Syllabus

🌎 Overview

NMIX 2010: Intro to New Media
Fall 2025

Class: MW 1:50-2:40 MLC 148; F 1:50-2:40 / 3:00-3:50

Instructor: John Weatherford

Contact: 403G Journalism / johnweatherford@uga.edu

Office Hours: MW 12:15-1:45pm and by appointment

Teaching Assistant: Peyton Owens

Description

Develop a solid working knowledge of the field through an exploration of the technical, social, cultural, ethical, and economic aspects of new media technologies. The course starts with a historical and theoretical overview and then covers hardware, software, and networks before moving on to explore case studies of leading tech companies and essential new media topics.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the semester, you’ll be able to:

• Summarize the history of media and communication leading up to the era of new media
• Identify the social and cultural dynamics that create and are created by new mediums
• Explain the key technologies underpinning the hardware, software, and networks that comprise essential new media forms (the internet, social media, mobile devices, the internet of things, and more)
• Analyze current events, companies, and trends in new media from various perspectives (technical, social, cultural, ethical, economic, etc.)

Topical Outline

Theory + History

• What is new media?
• How we got to now, Part I: Communication and early media
• How we got to now, Part II: Telecommunication and mass media

Building Blocks

• Hardware
• Software
• Networks

Case Studies, Concepts, and Conversations

Group I:

• New media case study: Apple
• New media concept: Smartphones
• New media conversation: Careers in New Media

Group II:

• New media case study: Google
• New media concept: AI + ML (Artificial Intelligence + Machine Learning)
• New media conversation: The Ethics of New Media

Group III:

• New media case study: Meta (+ social media)
• New media concept: Augmented / Virtual / Extended realities
• New media conversation: The Business of New Media

Group IV:

• New media case study: Amazon (+ commerce)
• New media concept: Computers everywhere (and nowhere) all at once (The cloud, smart home, voice, and ambient computing)
• New media conversation: The Future of New Media

Instructor Philosophy

More than being here to help you learn the subject material, I’m here to help you learn how to learn. I think the things we’re talking about in class are incredibly cool, exciting, and worthy of your time, thought, and energy. Hopefully, when you finish the class, you’ll believe the same (or at least understand how a reasonable person could believe the same), have developed a really solid working knowledge of the field, and know where and how to further your own knowledge and expertise.

We’re going to have a lot of fun, but I also expect you to work hard. Work hard at the assignments, sure, but more than that, work hard at understanding the stuff we’re talking about, why it matters, and what you can do with it—that’s what really matters. We’ll employ a variety of resources, assignments, and activities throughout the class to accomplish these goals, an approach know as active learning.

Class Culture

While our first lesson will walk through many of the attitudes and practices each of you, individually, will need to cultivate to succeed in this class, it’s also worth taking some time to talk about what we all should expect from each other.

In short, we’ll work to cultivate an atmosphere of curiosity, fun, and professionalism. That means that you can expect me to:

• Create an atmosphere of curiosity and inclusion where everyone feels welcome to bring their authentic selves to class
• Communicate a clear direction for the course as a whole and for each class gathering, activity, and assignment
• Work diligently to make all assignments and activities of this class worthwhile1

Similarly, I expect each of you to approach each component of the class with an open mind, a diligent work ethic, and respect for your peers and instructors. How? We’ll get into the particulars throughout the rest of the syllabus.

📚 Texts + Tools

Course site

All of the readings for the course can be found at nmi.cool/intro.

Messaging platform

We’re going to use a messaging platform for all class discussion and communication, including important updates from me. This tool will also be where you’ll take part in group discussions.

You’ll receive an invite via your UGA email address; after you’ve created your account, please complete your profile so that I know who I’m talking to. After you’ve joined the class messaging platform, use that platform only—not email—to contact me.

Checking the messaging platform regularly (ideally daily) is required for the course, so you must install the platform app on your phone and on your desktop. 

eLC

ELC will be used only to take quizzes / exams and to view your grades.

Summary

• This site contains all course readings / videos
• Our messaging platform will be our course communication hub
• ELC will be used only for taking quizzes / exams and posting grades

📓 Assignments + Grading

Pre-test – 0 points

A quiz administered to all students in all sections of NMIX 2010 that corresponds to a post-test administered to students as they complete their New Media Certificates. Do your best, but don’t be anxious: a) you’re not supposed to know this stuff yet and b) even though you’re taking the test, it’s really the NMI being evaluated, not you!

Syllabus Quiz – 2 points

An eLC quiz worth two points, covering everything in the syllabus. 2 3

Learning Plan – 3 points

It’s a cliché 4, and a cheesy one at that, but if you fail to plan, then you’re planning to fail. You don’t want to fail, and I don’t want you to fail, either, so you’re going to make a plan.

A plan for what? A plan for how and when you’re going to tackle this class. Thoroughly read through the syllabus and the assignments, and take a look at the lessons. Then, make a plan for when and how you’re going to work on this class, and mark it down on your calendar.

A few pieces of advice:

• If at all possible, pick a regular time and stick to it—the power of habit is undeniable.
• Plan for more time than you think you’ll need—at least 15-20% more. Why? Most of us are generally far too optimistic about how long it’ll take us to complete tasks. And, the worst case is pretty good, too: if you complete the work in less time than you budgeted, guess what? You just found some free time!
• Realistically account for the fact that you’re a human being. You may stay up late, sleep in late, have a day where you have absolutely no motivation to work, be presented with an awesome last-minute opportunity that you can’t say no to, etc. All that to say, build in some buffer to your plan, and be realistic about when in the day you plan to work.

After you complete your plan, take the Learning Plan quiz on eLC. You won’t actually turn in the plan itself because a) it should live in your calendar, to-do list, etc. and b) if you don’t complete it, it’ll ultimately hurt only you.

Breakout Sections + Lesson Explorations – 20 points

Breakout sessions will be your chance to enjoy a small class atmosphere within a large class. As such, you’ll be expected to actively engage in class.

Your group discussion work will be evaluated twice throughout the class: once at midterm, and again at the end of the semester.

Each evaluation is worth ten points, and will be graded according to the following scale:

• 10 points: 🔥 5
• 8.5 points:💪 6
• 7 points: 👍 7
• 5 points: 😕 8
• 2 point: 🫠 9
• 0 points: 👻 10

Lesson explorations

As part of your work in breakout sections, you’ll complete an exploration for each lesson as follow.

The goal

Learn how to ask and explore good questions about new media.

The plan

In the course schedule, each lesson is assigned to a given day (or days). No later than the day before the first day we address a lesson in class, you’ll see a post in your group’s messaging platform channel for each topic.

After completing the readings for each topic, reply to that topic’s post with the following:

1. One or more lines of questions that came up for you during the reading. Lines of questioning could include:
   • Clarifying and further exploring content related to the topic
   • Exploring the latest news and developments related to the topic
   • Investigating legal, ethical, social, etc. issues related to the topic
   • Exploring personal questions related to the topic
   • Or almost anything!
2. A link to your ChatGPT (or other LLM AI) transcript where you discuss your line(s) of questions with the AI
3. Your (entirely human-generated, non-AI-involved) response to the LLM’s response. This could look like:
   • Verifying if the information provided by the AI is accurate, including links to additional sources you referenced, etc.
   • Discussing how the AI’s response connects with other parts of the class
   • Reflecting on how the AI’s response connects with your personal experience
   • Or almost anything!

Format your thread replies as follows:

• Question Title in Bold
• Link to transcript immediately beneath the title, no space
• Empty line
• Your response (1+ paragraphs)

You can also reflect on or extend lines of questioning started by your group mates and even @mention them, if you’d like!

The goal is to spend 10-15 minutes total on each topic’s post. That should account for reading other people’s posts (if you aren’t the first to post), coming up with your question(s), asking and investigating your question(s) with the AI, and writing your response to the AI.

Quality posts will:

• Show a connection to class material (reference specific concepts, not ask questions already answered in the class material on the topic, etc.)
• Involve 2+ entries from your side with the AI
• Reference group mates’ posts, as appropriate
• Have responses contain 1-3 complete thoughts expressed through clear, proofread writing
• Posts will be evaluated twice throughout the class: once at midterm (12 points, 6 posts x 2 points) and again at the end of the semester (8 points, 4 posts x 2 points).

Two last notes. First, all group discussions + lesson explorations will be governed by this code of conduct—please immediately report any inappropriate behavior directly to me. Second, have fun—use emoji reactions, share fun GIFs, add links, have AIs generate art for you, whatever!

Lesson Quizzes – 20 points

For each of the 18 readings in the class, you’ll take a short eLC quiz. Anything discussed or linked to in the readings is fair game for the quizzes.

The goal of these quizzes is to serve as lightweight, ongoing accountability for the course readings and discussion. To that end, the two following adjustments will be made to quiz grades:

1) Out of 18 total quizzes, your lowest two grades will be dropped. This will leave 16 graded quizzes, worth 1.25 points each, for a total of 20 points allocated for quizzes in your final grade.

2) After all quizzes have been taken, your final quiz average will be adjusted as follows:

• <70%: +8% to final average (ex. an average of 56% will be adjusted to 64%)
• ≥70%: adjusted to 86% (17 out of 20 points)
• ≥80% adjusted to 92% ( 18.5 out of 20 points)
• ≥90% adjusted to 100% (20 out of 20 points)

Utopia / Dystopia Project – 15 points

A fun, creative group project to be carried out in your discussion sections. Details here.

Midterm Exam – 15 points

An exam on eLC cumulatively covering the material in the first half of the course—Theory + History and Building Blocks. Many of the questions from the lesson quizzes in this section may be included (though likely remixed!), but some questions will be new and will ask you to make connections between all the readings.

Final Exam – 25 points

A longer exam on eLC, cumulatively covering all material in the course. Many of the questions from the lesson quizzes in this section may be included (though likely remixed!), but some questions will be new and will ask you to make connections between all the readings and the broader themes of the course.

Extra Credit – Tech News Practice

Students who choose to start and continue a Tech News Practice can earn between 0.75 – 5 points on their final average.

Summary (100 points total)

Syllabus quiz	2
Learning plan	3
Group discussions + lesson explorations	20
Lesson quizzes	20
Utopia / Dystopia Project	15
Midterm exam	15
Final exam	25
Total	100

Grading Scale

95-100	A
90-94.99	A-
87-89.99	B+
83-86.99	B
80-82.99	B-
77-79.99	C+
73-76.99	C
70-72.99	C-
60-69.99	D
59.99 and below	F

🗓️ Schedule

Date	Topic	Assignments + Major Dates
8/13 Wed.	Welcome; syllabus	First day of class; Pre-test available
8/15 Fri.	Learning digitally	Syllabus quiz + Learning plan quizzes available; read “What is new media?”
8/18 Mon.	What is new media?	Drop / add deadline (Tuesday); What is new media? quiz available
8/20 Wed.	Tech news practice kickoff	11:59 pm deadline for: Pre-test, syllabus quiz, What is new media? quiz
8/22 Fri.	Breakout session	Learning plan quiz due by start of class; Getting to know you
8/25 Mon.	How we got to now, Part I
8/27 Wed.	How we got to now, Part II
8/29 Fri.	Breakout session	How we got to now, Part I and II quizzes (in class);
9/3 Wed.	Hardware
9/5 Fri.	Breakout session	Extra credit opportunity
9/8 Mon.	Hardware
9/10 Wed.	Software
9/12 Fri.	Breakout session	Hardware quiz (in class)
9/15 Mon.	Software
9/17 Wed.	Software
9/19 Fri.	Breakout session	Software quiz (in class)
9/22 Mon.	Networks
9/24 Wed.	Midterm exam review
9/26 Fri.	Breakout session	Networks quiz (in class) + Midterm review
9/29 Mon.	Midterm exam
10/1 Wed.	NMC Orientation
10/3 Fri.	No breakout sessions
10/6 Mon.	Case study: Apple	Midpoint of semester
10/8 Wed.	Concept: Smartphones
10/10 Fri.	Breakout session	Apple and Smartphones quizzes (in class)
10/13 Mon.	Conversation: Careers in New Media
10/15 Wed.	Case study: Google
10/17 Fri.	Breakout session	Careers in New Media and Google quizzes (in class)
10/20 Mon.	Concept: AI (Artificial Intelligence) + ML (Machine Learning)	Withdrawal deadline
10/22 Wed.	Conversation: The Ethics of New Media
10/24 Fri.	Breakout session	AI + ML and The Ethics of New Media quizzes (in class)
10/27 Mon.	Case Study: Meta (+ social media)
10/29 Wed.	Concept: Augmented / Virtual / Extended Realities	Meta (+ social media) and AR / VR / XR quizzes (available 10/29 2:40pm – 10/30 11:59pm)
11/3 Mon.	Utopia – Dystopia project logistics + topic selection
11/5 Wed.	Utopia / Dystopia work day
11/7 Fri.	Breakout session	Initial Utopia / Dystopia project planning
11/10 Mon.	Conversation: The Business of New Media
11/12 Wed.	Case Study: Amazon (+ commerce)
11/14 Fri.	Breakout session	The Business of New Media and Amazon (+ commerce) quizzes (in class); Utopia – Dystopia work day + rough draft due
11/17 Mon.	Utopia – Dystopia work day
11/19 Wed.	Utopia / Dystopia Day
11/21 Fri.	Utopia – Dystopia debrief
11/24 Mon.	Concept: Computers everywhere (and nowhere) all at once: The cloud, smart home, voice, and ambient computing
12/1 Mon.	Conversation: The Future of New Media; Final exam review / Tech news practice re-cap	Tech news practice journals due
12/2 Tues.	Breakout session	Last day of class; Friday schedule; Computers everywhere (and nowhere) all at once and The Future of New Media quizzes (in class)
12/8 Mon.		Final Exam, 12-3pm

📋 Policies

Attendance

As you will with much in life, you’ll get out of this class what you put into it. You’re expected to come to class regularly. Life, however, is full, and conflicts, illnesses, and extraordinary opportunities may arise. Therefore, you may miss up to five classes without any direct penalty. I make no distinction between excused and unexcused absences.

Because missing class affects your ability to be an effective member of our learning community, if you miss more than five classes before the midpoint, you will be dropped from the class. If you accrue more than five absences after the midpoint, your final grade will be reduced by two points for each day of class you miss past the fifth absence.

Attendance will be taken by seating chart at random times during class by your discussion leader. Any questions relating to your attendance should be directed to your discussion leader.

Arriving to class late / leaving early is disruptive for others in the class. If your class schedule will make arriving on time difficult, let your discussion leader know and make arrangements to sit on the outside aisles of the class. Everyone who arrives to class late or leaves early must check in with their discussion leader—no exceptions.

Technology Use in Class

I love technology, and this is a class about technology. Technology can be great!

This is also a class about being thoughtful about technology, though, and one of the first ways to do that is to be thoughtful about how you’ll use technology in class. In general, I encourage two principles:

• Use as little technology as possible
• Configure the technology you do use to minimize distractions both for yourself and for your classmates

What might this look like? In general, I’d say it’s a-okay to use a laptop (or iPad, or whatever) to take notes, with your note-taking app full-screen, with Do Not Disturb turned on11, with sound off and screen brightness as dim as you can comfortably read. Anything beyond that, and you’re inviting distraction, both into your own classroom experience (not great) and that of the classmates sitting around you (super not great).12

Make-Up Work

You are expected to complete and turn in your work by the due date, and late work is accepted only at the discretion of the instructor. If late work is accepted, the minimum penalty for the first assignment you turn in late is 10% of its total value per day late (ex: 10-point exam turned in two days late will be penalized a minimum of 2 points). After your first late assignment, each subsequent late assignment will be penalized a minimum of 20% of its total value per day (ex: 10-point exam turned in two days late will be penalized a minimum of 4 points).

Email / Direct Messages

As I’ve already mentioned, we’re using a messaging platform as the sole tool for our class communication. So, instead of emailing me (or our wonderful discussion leaders), direct message us.

So that we can most quickly help those in need of assistance, take the following steps before messaging us:

• Check the syllabus, eLC, previous conversations, the class site, etc. to see if the answer’s posted there
• Spend 5-15 minutes (but not any more time than that) trying to solve the problem on your own (via Google, asking a classmate, etc.)
• Ask yourself if the question might be one other students are having, and if so, post it to #2010-ask-john-and-peyton

If you do all of those and still have a question just for us, then by all means direct message us (just start a new direct message and include both Juli and I on the message)! We’ll respond to your questions as quickly as possible, but please allow a reasonable amount of time (generally under 24 hours; 2 business days max) for a response.

Our messaging platform allows for communication to be informal and fun, which is great! But, don’t forget to communicate professionally, even while having fun.

Office Hours

In addition to the times posted at the top of the syllabus, I’ll frequently (though not always!) be in my office during regular business hours. You’re welcome to come by and see me with any questions, concerns, or just to say hi. I work with my door closed, but you’re always welcome to come in! If possible, direct message me before you visit to make sure that I’ll be able to see you (I might already be meeting with another student, etc.)

Access Policy

If you have a disability and require accommodations, please see me after class or make an appointment during office hours. If you plan to request accommodations for a disability, visit the Disability Resource Center website or call 1 (706) 542-8719.

Service Animals

Students who train or use service animals should be aware of UGA policy.  More info is available here.

Non-Discrimination Policy

I do not engage in or tolerate discrimination or harassment on the basis of race/ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex/gender, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental disability, or veteran status. In addition, I do not discriminate on the basis of class, income, or political views. If there is something I can do to make the class more hospitable, please let me know.

Honor Code and Academic Honesty

As a University of Georgia Student, you have agreed to abide by the University’s academic honesty policy, “A Culture of Honesty”, and the UGA Student Honor Code: “I will be academically honest in all of my academic work and will not tolerate academic dishonesty of others.” A Culture of Honesty, the University’s policy and procedures for handling cases of suspected dishonesty, can be found at honesty.uga.edu. Lack of knowledge of the academic honesty policy is not a reasonable explanation for a violation.

Read the entire policy online, but the short story is: don’t cheat—the punishments for violations of the Academic Honesty Policy are severe. You are expected to do your own work and to report individuals who do not do their own work. As nearly all of the class materials and assignments are online, you may find the temptation to cheat (cheating includes unauthorized sharing of class materials, using unauthorized sources during assessments, and more—seriously, read this now to get a full sense of what all constitutes academic dishonesty) even greater than usual. Resist that temptation. Questions related to course assignments and the academic honesty policy should be directed to the instructor.

AI Use Policy

This course follows a responsible use policy for AI tools. To read the NMI’s official AI Use Policy, visit AI Use Policy.

New Media Institute Policies

New Media Institute students are responsible for knowing and abiding by all NMI policies. You agreed to these policies upon applying to NMIX courses and will be held accountable for following them. For a refresher on these policies, visit nmi.cool/nmc/.

Course Communication

All official course and program-wide communication expectations—including required platforms and participation details—are outlined on eLC. All NMI students are responsible for reviewing and complying with the communication requirements found there. This includes important details about how we communicate across courses, events, and program initiatives. Please refer to eLC for complete information.

Reference Webpage

For more information about Advising, accessing the TACO, meeting with our Xperts, making room reservations, and more visit nmi.cool/resources.

Student Services

As a student at the University of Georgia, you have access to a wide variety of services to help you succeed. Click here to view a description of services along with links and contact information if you wish to learn more about these topics. Of course, you’re also welcome to talk with me if I can help in any way, too.

UGA Well-Being Resources

UGA Well-being Resources promote student success by cultivating a culture that supports a more active, healthy, and engaged student community.

Anyone needing assistance is encouraged to contact Student Care & Outreach (SCO) in the Division of Student Affairs at 706-542-8479 or visit sco.uga.edu. Student Care & Outreach helps students navigate difficult circumstances by connecting them with the most appropriate resources or services. They also administer the Embark@UGA program which supports students experiencing, or who have experienced, homelessness, foster care, or housing insecurity.

UGA provides both clinical and non-clinical options to support student well-being and mental health, any time, any place. Whether on campus, or studying from home or abroad, UGA Well-being Resources are here to help.

• Well-being Resources: well-being.uga.edu
• Student Care and Outreach: sco.uga.edu
• University Health Center: healthcenter.uga.edu
• Counseling and Psychiatric Services: caps.uga.edu or CAPS 24/7 crisis support at 706-542-2273
• Health Promotion/ Fontaine Center: healthpromotion.uga.edu
• Disability Resource Center and Testing Services drc.uga.edu

Additional information, including free digital well-being resources, can be accessed through the UGA app or by visiting https://well-being.uga.edu.

Counseling and Psychiatric Services (CAPS)

College can be stressful. Life has difficult stretches. If you need help, get it. CAPS provides short-term individual counseling, group counseling, couples counseling, crisis intervention, psychiatric evaluation and medication monitoring, psychological testing, and makes referrals to campus and community resources when appropriate.

Emergency Preparedness

Verify that your emergency contact information is correct at ugaalert.uga.edu and add 706-542-0111 as “UGAAlert” in your contacts. We will discuss emergency exit routes the first day of class.

• If the fire alarm sounds, we will evacuate the building through the rear exit to the amphitheater and reassemble to make sure that everyone exited safely. Quickly move away from the entrances so as not to hinder first responders.
• If there is a tornado warning, we’ll move to an interior hallway.
• In the event of a medical emergency, I will ask one of you to meet EMS responders and bring them to our classroom.

If you have concerns about other emergencies or if you have special circumstances that I need to know about in case of an emergency, please speak to us after class.

Changes to Course Syllabus

The course syllabus is a general plan; deviations announced to the class by the instructor may be necessary.

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