Communication Commons^™

Communo Magazine, Winter 2009, School Of Communication

CommUNO Magazine

CommUNO magazine was produced by MaverickPR and is currently published annually by the UNO School of Communication: 6001 Dodge Street, ASH 140, Omaha, NE 68182: Phone: 402.554.2600. Fax: 402.554.3836. For more information, follow us on Twitter@ CommUNO, join the “UNO School of Communication” page on Facebook or visit communication.unomaha.edu.

Talking With Copyright Holders And Pirates: Grass Roots Voices Concerning Chinese Copyright Piracy Of U.S. Ip Products, Dexin Tian, Chin-Chung Chao

Communication Faculty Publications

Through a thematic analysis of 45 in-depth interviews via the theoretical frameworks of the theory of reasoned action and culture change, this study explores the grass roots voices concerning Chinese copyright piracy of U.S. IP products in China. The study found that both the U.S. neglect of the Chinese historical heritage in terms of IPR protection and the traditional Chinese conceptions of private property account for the rampant copyright piracy in China. As the solutions to the issue, readjusted U.S. IPR policies and flexible IP product prices, sufficient media supervision and public education in China, and effective enforcement of IPR …

"Glory, The Grape": Investigating Theatre, Intoxication, And Theatrical Intoxication, Chloe Rae Edmonson

Speech & Drama Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Send For Success: A Descriptive Look At Prescriptive Manuals For Email, Jean Reid Norman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Email has existed for almost forty years, but in the past ten, it has become a dominant form of communication in the business world. A sign of the maturation of email and its dominance in commerce is the rise of how-to books on writing effective emails. This paper analyzes six of those recent texts to develop a taxonomy of current prescriptive advice for email. It examines contextual issues as well as issues of content, such as structure and tone; format, such as length of paragraphs, forms of salutation and farewell, and use of emoticons and abbreviations; and grammar and correctness. …

Using Sunflower Plots And Classification Trees To Study Typeface Legibility, Edgar C. Merkle, Barbara S. Chaparro

Publications

This article describes the application of sunflower plots and classification trees to the study of onscreen typeface legibility. The two methods are useful for describing high-dimensional data in an intuitive manner, which is crucial for interacting with both the typographers who design the typefaces and the practitioners who must make decisions about which typeface to use for specific applications. Furthermore, classification trees help us make specific recommendations for how much of a character attribute is “enough” to make it legible. We present examples of sunflower plots and classification trees using data from a recent typeface legibility experiment, and we present …

The Aims Of Public Scholarship In Media Law And Ethics, Erik Ugland

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

This essay urges scholars in media law and ethics to reevaluate the extent and utility of their public-scholar efforts and to consider ways that they can transfer research-based knowledge to public audiences while also playing a more deliberate role in holding media and government institutions accountable. It suggests that the devolution of standards in mass communication, the increasing encroachments on media autonomy, and the broader collapse of power into fewer hands make this a particularly urgent moment for scholars to reengage the public and to abandon their feckless neutrality on public issues. The overarching aim of public scholars ought to …

Nike Women’S Advertising: A Matter Of Principle, Jean M. Grow

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

What’S In A Name? Managing Multiple Organizational Identities In A Catholic University, Sarah Bonewits Feldner, Scott C. D'Urso

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

This paper examines the situation surrounding a proposed nickname change for Marquette University. The analysis draws upon current work that explores multiple organizational identities and stakeholder participation in making such a decision. The article focuses on Catholic universities and considers tensions that emerge as the faith mission interacts with the secular purposes of the organization. We argue that, rather than focusing on the faith-mission alone, Catholic universities are at their best when they attend to multiple identity targets when communicating decisions to various constituency groups.

The Bison: 2009, Howard University

Howard University Yearbooks

This digital object was funded in part through a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The digitalization of this object was part of a collaborative effort with the Washington Research Library Consortium and George Washington University.

Analysis Of The Supporting Websites For The Use Of Instructional Games In K-12 Settings, Mansureh Kebritchi, Wendi M. Kappers Phd, Atsusi Hirumi, Renee Henry

Publications

This article identifies resources to be included in a website designed to facilitate the integration of instructional games in K-12 settings. Guidelines and supporting components are based on a survey of K-12 educators who are integrating games, an analysis of existing instructional game websites, and summaries of literature on the use of educational software in K-12 settings and teacher technology training. The results indicate that educators face three main challenges when integrating games, including: (a) technical and logistical requirements, (b) curriculum integration, and (c) teacher training. To overcome these challenges, K-12 educators should be provided with: (a) curriculum resources, (b) …

An Analysis Of The Social Networks Of Local Television Reporters, Lisa R. Honore

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study analyzed the personal and professional networks of four local television reporters using social network analysis methodology. Network analysis was carried out to the tertiary level allowing examination of demographic data for 773 individuals in the reporter networks. Analysis was conducted through the lens of media norms and routines and the sociological principle of homophily that states people are more likely to associate with people like themselves. Using as a guide, norms and routines and homophily literature as well as studies about the portrayal of minorities, the study examines how the social networks of reporters can determine how communities …

The Political-Economic Origins Of Reali-Tv, Chad Raphael

Communication

From the sea change in American television in the 1980s emerged a programming trend variously described as “infotainment,” “reality-based television,” “tabloid TV,” “crime-time television,” “trash TV,” and “on-scene shows.” The welter of terms created by television critics to describe these new programs masked their underlying connection as a response to economic restructuring within the industry. In this essay I offer a rough categorization of these programs, sketch the industrial context from which they emerged, and point to the economic problems they were meant to solve. I focus mostly on the distinctive conditions of prime-time series, putting aside made-for-TV docudramas and …

Nebraska Biomechanics Core Facilty 2008 Annual Report, Issue 7, Nebraska Biomechanics Core Facility

Biomechanics Annual Report

April 2008 - March 2009

This issue features Announcements, Featured News, Nonlinear Workshop, Projects, Collaborations, Visitors, Awards, Publications, and Support.

Marketing Strategies Within The Baby Product Industry, Jane Daniels

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

When it comes to babies, things are expensive and companies are always looking to develop the most cutting edge products. Parents are constantly concerned with getting the best products in the market and doing everything right so that their child is safe and sound. But the question is how parents determine which products are the best and which ones are simply claiming to be the best. Are they simply guessing or are they looking carefully at all the facts? Parents look at product websites, consumer product review websites, consumer reports, blogs, and get word of mouth referrals to try to …

The Plame Game: Framing A Political Scandal, Misty Dawn Albrecht

LSU Master's Theses

The media play an important role in society. They interpret political events, actions, policies, and scandals in a manner that citizens can understand. The media use frames to assist in interpretations and descriptions. They may create their own frames or use frames supplied by the political elites. Frames can also lead to biased coverage when used to omit details or present someone in a favorable or unfavorable manner. This study examines the frames the media used during the coverage of President George W. Bush’s first political scandal, the “Plame Game.” On July 14, 2003, Robert Novak exposed the identity of …

Forever New Orleans?: A Look Back And Beyond, Blair Alexis Broussard

LSU Master's Theses

Natural disasters such as hurricanes can be cataclysmic for any city. This is especially true for cities that rely on tourism as an economic driving force. The inevitability of these disasters, even with extensive planning, contain variables for which cities cannot be prepared. Such was the case with Hurricane Katrina, which hit New Orleans in 2005. After the hurricane made landfall on August 29, 2005, New Orleans, the state of Louisiana and federal government officials faced a daunting task of recovering from the terrible natural catastrophe. Tourism was one of the hardest hit industries for New Orleans and the state …

Corporate Social Reporting In Sri Lanka Surrounding The Tsunami In 2004, Tilina Dharmaratne

Theses : Honours

There is a growing interest in studying corporate social reporting (CSR) around the world. This interest is specifically growing in developing countries. The importance of encouraging CSR is emphasised by The World Bank mainly because of the benefits associated with CSR to such developing countries. This study examines government influence, research and influence of changes in society expectations on CSR in Sri Lanka a developing country surrounding the tsunami in 2004. Research questions are proposed to examine the change in total quantity of CSR disclosures between the years 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007. Four directional hypotheses and a null hypothesis …

Mcmansions: Re-Presenting A Divided, Subdivided And Uncanny Suburban Landscape, Mike Gray

Theses : Honours

This exegesis speculates on the rise and spread of 'McMansions' by exploring possible reactions to this architecture and the contextual dimensions of my photographic response. The exegesis aligns aspects of the 'Uncanny' (Freud, 1919) to new trends in domestic architecture and topographical photography. By pictorially offering a counter-narrative to more conventional representations of the 'dream home', it ironically demonstrates that some houses can be viewed as unhomely. The exegesis explains how cultural anxieties can be experienced when viewing contemporary trends in domestic architecture within new suburban developments. It does this by aligning the increased use of featurism (Boyd, 1980) in …

From Dreams To Nightmares : Cross-Generational Romance In Mainstream American Cinema, Sol Stern

Theses : Honours

This thesis is concerned with the changes in cinematic depictions of romantic relationships in which there is enough age disparity that the couple could be mistaken for parent and child. These cross-generational affairs have significance within the ideology of the family unit, the heterosexual couple and the classic Hollywood ideal of romantic love. The way that these relationships have been portrayed on screen has changed drastically in mainstream American cinema from the 1950s to the 2000s, and these shifts reflect changing values and attitudes in society since all films exhibit certain ideologies. Through sampling several relevant films made between 1953 …

Social Implications Of Fearing Terrorism. A Report On Australian Responses To The Images, Anne Aly, Lelia Green

"Exploding Media Myths : Misrepresenting Australia?" - Forum

On 20 November 2008, 29 participants came together for the Exploding Media Myths: Misrepresenting Australia Forum at the University of NSW in Sydney. The Forum was designed to bring together keynote speakers, academics, policy makers, the media and community to discuss the findings of an Australian Research Council Discovery Project, Australian Responses to the Images and Discourses of Terrorism and the Other: Establishing a Metric of Fear. Over the course of the day, the participants discussed a range of themes relevant to the media and its representation of Australia and Australian values in the context of increased incidences of …

Front Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Title Page

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Editorial Board

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Editor's Page, Paul Turman

Basic Communication Course Annual

Note: The Editor's Page from Volume 20 was repeated in Volume 21 by mistake of the publisher at the time, American Press. It is included here as printed, but it does not pertain to the content in this issue.

Contents And Abstracts

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Uniquely Qualified, Distinctively Competent: Delivering 21st Century Skills In The Basic Course, Stephen K. Hunt, Cheri J. Simonds, Brent K. Simonds

Basic Communication Course Annual

In this manuscript we argue that the communication discipline’s pedagogical content knowledge should be expanded to include educational strategies for advancing students’ critical thinking, information literacy, and political engagement skills. Further, we argue that the discipline should explicitly position itself as uniquely qualified to address these skills. By doing so, those affiliated with the basic communication course can leverage a substantial amount of political capital on their home campuses and go a long way toward delivering the critical skills students need in order to be successful in the 21^st century.

Speech Evaluation Assessment: An Analysis Of Written Speech Feedback On Instructor Evaluation Forms In The Basic Communication Course, Cheri J. Simonds, Kevin R. Meyer, Stephen K. Hunt, Brent K. Simonds

Basic Communication Course Annual

As a critical component of many general education programs, the basic communication course is at the forefront of many assessment efforts. Five years after conducting extensive program assessment using student portfolios, and after implementing revisions to the instructor training program, course directors at Illinois State University conducted another round of portfolio assessment. The present study reveals progress in the specific areas originally targeted for improvement. Additional areas for future revisions to the instructor training program are suggested. Implications for assessment efforts at other institutions are discussed.

Follow-Up To The Nca Basic Communication Course Survey Vii: Using Learning Objectives In The Course, Sherwyn Morreale, David W. Worley, Lawrence W. Hugenberg

Basic Communication Course Annual

Respondents to the seventh national survey of the basic communication course at two and four-year colleges and universities identified administrative and pedagogical problems that challenge effective management and teaching in the course. This new study investigates how learning objectives in the basic course are related to one of the most salient problems identified in the earlier 2006 survey, consistency and reliability across multiple sections of the basic course at any institution. Data are presented from 37 randomly selected respondents, all members of the NCA Basic Course Division, regarding the use of learning objectives in the basic course in general and …

Problem-Based Learning (Pbl) And Student Engagement In The Public Speaking Classroom, Deanna Sellnow, Stephanie Ahlfeldt

Basic Communication Course Annual

Problem-based learning (PBL) is an instructional strategy designed to foster student engagement. This study examined the effectiveness of PBL to actively engage students in a basic public speaking course. An adapted version of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) was administered to students in 47 sections of the public speaking course at a medium-sized midwestern university. Students in the PBL-enhanced sections were significantly more engaged (µ = 33.6) than those in the conventionally taught sections (µ = 32.2). Further analysis examined three variables embedded in the survey: a cooperative learning variable, a cognitive level variable, and a personal skills …

Connected Classroom Climate And Communication In The Basic Course: Associations With Learning, Marshall Prisbell, Karen Kangas Dwyer, Robert E. Carlson, Shereen G. Bingham, Ana M. Cruz

Basic Communication Course Annual

Most research on the association between classroom climate and student learning has emphasized the instructor’s role in creating a positive learning environment. However, the role students play in fostering a classroom climate that promotes learning has received less attention, particularly in the basic course. This study examined the relationship between perceptions of a connected classroom climate and students’ cognitive and affective learning involving 437 freshman and sophomore university students enrolled in the basic public speaking course. Students completed the Connected Classroom Climate Inventory (CCCI) and scales measuring affective and cognitive learning. Results showed significant relationships between student perceptions of connected …