This course is an innovative new programme that provides an understanding and appreciation of the history, role and influence of media, communication and cultural processes and institutions. Taught by a leading and internationally-recognised team of scholars based in the School of Social Sciences' Centre for Research in Communication and Culture, the degree provides a unique opportunity to explore one of the liveliest inter-disciplinary fields in the social sciences and humanities. A key focus is on the various challenges and changes that have shaped the development of media including the press, cinema, photography, broadcasting and digital platforms. The degree also provides an introduction to the evolution of various cases and controversies relating to the economic, political and cultural impact and significance of these phenomena. The degree introduces debates relating to the scope, methods and trajectory of cultural media history through analysis of classic texts and consideration of more contemporary perspectives. Different modules interrogate the social, cultural and political ramifications of developments in media history from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. Consideration will be given to major relevant developments: mass literacy and the printed press, visual culture such as photography, cartoons and advertising, popular entertainment such as cinema and music, journalism and broadcasting, and propaganda and persuasion. Related themes to be explored include: leisure and consumerism, the public sphere and opinion formation, and state-building and collective identities