Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

We're Not Thugs And Rappers: An Examination Of African American Male Athletes' Perceptions Of The Media, Keia Janese Bragg

Masters Theses

Manipulation of stories and events expose issues of false representation and stereotyping within the mainstream media. This research examined the media’s role in shaping the behaviors and experiences of African American male athletes while using Critical Race Theory as the framework in conducting research. A focus group consisting of six former African American male student athletes was conducted. A semi-structured interview schedule was used in order to allow for open discussion. The Constant Comparison Method was instrumental in thematizing the data while QDA Miner software was used to analyze the data. The findings suggested that African American male athletes feel …

Mass Media's Relationship With Adolescents' Values And Behaviors: A Theory Of Mediated Valueflection, Melanie Burleson Richards

Sociology Dissertations

Mass media has long been thought to have a detrimental effect on an adolescent’s values and behaviors. Many social ills including violence, misogyny and negative health behaviors, as well as egoistic cultural values have been attributed to mass media’s influence. Yet the media is not all powerful, nor are its powers unable to be combated. In this manuscript, I analyze the Educational Longitudinal Study data from 2002 to 2006 to determine the real effects mass media has on adolescents in comparison to other influences. I find that not all media is equal in influence. Television and video games have different …

Muslims In The Media:The New York Times From 2000 - 2008, Autumn Bishop

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although it is widely recognized that Muslims and Middle Easterners were negatively portrayed in the media after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, few scholars examine the long term media presentations of Islam in the United States. The studies that have explored the relationship of the portrayal of Islam by the media have used short term, limited sampling techniques, which may not properly reflect the popular media as a whole. The current research uses data from the New York Times from 2000-2008 in order to determine whether the popular media was portraying Islam in a disparaging manner. The analysis …

Feminine Beauty Norms And The Media: A Content Analysis Of A Popular Tween Magazine, Victoria Velding

Wayne State University Theses

The term “tween” is rather new and has become widely used in mainstream culture. In terms of how this term is constructed, today’s tween is overwhelmingly female rather than male. Girls are expected to look and act a certain way because of societal beauty norms, which they can learn about via mainstream media, parents, teachers, peers, and other sources of socialization. So far, little research has focused on magazines whose target audience is the younger teen and tween; that is, girls who are roughly 8 to 14 years of age. This research consisted of a content analysis of advertisements found …

Prison Blockbusters: Relationships Between Prison Cinema And Student Perceptions, Jeremy Scott Mcqueen

Online Theses and Dissertations

This study examined college students' perceptions, as they relate to prison cinema. It also discussed and analyzed reoccurring themes in prison cinema that perpetuates the prison culture in the United States. Specifically, this research addressed the following research question: How is exposure to prison cinema related to student perceptions of prisons, prisoners, and prison staff? By asking this question and analyzing the responses given by students, this study hopes to contribute to improved understanding of how popular cinema shapes the perceptions of prison culture in the United States.

The researcher utilized both quantitative and qualitative methods in gathering research data …