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Articles 1 - 13 of 13
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The Joker Controversy: An Origin Story, Brandon Bosch, Lisa Kort-Butler
The Joker Controversy: An Origin Story, Brandon Bosch, Lisa Kort-Butler
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
The Joker has been in the Batman comics for over 80 years and appeared on small and large screen as Batman’s violent arch-nemesis. In the month prior to its theatrical release, commentary about the 2019 film Joker spurred a viral media reaction with concerns about the film inciting violence. To understand this phenomenon, we used Google Trends to trace a timeline of online media reactions mapped to events. Then, we analyzed over 200 news stories, commentary articles, and film reviews for explanatory narratives. We noted four key moments: the Venice Film Festival; an open letter by family members of victims …
Accuracy Of Covid-19 Relevant Knowledge Among Youth: Number Of Information Sources Matters, Patricia Wonch Hill, Judy Diamond, Amy N. Spiegel, Elizabeth Vanwormer, Meghan Leadabrand, Julia Mcquillan
Accuracy Of Covid-19 Relevant Knowledge Among Youth: Number Of Information Sources Matters, Patricia Wonch Hill, Judy Diamond, Amy N. Spiegel, Elizabeth Vanwormer, Meghan Leadabrand, Julia Mcquillan
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
Can comics effectively convey scientific knowledge about COVID-19 to youth? What types and how many sources of information did youth have about COVID-19 during the pandemic? How are sources of information associated with accurate COVID-19 knowledge? To answer these questions, we surveyed youth in grades 5–9 in a Midwestern United States school district in the winter of 2020–2021. The online survey used measures of COVID-19 knowledge and sources, with an embedded experiment on COVID-19 relevant comics. Guided by an integrated science capital and just-in-time health and science information acquisition model, we also measured level of science capital, science identity, and …
Bat Meets Girl: Adapting The Dark Knight’S Love Life To The Big Screen, Brandon Bosch
Bat Meets Girl: Adapting The Dark Knight’S Love Life To The Big Screen, Brandon Bosch
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
It is no secret that Hollywood loves a good romance. What is perhaps sometimes overlooked however is how important romance and female characters are to male-dominated action films. Esma Kartal argues women and romance are deliberately placed into action films to create “romantic relief” and attract female viewers for greater crossover appeal.1 In addition to romance, Yvonne Tasker observes how women in action films serve as a witness for “the hero’s suffering” and humanity in action films.2 Finally, a classic use of women and romance in action films is that of the damsel-indistress, which continues to this day …
Literature Review Group Exercise For Undergraduates, Brandon Bosch
Literature Review Group Exercise For Undergraduates, Brandon Bosch
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
I use this literature review activity for two capstone classes (Sociology and Political Science) where students must write a 15-20 research paper. The presentation and group activity below helps students better understand how to write an effective literature review and topic sentences. Working in teams, students reassemble an existing literature review (from an actual published article) and write new topic sentences for each paragraph. By the end of this activity, students are more confident and capable about writing their first literature review. In addition to being a useful learning exercise, students also tend to really enjoy doing this group activity.
The Potential Scientist’S Dilemma: How The Masculine Framing Of Science Shapes Friendships And Science Job Aspirations, G. Robin Gauthier, Patricia Wonch Hill, Julia Mcquillan, Amy N. Spiegel, Judy Diamond
The Potential Scientist’S Dilemma: How The Masculine Framing Of Science Shapes Friendships And Science Job Aspirations, G. Robin Gauthier, Patricia Wonch Hill, Julia Mcquillan, Amy N. Spiegel, Judy Diamond
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
In the United States, girls and boys have similar science achievement, yet fewer girls aspire to science careers than boys. This paradox emerges in middle school, when peers begin to play a stronger role in shaping adolescent identities. We use complete network data from a single middle school and theories of gender, identity, and social distance to explore how friendship patterns might influence this gender and science paradox. Three patterns highlight the social dimensions of gendered science persistence: (1) boys and girls do not differ in self-perceived science potential and science career aspirations; (2) consistent with gender-based norms, both middle …
“Why So Serious?” Threat, Authoritarianism, And Depictions Of Crime, Law, And Order In Batman Films, Brandon Bosch
“Why So Serious?” Threat, Authoritarianism, And Depictions Of Crime, Law, And Order In Batman Films, Brandon Bosch
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
Drawing on research on authoritarianism, this study analyzes the relationship between levels of threat in society and representations of crime, law, and order in mass media, with a particular emphasis on the superhero genre. Although the superhero genre is viewed as an important site of mediated images of crime and law enforcement, cultural criminologists have been relatively quiet about this film genre. In addressing this omission, I analyze authoritarian themes (with an emphasis on crime, law, and order) in the Batman film franchise across different periods of threat. My qualitative content analysis finds that authoritarianism themes of fear and need …
Sociology Of Mass Media Syllabus, Brandon Bosch
Sociology Of Mass Media Syllabus, Brandon Bosch
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
This class will focus on mass media representations of gender, race, class, and politics, as well as the cultural, legal, economic, and institutional factors influencing the production of media texts. We will also discuss the ways in which media audiences (not just media scholars) make sense of media texts. Types of media to be discussed include advertisements, film (including romantic comedies, drama, horror, action, and war films), news media, comic books, video games, “reality” television, and sitcoms. Due to time constraints, popular music, novels, and “new” media will receive relatively less attention. Much of the class will focus on classic …
Content Analysis In The Study Of Crime, Media, And Popular Culture, Lisa Kort-Butler
Content Analysis In The Study Of Crime, Media, And Popular Culture, Lisa Kort-Butler
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
Content analysis is considered both a quantitative and a qualitative research method. The overarching goal of much of the research using this method is to demonstrate and understand how crime, deviance, and social control are represented in the media and popular culture. Unlike surveys of public opinions about crime issues, which seek to know what people think or feel about crime, content analysis of media and popular culture aims to reveal a culture’s story about crime. Unlike research that examines how individuals’ patterns of media consumption shape their attitudes about crime and control, content analysis appraises the meaning and messages …
From Burlesque To Grand Theft Auto: An Historical Analysis Of The Treatment Of The Media-Crime Relationship In Criminology Texts, Lisa Kort-Butler, Michael Killingsworth
From Burlesque To Grand Theft Auto: An Historical Analysis Of The Treatment Of The Media-Crime Relationship In Criminology Texts, Lisa Kort-Butler, Michael Killingsworth
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
The degree to which criminological scholarship on the mediacrime relationship has been subject to the tides of moral panics is not well-understood, although there are theoretical reasons to hypothesize about the role of scientists in moral panics. Textbooks are one location in which a discipline chronicles its scholarly history and speaks to the public, making texts an important site for understanding how scholars interpret the media-crime relationship. A content analysis of over 200 criminology texts, ranging in publication dates from 1880 to 2012, was conducted. Almost half the texts covered the media-crime relationship. These texts often appeared to be responding …
Museum Monsters And Victorious Viruses: Improving Public Understanding Of Emerging Biomedical Research, Judy Diamond, Benjamin Jee, Camilla Matuk, Julia Mcquillan, Amy N. Spiegel, David Uttal
Museum Monsters And Victorious Viruses: Improving Public Understanding Of Emerging Biomedical Research, Judy Diamond, Benjamin Jee, Camilla Matuk, Julia Mcquillan, Amy N. Spiegel, David Uttal
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
Although microbes directly impact everyone's health, most people have limited knowledge about them. In this article, we describe a museum and media public education campaign aimed at helping diverse audiences better understand emerging knowledge about microbes and infectious disease. Funded primarily by the Science Education Partnership (SEPA) program of the National Institutes of Health, this campaign involved crosscutting programs designed to extend impacts throughout a broad public audience.
“Bomb Talk” And Erving Goffman’S Frame Analysis, Michael R. Hill
“Bomb Talk” And Erving Goffman’S Frame Analysis, Michael R. Hill
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
Erving Goffman’s Frame Analysis is introduced (together with several of Goffman’s basic concepts, including “strips”, “frames”, “keys”, “fabrications”, etc.) and applied to “bomb talk” (i.e., the different ways in which westerners discuss and/or refer to the reality of nuclear weapons). This analysis confirms (as Goffman predicts) that the manner in which everyday life is conceptualized and subsequently transformed is extraordinarily flexible. Goffman offers a coherent knowledge-producing system, one that is best carefully studied before applying his precisely-defined concepts to other aspects of our social world. Frame Analysis provides the means for analyzing the organization of everyday life and answering many …
Justice League? Depictions Of Justice In Children’S Superhero Cartoons, Lisa A. Kort-Butler
Justice League? Depictions Of Justice In Children’S Superhero Cartoons, Lisa A. Kort-Butler
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
The literature argues that media depictions of criminal justice present messages that conform to and promote the dominant ideology about the crime problem and how to solve it. Research has focused on television news and adult programs, but little research has examined messages about justice present in children’s shows. To fill this gap, an ethnographic content analysis of children’s cartoons was conducted, using a sample of episodes from Batman: The Animated Series, Spider-Man, and Justice League Unlimited. Several themes emerged. First, the justice system is often depicted as ill equipped to handle serious crime. Second, story lines suggested that the …
Rotten, Vile, And Depraved! Depictions Of Criminality In Superhero Cartoons, Lisa A. Kort-Butler
Rotten, Vile, And Depraved! Depictions Of Criminality In Superhero Cartoons, Lisa A. Kort-Butler
Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications
The literature argues that media depictions of crime present messages that conform to and promote the dominant ideology about the causes of crime and the nature of criminality. Most research focuses on television news and adult programs, but little research examines messages about criminality present in children’s shows. To fill this gap, a content analysis of children’s cartoons was conducted, using episodes of Batman: The Animated Series, Spider-Man, and Justice League Unlimited. Three central themes emerged. First, much criminal activity centers on greed. Second, criminals are aware of right and wrong but pursue crime to meet their own self-interests. Third, …