Outline

Overview

This unit introduces the fundamentals of strategic social media use for professional and organisational communication, media practice and cultural production. It aims to equip students with the knowledge and skills to become competent, ethical social media communicators and to critically analyse social media forms, services and cultures. Students will explore online, mobile and locative platforms for interacting with audiences, publics and online communities, including professional networks.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Media and Communications
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Jonathon Hutchinson, jonathon.hutchinson@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Cherryldene Baylosis, cherry.baylosis@sydney.edu.au
	Agata Stepnik, agata.stepnik@sydney.edu.au
	Brittany Ferdinands, brittany.ferdinands@sydney.edu.au
	Katariina Rahikainen, katariina.rahikainen@sydney.edu.au
	Raylene Bliss, raylene.bliss@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Analysis of a Social Media Campaign Identify and critically examine a social media campaign.	40%	Week 05 Due date: 02 Apr 2021 at 17:00 Closing date: 16 Apr 2021	1000 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Social Media Project Design and create a social media campaign for a social issue.	50%	Week 12 Due date: 28 May 2021 at 17:00 Closing date: 11 Jun 2021	5000 words equivalent
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Online Reflective Journal Reflect on the process of designing and creating a social media campaign.	10%	Week 13 Due date: 04 Jun 2021 at 17:00 Closing date: 11 Jun 2021	500 words
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Social Media Campaign Analysis, 40%, Due Friday 5pm, Week 5
Social Media Project, 50%, Due Friday 5pm Week 12
Online Reflective Journal, 10%, Weekly In-class

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a High distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a Distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

High distinction 85 - 100

High distinction students demonstrate outstanding levels of creativity, storytelling, technical competency and publishing ability. Their productions have a sophisticated approach towards social media by understanding audiences, platforms, content production and regulation. Their assignments demonstrate and draw on outstanding audience engagement techniques. Their content production demonstrates outstanding skills by correctly recording, capturing, manipulating and exporting social media content that adheres to industry standards. The theoretical integration from the course materials is outstanding and academically rigorous. The work exceeds the requirements of the assignments and could be commissioned by ‘real world’ clients.

Distinction 75 - 84

Distinction students demonstrate excellent levels of creativity, storytelling, technical competency and publishing ability. Their productions have a sophisticated approach towards social media by understanding audiences, platforms, content production and regulation. Their assignments demonstrate and draw on excellent audience engagement techniques. Their content production demonstrates excellent skills by correctly recording, capturing, manipulating and exporting social media content that adheres to industry standards. The theoretical integration from the course materials is excellent and academically rigorous. The work exceeds the requirements of the assignments.

Credit 65 - 74

Credit students demonstrate good levels of creativity, storytelling, technical competency and publishing ability. Their productions have a well-rounded approach towards social media by understanding audiences, platforms, content production and regulation. Their assignments demonstrate and draw on good audience engagement techniques. Their content production demonstrates good skills by correctly recording, capturing, manipulating and exporting social media content that adheres to industry standards. The theoretical integration is present. The work demonstrates the requirements of the assignments.

Pass 50 - 64

Pass students demonstrate minimal levels of creativity, storytelling, technical competency and publishing ability. Their productions have some understanding towards social media by understanding audiences, platforms, content production and regulation, but have been masked by some errors and problems. Their assignments demonstrate little to no audience engagement techniques. The theoretical integration is limited. The work minimally the requirements of the assignments.

Fail 0 - 49 When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

From Assessment Procedures Policy (2011): 7A Late penalties (1) Subject to any contrary provision in any applicable faculty or course resolution, if penalties are applied for work submitted after the due date they must be consistent with this clause. (2) For any assessment task: (a) late penalties may be applied, consistently with this clause; or (b) late submission may be prohibited, with consequences as specified in the unit of study outline; or (c) late penalties may be excluded from applying; provided that these conditions must be expressly stated in the unit of study outline. (3) Written work submitted electronically after 11.59 pm on the due date will be considered to have been submitted late. (4) For every calendar day up to and including ten calendar days after the due date, a penalty of 5% of the maximum awardable marks will be applied to late work. (a) The penalty will be calculated by first marking the work, and then subtracting 5% of the maximum awardable mark for each calendar day after the due date. (5) For work submitted more than ten calendar days after the due date a mark of zero will be awarded. The marker may elect to, but is not required to, provide feedback on such work. (6) Copies of late work, including work which is not marked, must be retained consistently with the requirements of the Recordkeeping Policy 2017 and the Recordkeeping Manual. Note: See also University of Sydney (Student Appeals Against Academic Decisions) Rule 2016

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

You may only use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator. If you do use these tools, you must acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section. The assessment instructions or unit outline will give guidance of the types of tools that are permitted and how the tools should be used.

Your final submitted work must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of generative AI tools that have been used in the assessment, and any material that forms part of your submission must be appropriately referenced. For guidance on how to acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the AI in Education Canvas site.

The unapproved use of these tools or unacknowledged use will be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

Studiosity is permitted unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission as detailed on the Learning Hub’s Canvas page.

Outside assessment tasks, generative AI tools may be used to support your learning. The AI in Education Canvas site contains a number of productive ways that students are using AI to improve their learning.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction to Social Media	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 02	Social Media Users	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 03	Participatory Culture: Memes and Hashtags	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 04	Video Cultures of Social Media	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 05	Social Media Ethics and Regulation	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 06	Automation and Social Media	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 07	Social Media Metrics	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 08	Cultural Intermediation for Social Media	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 09	Social Influencers	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 10	Institutions and Social Media	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 11	Marketing and Communications for Social Media	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 12	Futures of Social Media	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 13	Looking Backwards Looking Forward	Seminar (3 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.
Lecture recording: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on the LMS. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.
Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

Week 1

Lipschultz, J. H. (2018). Introduction to Social Media Concepts Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics(pp. 1-38). New York: Routledge.

Stevens, R., Gilliard-Matthews, S., Dunaev, J., Woods, M. K., & Brawner, B. M. (2017). The digital hood: Social media use among youth in disadvantaged neighborhoods. New Media & Society, 19(6), 950–967.

Additional Reading:

Bourdieu, P. (1983). The Forms of Capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education(pp. 112-141). New York: Greenwood.

Leaver, T., Highfield, T., & Abidin, C. (2020). Platform Instagram (pp.8–38). Cambridge: Polity.

Week 2

Steele, C. K. (2016). The Digital Barbershop: Blogs and Online Oral Culture Within the African American Community. Social Media + Society, October–December(2016), 1–10.

Kral, I. (2011). Youth media as cultural practice: Remote Indigenous youth speaking out loud. Australian Aboriginal Studies, 2011(1), 4–16.

Week 3

Bonilla, Y., & Rosa, J. (2015). #Ferguson: Digital protest, hashtag ethnography, and the racial politics of social media in the United States. American Ethnologist, 42(1), 4–17.

Frazer, R., & Carlson, B. (2017). Indigenous Memes and the Invention of a People. Social Media + Society, October–December(2017), 1–12.

Week 4

Cabalquinto, E. C., & Soriano, C. R. R. (2020). ‘Hey, I like ur videos. Super relate!’ Locating sisterhood in a postcolonial intimate public on YouTube. Information Communication & Society, 23(6), 892–907.

Christian, A. J. (2016). Video stars: Marketing queer performance in networked television. In S. U. Noble & B. M. Tynes (Eds.), The intersection internet: Race, sex, class, and culture online (pp. 95–113). New York: Peter Lang.

Week 5

Lipschultz, J. H. (2018). Social Media Ethics Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics (pp. 271-296). New York: Routledge.

Anne L. Washington and Rachel S. Kuo. 2020. Whose Side are Ethics Codes On? Power, Responsibility and the Social Good. In Proceedings of ACM Fairness Accountability Transparency conference (FAT’20). ACM, Barcelona, Spain, 10 pages. https://doi.org/10.1145/3351095.3372844

ACCC. (2019). Executive Summary Digital Platforms Inquiry - Final Report (pp.4–29). Canberra.

Additional Reading:

Lobato, R. (2016). The cultural logic of digital intermediaries: YouTube multichannel networks. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, 22(4), 348-360.

Till, C. (2020). Propaganda through ‘reflexive control’ and the mediated construction of reality. New Media & Society, Online First, 1–17.

Week 6

Matamoros-Fernández, A. (2017). Platformed racism: the mediation and circulation of an Australian race-based controversy on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Information Communication & Society, 20(6), 930–946.

Cotter K. (2018) Playing the visibility game: How digital influencers and algorithms negotiate influence on Instagram. New Media & Society 21: 895–913.

Week 7

Lipschultz, J. H. (2018). Social Media Metrics and Analytics Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics(pp. 157-182). New York: Routledge.

Freelon, D. (2017). Campaigns in control: Analyzing controlled interactivity and message discipline on Facebook. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 14(2), 168–181.

Additional Reading:

Dijck, J. v. (2013). Facebook and the Imperative of Sharing The Culture of Connectivity: A Critical History of Social Media. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Baym, N. (2012). Fans or Friends? Seeing Social Media Audiences as Musicians Do. Participations: Journal of Audience & Reception Studies, 9(2), 286 - 316.

Leaver, T., Highfield, T., & Abidin, C. (2020). Economies Instagram (pp.100–148). Cambridge: Polity.

Week 8

Hutchinson, J. (2019). Digital First Personality: Automation and influence within evolving media ecologies. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, Online First. doi:org/10.1177/1354856519858921

Duffy, B. E., & Pooley, J. (2019). Idols of Promotion: The Triumph of Self-Branding in an Age of Precarity. Journal of Communication, 69(2019), 26–48.

Week 9

Senft, T. M. (2013). Microcelebrity and the Branded Self. In J. B. John Hartley, Axel Bruns (Ed.), A Companion to New Media Dynamics (pp. 346-354). New York: Wiley-Blackwell.

Abidin, C. (2016). “Aren’t These Just Young, Rich Women Doing Vain Things Online?”: Influencer Selfies as Subversive Frivolity. Social Media + Society, 2(23), 1-17.

Week 10

Cunningham, S., & Craig, D. (2017). Being ‘really real’ on YouTube: authenticity, community and brand culture in social media entertainment. Media International Australia, 164(1), 71-81.

Seo, H., Houston, J. B., Knight, L. A. T., Kennedy, E. J., & Inglish, A. B. (2014). Teens' social media use and collective action. New Media & Society, 16(6), 883-902.

Bishop, S. (2018). Anxiety, panic and self- optimization: Inequalities and the YouTube algorithm. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, 24(1), 69-84.

Week 11

Lipschultz, J. H. (2018). Social Media in Public Relations Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics (pp. 97-130). New York: Routledge.

Alhabash, S., & Ma, M. (2017). A Tale of Four Platforms: Motivations and Uses of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat Among College Students? Social Media + Society, Online First, 1-13.

Arli, D., & Dietrich, T. (2017). Can Social Media Campaigns Backfire? Exploring Consumers' Attitudes and Word-of-Mouth Toward Four Social Media Campaigns and Its Implications on Consumer-Campaign Identification. Journal of Promotion Management, Online First, 1-17.

Week 12

Noble, S. U. (2016). Traversing Technologies. The Scholar & Feminist Online, 13(3), n.p.

Hutchinson, J. (2017). Algorithmic Culture and Cultural Intermediation Cultural Intermediaries: Audience participation and media organisations (pp. 201-220). New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Leaver, T., Highfield, T., & Abidin, C. (2020). From the Instagram of Everything to the Everything of Instagram, Instagram (pp.191–217). Cambridge: Polity.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. use social media technologies and practices
LO2. discuss critical perspectives on social media history, platforms, uses and cultures
LO3. investigate and design networked communications strategies
LO4. establish professional social media presences for a defined communications objective
LO5. create, curate, promote, discuss and evaluate social media campaigns and projects

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

We have condensed the assignments into a more digestible format based on last year's feedback, while including brand new literature from a number of sources including the new Instagram book by Leaver, Highfield and Abidin. This is also the first year we have extended this unit to a 13-week offering instead of a seven-week intensive.

Additional information

This unit is a postgraduate unit delivered as a weekly three-hour seminar series for the duration of 13 weeks. During each seminar, students will typically spend the first hour in a ‘lecture’ styled presentation from social media researchers and experts within the field. The next hour will be focused on the key literature of the week, while the final hour will engage student creativity as they ‘make’ something related to their final major project.

It is also expected that each week you will spend at least two hours reading and additional time on self-directed study. That study includes viewing social media platforms, taking notes, blogging, gaming, researching, interviewing, exploring tools and tutorials, and producing media content.

You will need access to an internet-connected computer or device to access our learning management system, Canvas, to complete your social media communication studies. This unit requires regular use of Canvas with most study and assessment tasks performed through the site. The unit also uses Twitter discussions using the hashtag #UsydSocMed, where we will often have intensive question and answer sessions with industry practitioners, experts and researchers.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

MECO6936: Social Media Communication

Semester 1, 2021 [Normal day] - Remote

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect