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Unit outline_

MECO6936: Social Media Communication

Semester 1, 2023 [Normal day] - Remote

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) Jennifer Hagedorn, jennifer.hagedorn@sydney.edu.au
Brittany Ferdinands, brittany.ferdinands@sydney.edu.au
Agata Stepnik, agata.stepnik@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: 24 Mar 2023 at 23:59
1000 words
Outcomes assessed: LO2 LO3 LO5
Assignment Social Media Project
Design and create a social media campaign for a social issue.
50% Week 12
Due date: 19 May 2023 at 23:59
3000 words equivalent
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO4 LO5
Assignment Online Reflective Journal
Reflect on the process of designing and creating a social media campaign.
10% Week 13
Due date: 26 May 2023 at 23:59
500 words
Outcomes assessed: LO2 LO3 LO5

Assessment summary

  1. Social Media Campaign Analysis, 40%, Due Friday 5pm, Week 5
  2. Social Media Project, 50%, Due Friday 5pm Week 12
  3. 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.

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.

WK Topic Learning activity Learning outcomes
Week 01 Introduction to Social Media Seminar (3 hr) LO2 LO3
Week 02 Social Media Users Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO5
Week 03 Participatory Culture: Memes and Hashtags Seminar (3 hr) LO3 LO4
Week 04 Video Cultures of Social Media Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO2
Week 05 Social Media Ethics and Regulation Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO4
Week 06 Automation and Social Media Seminar (3 hr) LO1
Week 07 Social Media Metrics Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO3 LO4 LO5
Week 08 Cultural Intermediation for Social Media Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO2
Week 09 Social Influencers Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO2
Week 10 Social Media in Industry Seminar (3 hr) LO3 LO4
Week 11 Marketing and Communications for Social Media Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO4
Week 12 Futures of Social Media Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO4 LO5
Week 13 Looking Backwards Looking Forward Seminar (3 hr) LO1 LO3

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.

  • Assessment: All assessment must be attempted and submitted to pass this unit.

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. (2021). Introduction to Social Media Concepts. In 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. 

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

Week 2

Lipschultz, J. H. (2021). CMC, Diffussion, and Social Theories. In Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics (pp. 39–66). New York: Routledge.

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. (2021). Law and Regulation. Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics (pp.223 –262

Lipschultz, J. H. (2021). Social Media Ethics Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics (pp. 263-288). New York: Routledge.

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. 

Baym, N., Bergmann, R., Bhargava, R., Diaz, F., Gillespie, T., Hesmondhalgh, D., . . . Persuad, C. J. (2021). Making Sense of Metrics in the Music Industries. International Journal of Communication, 15(2021), 3418–3441.

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

Lipschultz, J. H. (2021) Social Media in Journalism. Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics (pp. 67–94). New York: Routledge.

Lipschultz, J. H. (2021) Social Media in Public Relationtions. Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics(pp. 95–124). New York: Routledge.

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

Lipschultz, J. H. (2021). Future of Social Media and Information Literacy. Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law and Ethics (pp. 307–336). New York: Routledge.

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

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 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.

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
GQ1 GQ2 GQ3 GQ4 GQ5 GQ6 GQ7 GQ8 GQ9

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 semester's feedback, while including brand new literature from a number of sources.

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 three 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.