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2025/2026  KAN-CKOMO2304U  Communicative Dilemmas and Public Affairs

English Title
Communicative Dilemmas and Public Affairs

Course information

Language English
Course ECTS 15 ECTS
Type Mandatory (also offered as elective)
Level Full Degree Master
Duration One Semester
Start time of the course Spring
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Study board
Study Board for Digitalisation, Technology and Communication
Course coordinator
  • Anders La Cour - Department of Business Humanities and Law (BHL)
  • Niels Åkerstrøm Andersen - Department of Business Humanities and Law (BHL)
Main academic disciplines
  • Communication
Teaching methods
  • Face-to-face teaching
Last updated on 12-02-2025

Relevant links

Learning objectives
  • Identify different streams of communication and understand their autonomy and build in ambiguities and dilemmas
  • Assess the manifold challenges associated with the existence of different forms and media and understand how are these opening up transformative possibilities across societies
  • Analyze technologies as media and how they do more than they promise
Examination
Communicative Dilemmas and Public Affairs:
Exam ECTS 15
Examination form Oral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance, see also the rules about examination forms in the programme regulations.
Individual or group exam Oral group exam based on written group product
Number of people in the group 2-5
Size of written product Max. 5 pages
The exam can be taken individually or in groups of 2-5 students.
Assignment type Synopsis
Release of assignment An assigned subject is released in class
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
20 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Grading scale 7-point grading scale
Examiner(s) Internal examiner and second internal examiner
Exam period Summer
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
Description of the exam procedure

The exam can be taken individually or in groups of 2-5 students. Students who decide to write individually also attend the oral exam individually. 
 

Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

The course builds on new sociological theories to equip students to analyze how societies are increasingly differentiated in different communication streams that have become more and more dependent on each other. Under the conditions of the pandemic, we have experienced major crises and scandals and seen how local and international actors across many sectors (health, economy, politics, education and security) become interdependent and reliant on new technologies and cannot be treated separately.

 

This subject equips students with knowledge needed to understand the many different streams of communication at play and how their interdependencies make demands on organization and management.

 

In the first part of the course, the students will learn to observe and analyze different streams of communication with help of concept like 'form of communication', 'form/media relations' and 'intermediality'. The students will learn new theoretical vocabularies pertaining to the repertoire of form and media of communication, and how they might be producing new possibilities and innovations. The concept provide a nuances language to understand dilemmes and ambuguity in communication. In the second part of the course we look into selected forms such as risk, hybrids, moral and conflicts, and understand their autonomy and build in ambiguities and dilemmas. In the third part of the course we look into selected media such as money, power, affect and law. Again focus wil be on dilemmas and tension. Politics appears here as a question of how to connect and disconnect different forms and media opening up transformative possibilities. In the forth part into new sociological theories concerning technologies af media. We look at technologies such as AI and invesitgated how it function e.g. in law. We look at digital list as media and we ask questions such as 'can algorithms communicate?. The departure is that technologies often do more than they promise.

 

It will al ends up in a discussion about the conditions of public affairs today. How can we conceptualise public affairs if society has no center, if the adress of public affair becomes blurred and open in a polycontextural world with many observers.

Research-based teaching
CBS’ programmes and teaching are research-based. The following types of research-based knowledge and research-like activities are included in this course:
Research-based knowledge
  • Classic and basic theory
  • New theory
  • Teacher’s own research
  • Methodology
Research-like activities
  • Development of research questions
  • Analysis
  • Discussion, critical reflection, modelling
Description of the teaching methods
TBA
Feedback during the teaching period
TBA
Student workload
Lectures and exercises 60 hours
Preparation and exam 352 hours
Total 412 hours
Expected literature

TBA

Last updated on 12-02-2025