Courses

This 3 credit embedded course takes students to Ireland for 8 days to study the role of Irish (Gaelic) journalism and media in historic and current struggles for political autonomy and cultural identity. There are six 3-hour class meetings before we travel. In the heart of Galway’s Irish-Gaelic speaking region, students will spend a few days in the lovely rural village of Carraroe, where Gaelic is the main language spoken (although everyone is bilingual in English). They will also spend two days in the cultural hub of historic Galway City, and two days in the county’s bustling capital, Dublin. Through readings, films, lectures and site visits, students will learn the history of British colonialism in Ireland and the role of Irish-Gaelic journalism in the country’s struggles for political independence from England. They will meet Irish civil rights activists who fought in the 1960s and 70s for the right to have Irish/Gaelic radio and TV stations in Ireland, and will visit Gaelic radio, TV, print and online news outlets to speak with journalists and other media makers. Focused on the political and cultural importance of native language media for minoritized and formerly colonized populations, students will see examples of Irish language journalism and cultural programming such as documentaries, websites, children’s cartoons, sports, music videos and soap operas (subtitled in English), and gain familiarity with contemporary debates about whether the Irish government should continue funding Irish language media. Connections will be emphasized between struggles for Gaelic media in Ireland and struggles by minoritized and indigenous populations in other parts of the world for the right to have media in their native languages

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

• Enhance students’ journalism and media skills (interviewing, photographing, recording and writing)
• Understand the historic importance of journalism in Ireland’s fight for Independence from England
• Learn about the history of British colonialism in Ireland (economic, political, social and linguistic effects); the role of Irish language newspapers in Ireland’s early 20th century struggle for Independence; and Civil Rights struggles in the 1960s and 1970s for the right to have Irish language radio and TV in Ireland. •
• Students learn about and see examples of Irish-language journalism and cultural programming with a focus on the political and cultural importance of native language media for minoritized and formerly colonized populations, s (i.e. documentaries, websites, children’s cartoons, music videos and soap operas, subtitled in English), and gain familiarity with contemporary debates about whether the Irish government should continue public funding for such programming. • Understand connections between struggles for Irish language media in Ireland and similar struggles for linguistic rights and native language media by minoritized and indigenous populations in other parts of the world. •
• Increase tolerance for ambiguity (dealing with the unexpected) and difference.