COM3703/101/3/2023
Tutorial Letter 101/3/2023
Media Studies:
Media content and media audiences
COM3703
Semesters 1 and 2
Department of Communication Science
This tutorial letter contains important information about your module.
BARCODE
, CONTENTS
Page
1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 3
2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES OF THE MODULE ........................................................................... 4
2.1 Purpose .............................................................................................................................................. 4
2.2 Outcomes........................................................................................................................................... 5
3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION ............................................................................................... 7
4 LECTURERS AND CONTACT DETAILS ........................................................................................ 7
4.1 Lecturers ............................................................................................................................................ 7
4.2 Department ........................................................................................................................................ 7
4.3 University ........................................................................................................................................... 7
5 RESOURCES .................................................................................................................................... 8
5.1 Prescribed book(s)............................................................................................................................. 9
5.2 Recommended book(s) ................................................................................................................... 10
5.3 Electronic reserves (e-reserves) ..................................................................................................... 10
5.4 Library services and resources ....................................................................................................... 10
6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES .................................................................................................. 11
7 STUDY PLAN .................................................................................................................................. 12
8 PRACTICAL WORK........................................................................................................................ 12
9 ASSESSMENT ................................................................................................................................ 13
9.1 Assessment process........................................................................................................................ 13
9.2 Assessment plan ............................................................................................................................. 13
9.3 Assessment due dates .................................................................................................................... 14
9.4 Submission of assessments ............................................................................................................ 14
9.5 The assessments............................................................................................................................. 15
9.6 Other assessment methods ............................................................................................................ 34
9.7 The examination .............................................................................................................................. 34
9.7.1 Invigilation/proctoring ....................................................................................................................... 35
10 ACADEMIC DISHONESTY ............................................................................................................. 36
10.1 Plagiarism ........................................................................................................................................ 36
10.2 Cheating ........................................................................................................................................... 36
10.3 More information about plagiarism .................................................................................................. 37
11 STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES ..................................................................................... 37
12 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ............................................................................................ 37
13 SOURCES CONSULTED ............................................................................................................... 37
14 IN CLOSING .................................................................................................................................... 39
15 ADDENDUM .................................................................................................................................... 40
2
, COM3703/101/3/2023
Dear Student
1 INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the exciting world of Media Studies. We hope that you will find the contents of this
module rewarding and informative. Before you start reading the study material, become
thoroughly familiar with the contents of this tutorial letter, which contains all the important
information that you will need in order to begin. This tutorial letter (Tutorial Letter 101/3/2023) and
the tutorial letter entitled CMNALLE/301 contain all the most basic and important information for
your studies in COM3703. Therefore, we expect you to read and take note of all the contents of
these two tutorial letters, in particular. In this tutorial letter, we also indicate other important
resources and information regarding this module.
Unisa, as a comprehensive open distance e-learning (CODeL) institution, is moving towards
becoming an online institution. You will therefore see that all your study material, assessments
and engagements with your lecturer and fellow students will be online. This tutorial letter is
intended to offer you some guidance in this regard.
Please take note of the following important issues:
• You need to familiarise yourself with the contents of the document Unisa Rules for Students
each year of your studies with us, as it contains vital general information on your studies,
the supplementary and aegrotat (deferred) examinations, and any examination script
purchases, as well as other matters that are of crucial importance to you as a Unisa student.
• You also need to take note of the Unisa policy on Plagiarism and Copyright Infringement.
The tutorial letter CMNALLE/301 contains important information and guidelines of which we
will expect you to be aware. Furthermore, for your convenience, the Department of
Communication Science has created a web page on Writing for Academic Integrity, which
covers all aspects of plagiarism and referencing; please ensure that you view all the videos
on this site at:
https://sites.google.com/a/unisacommscience.co.za/writing-for-academic-
integrity/home?pli=1
• General queries about the module can be sent to the module coordinator. Content-related
queries must be directed at the lecturer responsible for the specific theme/unit/chapter with
which you need help. If you are unsure about whom to contact, you may always contact the
module coordinator.
• We endeavour to answer your queries as soon as possible. If you are anxious to receive a
reply to a query, you are welcome to send a follow-up e-mail 48 hours or longer after sending
your original e-mail. We sometimes need to follow up on certain matters, or to intervene in
some way in responding to your queries. As doing so may delay our response time, please
bear with us.
• Please note that we are sometimes in meetings, or engaged in various academic activities
and are not always immediately reachable via telephone. If you tried to call and could not
reach us, please: 1) try calling again later in the day, or 2) send an e-mail indicating that you
have tried to call and stating what exactly your query is, providing your student number.
3
, • If you are ill, or if you have a family or other emergency, and it is affecting your ability to
meet an assignment or examination portfolio deadline, please let the module coordinator
know as soon as possible. In most cases, we will require a medical certificate, a doctor’s
note or some other kind of proof of your emergency. (We will also accept police reports,
accident reports and so on, where such documentation is applicable.) Please send such
documentation through to the module coordinator on or before the due date of an
assignment or portfolio, as we only consider medical, family or emergency-related excuses
after due dates in extreme circumstances. If you are unable to send us an e-mail, you may
call the module coordinator, or you can have someone call or e-mail the coordinator on your
behalf, but they must always provide us with your full details, including your student number,
if possible, at the time of contact. We will need to be told your full name, as you used it to
register with the University.
• In order to gain examination admission, you need to submit Assignment 01 on or before the
due date. In the event that the module coordinator grants you an extension for Assignment
01, please also enquire about the due date for examination admissions and whether you will
still be able to meet it, given your extension.
• In order to be awarded a supplementary exam, you need to: 1) have gained admission to
the examination and attempted it, that is, submitted a portfolio, and 2) have attained at least
40% in your examination portfolio.
• Please take note of the specific rules for aegrotat (deferred) exams in the Unisa Rules for
Students document. Not all circumstances will be accommodated, so you need to familiarise
yourself with the rules and requirements. If you are unsure, you may contact the module
coordinator, or .
• We are able to provide you with a letter confirming the due dates of your assignments or
examination portfolio if your employer or anyone else requires this. Please contact the
module coordinator in this regard, providing your student number. Please give us at least a
week’s notice if you need such a letter. If you cannot give us such notice, indicate in your
requesting e-mail to us by when, specifically, you will need the letter. You will need a
separate letter for each module for which you are registered, so please contact all the
relevant module coordinators individually to obtain such a letter.
2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES
2.1 Purpose
In this module you will learn more about the content of the media and the specific research
techniques available in order to research media content. You will also learn how to research the
impact of the media on audiences, and how audiences may respond to the media. This module
follows the COM3702 module, where the emphasis is on how the media is organised, on theories
which explain how the media works, and on important debates surrounding the media.
Once you have completed COM2604, COM3702 and COM3703, you will have completed all three
of the core undergraduate media studies modules in the Department of Communication Science.
4
Tutorial Letter 101/3/2023
Media Studies:
Media content and media audiences
COM3703
Semesters 1 and 2
Department of Communication Science
This tutorial letter contains important information about your module.
BARCODE
, CONTENTS
Page
1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 3
2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES OF THE MODULE ........................................................................... 4
2.1 Purpose .............................................................................................................................................. 4
2.2 Outcomes........................................................................................................................................... 5
3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION ............................................................................................... 7
4 LECTURERS AND CONTACT DETAILS ........................................................................................ 7
4.1 Lecturers ............................................................................................................................................ 7
4.2 Department ........................................................................................................................................ 7
4.3 University ........................................................................................................................................... 7
5 RESOURCES .................................................................................................................................... 8
5.1 Prescribed book(s)............................................................................................................................. 9
5.2 Recommended book(s) ................................................................................................................... 10
5.3 Electronic reserves (e-reserves) ..................................................................................................... 10
5.4 Library services and resources ....................................................................................................... 10
6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES .................................................................................................. 11
7 STUDY PLAN .................................................................................................................................. 12
8 PRACTICAL WORK........................................................................................................................ 12
9 ASSESSMENT ................................................................................................................................ 13
9.1 Assessment process........................................................................................................................ 13
9.2 Assessment plan ............................................................................................................................. 13
9.3 Assessment due dates .................................................................................................................... 14
9.4 Submission of assessments ............................................................................................................ 14
9.5 The assessments............................................................................................................................. 15
9.6 Other assessment methods ............................................................................................................ 34
9.7 The examination .............................................................................................................................. 34
9.7.1 Invigilation/proctoring ....................................................................................................................... 35
10 ACADEMIC DISHONESTY ............................................................................................................. 36
10.1 Plagiarism ........................................................................................................................................ 36
10.2 Cheating ........................................................................................................................................... 36
10.3 More information about plagiarism .................................................................................................. 37
11 STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES ..................................................................................... 37
12 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ............................................................................................ 37
13 SOURCES CONSULTED ............................................................................................................... 37
14 IN CLOSING .................................................................................................................................... 39
15 ADDENDUM .................................................................................................................................... 40
2
, COM3703/101/3/2023
Dear Student
1 INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the exciting world of Media Studies. We hope that you will find the contents of this
module rewarding and informative. Before you start reading the study material, become
thoroughly familiar with the contents of this tutorial letter, which contains all the important
information that you will need in order to begin. This tutorial letter (Tutorial Letter 101/3/2023) and
the tutorial letter entitled CMNALLE/301 contain all the most basic and important information for
your studies in COM3703. Therefore, we expect you to read and take note of all the contents of
these two tutorial letters, in particular. In this tutorial letter, we also indicate other important
resources and information regarding this module.
Unisa, as a comprehensive open distance e-learning (CODeL) institution, is moving towards
becoming an online institution. You will therefore see that all your study material, assessments
and engagements with your lecturer and fellow students will be online. This tutorial letter is
intended to offer you some guidance in this regard.
Please take note of the following important issues:
• You need to familiarise yourself with the contents of the document Unisa Rules for Students
each year of your studies with us, as it contains vital general information on your studies,
the supplementary and aegrotat (deferred) examinations, and any examination script
purchases, as well as other matters that are of crucial importance to you as a Unisa student.
• You also need to take note of the Unisa policy on Plagiarism and Copyright Infringement.
The tutorial letter CMNALLE/301 contains important information and guidelines of which we
will expect you to be aware. Furthermore, for your convenience, the Department of
Communication Science has created a web page on Writing for Academic Integrity, which
covers all aspects of plagiarism and referencing; please ensure that you view all the videos
on this site at:
https://sites.google.com/a/unisacommscience.co.za/writing-for-academic-
integrity/home?pli=1
• General queries about the module can be sent to the module coordinator. Content-related
queries must be directed at the lecturer responsible for the specific theme/unit/chapter with
which you need help. If you are unsure about whom to contact, you may always contact the
module coordinator.
• We endeavour to answer your queries as soon as possible. If you are anxious to receive a
reply to a query, you are welcome to send a follow-up e-mail 48 hours or longer after sending
your original e-mail. We sometimes need to follow up on certain matters, or to intervene in
some way in responding to your queries. As doing so may delay our response time, please
bear with us.
• Please note that we are sometimes in meetings, or engaged in various academic activities
and are not always immediately reachable via telephone. If you tried to call and could not
reach us, please: 1) try calling again later in the day, or 2) send an e-mail indicating that you
have tried to call and stating what exactly your query is, providing your student number.
3
, • If you are ill, or if you have a family or other emergency, and it is affecting your ability to
meet an assignment or examination portfolio deadline, please let the module coordinator
know as soon as possible. In most cases, we will require a medical certificate, a doctor’s
note or some other kind of proof of your emergency. (We will also accept police reports,
accident reports and so on, where such documentation is applicable.) Please send such
documentation through to the module coordinator on or before the due date of an
assignment or portfolio, as we only consider medical, family or emergency-related excuses
after due dates in extreme circumstances. If you are unable to send us an e-mail, you may
call the module coordinator, or you can have someone call or e-mail the coordinator on your
behalf, but they must always provide us with your full details, including your student number,
if possible, at the time of contact. We will need to be told your full name, as you used it to
register with the University.
• In order to gain examination admission, you need to submit Assignment 01 on or before the
due date. In the event that the module coordinator grants you an extension for Assignment
01, please also enquire about the due date for examination admissions and whether you will
still be able to meet it, given your extension.
• In order to be awarded a supplementary exam, you need to: 1) have gained admission to
the examination and attempted it, that is, submitted a portfolio, and 2) have attained at least
40% in your examination portfolio.
• Please take note of the specific rules for aegrotat (deferred) exams in the Unisa Rules for
Students document. Not all circumstances will be accommodated, so you need to familiarise
yourself with the rules and requirements. If you are unsure, you may contact the module
coordinator, or .
• We are able to provide you with a letter confirming the due dates of your assignments or
examination portfolio if your employer or anyone else requires this. Please contact the
module coordinator in this regard, providing your student number. Please give us at least a
week’s notice if you need such a letter. If you cannot give us such notice, indicate in your
requesting e-mail to us by when, specifically, you will need the letter. You will need a
separate letter for each module for which you are registered, so please contact all the
relevant module coordinators individually to obtain such a letter.
2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES
2.1 Purpose
In this module you will learn more about the content of the media and the specific research
techniques available in order to research media content. You will also learn how to research the
impact of the media on audiences, and how audiences may respond to the media. This module
follows the COM3702 module, where the emphasis is on how the media is organised, on theories
which explain how the media works, and on important debates surrounding the media.
Once you have completed COM2604, COM3702 and COM3703, you will have completed all three
of the core undergraduate media studies modules in the Department of Communication Science.
4
