Digital Commons Network^™

Nieubuurt On Sloss, 'Tyrants On Twitter: Protecting Democracies From Information Warfare', Joshua Nieubuurt

English Faculty Publications

[First paragraph] Information warfare (IW) in the twenty-first century has become a major issue facing democracies across the globe. In Tyrants on Twitter: Protecting Democracies from Information Warfare, David L. Sloss focuses on how legislation may help stem the tide of nefarious authoritarian state actors. Sloss posits that IW in the twenty-first century is allowing democratic decay and that an allied transnational front based on common legislation is a necessary step in equalizing the playing field. Sloss specifically focuses on state agents of Russia and China, calling for limitations on known state actors and eliminating malevolent agents' ability to …

Peirce Semiotic Analysis Of The Representation Of Oligarchic Power In The Korean Drama Film The Healer, Rizka Septiana

JURNAL KOMUNIKASI INDONESIA

This study uses an interpretive/constructive paradigm and a qualitative approach using semiotic methods in its discussion. The purpose of this study is to show how a Korean drama film becomes a medium of representation or picture of reality, especially regarding the oligarchic power in the democratic history of South Korea at that time. This study will focus more on signs that describe or show the activities of oligarchic power in the Korean drama film The Healer. By using triadic analysis of Charles Oligarchy's semiotics, namely objects, interpretants and representatives, the researchers found that the semiotics of oligarchic power in …

The Impact Of Egypt's Mega Events On Egyptians' Public Mood, Nouran Abass

Theses and Dissertations

The study aims to study the Impact of Egypt's Mega Events on Egyptians‟ Public Mood. Egypt organized two Mega Events in 2021: The Pharaohs‟ Golden Parade and Luxor Sphinx Avenue. The study also examines the impact of the two Mega Events on the Egyptian Identity. While the two Mega Events targeted Egypt's external publics to attract tourists to Egypt, the study attempts to assess the impact of the two Mega Events on one of Egypt's internal publics; the Egyptians. Depending on the concept of “Social Listening” as a theoretical framework, the study examines the possible ways the Egyptian government can …

The Impact Of Gender Differences And Geographic Locations On Social Media Literacy Among Public Universities Students, Heba Tallah Moustafa Helmy

Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of both gender difference and geographic location on social media literacy levels among undergraduate students in public universities in Egypt. Four aspects related to social media literacy were considered in the Likert-scale survey, including basic technical skills, digital interactions, information evaluation, and privacy and security practices. A total of 520 students participated in this exploratory research, of which 265 males and 255 females enrolled at four public universities in different geographic locations. Cairo University and Ain Shams University represent the urban areas. The other two universities are located in center-periphery …

The Influence Of The Abraham Accords On The Visual Coverage Of The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict In Arab Media: A Comparative Analysis, Mona Alsaba

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the influence of the official signing of the Abraham Accords on the Arab media visual coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This study operationalized visual frames in terms of the human-interest vs technical frame and peace vs war frame, and explored the use of graphic portrayal as a framing device, in order to compare between the Arab media visual framing of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict before and after the official signing of the Abraham Accords to examine the impact of foreign policy on the coverage among news outlets of different Arab countries. A comparative analysis was conducted relying on …

Developing A Shared Ecclesial Identity Utilizing Story-Based Elements With First Baptist Church, Gainesville, Georgia, Jeremy T. Shoulta

Doctor of Ministry Projects

The Body of Christ is challenged to, “be like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind” (Philippians 2:2). How then could a congregation, comprised of individuals harboring diverse cultural worldviews, discover and live into this reality? Through various individual and group exercises, participants sought to determine whether story elements have the power to serve as a true sense-making device within an ecclesial setting. The results indicate that that a majority of participants found the story-based framework beneficial in regards to their personal understanding of the work of First Baptist Church.

The "Othering" Of America: How The Strategic Use Of Crisis And Ressentiment Succeeded In The Trump Era, Laura J. Franklin

Dissertations

The establishment of a crisis theme through public rhetoric often triggers widespread attention, resulting in public concern and media coverage of an issue that could potentially be overblown or deceptive. In right-wing political discourse, this crisis warning is typically delivered by a White male leader with ready access to the powerful news media. An “us versus them” theme often occurs. Within this mode of a hegemonic exclusion, a culture of immigrants or an American minority are often depicted, perhaps aggressively, as a threat: A threat used to motivate, enrage and create the frustrations inherent in ressentiment. This dissertation explores the …

Reconstituting Digital Counterpublics In Times Of Crisis: The Case Of The United States And The Republic Of Georgia, Byron B. Craig, Stephen E. Rahko, Nathan Carpenter

Faculty Publications - Communications

Since the advent of social media at the turn of the 21st century, scholars of communication, cultural studies, and media studies have long been invested in the question of the relationship between social media platforms and the discursive formation of counterpublics for social movement mobilization. In this article, we seek to pose a new question for scholarly inquiry: How do citizens leverage the tools of social media platforms to reconstitute counterpublics in times of crisis? Toward this end, we conduct a comparative case study of the way citizens leverage platforms for counterpublic formation in the Republic of Georgia and the …

Whose Public Virtue? Exploring Freedom Of Information Efficacy And Support, A.Jay Wagner

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Little is known about public perceptions of how FOI laws influence government operations or impact citizens’ daily lives. A large representative sample of U.S. adults was surveyed for support of FOI laws and perceptions of FOI efficacy. Findings showed advanced education and higher perceptions of general government efficacy to be strongly significant in predicting both support for FOI and greater FOI efficacy. Males and liberal respondents also demonstrated significance in predicting support for FOI and higher FOI efficacy, while Black race was a significant negative predictor in support for FOI and whether FOI improved government operations and accountability.

The Need For International Ai Activities Monitoring, Parviz Partow-Navid, Ludwig Slusky

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

This paper focuses primarily on the need to monitor the risks arising from the dual-use of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Dual-use AI technology capability makes it applicable for defense systems and consequently may pose significant security risks, both intentional and unintentional, with the national and international scope of effects. While domestic use of AI remains the prerogative of individual countries, the unregulated and nonmonitored use of AI with international implications presents a specific concern. An international organization tasked with monitoring potential threats of AI activities could help defuse AI-associated risks and promote global cooperation in developing and deploying AI technology. The …

‘It’S Like Flipping A Switch’: Understanding The Challenges, Expectations, And Identity Of High School Wrestlers, Aubree Herman

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

This study aims to understand the challenges and expectations of high school wrestlers, and how they are managing their social identities within the parameters of the sport. The rise of female wrestlers within the last decade and the hegemonic masculine roots of the sport show how imperative it is that research shed light into the unique experiences of high school wrestlers. Social identity theory was used as a theoretical framework and participants answered interview questions that discussed the three components of their social identity (i.e., cognitive, affective, and evaluative). They also identified challenges that they faced, the kind of expectations …

Anti-American Stance In Turkey: A Twitter Case Study, Gowri Prathap, Alex Korb, Luke Palmieri, Ekrem Kaya, Saltuk Karahan, Hamdi Kavak

School of Cybersecurity Faculty Publications

The availability of social media and biased actors exacerbated Anti-American and Anti-Western views to extremes. In this paper, we report our efforts in analyzing anti-American views on Twitter. We have collected over three years of Turkish tweets related to the US, translated them into English, and analyzed these tweets using various computational social science tools. We found that Turkish tweets related to the US are significantly negative, and emotions reflect disgust and anger. Furthermore, we found that the source of the negative views stems from political actors like Trump or Biden rather than general hatred. Our results shed light on …

Underwater Communication Acoustic Transducers: A Technology Review, Laila Shams, Tian-Bing Xu, Zhongqing Su (Ed.), Branko Glisic (Ed.), Maria Pina Limongelli (Ed.)

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper provides a comprehensive review on transducer technologies for underwater communications. The popularly used communication transducers, such as piezoelectric acoustic transducers, electromagnetic acoustic transducers, and acousto-optic devices are reviewed in detail. The reasons that common air communication technologies are invalid die to the differences between the media of air and water are addresses. Because of the abilities to overcome challenges the complexity of marine environments, piezoelectric acoustic transducers are playing the major underwater communication roles for science, surveillance, and Naval missions. The configuration and material properties of piezoelectric transducers effects on signal output power, beamwidth, amplitude, and other properties …

(Re)Constructing National Memory In Neoliberal Chile Through Patricio Guzman's The Cordillera Of Dreams (2019), Mica Barrett

Scripps Senior Theses

One of the most renowned Chilean exile filmmakers is Patricio Guzmán. Best known for his documentary work regarding the Allende years, Guzmán has continued to make films regarding his homeland in the decades following his initial exile.

The Cordillera of Dreams is the concluding film in a trilogy exploring the natural lands of Chile and their relationship to physical remnants of the human past. The initial and most renowned film in the series, Nostalgia for the Light, centers the Atacama Desert and Chileans’ relationship to the geography as a gateway to revealing artifacts of Chile’s recent history of genocide …

S-400s, Disinformation, And Anti-American Sentiment In Turkey, Russell "Alex" Korb, Saltuk Karahan, Gowri Prathap, Ekrem Kaya, Luke Palmieri, Hamdi Kavak, Richard L. Wilson (Ed.), Major Brendan Curran (Ed.)

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

As social and political discourse in most countries becomes more polarized, anti-Americanism has risen not only in the Middle East and Latin America but also among the U.S. allies in Europe. Social media is one platform used to disseminate anti-American views in NATO countries, and its effectiveness can be magnified when mass media, public officials, and popular figures adopt these views. Disinformation, in particular, has gained recognition as a cybersecurity issue from 2016 onward, but disinformation can be manufactured domestically in addition to being part of a foreign influence campaign. In this paper, we analyze Turkish tweets using sentiment analysis …

Mai Bhago And Amrita Devi Bishnoi: Women Of Strength, Sowmya Ayyar

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

Mai Bhago (1670-1720), also known as Bhag Kaur, distinguished herself on the battlefield to defend the Sikh faith. Amrita Devi Bishnoi (d. 1730) is said to have sacrificed her life with 362 others to protect the Khejari trees in the Rajasthan desert. Both women continue to inspire social justice and ecological activism.

An Examination Of Gandhian Economic And Political Thought And Its Relevance To The Empowerment Of Women, Purnima Mehta Bhatt

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) sought to alleviate poverty and empower women. His commitment to nonviolence and the economic ideal of “small is beautiful” continue to inspire grassroots movements around the globe. This article discusses the Chipko movement of northern India, the protection of rain forests in Kerala’s Silent Valley, the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), and Medha Patkar’s valiant though ultimately futile attempt to save the Narmada River from a massive government damming project. The ongoing legacy of these movements can be found in AWAG, the Ahmedabad Women’s Action Group and Women’s Shanti Sena (Peace Force).

Identities Of Women In Indian Art And History, Nalini Rao

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

The stereotypical image of Indian women portrayed in the art of stone sculpture is often interpreted as images of beauty that are sensuous, religious as well depict social life. There are historical reasons for depicting her as such. This paper inquires into the changing depiction and social forces that influenced feminine imagery. This paper examines the portrayal of beauty through idealization of female body which has evolved over the centuries in India. It also aims to understand their changing status and explores issues of feminine identity, status, and empowerment largely in ancient and medieval India. It also provides a brief …

Epistemological Insecurity In The Anthropocene, Dustin Purvis

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation analyzes how increased mainstream awareness of climate change and other complex environmental phenomena transforms some of the basic tools we use to understand the world, including notions of agency, evidence, and causality. More specifically, this project highlights numerous contemporary literary and cultural narratives that formally and thematically depict impromptu systems of action and comprehension developed by humans confronting the unique forms of information overload that result from damaged and rapidly changing environments. Following critics like Ulrich Beck, Rob Nixon, and Stacy Alaimo, I suggest our current era of ecological instability and destructive environmental practices dictate what I refer …

The Quest For Influence: Examining Russia's Public Diplomacy Mechanisms In Africa, Isaac Antwiboasiako

Articles

This article examines Russian public diplomacy mechanisms in Africa. These include the intentional use of historical ties, various aid programmes in education and health, the targeted use of international broadcasting and digital media, and the exploitation of anti-Western sentiments on the continent. Russia employs these to win the hearts and minds of African publics for its national interest. The article first explores Moscow’s public diplomacy in general and analyses the challenges Russia faces in Africa, which has become a ‘dumping ground’ for public diplomacy campaigns by the US, the EU and its members, the UK, and China. The article argues …

Digital Media And Terrorism: Analysis Of Online Visual Images Of Kenyan Security Forces In The Battle Of El Adde, Edwin Anjago Herenga

Master of Arts in Digital Journalism

This study sought to analyse online visual images of the Kenya security forces in the Battle of El Adde that occurred on January 15, 2016 in Gedo, Somalia. The study specifically examined the framing of these visual images, the journlistsic and ethical practices employed by online platforms when selecting and publishing images of terror on Kenyan security forces, and the extent to which the framing of these online visual images of terror manifested elements of social responsibility as captured in The Code of Cunduct for the Practice of Journalism as entreched in the Second Schedule of the Media Act 2013. …

Divided Memories About Building Peace In Chechnya (1995-2004), Cécile Druey

International Dialogue

The conflicts in and around Chechnya are intractable, with a perceived impossibility to find a negotiated solution. This paper focuses on the hostage crises of Budennovsk (1995) and Beslan (2004) which are episodes from the two Chechnya Wars and had an important impact on their further course. Based on the memories of key actors representing specific sides of the conflict, the paper identifies and contextualizes diverging approaches to negotiations and conflict settlement. Conceptual support for this analysis of open-source materials is provided by the theoretical literature on “ripeness” and “readiness” as conditions for the initiation and successful conduction of negotiations. …

Journal Of Communication Pedagogy, Complete Volume 6, 2022

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

No abstract provided.

The Pedagogy Of Renewal: Black Women, Reclaiming Joy, And Self-Care As Praxis, Ashley R. Hall, Tiffany J. Bell

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

The 2020 quote defining the pandemic era was “The New Normal,” which, for Black women, implies a need for structural and personal transformation. In this essay, we incorporate the concepts of culturally relevant pedagogy (Bell & Jackson, 2021) and critical autoethnography (Boylorn, 2020; Boylorn & Orbe, 2021) to amplify a Black feminist ethos of self-care as an embodied praxis. Reflecting on the embodied experiences of two Black women professors, we advance a crucial notion of self-care as a pedagogy of renewal to reclaim joy through generative and transformative modes, methods, and meanings.

The Cowl - V. 87 N. 4 - October 6, 2022

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Vol. 87 No. 4 - October 6, 2022. 20 pages.

Tools To Educate The Next Generation Of Storytellers To Help Them Document Past Conflicts To Build A More Peaceful Future, Tracy Mack-Jackson

Theses - ALL

Uncovering where we came from may help the human race avoid past mistakes and build a more peaceful future. Multimedia oral histories, period photographs, and photographic exploration of historic locations are tools that allow us to educate future generations and work to prevent conflicts. The power of storytelling runs deep within us as a society, and discovering the tools to help us tell these stories is vital for young people to create a voice for themselves. Visual journalism can be at the forefront of this education. This project focuses on three educational resources young storytellers can use to capture historical …

Science And Food Fictions: Agricultural Technologies, The Evolution Of The Modern Industrial Diet, And Calls For A Food Revolution, Tracey Daniels-Lerberg

Green Humanities: A Journal of Ecological Thought in Literature, Philosophy & the Arts

[First paragraph] Individual food choices are culturally and historically contingent practices that arise through an amalgamation of often hidden political, scientific, and economic policies that shape desire and influence access. Food, like all other man-made mechanisms of control and authority, has been used “as a political tool for […] subjugating (either economically or politically) other nations” according to William A. Dando, a professor at the University of North Dakota, who in 1975 urged American agricultural officials not to use food as “a weapon” against starving nations, something he feared was eminently possible given the economic and political climate of agricultural …

Vietnam Continued: The Battle For American Public Memory In Public School History Textbooks, Donnie Owens

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The question of “how do we actively remember the past?” can perhaps best describe the purpose of public memory studies. Acknowledging this question, I analyze popular public-school textbooks to assess the way in which educational literature constructs the public memory of the Vietnam War. In total, the narratives of the texts construct a public memory of Vietnam as a controversial conflict contained within a decade of American uncertainty. However, these narratives also take care to minimize or leave aside the details of Vietnam’s lasting impact and in favor of reaffirming American exceptionalism. Ultimately, this thesis finds that students who read …

Volume 58, Issue 1, Summer 2022 Speaker & Gavel

Speaker & Gavel

Complete digitized issue (Volume 58, issue 1, Summer 2022) of Speaker & Gavel.

Volume 58, Issue 1, Summer 2022 Speaker & Gavel Front Matter

Speaker & Gavel

Front matter and table of contents for Volume 58, 2022 of Speaker & Gavel.