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MRTS 4120 – U.S. Television History

COURSE SYLLABUS

Fall, 2016

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course is designed both for those who plan a career inthe American media industries and for those who wish an overview of the history andpractice of television broadcasting in the United States.

Throughout the course, a number of questions will be raised: What is the historical,philosophical, technical, and legal basis for the present structure of the televisionbroadcasting industry in the United States? That is, why does television broadcastingexist in America in the form it does? How might it be different in the future? What is therelationship between capitalist economics, government policy, and the structure of theU.S. television industry? Who controls the content of television? Whose interestsareserved by the industry? What is its impact on American society? What issues areraisedby the emergence of new technologies such as the Internet, DBS, DTV, DVR, andVOD?

A list of the specific topics to be covered along with reading assignments can be foundin the course calendar.

COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  1. To understand and demonstrate writing and speaking processes through the research, organization, drafting, editing and presenting a presentation project.
  2. To understand and appropriately apply modes of expression, i.e. descriptive,expositive, narrative, scientific, and self-expressive, in written, visual and oralcommunication.
  3. To participate effectively in groups with emphasis on listening, critical andreflective thinking and responding.
  4. To understand and apply basic principles of critical thinkingand apply them to the historical development of the American television industry, its technology, its regulations, its programming, it audience, and its role in American culture and society.

TEXT: The following text will be used for the course. Please purchase a copy at thecampus bookstore or from online dealers.Used copies should be available.

Stay Tuned: A History of American Broadcasting, 3rd Edition, by ChristopherSterling & John Kittross (Lawrence Erlbaum, 2002). ISBN 0-8058-2624-6.

A copy of the textbook is on two-hour reserve at the Willis Library Reserve Desk. Inaddition, an online copy is available through the UNT library website. The online editionpermits you to view and print one page at a time. Although you may find this to be auseful temporary substitute, it is probably not practical for continuous use throughoutthe term. I recommend you purchase a hard copy for the course.

Additional readings covering areas not in the textbook will be assigned in class and are located in the content section of Blackboard.

READING: Because of the structure of your textbook and the other material covered,reading assignments are not all the same length. Then too, you may find some readingsto be more difficult than others. I recommend you do two things: (1) Read allassignments listed in the calendar before coming to class on the day indicated, and (2)read ahead on weekends and on days when the reading load is lighter. In this way youcan spread the reading assignments out more evenly.

INSTRUCTOR: Your instructor is Dr. Terry Moellinger. You may e-mail me at <>. When e-mailing, pleaseput “RTVF 4120” in your subject line to avoid having your message inadvertentlydiscarded. Office hours can be arranged by appointment.

ATTENDANCE POLICY: Attendance is required at each class meeting. We will spend asignificant percentage of class time screening television program clips that are notavailable for make-up review outside of class. In addition, the material presented inclassroom lecture and discussion constitutes an essential element in understandingcourse content.

The University of North Texas policy on attendance and excused absences isoutlined in the current University Catalog. If you must be absent due to an approveduniversity activity, please furnish me with the appropriate written permission before yourabsence (see the University catalog for details on this policy). Absences for field trips orto work on projects for other courses cannot be considered excused unless theyconstitute an approved university activity in which case you should provide me with theappropriate permission form. If you must miss class because of a religious observance,please notify me in advance. Absences due to illness, doctor’s appointments, familydeaths and other such emergencies will be considered excused provided you inform meof the reason for your absence upon returning to class.

Your registration for this course constitutes your agreement to attend each scheduled class for its fully allotted time unless you are unavoidably prevented from doing so. Please do not take this class if you have planned a trip or have a personal or work schedule that conflicts with class meeting times.

Any unexcused absences may result in a lowering of your final grade, however, students who miss more than 5 classes during the term without presenting an acceptable excuse will either be droppedfrom class without further notice with a grade of WF (Withdrew Failing), or will automatically receive a final grade of F (Failure). This syllabus constitutes your written notification of this policy as required by the University Catalog.

Students with valid excused absences are responsible for all material covered. If you are absent on the day a quiz or exam is given, it is your responsibility to contact the instructor as soon as possible to present an excuse and schedule a makeup. If you arelate on the day a quiz or exam is given, the instructor may choose not to allow you totake the exam, but will require you to schedule a make-up. Make-up quizzes may bemultiple-choice, essay, short answer, or a combination of these. Exams andassignments not made up or missed due to an unexcused absence will receive a zero.

Please examine the course calendar carefully. The dates of all assignments and exams and the finalexam are clearly indicated. Please do not purchase airline tickets or make other travelplans that conflict with these dates. Please do not ask to take an exam at anothertime due to personal travel plans. Missing an assignment or exam due to personal travel cannotbe considered an excused absence.

GRADING POLICY: If you disagree with any posted grade, you have 48 hours from the time of the grade is posted to dispute it..

This instructor does not accept late, make-up, or extra-credit work.Students must diligently monitor their syllabus and class announcements to ensure on-time submissions of their completed work. In the case of written assignments, “Standard” English—capitalization, spelling, punctuation, grammar, syntax, etc—are expected. You may not use emoticons in your communications. You will lose points on your assignment if you do not use Standard English.

Make-up exams may be multiple-choice, essay, short answer, or a combination of these. However, a student will only be allow one make-up exam, the second missed test will result is a grade of zero. A comprehensive final exam over all course material will be given at the designated final exam time. All exams will be closed-book and conducted in class.

Please note that exam grades are not “scaled,” “curved,” or “weighted,” however, final grades may be lowered for unexcused absences (see Attendance Policy).

Grading is based on a total-points system.At the end of the semester, the student’s grade will be determined by dividing the total points possible into the total points earned.90-100% = A; 80=89% = B; 70-79% = C; 60-69% = D; 0-59% = F

The following tentative assignments will be completed.

No. / Assignment / Points
1 / Group Presentation / 75 points
4 / Examinations (50 points each) / 200 points
1 / Final Examination / 100 points
375 points total

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:Students caught cheating or plagiarizing will receive a “0” for that particular assignment or exam. Additionally the student will be reported to the Dean of Students, who may impose further penalty. According to the UNT catalog, the term “cheating” includes, but is not limited to:

  1. Use of any unauthorized assistance in taking quizzes, tests, or examinations;
  2. Dependence upon the aid or sources beyond those authorized by the instructor in writing papers, preparing reports, solving problems, or carrying out other assignments;
  3. The acquisition, without permission, of tests or other academic material belonging to a facility or staff member of the university;
  4. Dual submission of a paper or project, or resubmission of a paper or project to a different class without express permission for the instructor(s), or
  5. Any other act designed to give a student an unfair advantage.

The term “plagiarism” includes, but is not limited to:

  1. The knowing or negligent use by paraphrase of direct quotation of the published or unpublished work of another person without full and clear acknowledgment; and
  2. The knowing or negligent unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person or agency engaged in the selling of term papers or other academic materials.

ACCEPTABLE STUDENT BEHAVIOR:Student behavior that interferes with an instructor’s ability to conduct a class or other students’ opportunity to learn is unacceptable and disruptive and will not be tolerated in an instructional forum at UNT. Students engaging in unacceptable behavior will be directed to leave the classroom and the instructor may refer the student to the Dean of Students to consider whether the student’s conduct violated the Code of Student Conduct. The university expectations for student conduct apply to all instructional forums, including university and electronic classroom, labs, discussion groups, field trips, etc. The Cod of Student Conduct can be found at

DISABILITY ACCOMMODATION: The University of North Texas makes reasonable academic accommodation for students with disabilities. Students seeking accommodation must first register with the Office of Disability Accommodation (ODA) to verify their eligibility. If a disability is verified, the ODA will provide you with an accommodation letter to be delivered to faculty to begin a private discussion regarding your specific needs in a course. You may request accommodations at any time, however, ODA notices of accommodation should be provided as early as possible in the semester to avoid any delay in implementation. Note that students must obtain a new letter of accommodation for every semester and must meet with each faculty member prior to implementation in each class. Students are strongly encouraged to deliver letters of accommodation during faculty office hours or by appointment. Faculty members have the authority to ask students to discuss such letters during their designated office hours to protect the privacy of the student. For additional information see the Office of Disability Accommodation website at You may also contact them by phone at940.565.4323.

MATERIAL OF AN OFFENSIVE AND/OR SEXUALLY EXPLICIT NATURE: A portionof this course involves viewing and discussing television programs containing sexuallyexplicit scenes, themes, and language that some people may find to be offensive. If youfeel that viewing or discussing this material will conflict with your personal ethics, pleasediscuss the matter with me early in the course.

ACCESS TO TELEVISION PROGRAMS: During the semester, you will read or hearabout many different television programs of the past. We will watch many short excerptsin class, but time limitations prohibit us from watching entire episodes of particularprograms. Chances are good that you have had the opportunity to see many of theshows discussed on nostalgia channels such as Nick At Nite; however, I encourage youto take time to explore the many hours of television programming that are available forscreening in the Chilton Hall Media Library. Television programs available in the ChiltonLibrary are indexed in the main library computer catalog. To see a complete listing ofthe shows held, you should doa subject search for “television programs” then look for the itemslisted as “Video Recordings.” Some Chilton recordings may be checked out and themedia library has facilities for viewing on site. Chilton also has a substantial library of oldradio programs. Please note that use of the Chilton library is not a requirement for thecourse, and that all screenings needed to prepare for the quizzes and exam will beshown in class.

ACCESS TO INFORMATION (EAGLE CONNECT) AND COMMUNICATION IN CASE OF CANCELLED CLASSES: Your access point for business and academic services at UNT occurs within the my.unt.edu site ( All official communication from the university will be delivered to your Eagle Connect account. For more information, please visit the website— connect.unt.edu.

In the event that UNT is forced to close unexpectedly due to weather conditions, a flu outbreak, or other emergency situations, notification will be given through media reports, on the university web site, and through the Eagle Alert program. In the event that course-specific information needs to be disseminated, the instructor will contact you using your UNT e-mail address. All UNT students have been assigned an e-mail address ending in @my.unt.edu or @unt.edu. It is important that you monitor this e-mail address for important class-related messages or ensure that e-mail to that address is automatically forwarded to an account you do monitor.

RETANTION OF STUDENT RECORDS:Student records pertaining to this course are maintained in a secure location by the instructor of record. All records such as exams, answer sheets (with keys), and written papers submitted during the duration of the course are kept for at least one calendar year after course completion. You have a right to view your individual record, however, information about your records will not be divulged to other individuals without the proper written consent. You are encouraged to review the Public Information Policy and F.E.R.P. A. (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) laws and the university’s policy in accordance with those mandates at the following link: html.

STUDENT EVALUATION TEACHING (SETE):Student feedback is important and an essential part of participation of this course. The Student Evaluation of Teaching (SETE) is a requirement for all organized classes at UNT. This short survey will be made available at the end of the semester to provide you with an opportunity to evaluate how this course is taught.

Course Calendar

NOTE: This course calendar is a tentative schedule of topics to be covered during the semester. All

topics, assignments and dates, including quiz dates, are subject to change as conditions dictate. All

changes will be announced in class. Additional short readings can be found on Blackboard. These are not includedon this calendar, but will be covered on tests. S&K = Sterling & Kittross, Stay Tuned, 3rd edition.

Date / Topic / Readings
(Wk 1)
8/29 / Course Introduction
8/31 / Television Prehistory & 1945-1952 / S&K Ch 4 (Sec 4.1.2, 4.1.3, 4.1.4), S&K Ch 5 (Sec 5.1.4, 5.1.5, 5.8.1, 5.8.2,
5.8.3); Ch 6 (Sec 6.2.3, 6.8.1, 8.2) &K Ch 7
(Wk 2)
9/5 / No Class—Labor Day
9/7 / Television Prehistory & 1945-1952 / S&K Ch 4 (Sec 4.1.2, 4.1.3, 4.1.4), S&K Ch 5 (Sec 5.1.4, 5.1.5, 5.8.1, 5.8.2,
5.8.3); Ch 6 (Sec 6.2.3, 6.8.1, 8.2) S&K Ch 7;
(Wk 3)
9/12 / (1945-1952)
Assign Groups / S&K Ch 7;
9/14 / (1945-1952)
Group Meeting / S&K Ch 7;
(Wk 4)
9/19 / Exam 1 (to 1952)—50 points
9/21 / (1952-1960) / S&K Ch 8
(Wk 5)
9/26 / Group Presentation and Discussion (75 points)
(1952-1960) / S&K Ch 8
9/28 / (1952-1960) / S&K Ch 8
(Wk6)
10/3 / Group Presentation and Discussion (75 points
(1952-1960) / S&K Ch 8
10/5 / (1952-1960) / S&K Ch 8
(Wk 7)
10/10 / (1961-1976)
10/12 / Exam 2 (1952-1960)—50 points / S&K Ch 9
(Wk 8)
10/17 / (1961-1976) / S&K Ch 9
10/19 / (1961-1976) / S&K Ch 9
(Wk 9)
10/24 / Group Presentation and Discussion (75 points)
(1961-1976) / S&K Ch 9
10/26 / (1961-1976) / S&K Ch 9
(Wk 10)
10/31 / (1961-1976) / S&K Ch 9
11/2 / Exam 3 (1961-1976)—50 points
(Wk 11)
11/7 / (1977-1988) / S&K Ch 10
11/9 / Group Presentation and Discussion (75 points)
(1977-1988) / S&K Ch 10
(Wk 12)
11/14 / (1977-1988) / S&K Ch 10
11/16 / (1977-1988) / S&K Ch 10
(Wk13)
11/21 / Group Presentation and Discussion (75 points)
(1988-) / S&K Ch 11
11/23 / (1988-) / S&K Ch 11
(Wk 14)
11/28 / Exam 4 (1977-TBA)—50 points
11/30 / (1988-)
(Wk 15)
12/5 / Group Presentation and Discussion (75 points)
(1988-) / S&K Ch 12
12/7 / (1988-) / S&K Ch 12
12/12 / Final Exam (all course material)—100 points (10:30-12:20)