Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Framing Esports’ Jedi Issues: A Case Study In Media Irresponsibility, David Painter, Brittani Sahm

Faculty Publications

Purpose: This investigation analyzes Asian, European, and North American coverage of esports’ justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) issues as a case study of media organizations’ communications on these topics.

Design/methodology/approach: This quantitative content analysis describes coverage of esports’ race, gender, age, and social class issues to draw inferences about media organizations’ abilities to meet their social responsibilities when reporting on organizational JEDI issues.

Findings: There were significant differences across continents; however, most stories only mentioned gender and age, seldom noting esports’ race or social class issues.

Research limitations/implications: Although all stories analyzed were published in English, the findings extend …

Information, Identification, Or Both? A Rhetorical Analysis Of How Blm Uses Their Official Website, Candice L. Edrington

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Tweeting A Social Movement: Black Lives Matter And Its Use Of Twitter To Share Information, Build Community, And Promote Action, Candice Lashara Edrington, Nicole Lee

Faculty Publications

Public relations research has gradually incorporated the study of advocacy organizations. However, little research has focused on social movements in particular. Through a content analysis of all public tweets sent by Black Lives Matter (BLM) over a four-year period, this study examined the message strategies used on Twitter by the social movement as a means to share information, build community, and promote action. Consistent with research on other types of organizations, informational messages proved to be the most common. The study also analyzed the influence that these strategies had on audience engagement in terms of replies and retweets. Findings suggest …

News In Lights: The Times Square Zipper And Newspaper Signs In An Age Of Technological Enthusiasm, Dale L. Cressman Phd

Faculty Publications

During the latter half of the nineteenth century, when the telegraph had produced an appetite for breaking news, New York City newspaper publishers used signs on their buildings to report headlines and promote their newspapers. Originally chalkboards were used to post headlines. But, fierce competition led to the use of new technologies, such as magic lantern projections. These and, later, electrically lighted signs, would evoke amazement. In 1928, during an age of invention, The New York Times installed an electric "moving letter" sign on its building in Times Square. Popularly known as "the zipper," the monograph drew significant attention from …

Ubiquitous Emotion Analytics And How We Feel Today, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Publications

Emotions are complicated. Humans feel deeply, and it can be hard to bring clarity to those depths, to communicate about feelings, or to understand others’ emotional states. Indeed, this emotional confusion is one of the biggest challenges of deciphering our humanity. However, a kind of hope might be on the horizon, in the form of emotion analytics: computerized tools for recognizing and responding to emotion. This analysis explores how emotion analytics may reflect the current status of humans’ regard for emotion. Emotion need no longer be a human sense of vague, indefinable feelings; instead, emotion is in the process of …

Both Facts And Feelings: Emotion And News Literacy, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Publications

News literacy education has long focused on the significance of facts, sourcing, and verifiability. While these are critical aspects of news, rapidly developing emotion analytics technologies intended to respond to and even alter digital news audiences’ emotions also demand that we pay greater attention to the role of emotion in news consumption. This essay explores the role of emotion in the “fake news” phenomenon and the implementation of emotion analytics tools in news distribution. I examine the function of emotion in news consumption and the status of emotion within existing news literacy training programs. Finally, I offer suggestions for addressing …

Where Do Facts Matter? The Digital Paradox In Magazines' Fact-Checking Practices, Susan Currie Sivek, Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin

Faculty Publications

Print magazines are unique among nonfiction media in their dedication of staff and resources to in-depth, word-by-word verification of stories. Over time, this practice has established magazines’ reputation for reliability, helped them retain loyal readers amid a glut of information sources, and protected them from litigation. But during the past decade, websites, mobile platforms, and social media have expanded the types of stories and other content that magazines provide readers. Doing so has shortened the time between the creation and dissemination of content, challenging and in some cases squeezing out fact-checkers’ participation. This study examines the procedures applied to stories …

From Print To Digital And Back Again: Using The Campus Newspaper To Explore Historical Events And Academic Culture, Jill Crane, Marcella Lesher

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Studying Global News: Methodological Issues, August Grant, Yicheng Zhu, Jeff Wilkinson, Diane Guerrazzi

Faculty Publications

This paper reports on the processes, challenges, and results of a study of news consumers in 16 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and the United States. This study employed a 10-minute, online survey measuring media consumption, news topic preference, news values and demographic information. The results of the primary study will be reported in later papers; the purpose of this analysis is to address the issues and challenges in conducting cross-national research, including language and idiom, sampling issues, data collection procedures, incentives, and time. The analysis begins …

Defining News: A Ten-Nation Perspective, August Grant, Jeffrey Wilkinson, Diane Guerrazzi, Yicheng Zhu

Faculty Publications

Worldwide, the consumption of news and information is greater than ever before. But twenty years of Internet news and a decade of social media have permanently altered the patterns of behaviors associated with how consumers look for news and even how they perceive what ‘news’ is for them. As the media landscape changes and old approaches no longer fit, it may be time to re-assess the fundamental definition of “news.” Traditional news values have been defined and extensively studied by Western researchers, but little attention has been paid to the correspondence of these definitions of news with consumers’ behavior in …

Format Appears To Matter Less Than Story Salience, Diane Guerrazzi, August Grant, Jeffrey Wilkinson

Faculty Publications

Researchers suggest another factor other than format may be at work in determining the amount of time readers spend with an online news story, and that is the story’s relevance. They suggest journalists choose the format based upon the best way for telling a particular story.

"A Date Which Will Live In Infamy": College Newspaper Reporting Of U.S. Entry Into Wwii, Jill Crane, Marcella Lesher

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Time-Shifting Vs. Appointment Viewing: The Role Of Fear Of Missing Out Within Tv Consumption Behaviors, Lindsey Conlin, Andrew C. Billings, Lauren Averset

Faculty Publications

The current study employed a national sample in order to investigate the phenomenon of fear-of-missing-out (FoMO), the apprehension associated with the fear that other people are having a pleasurable experience that one is not a part of. The current study investigated the role that FoMO plays in TV viewing habits, particularly binge-watching and the consumption of one-time megaevents. Results indicated that FoMO predicts the pace at which people choose to watch TV, social media use as it relates to TV, and whether they are likely to watch some one-time TV programs—such as sporting events like the Super Bowl.

The Complicity Of Silence: Race And The Hamilton Holt/Corra Harris Friendship, 1899-1935, Jack C. Lane

Faculty Publications

From the perspective of the large race issue in the early twentieth century America, this article closely examines the perplexed personal relationship between Hamilton Holt, 8th president of Rollins College (1925-1949) and Corra Harris, one of Holt's original "Golden Personality" faculty members who carried the unique title of "Professor of Evil" at Rollins.

City Magazine Editors And The Evolving Urban Information Environment, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Publications

The urban information environment in which city magazines operate is changing dramatically, with the decline of local newspapers and the growth of user-generated local content. City magazine editors are re-envisioning their purpose as local information providers. This study provides a qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews with senior editors at 15 award-winning city magazines. The editors’ responses speak to the changing role of their publications today; the function of new technologies in informing local communities; and the public service that local journalism organizations offer in a constrained economic situation.

African Pride And Vexation In World Cup Development Sportswriting, Richard J. Peltz-Steele

Faculty Publications

The first men’s football World Cup in Africa, in 2010, provided an opportunity for development sportswriting. As mediator of sport for the people, mass media are well positioned to capitalize upon the development potential of football. This research analyzed development-related World Cup coverage to better understand African perceptions of identity and the role of African media in improving the quality of human life. Using a news database, this research compiled and analyzed stories published in Africa, outside South Africa, during the World Cup. Stories were tested for a World Cup peg and possible development angle and flagged for representations of …

Impact Of Format On Evaluations Of Online News, August Grant, Jeffrey Wilkinson, Diane Guerrazzi

Faculty Publications

The emergence of online news offers journalists the opportunity to use a variety of formats to present news, including traditional text and video forms and emerging multimedia forms. This paper reports the results of a series of studies exploring these formats, two experiments and a survey. The first experiment compared three formats of video news delivery and found that format was related to time spent viewing a story, and time spent predicted recall of the story, but no direct relationship was observed between format and recall. The secondexperiment compared three different formats (text, text with pictures, and text with videos), …

Eco-Terrorism Or Eco-Tage: An Argument For The Proper Frame, David Thomas Sumner, Lisa M. Weidman

Faculty Publications

What does the term “terrorism” mean? Is it accurate to lump illegal acts that destroy property but carefully avoid harming people into the same category as acts clearly intended to kill? Is this a difference of kind or just of degree? While we (the authors) don't generally endorse the destruction of property as a method of generating social change, we believe that the destruction of property is fundamentally different from the intentional killing of people; therefore, to label acts of obstruction, trespassing, vandalism, sabotage, or arson as “terrorism” is inaccurate and has the potential to damage one's understanding of real …

The Effects Of Video Formats In Online News: A Study Of Recall And Stickiness, August Grant, Diane Guerrazzi, Jack Karlis

Faculty Publications

News organizations putting content on their websites may better engage their audience by offering a choice of raw video rather than packages. A two-by-three experiment studied the relationships among video format, time spent, and recall for online news. Test subjects viewed a traditional, broadcast-type standard news “package,” a disassembled package, and raw video with text. Results showed users spent significantly more time with the raw video format than with the other two formats. Time spent was strongly correlated with post-test recall of elements of each story, but there was no direct relationship between format and recall. A model is proposed …

Utah And The Civil War Press, Kenneth L. Alford Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

A discussion of how Mormons were treated in the national press during the American Civil War with an emphasis on polygamy, statehood requests, loyalty, and Brigham Young.

This chapter was originally published (and reprinted in "Civil War Saints" with permission):

Kenneth L. Alford, “Utah and the Civil War Press.” Utah Historical Quarterly 80, no. 1 (Winter 2012): 75–92.

Visual Framing Of Patriotism And National Identity On The Covers Of Der Spiegel, Andrea Pyka, Scott B. Fosdick, William Tillinghast

Faculty Publications

Patriotism in Germany has been a controversial issue since the Nazi era. Despite the fear and hesitations surrounding the idea of German pride and national identity, Der Spiegel, one of Germany's major national news magazines, showed an increasing visual presence of national identity symbols on its covers following key historical events: the building of the Berlin Wall, the reunification of Germany, the adoption of the euro, and the 2006 World Cup.

Book Review Of Inside The Hollywood Fan Magazine: A History Of Star Makers, Fabricators, And Gossip Mongers, Scott B. Fosdick

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

“We Need A Showing Of All Hands”: Technological Utopianism In Make Magazine, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Publications

Make magazine is a quarterly publication focused on do-it-yourself projects involving technology and innovation. The magazine also sponsors a biannual event, the Maker Faire, that brings “makers” together to share their knowledge. As a strategy for building audience loyalty and identification with the magazine, the Make products are skillfully crafted. However, they also invoke ideals such as environmentalism and nationalism in a potent mix that not only engages readers, but also represents an additional cultural demonstration of the phenomenon of technological utopianism.

Social Media Under Social Control: Regulating Social Media And The Future Of Socialization, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Publications

The process of socialization for new and future journalists will look dramatically different from the process undergone by previous generations of journalists, due to economic realities and changes in the nature of news production. The rise of social media and its role in the establishment of a successful career will also affect the integration of these rising professionals into their employing organizations. These changes in the socialization process will require alterations both in the day-to-day management of these individuals and in the theoretical approaches to studying their work, particularly with regard to the impact of social media on the profession. …

The Development Sportswriter: Covering African Football, Richard J. Peltz-Steele

Faculty Publications

Football is Africa’s game, but performance in world competition reveals the sport as metaphor for African development is stymied by political corruption, infrastructure deficiency, and neo-colonial exploitation. The media-sport complex has perpetuated this cycle. Development journalism contrarily posits media as a force for good. Where the ideal of objectivity dominates traditional news, development journalism stresses nation-building. However, emphasizing news, development journalism overlooks the powerful role of sport in African life. Through meta-analysis, this article compares the values and practices of development journalism and of sportswriting. The article concludes that sportswriters are well positioned to act as development journalists. As mediator …

Homophobia, Heterosexism, And Ambivalence In The Premier Issue Of Sports Illustrated Woman/Sport, Lisa M. Weidman

Faculty Publications

The arrival of a magazine dedicated solely to the world of women's sports was an exciting prospect for fans and proponents of women's sports. But the first issue of Sports Illustrated Women/Sport disappointed many who considered it did not put women's sports in the best possible light, who were worried and disappointed that its editors did not print the best stories or even focus on the most deserving athletes. Lisa Weidman decided to investigate further, using feminist theory and prior research findings to better understand the magazine's messages. Through a critical analysis of the magazine's editorial content - at the …

From Newspaper Row To Times Square: The Dispersal And Contested Identity Of An Imagined Journalistic Community, Dale L. Cressman Phd

Faculty Publications

Until the early twentieth century, Park Row was synonymous with New York newspapers. Of the newspapers that left Park Row, The New York Times was notable for having established a geographic landmark that was identified with the newspaper. In fact, by 1906, Times Square had replaced Park Row as a place for New Yorkers to get election night news or to celebrate New Year's Eve. Nevertheless, Times Square did not remain associated with its newspaper namesake, and today a successor to the "zipper" is the last physical reminder of the paper's presence in this area of New York City. Drawing …

Editing Conservatism: How National Review Magazine Framed And Mobilized A Political Movement, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Publications

This paper examines how National Review magazine helped to spark the 1960s American conservative movement through its particular framing of conservatism, and how the magazine has worked to sustain that influence even until today. Using research on frame alignment in social movements, the first issue of National Review is analyzed and placed in context with contemporaneous events and publications. The creation and editing of the magazine is found to parallel the creative and deliberate framing of the early conservative movement. The implications of National Review’s success for today’s political movements and for creators of political media messages are also …

Is Seeing Believing? A Survey Of Magazine Professionals' Practices And Attitudes Towards Ethical Standards For Photographs, Shahira Fahmy, Scott B. Fosdick, Thomas J. Johnson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

No Business Like Show Business: Tracking Commodification Over A Century Of Variety, Scott B. Fosdick

Faculty Publications

This baseline survey of 517 executives examined relationship management within business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce. Companies that employed B2B e-commerce evidenced communication and public relations tenets of relationship management. They allowed consumers to order and pay online, to access online support, to contact the company or sales staff, and to get product information. Engendering loyalty, by tracking customer satisfaction, was weak. Commitment to B2B e-customers was high, evidenced through personnel dedicated to B2B e-commerce and stated organizational commitment.