Mass Media and Minorities
Examines representations of minority groups in U.S. news and entertainment mass media, including historical, social, political, and economic factors influencing these depictions.
Summary
Past student reviews · Hemant Shah
Students noted that while the class was not difficult, you had to put time into the work to achieve your desired grade.
What you’ll be able to do
Articulate how the past has affected present day circumstances regarding race and racial inequalities in the U.S.
Recognize and question cultural assumptions and knowledge claims as they relate to race and ethnicity.
Demonstrate self-awareness and empathy toward the cultural perspectives and worldviews of others.
Apply course concepts to their lives outside the classroom understand the central roles and functions of mass media in multicultural societies.
Critically read mass media to detect patterns in the representation of people, culture, and ideas.
Synthesize prior academic research on race and media and identify its strengths and weaknesses.
Source: UW Guide 1· UW Guide 2
Grade history
↗All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors
Prerequisites
Course mapJunior standing
- Junior standing
This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.
Prerequisite text tree
- Junior standing
Professors
Spring 2027No instructors recorded for this selection.
Historical instructors & teaching patterns
HEMANT SHAH is recorded teaching in Fall 2006, Spring 2007, Fall 2007, Spring 2008, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2022. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Calendar & sections
Spring 2027Schedule loads here as you scroll.
| Section | Mode | Enrolled / capacity | Waitlist |
|---|
Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections.
Meeting source records
No records available.
Student experience
the class
Past student reviews · Hemant Shah
Professor Shah was a fun lecturer who used interesting clips and videos to encourage discussion, helping students understand media portrayals of minorities.
Recent recorded grades — Spring 2013: 3.19 GPA, 66.7% A/AB (n=21 letter grades); Spring 2014: 3.33 GPA, 83.3% A/AB (n=18 letter grades); Spring 2022: 3.46 GPA, 79.2% A/AB (n=24 letter grades).
difficulty & workload
Past student reviews · Hemant Shah
Students noted that while the class was not difficult, you had to put time into the work to achieve your desired grade.
Past student reviews · Hemant Shah
One student found the professor transparent about expectations and remained engaged even during late-day sessions, calling it one of their favorite courses.
Topics
- Representations of minority groups in U.S. news and entertainment mass media.
- Factors influencing mass-mediated depictions of minorities.
- Race and racial inequalities in the U.S.
Skills
- Articulate how the past affects present-day race and racial inequalities.
- Recognize and question cultural assumptions related to race and ethnicity.
- Apply concepts to understand mass media roles in multicultural societies.
- Critically read mass media to detect representation patterns.
- Synthesize academic research on race and media.
Grades
Latest available · Spring 2022— not enough history to project Spring 2027.
Grade distribution · % of letter grades
Grades over time
Through Spring 2022
More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data
Not enough comparable courses for Spring 2027 in UW–Madison.
Sources & history
Catalog & offerings
Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.
Catalog observation history
Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.
Selected offering source records
No offering records for the selected term.
Raw records
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Student reviews
Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.
Read original reviews
Grade history
Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.
Explore recorded gradesRecorded 2026-10-14
Model outputs & technical records
LLM outputs across runs
Full model traces
Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.
Model & dataset provenance
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"requirements_status": "valid",
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"observed_at": "2026-10-14 17:50:09.728220+00:00"
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