This course expands on interpretive skills developed in MHIS-205 by introducing students to key theoretical perspectives that impact media aesthetics and media culture at the levels of production, circulation, and reception. Theoretical perspectives may include formative lineages in media theory (e.g. semiotics and structuralism; political economy and Marxist theory; psychoanalysis; critical theory), key issues in the politics of media representation (e.g. taste cultures; gender studies; critical race theory; postcolonial and transnational studies), as well as more recent and emerging perspectives in contemporary media studies (e.g. affect theory; ecocriticism; indigenous studies). Students will engage with a selection of theoretical texts with the support of comprehensive lectures, required screenings, and active discussion seminars. The course grounds students in a broader critical and cultural awareness of contemporary media culture, as well as prepares students for subsequent more specialized upper-level courses.