Communication Technology and New Media Commons^™

A New Era Of Zines: Taking Lessons From The Past To Combat Intellectual And Political Fascism, Catherine Kane

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

Zines have long functioned as a way to circumvent the traditional gatekeepers of news, art, mainstream narratives, and publishing. They are largely non-commercial, and their emphasis is to put the means of production and distribution directly into the hands of the individual. Although their roots are in DIY, proletariat culture, they are now the subject of study in museums, libraries, and higher education, and have been co-opted by big brands, media outlets, and publishing houses—the institutions they originally sought to undermine.

In their most authentic form, zines have represented free thinking and speech, while giving individuals and communities a rallying …

Not Just An Ad: Exploring Exposure, Persuasion Knowledge, And Health Misinformation On Social Media, Danielle Murray

University Honors Theses

This study explores how exposure to sponsored health and fitness content on social media influences users' perceptions of influencer motivation and belief in health-related misinformation. Drawing on parasocial interaction (PSR), attribution theory, and influencer marketing research, this study investigates two hypotheses: that frequent exposure to branded content is positively associated with (1) perceptions of influencers as commercially motivated and (2) belief in pseudoscientific health myths. A cross-sectional online survey (N = 104) was conducted using convenience sampling of adult social media users. Results partially supported the first hypothesis: exposure frequency was positively correlated with recognition of persuasive intent, but …

Bridging Barriers To Digital Accessibility: An Opportunity For Technical Editors, Julian Luck

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

Digital content is overwhelmingly inaccessible across the web, and web accessibility is a particularly wicked problem. Technical editors with accessibility specializations serve as a part of the solution, however, the market for these professionals is emerging and poorly understood. The purpose of this research is to explore this emerging market and determine the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for these editors. Considering the limited body of knowledge surrounding this market, I utilize a variety of diverse web resources including peerreviewed journal publications, blogs, forums, and trusted web accessibility resources and organizations. The findings, contextualized by my identity as a disabled …

Digital Comics Subscription Service Usage And Its Impact On Printed Comic Buying Habits: The Digital Comics Subscription Loop, Isaac Swindle

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

This study developed a digital comics subscription loop that borrows from consumer loyalty research done in publishing and marketing studies. The proposed loop uses comic publisher’s proprietary subscription platforms as a “book showroom” to allow consumers to sample titles, driving physical sales. Original survey data was then gathered about comic book consumers’ usage of digital subscription platforms and what drives them to make physical purchases. The data was then compared to the proposed model, finding significant cross-medium consumption, as well as many reported completions of the Digital Comics Subscription Loop. The survey data found that over 80 percent of respondents …

The Identification Of Representation Gaps In Diverse Us Children's Picture Books, Alena Rivas

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

This paper addresses this research question: which intersectional identities remain underrepresented in diverse US children’s picture books? The analysis is based on two datasets, one from Diverse BookFinder (collected December 2022–April 2023) and another from a survey of librarians (collected January 2023–April 2023). Each book in the Diverse BookFinder collection features a non-white character in the following racial/cultural categories: Asian/Pacific Islander, Biracial/Multiracial/Mixed Race, Black/African American, Brown Skinned/Unspecified Race, Latinx/Hispanic, Middle Eastern/Arab, Multi-Racial Cast of Characters, Native American/Indigenous, and White/Caucasian. These identities were cross tabulated with the following identities to measure intersectionality: Gender (Nonbinary, Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming, Intersex, and Unspecified); LGBTQIAP2S+; …

Governmental Persuasion Strategies On Social Media During Covid-19: A Comparative Study Of The Us And China, Fan Wang

Hatfield Graduate Journal of Public Affairs

This study compared persuasive strategies of the governments of the U.S. and China during a public health crisis using social media messages. Collecting data with R and Python from two national public health sectors' official accounts on Twitter (N = 1,630) and Sina Weibo (N = 3,554), the researcher investigated how the organizations' messages reflected Cialdini's seven principles of persuasion and whether other emergent messaging patterns occurred. According to the different phases that the two countries had gone through during the pandemic, the researcher also conducted a pooled times series analysis to investigate the relationship between the frequency of daily …

Artificial Intelligence As A Content Creator In The Publishing Industry, John Huston

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

Several methods were used in my research. A literature review was used to define artificial intelligence (AI) in general and in relation to how it’s used in literature today. I also relied heavily on Dr Leah Henrickson’s work on Natural Language Generation (NLG), which discusses authorship and roles between authors and readers.

Several case studies were used in my research. Liam Porr’s Guardian Op-ed was reviewed as his team used humans to edit GPT-3 output for a coherent article, much like I used it in a focus group. The Kimagure Artificial Intelligence Writer’s Project was also evaluated. The writing for …

Keeping In Touch While Sheltering In Place: A Comparative Case Study On The Complex Emotions Experienced By Older Adults When Introduced To Icts And Video Conferencing Services, Marisa Susan Soltz

Dissertations and Theses

Currently, COVID-19 poses a threat to the US and the rest of the world, which has created the need for many people to establish physical distance from others. This need for physical distance is perhaps most important for those most vulnerable to COVID-19, which includes the older adult population. Through this time of physical isolation, most people need to keep in touch with each other while sheltering in place. Advances in digital communication have offered new avenues to help people maintain communication, and these advances have made the lives of many easier and more efficient. These new avenues for communication …

The Many Moving Parts Behind Brandon Sanderson’S Record-Breaking Kickstarter Campaign, Kathi Inman Berens

English Faculty Publications and Presentations

The creation and fulfillment of Sanderson’s Kickstarter relies on a crack team managing massive amounts of data as well as all aspects of production. Sanderson had been running a multi-million-dollar, mid-sized publishing company well before his March 1, 2022 Kickstarter shot north of $28 million in two weeks, making it the biggest campaign—for now—in Kickstarter history.

Killer Serials: Amazon’S Kindle Vella, Kathi Inman Berens

English Faculty Publications and Presentations

Can Amazon's Kindle Vella Break Through With Younger Readers? From its inception, Amazon has pushed book publishing toward a digital future that other entertainment industries such as video games and streaming media have been quicker to embrace. Kindle Vella, one of Amazon’s most recent digital programs, is worth watching.

Kindle Vella is a serialized reading experience folded into Amazon’s Kindle app. It quietly launched in July 2021. If it can catch on, it has enormous potential to capture the attention of a new generation of readers and writers already engaging serialized stories in apps like Webtoons and Wattpad--GenZers reading serialized …

Covid-19 And Open Access In The Humanities: Impacts And Emerging Trends, Olivia Rollins

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

Discussions of open-access publishing tend to center the scientific disciplines, and this trend has continued during the Covid-19 pandemic. But while the pandemic has certainly shed new light on the importance of openly accessible medical research, its effects—from economic impacts to attitudinal shifts—have been felt and speculated about across disciplines. This paper presents an investigation into present and future impacts of the pandemic on open-access publishing in the humanities, which have historically been slower to adopt open-access models than other disciplines. A survey distributed to scholarly publishing professionals, academic librarians, and others working in open-access humanities publishing sought to determine …

Virtual Community For Fat People In Outdoor Recreation, Amber C. Stephens

University Honors Theses

This paper examines online virtual communities for fat people within outdoor recreation, and how they provide connection, complex agency, and representation for fat bodies in spaces where their bodies are seen as taboo. Furthermore, it will explore the way fat bodies have been historically viewed, the lack of representation of fat bodies in the outdoors and related communities, and the gate-keeping that occurs to those who do not conform to traditional stereotypes of an outdoorsy person. Close examination of two different Instagram accounts that highlight the fat body in the outdoors will reveal three main representational elements that are an …

Remote Data Collection: How Broadband Connectivity Affected The Conversion Of Physical Performance Testing To The Remote Setting During Covid-19: A Research Assistant's Assessment, Ramyar Eslami

University Honors Theses

The GET FIT Prostate and Exercising Together trials conducted by Dr. Kerri Winters-Stone incorporate exercise intervention for cancer survivors during or after completing their therapy. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the laboratory assessment of both studies was conducted in-person. However, the transition to remote assessment was required due to the safety precautions of COVID-19. Protocol outcomes for administering tests like the short physical performance battery (sPPB), which includes the 4m usual walk (4MW; m/s), chair stands (CS; sec), and standing balance measurements, were completed via a video conferencing interface called Cisco Webex.

Transitioning to remote testing determined the validity of remote …

Policing Politics: Facebook And A Politician's Right To Free Speech, Adewunmi Adedji, Nisha Hemantha Raju, Jennifer Wagner, Alfonso Herrero, Matthew Johnson

Engineering and Technology Management Student Projects

Advancements in technology are not without their own ethical concerns. Social media technology provides for platforms which allow users to interact and exchange ideas in virtual communities. Of these Facebook is among the leaders of the pack with an estimated 2.7 billion monthly active users globally as of the second quarter of 2020 and estimated 190 million users in the United States as of October 2020.

This wide reach, in combination with low cost for advertisement makes it one of the platforms of choice for Organization to promote their products, services or agenda. This accounts for why 98% of the …

From The Studio To The Street: Cultivating Democratic Norms In Uganda, Lee Shaker, Paul Falzone, Paul Sparks, Ruth Kugumikiriza

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

Communication interventions can make valuable contributions to the democratic development of citizens. This article reports on a nongovernmental organization’s (NGO’s) effort to leverage a television rap news program in Uganda to strengthen viewers’ democratic norms. Two different approaches addressing government failures and malfeasance are tested with an experiment conducted in six villages outside of Kampala. Results indicate that soft news segments can influence viewers’ perceived democratic norms and shape downstream behaviors as well. Beneficial effects were strongest when participants were exposed to stories that featured relatable citizens demonstrating desirable democratic attitudes and behaviors. Treatment effects were most pronounced among less …

Do Directionality And Network Size Affect Network Structure In Online Social Networks?, Nitin V. Mayande, Charles Weber

Engineering and Technology Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

A study of the online social networks of six Twitter conversations about six YouTube product categories reveals that directionality and network size affect the structure of online social networks. Our results indicate that large networks tend to be non-random, regardless of whether they are directional or not, suggesting that structural attributes of the online networks under study are a true reflection of network's features. Smaller non-directional networks also tend to be non-random, whereas smaller directional networks tend to be random in nature. However, very small networks tend to be random in nature, whether they are directional or not. Our results …

The Small Publisher’S Guide To Audiobooks, Stephanie Anderson

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

While audiobooks have been around since the invention of the phonograph, the invention of streaming technologies, combined with our increasingly fast-paced, multitasking culture, has caused audiobooks to become the fastest growing market in the publishing industry in recent years. In fact, since 2013 the audiobooks market has seen sales growth of an average of 20% per year, according to studies done by the Audio Publishers Association. However, many small publishers are not entering into the vital “new” frontier and reaching greater markets because of assumptions about the cost-prohibitive nature of creating audiobooks, and a lack of knowledge of the industry …

Conspiracy Theories And The Zika Epidemic, Shawn Smallman

International & Global Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

After a Zika outbreak began in Brazil in April 2015, narratives blamed the virus on a variety of international actors, including chemical companies and the Gates Foundation. Many of these narratives drew upon older conspiracy theories that had circulated in Latin America during the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic. Whether these narratives denounced transgenic mosquitoes or pesticides, they reflected not only the fear created by a mysterious wave of birth defects but also a profound mistrust of health authorities and transnational corporations. This paper will examine the narratives that circulated on YouTube, blogs, podcasts, and other alternative media sources, which typically …

Communicating Environmental Risks: Local Newspaper Coverage Of Shellfish Bacterial Contamination In Maine, Brianne Suldovsky, Eva Arbor, Victoria Skillin, Laura Lindenfeld

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

Coastal resources play a vital role in Maine’s cultural and economic wellbeing, contributing an estimated 168 billion dollars to the Maine economy. There are numerous risks to the sustainability of Maine’s shellfishing industry and working waterfront, including pathogenic bacterial pollution. In this study, we ask a broad fundamental question central to science and environmental journalism: how do newspapers cover localized environmental risks and what are the implications of those approaches? Utilizing the northeastern US state of Maine’s shellfishing industry as an exemplar environmental issue, this study examines how Maine’s two most read newspapers, the Bangor Daily News and the Portland …

Assistive Technology For The Cognitively Impaired: A Study Of Literacy, Comprehension, And The Print Publishing Industry, Amanda Matteo

Student Research Symposium

This paper explores how the print publishing industry has developed to include and assist children with cognitive impairments. It analyzes the ways in which assistive technology and the digital market (i.e. ebooks) have promoted reading comprehension amongst this population, and discusses what further developments are in the works in regards to cognitive reading enhancements. Finally, it explores the areas in which this development is still limited and provides potential, attainable solutions.

Print Books And E-Books: How Each Format Plays A Role In Reading Comprehension, Maeko Bradshaw

Book Publishing Final Research Papers

This research paper aims to examine the different components of electronic books (e-books) and print books, and seeks to illuminate the ways in which reading retention is affected by each format. Using the data from studies conducted on adult readers, this paper examines how humans process information read from a text; the positive and negative impacts of e-books; whether or not digital natives are affected in the same way by e-readers; and suggestions publishing houses might take considering these findings and the future development of technology.

Media Choice Proliferation And Shifting Orientations Towards News In The United States And Norway, 1995-2012, Eiri Elvestad, Lee Shaker

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

Around the world, rapid media choice proliferation is empowering audiences and allowing individuals to more precisely tailor personal media use. From a democratic perspective, the relationship between the changing media environment and news use is of particular interest. This article presents a comparative exploration of citizens’ changing orientations towards local, national and international news in two very different countries, Norway and the United States, between 1995 and 2012. Prior research suggests that more media choice correlates with a decrease in news consumption. Our analysis shows a pattern of increasing specialization in news orientation in both countries. We also find that …

The Role Of Ethics Online And Among Social Media Designers, Meredith James

Schnitzer School of Art + Art History + Design Faculty Publications and Presentations

As communication designers, our roles have changed greatly with the technological advancements of the Internet and social media. With these vastly changing roles are equal (and often problematic) demands on designers to act as ethical interventionists. In specific, designers are more and more frequently finding themselves in roles of arbitration and decision-making surrounding ethical concerns. Such decisions span everything from what is to be considered “allowable content” (breastfeeding, for example) to deciding how our devices respond to crisis (Miner, et al., 2016). I intend to present several case studies of designers placed in authority positions centered around ethics and new …

Gender Bias And The Evaluation Of Players: Voice And Gender In Narrated Gameplay Videos, Robin April Crowell

Dissertations and Theses

This study evaluates perception differences of male and female narrators in video game tutorials. Video games have long been considered a masculine pursuit, and because of this, women have endured unpleasant surroundings and interactions in gaming and related communities. With the proliferation of technologies like Twitch and YouTube gaming, gaming is more communicative than ever, increasing potential for problematic interactions. Recent booms in these technologies emphasize the importance of understanding how varying demographics are perceived, as these perceptions influence interactions, potentially limiting the likelihood of women and others' involvement and interest.

Involvement in technology during youth is associated with interests …

Practical Wired Digital Communications Link Analysis, Raymond Matthew Schmelzer

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis deals with the analysis of a Wired High Speed Serial Data Link (PAM2) which is commonly used throughout the data-communications and tele-communications industry. The goal of this study is to build a scalable simulation tool using Matlab that ultimately uses Receiver Bit Error Ratio (BER) as the metric for data link health. This study is also designed to aid in link specification development.

The Matlab and theoretical development is broken up into three sections being Transmitter (TX), Channel (Hs) and Receiver (RX). Realistic noise impairments can be added to each section along the signal path creating signal stresses …

Advocacy Campaign For Women's Reproductive Health And Access On Social Media, Rachel Crist, Jules Montes, Lauren Frank

Student Research Symposium

Advocacy organizations increasingly rely on social media (e.g. Twitter hashtags) to foster issue awareness. Social media platforms can be promising communication channels to reach diverse audiences; however, it is unclear how effective these campaigns are at reaching audience members whose views do not align with the campaign. Using diffusion of innovations as a theoretical framework, this study examines the #BirthControlHelpedMe campaign to better understand the response to an advocacy campaign promoted via Twitter. Focus groups were conducted separately for men and women. The moderator led participants in a semi-structured discussion of perceptions of birth control. Participants were then shown example …

Exploratory Study Of The Adoption And Use Of The Smartphone Technology In Emerging Regions: Case Of Saudi Arabia, Fahad Abdulaziz Aldhaban

Dissertations and Theses

Users' acceptance of a new information technology (IT) is considered to be a key determinant factor of its success. Also, studying users' adoption and use of new IT plays an important role in determining users' needs and reducing business risk, especially in industry segments with rapid changes in IT such as Smartphone technology. Such rapid evolution is influencing consumers' behaviors, their daily lifestyle, the manner of conducting their activities and their ways of consuming and using information.

Smartphone technology holds a promising future with an expected global market that could reach US $258 billion by the end of year 2015 …

Check-In Frequency With Friends On Location-Based Social Networks: A Look At Homophily And Relational Closeness, Jacqueline H. Vo

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines factors associated with the frequency with which users of location-based social networks (LBSNs) "check-in" with their "friends." In addition to a variety of control factors (i.e., sex homophily, race homophily, geographic proximity, length of friendship, and "friendship" type, including non-romantic friend, romantic partner, and family), the central factors of interest were users' background and attitude homophily with, and relational closeness to, their "friends." Results demonstrate that relational closeness and "friendship" type (i.e., romantic partner) were significantly, positively associated with "check-in" frequency.

Inspiring Action: Measuring The Effect Of Motivational Frames On Social Movement Mobilization, Rebecca Louise Smith

Dissertations and Theses

In order to probe how social movement messages foster participant mobilization, this study utilized an experimental design to investigate collective action frames, core messaging tasks that define problems, assign blame, convey a plan of action, and inspire participation. The study compared the effects of climate change messages that contain motivational frames with those that do not, incorporating the influence of resonance, and exposure to competing and counter frames. Results revealed that motivational frames contributed to mobilization, especially intention to act, under conditions of resonance and with exposure to counter frames. Salience primed participants to respond to motivational frames, however for …

Coping With Information Technology: Mixed Emotions, Vacillation, And Nonconforming Use Patterns, Mari-Klara Stein, Sue Newell, Erica L. Wagner, Robert D. Galliers

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Achieving the promised business benefits of an IT system is intimately tied to the continued incorporation of the system into the work practices it is intended to support. While much is known about different social, cognitive, and technical factors that influence initial adoption and use, less is known about the role of emotional factors in users' behaviors. Through an in-depth field study conducted in two North American universities, we examine the role of emotions in how specific IT use patterns emerge. We find that there are five different characteristics of an IT stimulus event (cues) that, when interacting in a …