Digital Commons Network^™

Expanding Ai Literacy: The 5cs Of News Literacy In The Era Of Generative Ai, Seth Ashley, Adam Maksl, Paul Cook

Journal of Media Literacy Education Pre-Prints

This article adapts the 5Cs framework of news literacy—context, creation, content, circulation, and consumption—to media environments shaped by generative artificial intelligence. We argue that prevailing discussions of AI literacy overemphasize technical or functional competencies while underemphasizing the social, cultural, political, and communicative systems in which AI operates. Drawing on previous research, we define AI literacy as knowledge of the technical, social, and ethical dimensions of AI-mediated content production, distribution, and consumption, along with the critical capacities needed to exercise agency within those processes. We show how the 5Cs can be reinterpreted for generative AI environments and integrate pedagogical implications for …

The End Of Unmeasured Exploitation: How A.S.M., C.A.S., And S.I.A. Challenge Digital Attention Capitalism, Delante Clark

Graduate Scholarship and Creative Works

Digital attention capitalism generates value through the capture and monetization of human attention, yet it has historically lacked standardized mechanisms for measuring attention-related harm. This paper argues that the Attention Safeguard Models (A.S.M.), Cognitive Attentional Standards (C.A.S.), and Sociological Impact Assessment (S.I.A.) collectively challenge this system by introducing an integrated framework for classifying, measuring, and evaluating digital attention harm and its societal consequences. C.A.S. provides standardized measurement of digital attention harm, A.S.M. identifies and classifies patterns of attentional disruption and manipulation, and S.I.A. evaluates broader impacts on institutions, communities, civic engagement, education, social cohesion, and inequality. Together, these systems transform …

Content Mapping: An Experimental Analysis Of Missing Message Content, Jeannette Sutton

Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cybersecurity Faculty Scholarship

The Warning-Response Model recommends the inclusion of five key content areas in warning messages to reduce information seeking that can lead to warning response delay: the message source, hazard (including its impact), affected location, recommended guidance, and time. Research has found that complete messages, that is, those that include all of five recommended content areas, help people make decisions about the protective actions they may take.  Unfortunately, a large majority of WEA messages omit information from one or more of the recommended content areas. This study examined the impact of omitting each of the five recommended content areas on message …

The Representation Of Suicide In Spanish Teen Fiction Tv Series: Narrative Trends And Media Literacy Implications, Patricia Palomares-Sánchez, Victoria Soto-Sanz

Journal of Media Literacy Education Pre-Prints

The present study analyses the narrative treatment of suicide in Spanish youth fiction television series produced between 2015 and 2024, aiming to identify representation trends in relation to the recommendations for responsible media coverage and their implications for media literacy. The methodology underpinning this study encompasses eight fiction TV series and combines quantitative research, derived from data collection and analysis, with a qualitative component, focusing on the interpretation and analysis of the results. Findings indicate that the representation lacks due caution in depicting the method and location of suicide, which increases the risk of imitation. Although the narratives present alternatives …

The Role Of Media Literacy In Shaping Campus Student Leaders’ Perceptions Of Media Activism, Online Risks, And Social Support, Srividya Ramasubramanian, Minnie S. Mcmillian, Shumaila J. Bhatti, Shannon Burth, Julius Matthew Riles, Elizabeth Behm-Morawitz, Melody Wilson

Journal of Media Literacy Education

in social movements. Within contemporary contexts, media is an important site through which campus student leaders raise awareness, share relevant information, distribute online petitions, and shape public discourses on various social issues. Media literacy is an essential skill for student leaders to be effective in their activist initiatives and be able to cope with the inevitable pushback through trolling and cyberbullying that such activism would likely bring up. This survey (N = 855) with college student leaders across three universities explores how they rate themselves on media literacy skills, how well they understand the risks involved with media activism, and …

Staying Relevant: Radio’S Shift Toward Gen Z’S Listening Habits, Rocky Prasetyo Jati

JURNAL KOMUNIKASI INDONESIA

The digital transformation of media has reshaped audio consumption and challenged traditional radio to stay relevant, particularly among Generation Z, the digital-native cohort. This article examines how community and hyperlocal radio stations are adapting to shifting media dynamics by combining conventional broadcasting with digital innovations. The study employs qualitative methods. As Gen Z prefers flexible, personalized, and on-demand content, radio stations are repositioning broadcasters as multi-platform content creators and online community managers. Adaptation strategies include integrating radio with visually oriented social media platforms, offering curated playlists, and adopting participatory models such as digital tipping (saweran). Radio stations are …

Breaking The Silence: A Content And Expert Analysis Of The 2025 Ramadan Series Lam Shamseya's Framing And Subversion Of Child Sexual Abuse Discourse In Egypt, Maya Abouelnasr

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes how the 2025 Egyptian TV series Lam Shamseya served as a sociocultural intervention and awareness platform for reframing and subverting the typical child sexual abuse (CSA) discourse in Egypt. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study triangulates framing theory and two complementary tools of the critical discourse analysis (CDA) and the circuit of culture model through a scene-level content analysis of 304 scenes across all 15 episodes of the series and ten semi-structured interviews with media experts, media practitioners, and psychologists. Key findings include reported corroboration of subversion of traditional tropes and archetypes, as well as reframing of …

An Analysis Of Immigration Frames In The News Media Post- Second Trump Administration, Olivia Hartley

Communication Studies

Immigration has been a particularly controversial issue since the 2nd Trump Administration. There has been an increase in Immigration Customs Enforcement activity, including deportations and detainments of immigrants across the United States (Craft & Witherspoon, 2026). Given the uptick in media coverage regarding these events, it is essential to understand how this information is being presented to the public. The framing of news media impacts how the public perceives issues, determining the acceptable treatment of immigrants in our society. In this study, a content analysis was performed to determine the prevalence of generic immigration news frames following the start of …

From Double Absence To Double Presence: Video-Selfie As Empowerment In A Multicultural Italian Classroom, Maria Ranieri, Ilaria Bucciarelli, Giulia Cuozzo

Journal of Media Literacy Education Pre-Prints

This paper examines the video-selfie as a tool for empowerment in multicultural secondary school classrooms. We draw on data from the European ICME project, focusing on a vocational secondary school in Italy, where 17 of 18 first-year students – approximately half of whom had migration backgrounds – produced short videos presenting themselves through personally meaningful objects. Students then participated in a structured reflection activity after watching each other's videos in class. We combine three theoretical frameworks: critical media literacy, identity and self-representation studies, and Mezirow's transformative learning theory. Our argument is that the video selfie empowers in multiple ways: it …

I Believe, Rusudan Dushuashvili

Masters Theses

This thesis investigates how products become believable and desirable through the stories that surround them, and how design enables the continuous cycle of desire that defines consumption. Drawing on  the underlying structures of myth-making, identity, and belonging that allow consumer culture to function, it argues that consumer culture operates through the same instruments older systems of belief have always used — narrative, ritual, sacred objects, and shared language — and that design is what makes the story stick to the object.

“I Believe” is an archive of objects collected from contemporary consumer culture. Half are products found in the marketplace; …

War Photography & The Limits Of Empathy, Andrea Shi

Student Theses and Dissertations

The proliferation of photography, particularly war and poverty photography, has had massive implications for the level of vividness with which Americans are able to picture suffering beyond their doors. The mass atrocities that have occurred since the advent of photography – that is to say, the last 200 years – are so relentlessly circulated that they feel, sometimes, as an inevitable byproduct of human nature. It’s not surprising, then, that a lot of media theory and analysis reduce the dilemma of atrocity photographs to a psychological level. Do they numb us, or do they incite empathy? Are they a call …

A Content Analysis Of Media Framing Regarding Name, Image, And Likeness And The Transfer Portal In Men’S College Basketball, Ethan Alexander

Honors College Theses

This study investigates media framing as it relates to name, image, and likeness (NIL) and the transfer portal in men’s college basketball. This study serves as an introductory point for future framing research surrounding NIL and the transfer portal, two topics that have not been thoroughly researched up to this point. While the analysis does reveal previously unrecorded frames, the data and study as a whole serve as foundational tools for future research and are not conclusive regarding these specific topics and their usage within framing research. Through the deductive coding of articles published by ESPN throughout the last five …

The New Wild West: A Case Study Analysis Of The Communication Methods Surrounding Ai Infrastructure In West Texas, Thomas Sorensen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the past several years, artificial intelligence has taken the world by storm. It has enabled numerous innovations across all sectors, and its usage continues to grow daily. This increase in demand for AI products has led to the development of AI data centers nationwide. Fueled by competition between the public and private sectors, many projects are underway. This study focuses on one such project in West Texas: the Stargate Data Center. This project is being constructed near Abilene, Texas, and has had an instrumental impact on the daily lives of its citizens. This research project seeks to answer the …

The Artificial Artist: Considering Ai’S Impact On Image Copyright, Alyse Mandelblatt

Communication Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to create empirical results to ground what has been a largely theoretical discussion about the effect of artificial intelligence (AI) on copyright law in the United States. AI has disrupted traditional ideas of creativity and expression, which are vital communication tools. Copyright is a regulatory agent to encourage the production of unique communication products by giving owners complete rights to their work. Copyright principles conflict with current AI model training practices. This research considers how AI literacy may provide insight into copyright knowledge and AI attitudes for prediction of how common law and AI regulation policy may …

Comment Sections As Counterpublics; Negotiating Public Discourse In Indonesia’S Digital Media Sphere, Leon Woltermann

Wacana, Journal of the Humanities of Indonesia

This article examines the potential of YouTube comment sections as spaces of commoning in Indonesia’s digital media sphere. Drawing on the concept of counterpublics – that is, parallel discursive arenas where marginalized groups circulate counter discourses and voice their interests – it explores how users negotiate access to the digital public sphere and oppose dominant narratives. The article employs a mixed-methods approach, integrating quantitative and qualitative methods into the analysis of the data, to investigate both the structural features (based on comment metadata) and the discursive content of comments. I argue that the comment sections’ dynamic, non-binding structure facilitates open …

Expanding The Pantheon Of “Place-Myth”: Media-Induced Travel In College Students Who Study Abroad, Isabella M. Shevetz

Honors College Theses

Media-induced tourism refers to any travel that is in some part motivated by the consumption of mass media related to that location. Media-induced tourism and mass-tourism have led to nation branding and destination marketing across the globe, two industry phenomena that have worked to skyrocket tourism in places where it was not previously a large driver of the local economy. The expansion of mass media availability and the birth of social media mean the media roles of producer and audience member have blurred. Ordinary people now have the influential power of large media corporations. In destination marketing, the user-generated content …

Rock On! Examining The Relationship Between Armed Conflict And Rock Protest Music, Dylan Conner Dunn

Senior Theses

This thesis explores the relationship between rock protest music and wars, armed conflicts, and other related events. The purpose of this research is to explore how such specific events, or war and conflict in general, influence rock songwriters. This paper examines a series of nine rock songs ranging across five decades, from the Vietnam War to the 2010s. A variety of artists wrote and recorded these songs, ranging from hard rock to classic rock, to folk rock and beyond. Some are more audially intense, lyrically visceral, and featuring explicit language, whereas others are much more stripped-back and “family-friendly.” Each of …

Next-Generation Democratic Cyber Statecraft - Balancing The Signal: Shutdown Shocks And Democratic Digital Governance, Scott M. Di Panni

School of Public Policy Capstones

This paper develops Next-Generation Democratic Cyber Statecraft (NG-DCS), a unified strategic doctrine for democratic governments to contest the cognitive domain against authoritarian adversaries. Drawing on twenty-six years of cross-national panel data (1999–2024) spanning 213 countries, game-theoretic modeling, and qualitative case analysis, the paper establishes three interconnected empirical and theoretical foundations. First, cross-national OLS regression across 160+ countries demonstrates that regime type is the dominant structural determinant of internet freedom (R²=0.615, β=2.513, p< 0.001), explaining more than twice the variance attributable to per-capita wealth (R²=0.268). Democratic governance, not economic development, produces open digital environments. Second, a two-way fixed effects (TWFE) difference-in-differences study exploiting government-ordered internet shutdowns as discrete policy interventions finds that digital restrictions causally degrade V-Dem governance quality by 0.21–0.38 standard deviations (p< 0.001 across all specifications). Treatment effects are immediate (β=−0.302 at k=0) and persist through five post-treatment years (β=−0.246 at k=+5), indicating structural rather than transitory governance damage. Parallel trends validation (p=0.352) and Callaway–Sant’Anna heterogeneity-robust estimation (ATT=−0.230, SE=0.077) support causal identification. Instrumental variable triangulation (2SLS β=−0.949, p=0.005) confirms that simultaneity was attenuating, not inflating, the primary estimates. Third, formal game-theoretic analysis reveals that the current U.S.–adversary equilibrium is (Restrain, Escalate)—the risk-dominant but Pareto-inferior outcome of a Stag Hunt structure. China, Russia, North Korea, and Venezuela each occupy structurally distinct positions (Stackelberg commitment, asymmetric two-level, autarky, and reactive trigger, respectively), requiring differentiated doctrinal responses rather than a uniform strategic playbook. Generative AI and algorithmic governance are shown to accelerate cognitive vulnerability by collapsing influence operation costs and exploiting engagement-optimized platform architectures that systematically degrade deliberative capacity in democratic populations.

Just City And Racialized Media: How A Non-Profit Provokes Policy And Fights Criminal Injustices, Isabella L. Wollfarth

LSU Master's Theses

This study explored the intersection of racialized media narratives, nonprofits, and penal policy through a case study of Just City, a nonprofit criminal justice organization located in Shelby County, Tennessee. Through the lens of Just City, this study explored how nonprofits resist racialized media narratives regarding crime and how in turn this contributes to penal policy reforms. This is accomplished using a thematic analysis to draw larger conclusions from coding Just City’s Instagram and through extensive interviews with Just City staff and local Shelby County and Tennessee politicians. These methods are guided by framing theory, an ideological framework that explains …

Influence By Design: A Network Strategy For Integrated Deterrence, Robert S. Hinck

Joint Force Quarterly

Confronting the complexity of the future security environment requires new concepts to coordinate efforts for maximum effect. The 2022 National Defense Strategy appropriately identifies integrated deterrence as the centerpiece of these efforts but criticisms regarding its strategic application remain. While integrated deterrence is associated with one set of national security strategies, its points of emphasis will endure. This essay addresses current limitations of the concept by offering a tangible and theoretically grounded approach connecting the ends, ways, and means by which the Joint Force and interagency, in combination with US allies and partners, can enact integrated deterrence across the spectrum …

Religious Higher Education Institutions In Ukraine: The Evolution Of The Problem And The Collision Of The "Secular–Religious" Dichotomy, Serhii Kostiuchkov, Vadym Slyusar, Lesya Chervona, Mykola Slyusar

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article is devoted to institutional, legislative, philosophical and communicative analysis of the activities of religious higher education institutions in modern Ukraine, taking into account political, social, legal, religious and communicative contexts. The authors examine the demand for religious education in modern Ukraine, which demonstrates high internal dynamics and promising prospects for the development of the domestic religious educational space. It is emphasised that the functioning of religious higher education institutions in Ukraine is regulated by the principle of constitutional separation of education from religion, while at the same time basic legal norms create specific conditions for the functioning of …

Why We Must Commune: Rethinking The Role Of Marketing Communications In Turbulent Times, Javier Garcia

Publications and Research

“Communications” is often thought of as a noun, representing the messages we receive on a daily basis from people, brands, and institutions alike. 

"Communications" is also often associated with an industry that exists to produce such messaging in service of capitalism, with a commercial or otherwise actionable outcome desired from its receiving audience. 

This presentation, hosted by two-time CCNY graduate and senior marketing communications professional and Assistant Professor Javier Garcia, will examine the urgency and opportunity in rethinking the value and study of marketing and communications. 

In his presentation, Professor Garcia will offer suggestions on how to guide students towards …

Social Media And Public Opinion In Times Of Conflict: How Arab Social Media Impacted International Perspectives On The Gaza War, Mariam Rizk

Theses and Dissertations

This exploratory study examines how Arab social media content creators impacted the international public perception of the 2023 Gaza war through English-language content. The research is conducted through semi-structured interviews with 19 participants: 4 Arab social media content creators and 15 English-speaking university students (13 American citizens and 2 international students studying in American universities). Through these semi-structured qualitative interviews, the research investigates the agenda-setting capabilities of social media during conflicts and identifies effective cross-cultural communication strategies. The study employed purposive sampling with snowball technique, targeting content creators with established social media presence (37,000-426,000 Instagram followers) and university students who …

Brute Force Branding: Variations & Repetitions Of The Almighty Dollar Banknote, Rui-Long Monico

Artl@s Bulletin

Abstract: This paper examines the U.S. dollar as a global brand and mythic icon, revealing how its stable aesthetic asserts dominance and infiltrates daily life. Through visual analysis and global comparison, it shows how banknotes are battlegrounds where art, identity, and geopolitics collide—currency as a weapon of soft power and cultural hegemony. The dollar’s visual inertia—ritualized, repeated, reappropriated—cements its supremacy as a symbolic force, where repetition enforces authority and variation sparks both resistance and conformity. Banknotes emerge as tools of statecraft and vessels of collective memory, as reflected in the author’s bespoke creation accompanying this study.

Résumé: Cet article analyse …

Digital Diplomacy And Activism: Sustaining Institutional Legacy Through State-Proxy Discursive Competition In The Aftermath Of The Usaid 2025 Suspension, Maryam Alaa Elprince

Capstone and Graduation Projects

This study examines how the 2025 suspension of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) transformed the arena of U.S. foreign-aid diplomacy by eliminating the agency’s operational capacity and erasing its digital presence, thereby redistributing discursive authority across a fragmented communicative field. The research aims to determine how diplomacy adapts when a bilateral institution central to American soft power is dismantled through top-down decision, and whether discursive power exercised online can extend institutional relevance and legitimacy beyond structural collapse. Using an interpretivist qualitative design that combines digital-forensic reconstruction, document-based content analysis, and elite interviews  with top ranking officials, the …

Life In Laughter: Comedy’S Impact On Student Health And Success, Julia Weinstein

Honors Undergraduate Theses

College students face rising rates of anxiety, depression, and stress, highlighting the need for accessible, stigma-free wellness interventions. While comedy is often seen as entertainment, research indicates laughter produces measurable psychological and physiological benefits, including reduced cortisol and increased endorphins. Life in Laughter, a creative-research hybrid project, investigates how live and digital comedy experiences affect college students’ mood, stress, and sense of belonging. Using mixed methods, data were collected through anonymous audience surveys, app-based reflections via JoyScroll, and interviews, supplemented by a mini-documentary. Findings suggest humor functions as both an emotional regulation tool and a means of fostering …

The Role Of Media Literacy In Shaping Campus Student Leaders’ Perceptions Of Media Activism, Online Risks, And Social Support, Srivi Ramasubramanian, Minnie Mcmillian, Shumaila Bhatti, Shannon Burth, Julius Matthew Riles, Elizabeth Behm-Morawitz, Melody Wilson

Media Studies - All Scholarship

Campus activism by student leaders has historically played a significant role in social movements. Within contemporary contexts, media is an important site through which campus student leaders raise awareness, share relevant information, distribute online petitions, and shape public discourses on various social issues. Media literacy is an essential skill for student leaders to be effective in their activist initiatives and be able to cope with the inevitable pushback through trolling and cyberbullying that such activism would likely bring up. This survey (N = 855) with college student leaders across three universities explores how they rate themselves on media literacy skills, …

You Are Your Ancestors’ Wildest Dreams: A Journey Beyond The Lens Blueprinting The Influence And Impact Of Media And Podcast Pedagogy On Black And Brown Creatives In Higher Education And Beyond, Diamond N. Morgan Dr.

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Explores the influence and impact of media and podcast pedagogy on Black and Brown creatives (BBC) in higher education. Grounded in Critical Race Theory (CRT), the Black Creative Educational Experience (BCEEs) framework, and the conceptual lenses of sociological and public podcasting, this study examines how podcasting functions as a transformative pedagogical and sociocultural tool for storytelling, identity development, creative expression, and community building within collegiate environments. Utilizing a convergent parallel mixed methods design, the study integrates quantitative survey data from 65 participants with qualitative focus group discussions to provide a holistic understanding of participant experiences across personal, professional, academic, social, …

Technology-Facilitated Violence And Abuse: Portrayals And Perceptions, Christina S. Walker

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

In the past, intimate partner violence (IPV) was primarily perpetrated in person. However, due to new mediated communication technologies and capabilities like social media and artificial intelligence (AI), perpetrators can use this technology for various purposes including subjecting others to violence, harassment, and abuse. Such violence can be a form of IPV and is referred to as technology-facilitated violence and abuse (TFVA). TFVA is becoming increasingly prevalent and is encountered by a staggering percent of women. Furthermore, unlike traditional forms of IPV, even men are subjected to TFVA at increasing and disproportionate rates, particularly male teens.

In the current state …

Performing The Digital Identity: A Media Discourse Analysis Of Online Identity Construction, Dalya Qasem

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

This dissertation investigates how news media construct narratives about TikTok and its role in shaping digital identity. While existing scholarship has examined issues such as privacy, marketing, and entertainment, less attention has been given to how identity is represented, negotiated, and understood within public discourse. Using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) combined with computational text analysis through Voyant Tools, this study analyzes a corpus of 111 news articles published between 2020 and 2025 that explicitly reference TikTok and identity. The analysis identifies prominent keywords, topics, and rhetorical patterns across media texts. Furthermore, the research demonstrates a critical analysis of popular understandings …