
in the syllabus; seniors are expected to
write four. The quality of writing and the
thoughtfulness and clarity of the content
are equally important. Neatness is a plus!
The goal of the essays is to engage the
readings individually and more deeply than
a mere reading will allow, thereby enriching
the conversations in the seminar. Essays
are expected to be at least two pages, double-spaced,
in 12-point type with half-inch margins.
Final Research
Paper
The fourth week of class has been set aside
to begin conversations about your research
paper topic and how you might go about doing
the research. We will have other such sessions
later. Your paper can take the form of
the beginning of an
M.A. thesis proposal;
a critique of news media
performance intended for a journalism
review or scholarly journal outside journalism;
a module that could
be used in a future offering of this course,
together with a description of the readings
and essay questions and a significant
essay giving the rationale for such a
module and how it might advance objectives
of the course; or
a proposal to improve
the quality of professional services delivered
to a client, patient, customer, citizen,
or public institution.
Graduate student papers
are expected to be at least 20 pages, double-spaced;
senior papers are expected to be at least
15.
Course Materials
The only required text for the course is
The Elements of Journalism (New York:
Crown Publishers, 2001) by Bill Kovach and
Tom Rosenstiel. This is a paperback book
that will be available in the University
Bookstore.
Almost all of the other
readings will be available online via the
School of Journalism Library and/or the
website of MU's Center for Religion, the
Professions and the Public (http://rpp.missouri.edu).
On occasion, some readings may be available
only at the Journalism School or Ellis Library,
but in those instances I will give you advance
notice, or there will be photocopied material
distributed to you in advance of or in class.
Other Readings
Other readings are intended to give you
further background and references useful
for your final research paper. Not every
class date will have such references, but
I can help supply them if you need them
for your research papers. Note: If you find
one of these other readings more valuable
to you for a particular weekly essay, feel
free to substitute it for one of those listed
as required. Standards of
Honesty and Responsibility
Each weekly essay and final research paper
must be the original work of the person
submitting it for grading and evaluation.
Instances of plagiarism and misrepresentation
are violations of the ethical standards
of the academic community and will be forwarded
for investigation and possible disciplinary
action under the rules of the University
of Missouri. Biographical
Sketches
I value knowing about your interest in this
course and in the degree program you are
pursuing at MU. Please send me a biographical
sketch and resume (if you have it handy
on your computer). Please list your past
positions, including both full-time work
and/or summer internships. That will allow
me and the seminar colleagues to draw upon
our respective backgrounds during the course.
I also value knowing how you see your vocation,
post-MU degree. Thanks in advance! Syllabus Part
1:Course
Overview Syllabus Part 2:Schedule
and Readings
For more
information about the course, contact Professor
Emeritus Ed Lambeth at (573) 882-6295 or
lambethe@missouri.edu.
A blog about faith, values and spirituality in the media, from CORP faculty, staff and friends.
ReligiousLife@MU A blog about religious life at the University of
Missouri-Columbia.
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