This is a 60-credit research master's degree programme. It can be completed in one or two years.

Students must complete a total of 32.5 compulsory credits and 27.5 optional credits, 10 of which must be for subjects on methodologies and 27.5 for specialized subjects in the field of communication related to vulnerable groups, i.e. groups considered vulnerable due to a difference in culture, social class, gender, species or age.

COMPULSORY COURSES

The Ethics of Mediation: Difference and Power - 31978 (7.5 ECTS credits)
This introductory subject focuses on the core concepts and approaches underpinning the master’s programme and provides practical perspectives on applying the ethics of mediation to the fields of journalism, film and audiovisual studies, and advertising and public relations.

Research Methods - 32296 (10 ECTS credits)
The main goal of this course is for students to familiarize with and train the primary methods and techniques of qualitative and quantitative research applied to the study of communication; and to learn to design a research project using those techniques, according to the conventions and usages of the international scholarly community.

Master's degree final project - 31977 (15 ECTS credits)
This includes the implementation by the student of a project in which he/she applies, integrates and develops the knowledge, competencies and skills acquired in the Master. The project must constitute a novel contribution to the development of the theory and/or practice of communication on diversity and difference. In the event that this contribution is based on the practice of the profession, it will require empirical research. Students must choose as object of study one of the vulnerable groups (or an intersection of) included in the master program.

ELIGIBLE COURSES

Students must choose three:

Global Justice, War and Poverty in the Media - 31973 (7.5 ECTS credits)
This subject introduces students to the issues of human rights, morality, distributive justice and individual duties; examines the role of the media in global justice, and addresses the main developments within the field of global media studies which affect the portrayal of justice, war and poverty in journalism.

Power and Gender Diversity in the Media - 31972 (7.5 ECTS credits)

What is gender and how is gender constructed? Undoubtedly, gender definition is –and has historically been- a site of power. But who is defining it and how? 

Media are playing a key role in shaping this category and even if media tend to globalize representations and debates around gender, the notion is far from having a global meaning. In this course we shall discuss the different proposals that public service television channels worldwide are offering to their viewers and connect them with contemporary critical debates around the concept.

Critical Animal and Media Studies - 31974 (7.5 ECTS credits)
This subject aims to identify the main ethical issues involved in media and communication regarding human exploitation of other animals and nature. The course stresses the intersectionality amongst oppressed humans and nonhumans to reflect on the urgency of fighting speciesism. Students concerned for gender, environment and race studies are invited to discover the interspecies ethics involved in the pursuit of egalitarianism and social justice.

Children, Youth and the Media - 32200 (7.5 ECTS credits)
The course aims to generate a space for reflection on the socializing role of media and new technologies in childhood and youth. On the other hand, we will analyze the media representation of childhood and youth linked to the construction of collective imaginaries and the role of children and young people as “prosumers”. Finally, and in a more practical approach, it will reflect on the use of the media as an educational and social intervention tool.

Environmental Justice and Communication - 32427 (7.5 ECTS credits)
This course addresses issues of global environmental injustice and human rights violations, with a stress on climate change impacts on the most vulnerable communities. It focuses on the current and potential roles of communication –including traditional and social media and strategic communication– in both perpetuating environmental injustice and building climate justice in the global South.

Students must choose one:

Intercultural Communication - 31971 (5 ECTS credits)
This subject revolves around the study of concepts of great significance where research on interculturalism is concerned, such as individualism, ethnocentrism, acculturation, changes in family values, comparisons between ethnic groups, and gender differences and differences in personality stemming from cultural reference points.

Cultural studies and popular culture - 32426 (5 ECTS credits)
Introduction to popular culture from the perspective of cultural studies. The subject examines several examples of popular culture (television series, pop music, celebrities, reality shows, fashion, etc.) with the aim of reaching a better understanding of the role they have in the maintenance, or challenge, that they pose for the inequality.