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Course Offerings

Course Details

Fall 2009-2010
* JRN 447 (SA)   na, npdf

Politics and the Media - Media and Society : The Obama Presidency

William Hamilton
Jane Mayer

ENROLLMENT BY APPLICATION OR INTERVIEW. DEPARTMENTAL PERMISSION REQUIRED.

This course will examine how Barack Obama established a winning narrative in his campaign and whether he has continued that success. We will compare his first 100 days with similar periods in the presidencies of Franklin Roosevelt, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush. Topics will include: the impact of the Internet, the role of political operatives and of partisans on the Left and Right. Guest speakers will be drawn from the media and political worlds.

Sample reading list:
Barack Obama, Dreams From My Father
Jerome R. Corsi, The Obama Nation
Evan Thomas et al, Election 2004
David Maraniss, First in His Class
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., A Thousand Days
Ben Bradlee, A Good Life: Newspapering and Other Adventures

Reading/Writing assignment:
6-8 hours of preparation a week, consisting of reading and writing. Five short pieces and one longer one.

Requirements/Grading:
Papers - 70%
Precept Participation - 30%

Prerequisites and Restrictions:
Enrollment by application: humanities.princeton.edu..

Other information:
This course will be team-taught by two star journalists: Bill Hamilton, a senior editor at Politico.com (former Assistant Managing Editor of the Washington Post), and Jane Mayer of the New Yorker (previously at the Wall Street Journal), author of [The Dark Side] about the Pentagon's torture policy.

Website:  http://humanities.princeton.edu

Schedule/Classroom assignment:

Class numberSectionTimeDaysRoomEnrollmentStatus
24526 S01 1:30 pm - 4:20 pm M   Henry House 16   Enrolled:15 Limit:17