Unit Outline

The ability to strategically communicate is a skill required in many industries and sectors. In this unit, you are introduced to a variety of media platforms and approaches to provide a strong foundation for participation in the media and communication industries. You will be introduced to key trends and changes in contemporary media practices, technologies, business models and audience behaviours. A fundamental appreciation of key concepts in media writing will enable you to think strategically about content creation, information gathering and audience engagement, which will equip you to write and pitch a story to a relevant publication. You will gain a deeper understanding of how strategic communication can drive change in a variety of contexts while acquiring important practical skills in professional communication, information management, media engagement and publicity.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1.	Critically evaluate media content using media and communication concepts and methods.
2.	Apply these concepts to a range of media production projects drawn from political, business and environment fields, and a range of cultural perspectives.
3.	Effectively and ethically communicate in a variety of scholarly and professional formats.
4.	Critically evaluate and discuss your media production experiences and the content you have produced in the context of major theories and key concepts in media and communication.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Anti-requisite (mutual excl)	HEJ504

Alterations as a result of student feedback

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Publication and content report	Week 3	20 %	LO1, LO2, LO3
Assessment Task 2:	Journalism and reflexive essay	Week 5	40 %	LO2, LO3, LO4
Assessment Task 3:	Media Release and Report	Week 7	40 %	LO1, LO2, LO3

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Publication and content report

Task Description:

Working in strategic communication frequently requires industry research. Your task is to provide your manager with a report on a chosen publication, selected because it publishes freelance media content. This could be a magazine or e-zine, a blog, your local newspaper or an international platform. The publication may have a social media presence, but the content cannot be from a social media platform alone.
Read, watch or listen to at least five texts published by this organisation in the past year and write a research report that reflects on this content drawing on the concepts introduced in this unit. You should answer the following questions:
- Who are the organisation’s audience, and what are the elements in the publications that engages audiences (such as yourself)?
- How, and across which platforms, do audiences discover, access, and engage with this content?
- What is the organisation’s business model?
- What types of content does this organisation publish?
- What styles, formats and technologies are found in this content?

Your report should draw upon concepts and readings from the unit and use quotes from at least five texts selected from the publication to support your discussion.
The publication chosen for this assignment should also be the publication selected in Assessment Task 2.

Task Length:

1000 words

Due Date:

Week 3

Weight:

20 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Critically analyse a media platform and content by applying media and audience concepts	LO1
2	Discuss developments in professional practices in contemporary media and their influence and impact on society	LO2
3	Show clarity and effectiveness of discussion through written expression	LO3

Assessment Task 2: Journalism and reflexive essay

Task Description:

Develop a story idea for your chosen publication and conduct an interview as part of your research for the story. You must ensure that your interviewee signs a consent form which should be submitted along with your assignment. Your chosen organisation can be the one you researched in the first assignment, but this is not mandatory. Ensure that your chosen publication publishes freelancers’ work.

Applying concepts and approaches to media writing from this unit, write a 1000-word story that would be suitable for your chosen organisation. When preparing your story, take care to consider their platform, format and style conventions, and audience. Consider where the story might appear, for instance what section it is suited to, and whether any visual, audio or social media content that might be embedded in digital formats.

Write a short 750-word reflexive essay explaining how your story and pitch applied and incorporated concepts and readings from the unit. Your short reflection might include challenges you faced and overcame or describe the choices you made as you produced your work.

Task Length:

1750 words

Due Date:

Week 5

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Create a well-written and relevant story for a specific media platform, format and audience.	LO3
2	Compile accurate and well-researched information for your story using an interview and other media research methods.	LO2, LO3
3	Reflect on your own research and writing practice drawing on media and communication concepts and methods.	LO2, LO4

Assessment Task 3: Media Release and Report

Task Description:

From the perspective of a communication officer at a major organisation, you will receive a media brief about information that needs to be urgently released to news media and key stakeholders.
You will receive:
- information about the organisation you are working for and the events and facts that need to be released to news media and communicated to stakeholders
- a list of stakeholders who need to be informed of these developments
- a list of three social media platforms that will be used to release the information
- a list of three media organisations who will receive the media release.

Based on this information, you will write:
- A media release for targeted news organisations (500 words)
- A plan for releasing this information across three social media platforms, including example posts (500 words)
- A stakeholder analysis report that explains the stakeholders’ positions regarding the story and how you intend to communicate these developments to them (750 words)

Task Length:

1750 words

Due Date:

Week 7

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Create a formal media release based on a brief for targeted news organisations.	LO2, LO3
2	Design a plan for multi-platform communication to diverse audiences.	LO2, LO3
3	Analyse the positions of stakeholders and provide practical recommendations for stakeholder engagement.	LO1, LO2, LO3
4	Communicate clearly and ethically using a range of professional approaches and media formats.	LO3

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.