Class Communication Theories

Communication, as well as the historical and technical conditions that make it possible, is a fundamental process in the constitution of human existence. This central role of communicative processes became especially pronounced as technical means of communication developed and multiplied from the nineteenth century to the present day. The modern idea of communication emerges within this socio-technical context, marked by the proliferation and transformation of technical means of storage, transmission and processing. Against this background, the course aims to introduce the main theoretical approaches to communication, establishing critical connections with related concepts such as technics, information, media, relation, culture, the public sphere and agency.

Not applicable

1. Communication as a Theoretical Problem   1.1. The historical development of the idea of communication 1.2. The onto-epistemological status of communication 1.3. Communication: dialogue or dissemination?   2. Information, systems and interaction   2.1. Communication and information: from linear transmission to the feedback loop 2.2. The Palo Alto School: the axioms of communication 2.3. Communication and incommunication: the improbability of communication   3. Communication, culture and the public sphere   3.1. The Frankfurt School: the critique of the culture industries 3.2. Communicative action, the public sphere and affective publics 3.3. British Cultural Studies: encoding, decoding and reception   4. Communication, technics and media   4.1. The Canadian School: the centrality of media 4.2. Media Archaeology: temporality and obsolescence 4.3. Actor-Network Theory and the case of algorithmic agency 4.4. The question of human-machine communication

This course unit incorporates a mentoring programme of four two-hour sessions held over the course of the semester. These sessions provide pedagogical support for the lectures and support the critical analysis of texts carried out collaboratively with students. Complementing the weekly classes, the mentoring sessions incorporate two distinct methodological approaches. On the one hand, students will be encouraged to apply the concepts introduced in class to the analysis of a range of case studies. This will enable them not only to deepen their understanding but also to develop their ability to construct and publicly defend arguments concerning the impact of communication processes on society. On the other hand, the mentoring sessions will serve as a space for supporting and developing students writing and research skills through practical exercises related to the course syllabus.

Guzman, A. L., McEwen, R., & Jones, S. (Eds.). (2023). The SAGE handbook of human-machine communication. SAGE Publications.    Habermas, J. (2012). A transformação estrutural da esfera pública. Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian.   Hartley, J. (2004). Comunicação, Estudos Culturais e Media: Conceitos-chave. Lisboa: Quimera.   Latour, B. (2013). An inquiry into modes of existence: An anthropology of the moderns. Harvard University Press.    McLuhan, M. (2008). Compreender os Meios de Comunicação: Extensões do Homem. Relógio d'Água.    Papacharissi, Z. (2014). Affective publics: Sentiment, technology, and politics. Oxford University Press.    Parikka, J. (2011). What is media archaeology? Polity Press.    Peters, J. D. (1999). Speaking into the air: A history of the idea of communication. University of Chicago Press.    Watzlawick, P., Beavin, J. H., & Jackson, D. D. (1998). Pragmática da comunicação humana: Um estudo dos padrões, patologias e paradoxos da interação. Cultrix.