Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Elections Matter: The Politics Of Prosecuting Deceptive Advertising In Wisconsin, Courtney Vander Veen Mich

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the causal relationship between ideology and regulation. Specifically,

this study looks at the relationship between Wisconsin elected officials and their political party in relation to the level of enforcement of the Wisconsin deceptive advertising statute. The study analyzed 79 Wisconsin cases prosecuted for deceptive advertising from 2003 through 2014. The 79 cases occurred over the span of three different governor and attorney general four-year periods.These cases were analyzed for outcomes and the number of cases prosecuted during each of the three four-year periods present in Wisconsin. Fifty-six of the 79 cases were analyzed further for the number …

Gay Liberation Is One Thing, But Nobody Likes A Dyke: Emerging Frames In Queer Radio, Ryan Charles Sugden

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how a social movement uses the media to progress in society. I conduct a framing analysis on the queer community’s use of radio during two time periods: 1970s queer radio program Gay Perspective and a 2015-2016 program, Queery. I examine the show through three emerging frames: Cultured, Diversity, and Assimilation. The thesis studies how segments of the LGBTQIA+ community framed the discussion of gay rights in the 1970s and how those frames have (and haven’t) changed in 2016. Gay Perspective focused much of its energy on trying to demonstrate the need for rights and attempts to demonstrate …

Farm Aid: A Case Study Of A Charity Rock Organization, Andrew Palen

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the impact that the non-profit organization Farm Aid has had on the farming industry, policy, and the concert realm known as charity rock. This study also examines how the organization has maintained its longevity. By conducting an evaluation on Farm Aid and its history, the organization’s messaging and means to communicate, a detailed analysis of the past media coverage on Farm Aid from 1985-2010, and a phone interview with Executive Director Carolyn Mugar, I have determined that Farm Aid’s impact is complex and not clear. Farm Aid, while very active in the political sphere, including lobbying for …

The Feminist Voice In Mainstream News Discourse, Rachel Kinnard

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes the work of six self-identified feminist women who wrote opinion pieces for mainstream news and cultures sites in 2014. The internet and the widening public sphere has opened up new spaces for feminist writing that has allowed this writing to be published and read on a large and easily accessible platform. This group of women is an example of a broader generational development born out of third wave feminism, postfeminism, and the rise of online platforms for political commentary. By introducing traditionally private matters into the public sphere, their columns challenge dominant cultural discourse about political issues …

Growing Food Equity: A Participant Observation Exploring The Role Of Communication In A Nonprofit Organization’S Work To Improve Food Access In Urban Areas, Samantha Jane Kaufman

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the concept of food equity and a nonprofit organization in Milwaukee, Victory Garden Initiative, that is working towards food equity by increasing food access in the city. The work explores issues of inadequate food access, urban development, and other nonprofit organizations working towards food equity. Through participant observation and interviews with VGI, the researcher found that a small nonprofit organization like Victory Garden Initiative is still bound by time, financial, and staffing constraints. In order for nonprofit organizations to market and run effective programming, they need to be efficient with limited resources, take advantage of any research …

Sound And Vision: Marketing Recorded Music In The Age Of Radio, Daniel Martin Murphy

Theses and Dissertations

In the early 1930s, the popularity of radio and the economic austerity of the Great Depression threatened to make the phonograph record obsolete. However, by the time the United States entered World War II in 1941, records were returning to popularity. This return coincided with the first instances of the appearance of unique cover artwork on record albums. This thesis explores the cultural and industrial factors that converged in the late 1930s to make album artwork viable in ways that it would not have been earlier. This thesis also investigates how RCA Victor and Columbia, two record companies that had …

Measuring Strategic Communications, Jeffrey A. Ranta

Theses and Dissertations

The convergence and integration of communication disciplines is a daunting challenge for educators. Traditional distinctions of advertising, public relations, and integrated communication are becoming blurred by the growth of social media and other new media channels. The advent of strategic communications is a newer iteration of this coalescence of technology, analytics, and practice.

Silos of branding, issues management, media relations, image management, research, and many other communications (applied and specialty) as well as skills and traits are being combined in favor of a more comprehensive, strategic communications approach. The multi-platform, multi-disciplinary communicator is becoming the expected product of undergraduate programs …

Toward A Situational Technology Acceptance Model: Combining The Situational Theory Of Problem Solving And Technology Acceptance Model To Promote Mobile Donations For Nonprofit Organizations, Yue Zheng

Theses and Dissertations

Using a nationwide survey of 994 respondents in February 2016, this study combines the situational theory of problem solving and technology acceptance model to refine the conceptual understandings of people’s motivations to make a mobile donation benefiting health-related nonprofit organizations. Findings provide empirical support for the combined model and an emerging situational technology acceptance model. Mobile phone users’ intentions to make a mobile donation are mostly influenced by their attitudes toward using technology and subjective norms. Practical implications are also discussed for nonprofit practitioners to better segment publics, design strategic messages, and disseminate communication campaigns to improve future fundraising.