Political  Communication
Courses

Fall Semester - 2004

Honor's Seminar in Political Communication                    Image/Issue Campaigns
08.203.01                                                      25.418.01
Tu/Th 11:00 - 12:15                                     Tu/Th 12:30 - 1:45
Room: MHS 2202                                        Room:  MHS 2202

   Bloomsburg University
      James E. Tomlinson, Ph.D.   

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"The death of democracy is not likely to be an assassination from ambush.
It will be a slow extinction from apathy, indifference, and undernourishment."

Robert Hutchins

Course Calendar

DATE             CLASS TOPIC                                                                       READINGS

Aug      30        Course Orientation

Sept       2        Historical Overview

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Sept       7        US Elections and the emergence of campaigns               Chap 1 in both texts

Sept       9        Impact of 9/11 on US Politics

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Sept     14        Polling data – creation of class poll instruments              Chap. 2 in Friedenberg
                                                                                                            Chap. 7 in Shea/Burto

Sept     16        The legacy and controversy of the 2000 election

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Sept     21        Fundraising – Campaign Finances and Reform               Chap. 9 in Shea/Burton

Sept     23        Demographic analysis                                                   Chap. 4 in Shea/Burton

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Sept     28        PRIMARY COLORS MOVIE

Sept     30

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Oct        5        Advertising – evolution and current trends in media use  Chapters 5,6 in Friedenberg

Oct        7        Debates – Historical overview and current impact                      Chap. 3 in Friedenberg

                        Candidate Profiling/Opposition Research/Incumbency   Chap 3 + 5 in Shea/Burton

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Oct      12        POLL PREPARATION

Oct      14        Administering the Campus Poll (Issue/Image Campaign Class)

Oct      15        Administrating the Phone Poll of Columbia County (Honor’s Seminar)

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Oct      19        Data Analysis of Class Polls

Oct      21        Targeting of campaign messages using polling data                     Chap. 4 Friedenberg
                                                                                                                         Chap. 6 Shea/Burton
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Oct      26        Campaign Plans and Management                                             Chap. 2 and 10 in Shea/Burton

Oct      28        Strategic Communication in Campaigns                                                                                                                        

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Nov       2        Election preview and predictions

Nov       4        Election Reaction and Analysis

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Nov       9                    News coverage and management                                  Chap 11 in Shea/Burton

Nov     11                    Guest Speakers from media

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Nov     16                    Strategic Uses of Grass-roots campaign tools    Chap 12 in Shea/Burton

Nov     18

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Nov     23                    Guest Speakers - Elliot Weiler - WBRE TV

Nov     25                    NO CLASS – THANKSGIVING

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Nov     30                    Guest Speakers this week - Josh Rosenblum - Consultant to the Iraqi Provisional Govt

Dec        2                    Matt James (Radio Station Exec)  Susan Swartz - Press Enterprise

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Dec        7                    Future of Campaigns                                                     Chap 15 in Shea/Burton

Dec        9                                                                                                        Chap 7 in Friedenberg

  Class Activities/Policies for Political Communication Fall 2004
 

         Presidential  Election Polling of Columbia County
         Review of Political Campaign Websites, past and present. 
         Guest Speakers include professionals from the fields of Political Consulting, Journalism, Campaign Staffers.  
         Survey of political uses of  E-mail                                      
         Students will select a topic and write a term paper     (graded assignment = 30%)    
         Presidential Campaign Strategy Advisory Groups/(weekly reports) Polling  (graded assignment = 10%)
         Mid Term Exam (graded assignment = 20%)
         Class participation   (graded assignment = 15 %)                                                      
         Final Exam              (graded assignment = 25%)                                                     

        No more than two unexcused absences are allowed without penalty.

NOTE:

Movies Assigned:  "Primary Colors"  Universal Production 1998 - John Travolta, Emma Thompson
                             "Power"  Lorimar Production1986 - Richard Gere, Gene Hackman, Julie Christie

             “We do not say a man who takes no interest in politics is a man who minds his own business, 
                                                we say that he has no business at all.”
                                                                     Thucydides    

Texts for Both Classes:   

"Campaign Craft " -  Shea and Burton - Praeger Press

"Communication Consultants in Political Campaigns" - Friedenberg - Praeger Press

Additional Texts for Honors Seminar:      

"Electronic Whistle-Stops" -  Gary W. Selnow - Praeger Press

"Campaign Strategies and Message Design" - Moffitt - Praeger Press

You will also be required to read on a daily/weekly basis:
                    select one daily from -      NY Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal
                    select one weekly from -  Time, Newsweek
        

                                                 
       Click on the image to visit                     Click here to view the 
       my links to Campaign 2000                 Political Com Links Page
       Websites

Click here to visit the AAPC

Click here to visit a site where you can see results from previous Presidential elections, and even 
try and predict the 2000 election outcome !!!!  check out the " Electoral College Calculator"

      Supplemental Course Materials:

http://www.portraitofamerica.com/html/poll-801.html

              Click here for the Supplemental Materials page  for this class

             Click here to look at the Political Graffiti Page

    
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