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Course Outline

CMN208 Issues in Social Media

Course Coordinator:Sarah Casey (scasey3@usc.edu.au) School:School of Business and Creative Industries

2026Trimester 2

UniSC Sunshine Coast

UniSC Moreton Bay

 Blended learning Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online.

Online

 Online You can do this course without coming onto campus, unless your program has specified a mandatory onsite requirement.

Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.

What is this course about?

Description

This course will provide you with a comprehensive overview of the issues facing organisations, professionals and individual users of social media technologies. Using local and international case studies, you will develop a critical and analytical understanding of the moral, legal and ethical issues arising from contemporary social media use. In addition, you will gain valuable research and analytical skills to develop a critical understanding and articulation of social media issues.

How will this course be delivered?

Activity Hours Beginning Week Frequency
Blended learning
Learning materials – Interactive online learning activities. 1hr Week 1 12 times
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Scheduled face to face workshops. 2hrs Week 1 10 times
Online
Learning materials – Interactive online learning activities. 1hr Week 1 12 times
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Scheduled online workshops (Recorded). 2hrs Week 1 10 times

Course Topics

Power, Control and Regulation

Legal and Ethical Issues

Privacy and Surveillance

Social Media Audiences

Trolling and Extremism

Activism

Memes

Crisis Communication and Social Media

Influencers and Celebrity

Social Media and Creative Entrepreneurship

What level is this course?

200 Level (Developing)

Building on and expanding the scope of introductory knowledge and skills, developing breadth or depth and applying knowledge and skills in a new context. May require pre-requisites where discipline specific introductory knowledge or skills is necessary. Normally, undertaken in the second or third full-time year of an undergraduate programs.

What is the unit value of this course?

12 units

How does this course contribute to my learning?

Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming...
1 Identify and describe contemporary social media issues faced by organisations and individuals. Knowledgeable
2 Analyse and evaluate the ethical and legal implications relating to social media issues. Ethical
3 Apply knowledge of social media concepts to analyse contemporary social media issues and their impact on organisations, social media professionals and individual users. Knowledgeable
Creative and critical thinker
4 Synthesise current research to produce relevant recommendations appropriate to a specific target audience Knowledgeable
Engaged
5 Apply appropriate academic literacies to written and oral communication modes. Empowered

Am I eligible to enrol in this course?

Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.

Pre-requisites

Not applicable

Co-requisites

Not applicable

Anti-requisites

Not applicable

Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)

Not applicable

Microcredential Information

Not applicable

How am I going to be assessed?

Grading Scale

Standard Grading (GRD)

High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL).

Details of early feedback on progress

Drafts of students' Task 1 will be reviewed in-class time in Week 3 and 4 and feedback provided to ensure students’ understanding of course content

Assessment tasks

Delivery mode Task No. Assessment Product Individual or Group Weighting % What is the duration / length? When should I submit? Where should I submit it?
All 1 Written Piece Individual 30% 
1200 words
 Week 6 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All 2 Oral Group 30% 
12 slides in 12 minutes
 Week 9 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check and in class
All 3 Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece Individual 40% 
1500 word equivalent multimedia online guide (content to be negotiated with tutor)
PLUS
1200 word analysis
 Week 12 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All - Assessment Task 1:Literature Review
Goal: 
Through this assessment students will become familiar with and be able to demonstrate developing theoretical knowledge including concepts and approaches to social media.
Product: Written Piece
Authorship Statement:
Format: 
Academic writing. Students will produce a short literature review of 1200 words consisting of 7 sources (5 scholarly and 2
non-scholarly sources) pertaining to a relevant identified topic or issue in social media. The review will demonstrate student's understanding of the text, the main concepts or arguments presented, and the relevance of the text to
the identified topic or issue. The issue must be relevant to topics covered in Weeks 1-5 of course content, and include reference to sources in the reading list.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Selection of appropriate sources and relevance to selected issue
 2 5
2 
Critical understanding of social media issues, theory and approaches
 1
3 
Analysis of ethical and legal aspects of social media issues presented within texts
 1 2
4 
Demonstration of mature academic writing, research, and referencing skills.
 5
Generic Skills: 
Communication, Organisation, Information literacy
All - Assessment Task 2:Case Study
Goal: 
Students will identify and assess problems relating to social media and formulate plausible ways to manage their impact on individual/organisational reputations and the community.
Product: Oral
Authorship Statement:
Format: 
Small group presentation (3-4 people). 

Students will present a comprehensive case study analysis using a relevant news media item, relating to one of the social media issues covered in Weeks 1-8. The case should be a prominent example of the issues, having gained prominence on social media and received
traditional media coverage (television, radio, newspapers), evidenced by adequate research (minimum 6 scholarly sources, 2 media sources). Presentations will be held in workshops for both online and on-campus students.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Critical understanding of social media issues and their impact on individuals, communities, and organisations
 1 3
2 
Analysis and evaluation of ethical and legal issues relating to social media within chosen context
 2
3 
Selection and application of relevant, current scholarship; demonstration of research skills including critical evaluation, analysis, and synthesis of sources.
 3 4
4 
Application of communication skills, including oral presentation skills with consideration of text and audience, and inter-group communication and collaboration
 5
Generic Skills: 
Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy
All - Assessment Task 3:Social Media Usage Guide
Goal: 
Students will develop an awareness of the connection between communication and audience as a key part of the process of designing influential communication artefacts for a specific audience regarding social media issues.
Product: Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece
Authorship Statement:
Format: 
Students will produce an online guide for a specific target audience regarding one of the issues covered in the course content. Students will define their target audience and produce appropriate and relevant online multimedia content to communicate best practice in social media usage for that audience. 

The online guide will include a comprehensive overview of the issue, background analysis, legal and ethical considerations and 5-10 recommendations relating to best practice regarding their chosen issue.

The accompanying analysis will demonstrate students' approach to analysing and evaluating the issue, with an emphasis on scholarly research and evidence used to formulate the recommendations.

This task is being used for measuring assurance of learning towards Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation. The following Program Competency will be assessed: PC 2 - Critical and creative thinkers and practitioners
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Artefact: Application of appropriate communication techniques relevant to topic and selected target audience, including creative and critical components for effective communication.
 4 5
2 
Artefact: Comprehensive overview of the selected issue in online guide, including elements of ethical and legal issues. Practical implications are articulated logically and are relevant and timely.
 1 2 5
3 
Artefact and analysis: Production of relevant, evidence-based recommendations appropriate to issue and target audience. Recommendations are appropriately justified demonstrating strong critical thinking.
 3 4
4 
Application of critical research skills to synthesise scholarly and non-scholarly sources
 4
5 
Individual Communication – evidence of effective skills in academic writing, individual presentation, and individual reflection
 5
Generic Skills: 
Communication, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy

Directed study hours

A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.

What resources do I need to undertake this course?

Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.

Prescribed text(s) or course reader

There are no required/recommended resources for this course.

Specific requirements

Not applicable

How are risks managed in this course?

Health and safety risks for this course have been assessed as low. It is your responsibility to review course material, search online, discuss with lecturers and peers and understand the health and safety risks associated with your specific course of study and to familiarise yourself with the University’s general health and safety principles by reviewing the online induction training for students, and following the instructions of the University staff.

What administrative information is relevant to this course?

Assessment: Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.

Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.

In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.

Assessment: Additional Requirements

Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment

Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:
(a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%; and
(b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale

Assessment: Submission penalties

Late submissions may be penalised up to and including the following maximum percentage of the assessment task’s identified value, with weekdays and weekends included in the calculation of days late:
(a) One day: deduct 5%;
(b) Two days: deduct 10%;
(c) Three days: deduct 20%;
(d) Four days: deduct 40%;
(e) Five days: deduct 60%;
(f) Six days: deduct 80%;
(g) Seven days: A result of zero is awarded for the assessment task.

The following penalties will apply for a late submission for an online examination:
Less than 15 minutes: No penalty
From 15 minutes to 30 minutes: 20% penalty
More than 30 minutes: 100% penalty

Links to relevant University policy and procedures

For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:

  • Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
  • Review of Assessment and Final Grades
  • Supplementary Assessment
  • Central Examinations
  • Deferred Examinations
  • Student Conduct
  • Students with a Disability

For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching

Student Charter

UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.

General Enquiries

For course-specific questions, contact your teaching staff or Course Coordinator.  

For other enquiries or to access support, please contact Student Central: 

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