RELI 3610 Religion, Media and Culture

This course will explore the varieties of media as vehicles for discussing, showcasing, or critiquing religion. This includes "the media" (news), media as platforms (print, TV, Web, etc.), and online religious practice. This course will address questions such as: Are regional variations of religion becoming more globalized? how do media shape the ways we view religious traditions outside our own? How do new methods of communications, socialization, and organization affect religious institutions or religious practice? Are all religious traditions able to have a "virtual" presense? Students will be blogging as well as writing traditional essays.