Communication Technology and New Media Commons^™

The Phygital Design Process: Using Emerging Technologies To Create A Phygital Fashion Brand Rooted In Nostalgia, Madeline M. Mcdaniel

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This Master's Project is a comprehensive exploration of the intersection of digital fashion design, nostalgia, and sustainable practices. Its primary objective is to create 'project CYBERBAE,' a phygital fashion collection that draws inspiration from early 2000s video game characters, trends, and aesthetics. The project utilizes advanced digital tools like Clo3D to demonstrate a comprehensive digital fashion design process that emphasizes inclusivity and sustainability. It also pioneers the development of a 3D virtual world, providing users with an immersive environment to interact with and experience digital fashion. This virtual space serves as a platform for a community of fashion, technology, and …

Investigating The Potential Of Augmented Reality In Creating A Sense Of Place On College Campuses, Linda White

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This project examines how designing an augmented reality (AR) campus navigation app can improve college students' sense of place and connection with California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB). To guide the design of the app, I engaged in qualitative research using a curated campus walk protocol that invited students to walk to their favorite place on campus and record their walk while narrating it.

My analysis reveals the larger patterns that students use to select favorite places and favorite routes to those places, as well as how space navigation may lead to the formation of a sense of connection with …

Engaging For A Cause: How Nonprofits Can Leverage Theory To Maximize Video Engagement On Instagram., Aiko A. A. A. Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Video is the second-richest form of media, conveying both verbal and nonverbal cues to viewers (Hasim et al., 2020). When coupled with the accessibility of social media, videos can spark consumer interest and convert neutral parties to brand-supporters (Alamäki et al., 2019; Tseng & Wei, 2020). This study aimed to investigate the effects of using Aristotle’s persuasive appeals, Berger’s STEPPS, and Monroe’s Motivated Sequence on the success of nonprofit organizations’ social media videos, measured in engagement metrics (likes and comments). Through a content analysis of 50 videos posted to Instagram by randomly selected nonprofit organizations, this study found that pathos …

Ai Usage In The Insurance Industry: Future Or Fad, Carrie Stetler

Honors Projects

AI has garnered the attention of professionals from every industry and Insurance is no different. Join me to analyze the many ways AI is affecting this industry and others, as well as to answer the question, “Is AI really the future?”

U.S. Government Agency Podcasts, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Presents podcasts from U.S. Government agencies which can be discovered through the U.S. Government Publishing Office's Catalog of Government Publications. Agencies whose podcasts are presented include the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Peace Corps, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Government Accountability Office (GAO), National Park Service, Department of Justice, Federal Reserve System, and U.S. Naval War College.

Zeitgeist Of The 2010s And Impact On Fashion Trends, Sophie Scott Anderson

Senior Theses

The zeitgeist of the 2010s can be examined through shifts in technology, politics, economy, environment, religion, and entertainment. This research explores how fashion serves as both a mirror and a driver of societal change during this transformative decade. Trend diffusion itself evolved from the traditional theories of trickle-up and trickle-down because of the prominence of influencer culture, giving average consumers the platform to influence numerous like-minded consumers. Defining the 2010s zeitgeist requires an analysis of the significant patterns in the technological and sociocultural environment through as many sources as possible for a holistic approach. Sociologically, fashion has been accepted as …

Guinness Is The "Pumpkin Spice Latte" Of St. Patrick's Day, Jin-A Choi, Bond Benton, Yi Luo

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

This study by a team of faculty from the Joetta Di Bella and Fred C. Sautter III Center for Strategic Communication in the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University shows that Guinness was the most-discussed brand on social media leading up to St. Patrick’s Day, and not just in the traditional ways people share how they drink the popular beer brand. The volume of social media conversations related to Guinness beer and St. Patrick’s Day saw a 25% increase. Most social chats exhibited a happy mood as evidenced by a 62% joyful sentiment.

While the Shamrock Shake …

The Uses And Gratifications Of Social Audio-Focused Apps: A Case Study Of The Clubhouse Application, Dalia Abdelhamid Younes

Theses and Dissertations

Social audio has recently emerged recently as a new form of social media based on voice. It spread rapidly through the Clubhouse application, which became a significant trend during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aims to explore Egyptian content creators' motivations to join Clubhouse, study their motivations to produce their content, and identify the gratifications obtained from using this application. It also seeks to investigate the application`s sustainability within the Egyptian context by outlining the challenges faced by the Egyptian content creators. The study employs the uses and gratifications theory, conducting in-depth interviews with 17 Egyptian content creators. The findings …

An Investigation Of Social Media Discussion On Valentine's Day 2024 Trends: Money Can Buy Love And Chocolates, Jin-A Choi, Bond Benton, Yi Luo

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

Valentine’s Day, typically defined by expression of love and affection, has been celebrated as a symbolic day to exchange gifts among lovers. The expression of love has been firmly tied with the act of giving material things, such as gifts. However, over the years, discomfort and even anger has grown around the over-commercialization of Valentine’s Day, creating a deep divide between those who gift and those who criticize and denounce the holiday as nothing but a “Hallmark card holiday” to push consumerism. Our center’s study from the previous year indicated that over-commercialization of Valentine’s Day found that love is not …

Affective, Cognitive, Behavioral Appeals In A Parasocial Breakup With Podcast Hosts Of Radiolab, M.O. Vilceanu, Kristine Johnson

AMTP Proceedings 2024

This is the first study to investigate parasocial breakups in the context of long-term podcast listening. Radiolab, which is produced by WNYC in New York, is an award-winning program that reaches millions of people. Starting as a radio show in 2002 and later offering a podcast format in 2007, show creators and former hosts, Robert Krulwich and Jad Abumrad, entertained audiences with their journalistic investigations of science-related topics while later incorporating societal and political content in the program. Yet similar to successful long-running television programs, Radiolab has undergone host changes. Today, the official hosts are Latif Nasser and Lulu Miller, …

Taylor-Made Super Bowl: Taylor Swiftmania On Social Media Regarding The Big Game, Yi Luo, Jin-A Choi, Bond Benton

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

Celebrity couples occupy a unique space in popular culture. Similar to the royal unions of history and the present, the combination of notoriety and the voyeuristic appeal of watching a relationship play out in public spaces, celebrity couples energize popular discourse and invite public commentary and interest. The opportunity to become a spectator in ongoing celebrity coupling invites a level of perceived intimacy in what feels like a relationship with famous people.

Data collected for this study suggests Taylor Swift’s connection to Super Bowl LVIII has elevated the meaning of the game beyond the stratospheric levels of cultural significance the …

The New Paradigm Of Textual Content In Organizations: A Multi-Dimensional Analysis In The Digital Landscape, Sandrine Lefebvre-Reghay

Proceedings from the Document Academy

In this article, we aim to expand digital literature analysis to evaluate organizational textual content, vital for contemporary organizations' communication and operation. By comparing traditional literary structures with this new content format, we identify various dimensions influenced by it, including marketing, technology, economy, media, society, and culture. The dynamic nature of the internet, search engine algorithms, and AI's impact on content prompts a shift from prioritizing quantity to emphasizing quality, echoing Lucien Karpik's 1989 perspective on the value economy.

Identifying Accessibility Improvement Opportunities For Global Environmental Communication Websites, Alicia Mason, Josh Compton, Sakshi Bhati

Faculty Submissions

Digital environmental information presented with low web accessibility reduces parti-cipation in environmental advocacy and information seeking behaviors for many people with disabilities, creating a consequential digital divide. We use WEB AIM computer automated analysis of web accessibility to assess the general accessibility of online environmental communication messages. Results show 95.3% of the popular websites in our sample had indicators of potentially critical accessibility errors. Our findings highlight the importance of addressing digital environmental information accessibility shortcomings so that educational, informational and persuasive environ-mental messages can increase environmental literacy of vulnerable populations and help to bridge the digital divide.

Identifying Youth Appeals In Alcohol Alternative Social Media Content Through Framing, Melina Oneal

West Chester University Master’s Theses

Proposed regulations for alcohol advertising prevent beverage companies from targeting people under the legal drinking age. However, similar regulations for alcohol alternative beverages are less explored, which could allow alcohol alternative products to create awareness for alcoholic beverages among youth. Alcohol alternatives beverages, including no-alcohol and low-alcohol products, are increasing in popularity and can function as compliments to alcoholic products to decrease the total alcohol volume consumed or as substitutes for alcoholic products. Framing theory can be operationalized through the Content Appealing to Youth Index, an index of content elements found in research literature to be appealing to youth, to …

From Memes To Message To Mario Kart: An Analysis Of The Reach Of Social Media Content Related To Kamala Harris, Yi Luo, Jin-A Choi, Bond Benton

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

A daunting challenge in political engagement lies in connecting with the younger demographics who are the digital natives. Especially, the 18-24 age group has some of the lowest turnout rates amongst eligible voters. After her sudden ascendence to be the presumptive presidential candidate for the Democrat Party, a tidal wave of meme posts, largely from young Americans, playfully associated Kamala Harris with coconut tree. These coconut-themed memes ignited an unprecedented surge of energy and engagement among young voters on social media platforms, which provides an ideal context to examine their reactions toward these memes in light of a high-stake presidential …

The Impact Of Social Media On Charitable Giving For Nonprofit Organization, Namchul Shin

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Research has extensively studied nonprofit organizations’ use of social media for communications and interactions with supporters. However, there has been limited research examining the impact of social media on charitable giving. This research attempts to address the gap by empirically examining the relationship between the use of social media and charitable giving for nonprofit organizations. We employ a data set of the Nonprofit Times’ top 100 nonprofits ranked by total revenue for the empirical analysis. As measures for social media traction, i.e., how extensively nonprofits draw supporters on their social media sites, we use Facebook Likes, Twitter Followers, and Instagram …

Key Issues Of Predictive Analytics Implementation: A Sociotechnical Perspective, Leida Chen, Ravi Nath, Nevina Rocco

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Developing an effective business analytics function within a company has become a crucial component to an organization’s competitive advantage today. Predictive analytics enables an organization to make proactive, data-driven decisions. While companies are increasing their investments in data and analytics technologies, little research effort has been devoted to understanding how to best convert analytics assets into positive business performance. This issue can be best studied from the socio-technical perspective to gain a holistic understanding of the key factors relevant to implementing predictive analytics. Based upon information from structured interviews with information technology and analytics executives of 11 organizations across the …

Media And Internet Censorship In India: A Study Of Its History And Political-Economy, Ramesh Subramanian

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

The Indian Constitution, which came into force on January 26, 1950, guarantees various fundamental rights, such as the freedom of speech and expression, freedom of religion, rights to form association, as well as rights to privacy. Yet, since the adoption of the Constitution, the Indian citizen has been subject to varying degrees of media censorship and surveillance. This paper seeks to delve into the historical evolution of media and Internet censorship and surveillance in India. It shows how media censorship of varying types have existed since the British colonists introduced restrictive laws in order to expand and control the native …

Activities Tailoring Within Agile Scrum Roles: A Case Of Nigerian Healthcare Information Systems Development, Yazidu Salihu, Julian Bass, Gloria Iyawa

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Developing quality agile healthcare information systems requires understanding regulatory compliance and evolving healthcare needs through activities tailored within agile scrum roles. Agile scrum, a widely adopted philosophy, offers significant advantages in managing software development processes. This research explores how activities within the agile scrum roles are tailored to agile healthcare information systems development within the Nigerian context. This study adopted a qualitative case study methodology and interviewed 12 agile practitioners developing healthcare information systems within Nigeria using semi-structured open-ended interview guide questions. The practitioners were selected based on a snowballing process, a sunset of purposive sampling techniques from our network …

What Can We Learn From A Co-Creation Journey For A Quick Scan Digital Transformation Maturity Assessment Tool For Development Ngos?, Anand Sheombar

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

This paper describes the approach and lessons learned from a co-creation process with Dutch development NGOs to create a practical and easy-to-use assessment tool for practitioners to assess the organisation's maturity level of digital transformation. For this study, we applied a design science research methodology, specifically a six-step co-creation approach suitable for developing maturity models. The digital maturity assessment tool (quick scan) created is a domain- specific digital transformation maturity tool for development NGOs rather than a generally applicable tool. This artefact was evaluated using an eight-point Requirements framework for the development of digital maturity assessment tools. By developing a …

Ireland, Intellectual Property And The Political Economy Of Information Monopolies, Kenneth W. Murphy

Articles

Ireland’s policies towards US-owned global digital intermediaries (Big Tech) have emerged as an international political issue and received global media attention. So far, political and media focus has been on the impact of Ireland’s tax policies on the revenue-raising ability of other European states and perceptions of light touch regulation of those corporations based in the Republic. The current paper will focus on how Ireland’s switch to a focus on capital allowances for the sizeable American tech corporations has enabled the latter to sustain their dominance in the digital transition through incentivizing and subsidizing their switch to assetization as a …

Influencers Endorsement Advertising Methods On Different Social Media Platforms, Sophia R. Annaloro

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Social media marketing has opened a unique spot for Social Media Influencers. With their fame comes a lot of power over their follower's actions. Many things are at play when an influencer works with a brand to create promotional content for a product. Flow theory suggests that an abrupt advertisement does not match the pace or aesthetic of the content they are currently consuming. When one's viewing is abruptly interrupted by an advertisement, the consumers are now aggravated by the product. Distinctive characteristics of different platforms are likely to develop flow differently. This study analyzed how passive versus active product …

Reducing Food Scarcity: The Benefits Of Urban Farming, S.A. Claudell, Emilio Mejia

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Urban farming can enhance the lives of communities and help reduce food scarcity. This paper presents a conceptual prototype of an efficient urban farming community that can be scaled for a single apartment building or an entire community across all global geoeconomics regions, including densely populated cities and rural, developing towns and communities. When deployed in coordination with smart crop choices, local farm support, and efficient transportation then the result isn’t just sustainability, but also increasing fresh produce accessibility, optimizing nutritional value, eliminating the use of ‘forever chemicals’, reducing transportation costs, and fostering global environmental benefits.

Imagine Doris, who is …

Medical Tourism & Communication, Alicia Mason

Faculty Submissions

Medical tourism (MT), sometimes referred to as health tourism or medical travel, involves both the treatment of illness and the facilitation of wellness, with travel. Medical tourism is a multifaceted and multiphase process involving many agents and actors that requires careful planning and execution. The coordinated process involves the biomedical, transportation, tourism, and leisure industries. From the communication perspective, the process can be viewed as a 5-stage model consisting of the: (a) orientation, (b) preparation, (c) experiential and treatment, (d) convalescence, and (e) reflection phases. Medical tourism is uniquely situated in a nexus of academic literature related to communication, business …

The Crusading Days Of Jackie Stewart: Evaluating The Development Of Safety In Motor Racing During The 1960s., Alex Twitchen

Journal of Motorsport Culture & History

This article critically evaluates the contribution of Jackie Stewart in making motor racing a safer sport for competitors. It challenges the validity of the popular assumption that Jackie Stewart by himself developed a ‘culture of safety’ that transformed the sport. Instead, the role of other individuals are identified alongside the importance of three social processes. These processes are identified as the changing balance of power between different masculine identities, the development of commercial sponsorship and a growth in the coverage of the sport on television.

The development of motor racing from the 1960s onwards as a safer sport in which …

Book Review- Racing With Rich Energy: How A Rogue Sponsor Took Formula One For A Ride., James Miller

Journal of Motorsport Culture & History

No abstract provided.

Book Review: I Was A Nascar Redneck: Recollections Of The Transformation Of A Yankee Farm Boy To A Southern Redneck In The Golden Era Of Nascar And Beyond., Quinn Beekwilder, Daniel Dean

Journal of Motorsport Culture & History

No abstract provided.

Curating A Consumption Ideology: Platformization And Gun Influencers On Instagram, Jenna M. Drenten Ph.D., Lauren Gurrieri, Aimee Dinnín Huff, Michelle Barnhart

School of Business: Faculty Publications and Other Works

This study explores how a platform enables social media influencers to promulgate a consumption ideology. We show how gun influencers, or “gunfluencers,” use Instagram to link products, activities, and meanings to Second Amendment ideology – a gun-centric belief system in the United States colloquially known as “2A ideology.” Through a qualitative study of 25 Instagram gunfluencers, we identify a process of curating a consumption ideology wherein social media influencers employ four curatorial tactics: glamourizing, demystifying, victimizing, and tribalizing. Findings suggest gunfluencers extend audiences and leverage algorithms to prescribe and model how supporters of 2A ideology should look, act, speak, feel, …

Ensuring Responsible And Transparent Use Of Generative Ai In Extension, Paul A. Hill, Lendel K. Narine

Journal of Extension

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems capable of generating human-like text, images, and ideas from existing data based on user-defined prompts, will inevitably impact Extension, including increasing efficiency, productivity, and performing tasks previously exclusive to humans. There are ethical and risk-related considerations surrounding the use of generative AI, including concerns about bias and unintended consequences. It is important for Extension to consider these implications and take steps to ensure that generative AI is used in a responsible and transparent manner. Extension must ensure that educators and staff have the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively utilize and integrate this technology.

Adoption Of Ict To Support Rural Small-Holder Farmers : A Systematic Review, Abdus Salaam Seat, Shaun Pather

African Conference on Information Systems and Technology

Access to Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are slowly becoming more available to rural communities given a number of innovative approaches over recent years such as the implementation of Community Networks (CNs). Consequently, ICTs are able to become more meaningful in support of livelihoods of these communities, such as in agriculture production. Potential benefits to smallholder farmers include increase yields and reduced effort. However, there is very little evidence of smallholder farmers integrating ICTs into their livelihood activity. In this paper a Systematic Literature Review is used to explore the challenges faced in this sector. A total of 83 articles …