Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A New Atticus Is Afoot: The Portrayal Of Lawyers In Popular Culture, Anna Thrush

Senior Theses

This project analyzes the stereotypical image of lawyers in popular culture, focusing on either overly demonic or unrealistically heroic. Both stereotypes that are common portrayals of attorneys in popular culture are unrealistic and deny society a true comprehension of the profession. Popular culture has molded the image of lawyers to the characteristics that sell, rather than focusing on a realistic portrayal. Therefore, popular culture creates a falsely dramatized image of attorneys to generate revenue, putting the reputation and future of the profession as risk. These stereotypes are exemplified in this project through a close literary analysis of lawyer characters from …

Justifying Injustice: How Caricatured Depictions Of African Americans Impacted Worldwide Perception, Jaida Noble

Global Honors Theses

Despite racist depictions of African Americans in art seeming to be behind us, the consequences of such representation, including the baggage of stereotypes alongside them, live on. This paper will argue that the racist caricaturing of Black people throughout history has been used as a form of propaganda, affecting the overall perception of African Americans and influencing policies that have determined them as belonging to the lower levels of the American caste system.

Hierarchy And Responsibility In Media: Cults, Culpability, And Culture, Max Hargett

Online Theses and Dissertations

This is a descriptive research project that investigates how popular entertainment media portrays cults. My intention is to see how the selected films and television shows portray issues of hierarchy and culpability within the cult and to explore how the genre and theme of the content was utilized in order to evoke certain reactions and sentiments in the audience. The selected films were The Sacrament, Martha Marcy May Marlene, and Midsommar. The selected television shows were Waco and American Horror Story: Cult. Each film and series is given its own analysis. Findings indicate that a common theme of the rigid …

'Why Do They Make Her Wear That?': A Rhetorical Analysis Of Ramy Youssef: Feelings, Rania Zaied

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Muslims have often been portrayed in the media, as violent, barbaric, terrorists, and powerless victims, along with many other misconceptions of negative and stereotypical images. Ramy Youssef: Feelings (2019), is an hour-long stand-up comedy special presented by comic Ramy Youssef, who is a Muslim millennial Egyptian-American man. By conducting a rhetorical analysis of the special, this research combines the method of Critical Rhetoric with two of Lowery and Renegar’s (2016) three frameworks, those being Bicultural Otherness and Self and Culture Deprecating Humor, to analyze Youssef’s comedy special Feelings (2019). This research delineates how the media influences the rhetoric of Muslim …

The Comfort Watch: Psychology And Media Theory Perspectives On Nostalgia And Film, Sohni Kaur

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis explored the relationship between nostalgia, film, and coping mechanisms,

using both media theory and psychological lenses. Nostalgia, a concept with roots in both media theory and psychology, is best defined as homesickness for a time rather than a place. Nostalgia, when combined with film, leads to the concept of “comfort watches”, a scarcely researched topic. From a psychological standpoint, research suggests that nostalgia and media usage are commonly used coping mechanisms, yet there has been little to no research combining the two. The psychological study included in this thesis was conducted online in the United States using 83 …

“Born Of A Spirit That Knows No Conquering:” Innovation, Contestation, And Representation In The Pcha, 1911-1924., Taylor Mckee

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) was a professional North American hockey league that operated from 1911 to 1924. With markets in Victoria, Vancouver, New Westminster, Seattle, and Portland, the bourgeoning league was a viable competitor to the NHA and offered a distinctive approach to the developing sport. Through innovations and rule changes, the PCHA made significant strides in player safety, in line with the vision of “clean” hockey promoted by the league’s founders, Frank and Lester Patrick. In turn, these innovations were represented through newspaper accounts from the period, which helped promote a modern, scientific, and highly-marketable brand of …

An Analysis Of The Role Of Reality Television In The Representation Of Immigrants On Tlc's Show, 90 Day Fiancé., Morohunfolu Jimade Seton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A larger number of people reside outside their country of birth today than in any other time in history, and these levels are expected to continue to rise in the future (International Organization for Migration, 2011). The United States is currently the most popular immigrant destination in the world, with more immigrants than any other country. Immigrants statistics indicate that the immigrant population in the United States reached a record of 44.4 million in 2017 (Pew Research Centre, 2019). Correspondingly, the percentage of immigrants who were admitted into the U.S. as spouses of citizens has increased over of the last …

Best Leadership Practices Of Female Film Directors, Sara Carraway

Theses and Dissertations

Female film directors are highly underrepresented within the U.S. film industry, especially within narrative film (S.L. Smith, Pieper, & Choueiti, 2013). In 2019, only 12% of directors in the top 100 grossing films were female (Lauzen, 2020). There are several obstacles female directors face in their careers. Financing is more difficult to obtain for female directors due to stereotypes of women as risky investments (P. Smith et al., 2013). Closely tied to financing, gendered networks and homophily can prevent women from making relationships with gatekeepers and accessing the same opportunities as men (Jones & Pringle, 2015; Wing-Fai et al., 2015). …

“Where Are We Now?” The Image Construction Of Arabs And Muslims In Bodyguard, Safa K. Khairy

Theses and Dissertations

Over the past decade Arab and Muslim representations in the media have been either negative or overly simplified as a way to avoid criticism from watchdog groups. Arab and Muslim culture is viewed by the mainstream Western perspective as different, and inferior. According to Edward Said this divide and hierarchy between Eastern and Western comes through the process of Othering and is at the heart of Orientalism. This thesis investigates how Arabs and Muslims are Othered through a case study of the successful BBC television series Bodyguard.

Bodyguard presents the British government and police force attempting to stop various terrorist …

Domestic Workers In Hong Kong: Their Stories, Self-Perception, And Their Portrayal In Hong Kong And Filipino Media, Lauren Ernst

Senior Theses

Foreign domestic helpers are one of the most common and unique sights in current-day Hong Kong. On the weekdays, they can be seen walking dogs, taking children to school, and completing chores around the house. On Sundays, they flood the streets in full force, relaxing and taking advantage of their one day off a week. This population faces many challenges during their time in Hong Kong – these challenges are modern as well as historical and include financial, governmental, emotional, and social challenges. Along with the challenges of day to day life, they also face challenges in that their stories …

Wonder Woman: A Case Study For Critical Media Literacy, Adriana N. Fehrs

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

To better grasp the messages Wonder Woman is sending to its audience, a Critical Media Literacy (CML), ideological, and feminist framework is used to examine whether, and if so how, Wonder Woman succumbs to stereotypes that are often portrayed in the media. These theories will be used in the ensuing project to build a curriculum aimed at high school students.The curriculum positions students to examine the hegemonic ideologies that are represented in pop culture, specifically Wonder Woman.

Look At Where You Listen: A Study Of Commercial Music And Mediation, Thomas Walton Moore

Senior Projects Spring 2017

A joint senior project submitted to the divisions of arts and social studies. This project aims to reconsider the 'album' as a format of music distribution that has effects on the consumption-of and relationship-with music as commodity. This project consists of writing and recorded-music-making. Please email tom (at) dpimusic (dot) com for a link.

A Case For Empathy: Immigration In Spanish Contemporary Media, Music, Film, And Novels, Constantin C. Icleanu

Theses and Dissertations--Hispanic Studies

This dissertation analyzes the representations of immigrants from North Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe in Spain. As engaged scholarship, it seeks to better the portrayal of immigrants in the mass media through the study of literature, film, and music about immigration spanning from the year 2000 to 2016. Because misconceptions continue to propagate in the media, this dissertation works to counteract anti-immigrant, xenophobic representations as well as balance out overly positive and orientalized portrayal of immigrants with a call to recognize immigrants as human beings who deserve the same respect, dignity, and rights as any other citizen.

Chapter 1 …

Dark Humor And Suicide: Exploring Viewer Suicidality In "The Long Way", Sarah M. Rosen

Scripps Senior Theses

Death, dying, and the actual loss of life are some of the broadest sweeping concepts that typically evoke a wide array of emotions from sadness and anger to fear and despondence. It is unlikely that the first words associated with death are comedy, humor, or laughter. However, that is precisely what creators and comedians of dark, death, and gallows humor seek to achieve. For my senior capstone project, I have created a short fictional narrative film encompassing the traits of a dark comedy. However, noticing that few dark comedies delve into topics surrounding suicide, I wondered if it was possible …

Hollywood & Media Portrayals Of Veterans Who Suffer From Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Francesca C. Katafias

Senior Theses

According to the U.S Department of Veterans Affairs: National Center for PTSD, it’s recorded that, “approximately 11-20 out of every 100 Veterans (or between 11-20%) who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom have PTSD in a given year”. In my research study, my focus is to better understand Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, how prevalent it is in military veterans, and how the media (Hollywood) projects our veterans to be to the public. There are three important questions I have put together to further explore my topic without losing direction on my prime focus. The three questions I …

Institutional Influence On Documentary Form: An Analysis Of Pbs And Hbo Documentary Programs, Mark Joseph Irving

Theses and Dissertations

INSTITUTIONAL INFLUENCE ON DOCUMENTARY FORM - A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PBS and HBO DOCUMENTARY PROGRAMS

by Mark Irving

The University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, 2015

Under the Supervision of Professor Michael Z. Newman

Beginning in the 1980s, the documentary genre has undergone a transformation to accommodate modes of stylistic expression and subjective thematic exposition previously not evident in the genre. This deviation from the form’s traditional modes of expression typically associated with fact-based, journalistic pursuits can be attributed to the institutional underpinnings of media outlets that exhibit documentary programming. These institutional factors, a consequence of an evolving marketplace and shifts …

Happiest People Alive: An Analysis Of Class And Gender In The Trinidad Carnival, Asha L. St. Bernard

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Many of the marketing strategies inherent to the modern version of the Trinidad Carnival include texts that represent Trinidadians as young, fit, bikini-wearing, party enthusiasts. In these advertisements, Trinidadians are often characterized as carefree and welcoming to anyone participating in the much-anticipated annual festival. However, dominant narratives highlight certain groups and cultural aspects of the island while frequently masking several inequalities. They cleverly conceal other narratives and therefore marginalize groups and individuals from the very festival that is understood by many as a national symbol. Through informal participant-observation, and an analysis of some of the main promotional material, in particular …

Media Narratives And Drug Prohibition: A Content Analysis Of Themes And Strategies Promoted In Network News Coverage, 2000-2013, Maria M. Orsini

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Illicit drugs and drug users have been criminalized and stigmatized in social life and in mass media for more than a century in the United States. Researchers have reasoned that media accounts have contributed to the social construction of drug use as deviant behavior. Depictions of drugs and drug users which utilize alarmist rhetoric have been prevalent in media discourse and have targeted allegedly disreputable populations. The ideology which underpins drug prohibition, punitive public attitudes, and media sensationalism has contributed to the tendency of American society to disallow alternative approaches. This study examines the contribution of televised news broadcasts in …

Does Movie Viewing Cultivate Unrealistic Expectations About Love And Marriage?, Lauren F. E. Galloway

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The present study examines the association between consumption of media messages via movie viewing and endorsement of ideals and expectations about romantic relationships in a university-based sample of 228 respondents. Frequent viewing of romantic comedy and drama films was significantly and positively correlated with idealized notions that love conquers all, greater expectations for intimacy, and endorsement of the eros love style. Viewing preference for romantic movies was also significantly and positively correlated with fantasy rumination and marital intentions. However, participants who frequently watched romantic movies did not endorse beliefs in sexual perfection, mindreading, or disagreement disallowance. Implications of the findings …

Photo Manipulation In The Media, Stephanie Coffaney

Graphic Communication

In today’s society there are photos everywhere; they are in magazines, advertisements, newspapers, and books because photos make the text or the story stand out. Some may not know it, but most of these photos have been edited and retouched. This research paper attempted to determine the majority opinion of what types of photo editing was above the tolerable limit, as well as the public awareness of media manipulation. The different levels of photo editing included changing the contrast, removal of blemishes and dust, addition/removal of objects, and addition/removal of main subjects. The results revealed that most people are aware …