MC432 Half Unit
Brands and Identities
This information is for the 2025/26 session.
Course Convenor
Prof Lee Edwards
Cesar Jimenez Martinez
Availability
This course is available on the MSc in Media and Communications, MSc in Media and Communications (Research), MSc in Politics and Communication and MSc in Strategic Communications and Society. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process.
How to apply: Priority will normally be given to students enrolled on Media and Communications degree programmes; however, course specific availability is indicated via the 'Availability' section of each individual course guide webpage. The number of students that can be accommodated is limited. If a course is oversubscribed, places will be allocated at the Department's discretion. Students are advised to have an alternative course in mind in case they are unable to secure their first-choice course selection.
A list of all taught master's courses in this Department are listed on the Department's Course Selection and Videos webpage.
Students who have this course listed as compulsory are guaranteed a place and no written statement is required.
For all other students, places on these controlled access courses will be allocated via a random ballot process with priority given to students with the course listed on their programme regulations, followed by other Department of Media and Communications students, then students from elsewhere in the School. By submitting an application, students are confirming that they meet any pre-requisites specified. Providing an additional written statement will not aid a student's chances of being accepted onto a course that does not require a written statement.
Deadline for application: Students required to take this compulsory course will be automatically enrolled on LSE for You.
For queries contact: Contact Media.MSc@lse.ac.uk with queries.
Please do not email the teacher with personal expressions of interest as these are not required and do not influence who is offered a place.
This course is 'controlled access', meaning that there is a limit to the number of students who can be accepted. If the course is oversubscribed, offers will be made via a random ballot process, with priority given to students with the course listed on their Programme Regulations. Whilst we do our best to accommodate all requests, we cannot guarantee you a place on this course.
Requisites
Additional requisites:
There are no pre-requisites for this course. Students should apply via LSE for You without submitting a statement.
Please do not email the teacher with personal expressions of interest as these are not required and do not influence who is offered a place.
Course content
Brands are everywhere, from products and services to countries, influencers and social movements. Yet such ubiquity means that brands are often taken for granted, as a natural element of everyday lives. This course aims to critically unpack the significance of brands in society by looking at the relationship between brands and personal and collective identities. The course, led by an academic with a decade of experience in journalism and strategic communications, examines these discussions from a theoretical and a practical reflective approach. The lectures will look at discussions about the significance of brands in society, the professional models employed in the practice of branding and strategic communications, and how brands invite or impose different types of identities through practices such as self-branding or nation branding. Discussions will also look at how people engage with or resist brands. The lectures will be complemented with guest talks from industry practitioners working in various forms of branding and strategic communications. Students will be expected to critically engage with ideas from both theory and practice in the seminars, developing reflexivity and analytical skills.
Teaching
10 hours of seminars and 10 hours of lectures in the Winter Term.
This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Winter Term.
Formative assessment
Students will be expected to produce 1 presentation in the term of teaching.
Indicative reading
Indicative reading
- Aaker, D. (2010) Building Strong Brands. London: Simon & Schuster.
- Aronczyk, M. (2013) Branding the Nation: The Global Business of National Identity. New York: Oxford University Press.
- Arvidsson, A. (2006) Brands: Meaning and Value in Media Culture. London: Routledge.
- Banet-Weiser, S. (2012) Authentic TM: The Politics of Ambivalence in a Brand Culture. New York: New York University Press.
- Davis, A. (2013) Promotional Cultures: The Rise and Spread of Advertising, Public Relations, Marketing and Branding, Cambridge: Polity Press.
- Hardy, J. (2022) Branded Content: The Fateful Merging of Media and Marketing. London: Routledge.
- Hund., E. (2023) The influencer industry: the quest for authenticity on social media. NJ, Princeton University Press
- Keller, K (2012) Strategic Brand Management: a European perspective. Harlow: Pearson.
- Klein, N. (2010) No Logo -10th Anniversary Edition. London: Fourth Estate.
- Kornberger, M. (2009) Brand Society. Cambridge: CUP.
- Lekakis, E. (2022) Consumer Activism: Promotional Culture and Resistance. London: Sage.
- Moor, L (2007). The Rise of Brands. Oxford: Berg.
- Powell, H. 2013. Promotional culture and convergence: Markets, methods, media. London: Routledge.
- Sevin, E. Jiménez-Martínez, C., Miño, P. (2025). Nation Branding in the Americas: Contested Politics and Identities. London: Routledge.
- Sobande, F. (2024) Big Brands Are Watching You: Marketing Social Justice and Digital Culture. Oakland: University of California Press.
- Wernick, A. (1991) Promotional Culture: Advertising, Ideology and Symbolic Expression. London: Sage.
Assessment
Project (100%, 5000 words)
Project (100%, 5000 words) in the ST.
The summative assessment is a group rebranding plan and a critical essay, delivered by students working in pairs.
Key facts
Department: Media and Communications
Course Study Period: Winter Term
Unit value: Half unit
FHEQ Level: Level 7
CEFR Level: Null
Total students 2024/25: 72
Average class size 2024/25: 14
Controlled access 2024/25: YesCourse selection videos
Some departments have produced short videos to introduce their courses. Please refer to the course selection videos index page for further information.
Personal development skills
- Leadership
- Self-management
- Team working
- Problem solving
- Application of information skills
- Communication
- Commercial awareness
- Specialist skills