Saturday Seminars
Twice each year, Park scholars participate in daylong seminars (comprised of discussions and screenings) that explore and debate issues critical to the field of communications.
Past discussions have focused on topics such as:
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visual culture and the representation of trauma;
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disaster capitalism;
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women's rights in Iran;
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structural violence and the inequities of global healthcare;
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children's marketing and the infantilization of consumers; and
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the role of technology in the contemporary formation of organizations and grassroots activism.
(A full list of previous topics and readings may be found here.)
For the 2011 – 2012 academic year, Park scholars focused on gender, specifically how gendered narratives have become central not only to post-9/11 America, but also to the political landscape of the past few years. During the fall semester, they read and discussed Susan Faludi's The Terror Dream: Myth and Misogyny in an Insecure America. This spring, scholars explored the critical significance of gender to presidential elections via Anne Kornblut's Notes from the Cracked Ceiling.
Next year's topic will be announced by the end of April, so check back here for updates!
