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COMS 1001: Foundations in Communication and Media Studies

Media History Vlog Assignment

Module 3

We’ve spent a considerable amount of time this semester working through the history of different media types. In doing so, one of the key things we’ve learned is that each new media type builds upon what came before it. But how and where do we see and/or hear that history in the media we consume today? This is the central question that motivates the Media History Vlog.

As a media format, a vlog (which of course is short for “video blog”) features an individual interested in communicating a particular idea. Often vlogs are informal, they are taken on the move, and are expressions of the everyday lives of the producers. The Media History Vlog is no different. We’re looking for a clear, concise expression of an idea while also communicating some sense of who you are as the producer (or the author) of the vlog itself. Feel free to capture it at home or on the go, it’s up to you. Either way, finding a suitable space will be useful because the place you’re in also communicates something.

As mentioned, the vlog will respond to the the following question: in what ways is the media of the past available to you in the media of the (your) present? In other words, how does your media use today reflect the history of 20th century media?

To answer this question, you’ll need to say something about the media you consume. Tell us what it broadly sounds and looks like, and offer a couple of thoughts about what motivates you to consume it. Be strategic about framing this because our media consumption is often quite vast. Then turn to the ways that this media pulls forward the mediated past. Show us that these media couldn’t exist in the ways that they do without the media that came before them. You’ll do this using three different examples.

There are any number of ways you might locate examples. For instance, you might want to think about genre: the sitcom, the newscast, the radio drama, among dozens of other genres of audio/audiovisual media emerged at various points in the history of media. You might want to think about conventions: is there a production technique that you see/hear in your media today that you can trace back to a moment in the history of media? Or you might think in terms of economics: is there an economic structure or even a payment method that you use today that first emerged elsewhere? There are so many ways of making historical connections between the mediated present and past so don’t feel limited to these ideas alone.

The most thorough Media History Vlogs don’t simply point to historical moments but show us how particular moments arose and tell us something about how they looked and/or sounded at the time. In other words, they offer a bit of context.

The vlog will be presented as an abbreviated list, an extremely popular format for contemporary internet videos like Youtube influencer videos, Tiktok videos, Instagram reels, and so on. “Top three ways my media is an expression of media history” is the general gist of the assignment, but title your own project in a way that more accurately reflects the content.

The aim of this assignment is to get you thinking critically about the ways that your media is an expression of the mediated past.

Technical Details

The vlog should be approximately 3 minutes in duration. It can be filmed using whatever device/platform you’d like, though the stock video/camera app on your smartphone, tablet, or laptop is likely the easiest option. The video could be captured in a single take or it could be a series of separate clips edited together in a simple editing app like “Clips” or “iMovie”. Either way, the point is not the quality of production but about how well you’re able to communicate your thoughts on the relationship between the mediated past and present.

Feel free to script and read your monologue if you’d like, however a pre-planned but somewhat spontaneous delivery tends to be most engaging (again, remember how effective informality is in the genre of vlogging).