BCULST 584 – Topics in Media Culture (at UW Bothell)

Asian America media have informed and educated audiences in the Pacific Northwest for more than a century. Artifacts of cultural practices of journalism include newspapers and print productions, such as the North American Post/Hokubei Hochi or the International Examiner, as well as broadcast and online media. Some media organizations lasted only a few years; others have influenced cultural and intellectual spheres in the Pacific Northwest for decades. These institutions are closely linked to social change and movements in the Pacific Northwest, as well as to broader themes of race, class, gender, and ethnicity.
Students will link theory and practice as they engage primary and secondary texts (media, scholarly, popular) to understand the cultural and historical context of Asian American media in the Pacific Northwest. Students perform as historians. They choose a research topic; travel to and use University of Washington Seattle microfilm records in Suzzallo Library as primary sources; engage with interdisciplinary reading of secondary scholarly sources; make off-campus visits to museums highlighting Asian American history; and communicate their analysis.