Overview
Public Relations and journalism are inextricably linked. An understanding of the complexities of the modern digital media environment is critical because it shapes the work a public relations practitioner performs and the manner in which it is undertaken. This unit provides you with a range of contemporary perspectives on Australian and international media industries. It analyses political and social contexts, important issues such as media ownership, diversity and independence, as well as identifying professional and technological changes in media practices and organisations. The unit encourages an understanding of the institutions and industries in which media practitioners work and demonstrates how public relations practitioners can work outside established news organisations through social journalism. As an important part of public relations practice, the unit also promotes research, verification and writing skills (both in an online and offline context) in order to further your training and awareness.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Minimum of 36 credit points
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2025
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student Evaluation Survey
Students would appreciate more opportunities to engage with other learners in the unit
Encourage greater student participation in synchronous learning opportunities.
Feedback from Teaching Staff Evaluation
Learning materials should be adapted and updated to meet the needs of a diverse learner cohort
Continue to adapt and update unit learning materials to meet the needs of a diverse learner cohort
- Analyse examples of contemporary journalistic practice in Australian and international contexts
- Review coverage of controversial current affairs in the mediasphere
- Critically evaluate the effect of social media and technological development on media industry practices and ethics, with a social journalism focus.
n/a
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Group Discussion - 20% | |||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 35% | |||
| 3 - Portfolio - 45% | |||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||
| 5 - Team Work | |||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Group Discussion - 20% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 35% | ||||||||||
| 3 - Portfolio - 45% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Microsoft Teams
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
f.heaselgrave@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Making sense of media
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
What makes the news?
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Framing the news
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Decoding the news
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Social media and news production
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Assessment 1 deadline - 15 August
News media analysis Due: Week 5 Friday (15 Aug 2025) 10:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Monitoring news outputs and impact
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Social media and engaged journalism
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Community building: From mass to niche audiences
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Media ethics in the digital age
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
(Social) media regulation and law
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
The future of news: AI & automation
Chapter
See e-reading list on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Review and assessment help
Chapter
No new content.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Group Discussion
Assessment 1: News Media Analysis Forum Discussion (20% of total unit grade)
Due: 15 August 2025 (Week 5)
Word count: 800 words
In this assessment, you will analyse how the news is reported to shape the way audiences receive, believe, and act in response to a story. This is a collaborative assessment that requires you to participate in and comment on the creative and analytical insights of other students through online engagement in discussion forum posts.
Task instructions
There are two assessable components to this assessment
Part ONE (10% of the total grade for this assessment). You will locate a media story that has been recently (last 4 weeks) covered by traditional mass media, for example, from broadcast news (TV or radio), a print newspaper or an online news site and post a link/media upload to the Assessment 1 Discussion forum on the Moodle site. Your post should include a 400-word analysis of the following news elements:
- The news values evident in the story
- The audience being targeted through that platform
- The key messages being communicated through the story
- The framing techniques used by journalists or editors - think also about whether any important information has been excluded and how journalists perceive their role.
Part TWO (10% of the total grade for this assessment = 5% for each response) - Once you have posted your analysis, you will be able to see the posts of other students (after the 30-minute editing time has lapsed). You will need to reply to the posts of TWO other students (200 words each = 400 words in total), providing feedback and suggestions for deepening understanding of the 4 elements outlined above. This peer review exercise must be conducted professionally, with respect, and identify constructive feedback for improvement as well as observations of any analytical strength. This component provides students an opportunity to learn from one another, to share valuable insights and resources related to unit content and to ignite discussion among peers.
Referencing and Format
In explaining and analysing your media piece for Part one, you will need to use at least three (3) academic sources, referenced at the bottom of the post in the APA 7 format. The Discussion Post should be presented with the use of headings and formatting (see Assessment explainer video on Moodle) to enhance clarity and meaning. Also pay attention to spelling and grammar.
Response posts for Part two should be similarly formatted, using headings or other signposts to respond clearly to the points made by the poster. At least one (1) reference should be recommended in your response to help build your peers' reference list.
Use of GenAI tools in this assessment
AI Assessment scale tool: Level 2 - You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas. Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.
Week 5 Friday (15 Aug 2025) 10:00 pm AEST
Submit via Assessment 1 Discussion Forum
Week 6 Friday (29 Aug 2025)
Assignments will be returned within two weeks of on-time submission.
Student work will be assessed using the following marking criteria:
- Analysis and application: Identification and discussion of each news element, including application of relevant theories and concepts to the media story (30%)
- Quality of peer feedback: The constructiveness and comprehensiveness of feedback provided to two student responses on the Discussion Forum, including suggestions for improvements and additional reading/research (20% for each post - 40% total available)
- Presentation and formatting: Appropriate use of headings and formatting tools to convey ideas; inclusion of link/media upload to the media story (10%)
- Research and referencing: Demonstrated research through use of relevant references within the post (minimum of 3); inclusion of full reference list, using the APA 7 style (10%)
- Written expression: Clarity of writing and attention to grammatical and spelling conventions (10%)
- Analyse examples of contemporary journalistic practice in Australian and international contexts
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Team Work
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
2 Written Assessment
In this assessment, you will monitor the news reporting of controversial issues through traditional and social media platforms. The task will help you to scrutinise the content and claims of online news sources, and to assess the professional values, principles and approaches to contemporary journalism.
Your Task
You will be provided a media monitoring template to record the way a single issue is reported on by different media outlets and across different platforms. You will use your findings to discuss how online and social media have changed journalism practice.
Step 1: Choose a controversial issue or event to monitor. You can choose from the list below or select a topic of your own choosing in consultation with the Unit Coordinator:
- Housing affordability crisis and government policy response
- Nuclear energy debate
- Social media age restrictions for children
- State or Federal election
- Cybersecurity incident
- Natural disaster
- Immigration policy changes
- Royal Commission inquiries
- Indigenous land rights disputes
Step 2: Do a quick sweep of media coverage. Do a Google search to ensure the issue is covered across multiple platforms i.e. online newspapers and social media networks.
Step 3. Set up your monitoring procedure
For mass media:
- Subscribe to 3 different news media outlets (e.g. The Guardian, The Conversation, Sydney Morning Herald, ABC, SBS etc).
- Set up Google Alerts so that you can track new stories that are published about your topic/issue. These alerts are sent to your email account (for information is provided on the Moodle Unit site)
For socials:
- Follow or like the social media accounts of 2 news media outlets (e.g. @TheGuardian on Twitter/X, Facebook or Instagram)
- For Twitter/X, identify relevant hashtags to follow related to the topic/issue you are focusing on
- For Facebook, set up notifications to alert you to stories about your chosen topic/issue
- For Instagram, set up hashtag following for key terms
Step 4. Monitor and record news coverage. You should collect 10 articles/posts (5 from online news and 5 from social platforms) about your topic/issue on two different days over a 5-day interval and you will need to provide evidence in the form of screenshots and a media monitor log to show what data you collected.
Step 5. Write up of findings (1200 words). The report is the main part of the assessment and enables you to review your data and reflect on the differences in news reporting between online and social media sites. You are free to format your report in any way that suits your findings, but you should ensure your discussion includes the following elements:
- Introduction and overview of the topic/issue being analysed and brief justification for why you selected this option
- Explanation of the media monitoring process - how you collected the data, which news site and social media platform did you focus on and why
- Consideration of the credibility and accuracy of news reporting across the two platforms and whether one platform is more authentic than the other
- Reflection on any differences in framing, tone or approach taken by different journalists who may be reporting the same issue for the same media organisation but on a different platform (comparing online content to social media coverage)
- Consideration of whether, and how, the different forms of media (online vs social media) provide opportunities for community building and engaged journalism, drawing on examples from your media monitoring data to illustrate your point
- Conclusion summarising if and how social media has changed journalistic content or practice
- Appendix with your media monitoring log and other evidence of data collection
Additional information and support
When you monitor the news is up to you but the sources you collect must be current and from within the one-week window of monitoring (i.e. do not use old or previously published stories/posts, they should have been released on the day of or prior to your monitoring of it).
More guidance on this assessment will be provided during the weekly online class and on the Moodle site.
You can use headings in this report.
Use of GenAI tools in this assessment
AI Assessment scale tool: Level 2 - You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas. Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.
Week 8 Friday (12 Sept 2025) 10:00 pm AEST
Submit via Moodle
Week 10 Friday (26 Sept 2025)
Assignments will be returned within two weeks of on-time submission.
A detailed assessment criteria is available on Moodle.
You will be assessed as per the criteria, which covers:
Content: Quality of the explanation and rationale; appropriateness of the methods used to conduct and to report media monitoring findings (20%)
Analysis: Quality of reflection and analysis regarding the authenticity and differences between online and social media platforms in relation to core concepts (20%)
Application: Demonstrative examples of the ways online and social media enable journalists to engage audiences; clear and logical conclusions stated (20%)
Presentation: Completion and inclusion of media monitoring log and other evidence in the appendix; logical structure and layout of ideas, using appropriate formatting (15%)
Research and referencing: Analysis is supported by academic research and references are used in-text and in the reference list to support claims, adhering to APA 7 conventions (15%)
Written expression: Clarity of writing and attention to grammatical and spelling conventions (10%)
- Review coverage of controversial current affairs in the mediasphere
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
- Social Innovation
3 Portfolio
On further investigation, it was found the content wasn't properly labeled as AI-generated, and the usual human editorial oversight did not occur due to after-hours publishing protocols.
The ethical dilemma: Should the ABC continue to use AI to auto-generate content for weather reports?
- journalists
- the journalism professional
- the editorial process
- key audiences
- the institution's reputation.
This assessment uses the AI Assessment scale tool Level 2:
You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas. Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.
Week 12 Friday (10 Oct 2025) 10:00 pm AEST
Submit via Moodle
Exam Week Friday (24 Oct 2025)
Assignments will be returned within two weeks of on-time submission.
You will be assessed as per the criteria, which includes:
- Ethical Framework Analysis and Application (30%) - Identifies and applies two ethical frameworks to the ABC scenario, demonstrating understanding of how each framework addresses the AI weather reporting dilemma
- Stakeholder Impact Analysis (25%) - Analyses impacts on key stakeholders (journalists, journalism profession, editorial processes, audiences, ABC's reputation) with consideration of consequences to those stakeholders
- Ethical Guidelines (20%) - Provides guidelines in table format that address identified ethical issues and provides rationale linking to ABC's code of ethics
- Professional Presentation (5%) - Guidelines are labelled correctly and presented professionally, in an accessible format for quick reference
- Written expression (10%) - Writes concisely, using paragraph breaks and sentence spacing to punctuate ideas, adequate use of grammar and spelling
- Research (10%) - Conducts adequate research from credible academic and industry sources, uses APA 7 referencing conventions accurately and consistently.
- Critically evaluate the effect of social media and technological development on media industry practices and ethics, with a social journalism focus.
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
- Social Innovation
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
