In modern societies where social values change rapidly, public opinions around the business world have high expectations of corporations and their owners, governments, civil servants and public figures. Mass communication channels have also become increasingly influential and stakeholders shape many fast growing commercial media institutions. The interlocking relationships linking social values, public expectations, and the roles played by businesses and the media are the foci of this course. This course combines inter-disciplinary perspectives of business, mass communication and sociological theories to examine the triangular relationship among business, media and society. It aims to train students to use critical thinking skills and exercise independent judgement drawing upon their encounters involving global, Greater China and local social contexts. The course will use a combination of lectures and tutorials involving students' cases studies and presentation.
This course offers a general education for student to acquire competence in "business and social environment assessment" and "media literacy" to enable stakeholder analyses in contemporary society. At the end of the course students should be able to apply critical thinking, reading and presentation skills drawing on students' daily experience with scholarly readings, mass media contents including that of popular culture. More specific learning goals include their effective performance in the following aspects: 1. Weighing and evaluating information and evidences capturing aspects of business operation, social changes and information flow through the media, 2. Forming independent value judgement and thinking in a critical manner.