Data Science for Communication

1 Course Unit

This course introduces students to the central concepts, methods and applications of data science (including network science) to questions in Communication. We focus on building data literacy, namely, the ability to find, appropriately handle, analyze and communicate insights from a broad spectrum of data. Students will be introduced to some of the key tools used in data science, such as Python, R and SQL. We also examine the practical and ethical challenges of big data, ubiquitous data tracking, and the increasing use of algorithmic decision systems and artificial intelligence. The course will help students: (1) develop skills working with large and complex datasets of relevance to communication behaviors in the digital world, (2) become familiar with basic programming skills for data analysis using the R and Python programming languages, along with other tools used for data and network analysis and visualization, and (3) critically examine the use of data in media and other forms of communication. No prior programming or data analysis experience is required. Mutually Exclusive: COMM 2550 1 Course Unit