Communication Technology and New Media Commons^™

Dialogic Communication Ethics As A Hopeful Response To Artificial Intelligence, Kristen Haldeman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Within the past five years, a new technology has dominated modern culture: artificial intelligence. With a multiplicity of ways to respond to this new environment, this dissertation situates a response to artificial intelligence by combining the media ecology and communication ethics perspectives. Media ecology explores historical roots and biases of technology to learn about their influence of humanity. A dialogic communication ethics seeks to find an opening for hope to emerge. Hope, grounded in the works of Jacques Ellul and the Christian tradition, offers a new rhetorical perspective by shifting focus away from technology and to our neighbor.

Voices Of A New Era: A Discursive Psychology Study Of Influencer-Follower Discourse On Tiktok, Andrea Guerrero Hernandez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study researched and investigated the discourse of five mega fashion influencers on TikTok, as well as the discourse of 15 followers engaging with fashion influencer content on the same platform. The theory used to guide this study was discursive psychology theory, which provided the groundwork for understanding how both influencers and followers position their identities, justify their actions and decisions, and construct their reality. The primary aim of this research is to deepen understanding of how influencer discourse shapes follower discourse, identifying recurring patterns, contradictions, and the ways in which tensions are negotiated. The findings reveal a range …

"Am I A Man Or A Muppet": A Rhetorical Analysis Of Generative Ai’S Representation Of Gender, Jessica Boaz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how generative artificial intelligence constructs and performs gender roles through a rhetorical analysis of the fully AI-generated podcast Fairytale Forensics. Drawing on theories of constitutive rhetoric, stereotyping, and McLuhan’s approach to the medium, this thesis investigates how AI-generated hosts interpret classic fairy tales while simultaneously reproducing and negotiating gender norms through the lens of prosopopoeia, metonymy and synecdoche. These performances rely on normative gender stereotypes that align with broader societal expectations, thereby potentially reinforcing existing cultural assumptions about masculinity and femininity. Ultimately, it demonstrates that AI-generated discourse does not merely reflect human biases but actively participates in …

The New Wild West: A Case Study Analysis Of The Communication Methods Surrounding Ai Infrastructure In West Texas, Thomas Sorensen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the past several years, artificial intelligence has taken the world by storm. It has enabled numerous innovations across all sectors, and its usage continues to grow daily. This increase in demand for AI products has led to the development of AI data centers nationwide. Fueled by competition between the public and private sectors, many projects are underway. This study focuses on one such project in West Texas: the Stargate Data Center. This project is being constructed near Abilene, Texas, and has had an instrumental impact on the daily lives of its citizens. This research project seeks to answer the …

"That’S Not A Meal, Bestie”: Humor, Identity, & Feminized Consumption In “Girl Dinner”., Claire Tudor

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the viral “Girl Dinner” trend as a case study in how gendered consumption, digital identity, and feminist humor intersect in digital spaces. Using “Girl Dinner” as a rhetorical artifact, this thesis explores how women use gendered trends to navigate visibility, labor, and autonomy in online spaces. Through thematic analysis of TikTok content, media coverage, and branded adaptations, the research traces the evolution of the trend from a lighthearted joke to a site of cultural negotiation. This study reveals that while “Girl Dinner” may appear empowering and relatable on the surface, it often reinforces traditional gender expectations under …

On The Deconstruction Of Nothingness In Digital Communication, Matthew S. Lindia

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project argues that digital technologies call for a new problematic of communication, centered around the conditions of (im)possibility for creating perfect digital profiles of users as generated from user data. Beginning with Edmund Husserl’s analysis of essentially occasional expressions, this dissertation posits that user data occurs on three levels: (1) the level of expression, where a user wants-to-say something through their inputs, (2) the level of facticity, where biometric data are involuntarily produced by the user, and (3) the level of nothingness, where the user’s inaction, such as not-answering, is taken as data. Moving beyond what Husserl’s framework can …

Immersive Influence: Examining The Impact Of Virtual Reality On Brand Perception Among The Innovation Generation, Holden Gaylor

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Now more than ever, brands must create innovative and engaging experiences to enhance perception and build consumer trust. Virtual reality (VR) offers an opportunity for brands to achieve these goals by providing immersive, interactive experiences that, when done right, can strengthen key brand metrics. Despite the growing use of VR in experiential marketing, research on VR’s effectiveness in shaping brand perception and influencing authenticity remains limited. Grounded in media richness theory, this study examined how VR impacts brand perception and whether media richness influences authenticity.

Using a mixed-methods approach, 20 participants engaged with the “Wendyverse,” a branded VR environment. Pre-, …

Digital Storytelling Strategies For Viewer Engagement: A Rhetorical Analysis Of Youtube Videos By Nonprofit Healthcare Organizations, Maame Aba Afful

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As reliance on digital media and social media platforms such as YouTube increases, health organizations infuse rhetorical strategies to create memorable and impactful health-related videos to raise awareness and attract support. Nonprofit healthcare organizations use digital storytelling to communicate their impact. In this study, I conduct a rhetorical analysis of five digital storytelling videos shared on the YouTube pages of nonprofit healthcare organizations to: identify how the videos leverage rhetorical appeals, point-of-view (POV), and metadata; and discuss how such strategies might influence viewer engagement or brand objectives. My findings suggest that nonprofit healthcare organizations integrate positive and negative emotional appeals …

Teachers’ Self-Efficacy And Cyberbullying: A Qualitative Investigation Of Teacher Perspectives, Shanda Salvant Theriot

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the self-efficacy of middle school teachers as they address cyberbullying in the classroom. A phenomenological research design using a purposive sampling method was used. To understand the teachers’ lived experiences and perspectives on cyberbullying, open-ended semi-structured interviews were conducted with seventh-grade teachers from two parochial schools and three charter schools. Participants completed a demographics questionnaire, which was used to gather additional information regarding the teachers’ background and experience. Seven themes emerged from coding the data collected from the teacher interviews and focus group session: 1) collaboration and communication, 2) professional development and training, 3) support and …

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 …

The Semiotic Use Of Emojis In Marketing Communication, Naif Albarzan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Despite the emergence of social media as the primary tool for communication in social and business settings, research on effectiveness of communication using of emojis is limited. This project seeks to bridge the gap in understanding the effectiveness of the use of emojis in marketing communication. In particular, the dissertation will focus on an interpretive exploration of the use of emojis in marketing communication as a semiotic that supports persuasion.

Neil Postman's Loving Resistance Fighter: A Philosophy Of Communication In The Age Of Technopoly, Ryan Mccullough

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project walks the work of Neil Postman (1931-2003) into the philosophy of communication. Traditional conceptions of Neil Postman’s body of work position his ideas within the traditions of media ecology, general semantics, or, more broadly, as a form of media studies and criticism. In addition, others label Postman’s work, especially in Technopoly (1992), as pessimistic, deterministic, and/or imbibed with Luddite tendencies. This project articulates a different view and contends that Postman’s scholarship, in particular his articulation of the loving resistance fighter in the final chapter of Technopoly, is committed to resisting the nefarious forces embedded in both technology …

The Landscape Does Not Care It Is A Landscape: A Utopian Pessimist Journey In Kentucky., Shachaf Polakow

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

These thesis and exhibition, invite the viewers to travel through different places in Central and Eastern Kentucky. The region’s landscape, like many other American landscapes, is often known to the public through the settler colonial lens—a lens that ignores Indigenous peoples’ history in the region. The work in the exhibition is a response to landscape art's history and its complicity with American settler colonialism- art that was recruited to create a new identity for the settlers and for the country from the beginning of the American Colonial Project. Landscape art was a crucial part of this effort, presenting the land …

"We Give Them The Most Important Thing Possible. We Give Their Dreary Lives Excitement”: Toward A Theoretical Model Of Narrative Parasocial Engagement, Dominic Delbert Meyers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Video game narratives and characters are some of the most enjoyable and persuasive components of the video game industry. While narratives and character relationships within video games have been examined separately, there is no working model and little research attempting to bridge the connection between narratives and character relationships. This research combines Narrative Paradigm Theory and Parasocial Relationships to understand how narratives and character relationships influence each other in video game environments. This was done through rhetorical field methods, utilizing a focus group and narrative rhetorical analysis on the transcript of the focus group. Results provide a working model coined …

An Evaluation Of Media Messaging By African Fashion Designers And Marketing Message Strategies, Esther Oyindamola Oyanibi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent times, African brands have been featured heavily in global landscape fashion events, with brands from Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya leading the way. Although such recognition could be traced to their expertise, the unique approach of African brands involves putting out unique designs that easily stand out in the global fashion market. However, their uniqueness goes beyond the designs they put out, as it is also strongly expressed in their media messaging and, consequentially, their marketing strategy.

This study provides a content analysis of the most important characteristics of eight brands from different regions of the African continent. …

Weathering The Storm: Navigating Urban Ecologies Of Communication In Times Of Crisis, Austin Hestdalen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project explores cities as urban ecologies of communication in which crises emerge and are given significance within the dialogic relations cultivated among public actors attempting to make a living, together, within the shared historical-cultural contexts of everyday life. To describe cities as urban ecologies of communication is to describe them in terms of urban communication and its interdisciplinary foundations in the study of rhetoric, philosophy, planning, policy, architecture, sociology, geography, and media. The first chapter introduces the challenges of urban risk and crisis management within the complex ecologies of communication constituted by cities and reviews how ‘risk’ and ‘crisis’ …

For-Profit Business Leaders’ Perceptions Of Technology And Conflict Resolution In The Workplace, Sherry Hamilton Latten

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explored for-profit business leaders’ experiences with technology and conflict resolution. With the rise of technology in communications in the workplace and the risk of miscommunications leading to negative impacts on organizational and individual performance, understanding leader experiences is vital to organizational success. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to understand for-profit business leaders’ (1) perceptions of technology and conflict resolution in the virtual workplace and (2) perceptions of their leadership styles and the impact on conflict resolution in the virtual workplace. Prior literature regarding the impact of technology on communications revealed mixed results with some studies …

A Content Analysis Of The Female Tiktok Influencer: How Smis Alter Their Image And Self-Presentation Based On Their Communities., Sydney R Dotson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Influencer marketing is a growing industry on social media platforms, like TikTok. Influencers have the power and authority to control the purchases and habits of their audiences, however, the communities of these followers can be just as influential. According to TikTok For Business (2021), “part of the excitement of [TikTok] is derived from people having the power to choose the spaces they want to be part of, and the content they want to interact with.” The purpose of this study is to determine if social media influencers alter their image and self-presentation based on their community. The study examines the …

The Impact Of Facebook Affordances On Doomscrolling Behaviors During The Relational Dissolution Process, Emma Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The affordances provided by social networking sites (SNSs) impact how different social media platforms are used. Facebook has unique affordances such as ease of use, community, information seeking, escapism, and common interests that impact Facebook use. Interpersonal electronic surveillance, categorized as doomscrolling for this study, is a behavior of continuous scrolling and consumption of negative content. Facebook affordances, paired with digital artifacts from terminated relationships, create an environment for doomscrolling (IES) behavior. Building off of the “grave-dressing” and “resurrection” stages of relational dissolution, I examined the relationships of these Facebook affordances with doomscrolling (IES) behaviors through an online survey (N …

The Influence Of Social Media On The Tourism Industry: A Content Analysis Of Culinary Tourism Brands Via Instagram, Angela White

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The tourism industry in the United States is constantly changing and being influenced by social media, specifically Instagram. Culinary brands use Instagram to advertise their restaurants and dishes in a creative, visual way. As a result, Instagram is now being used as a tool by tourists and both potential and current customers to share their dining experiences and find these locations based on the visual appeal. This study provides a content analysis of Instagram account information and photo composition within eight popular culinary tourism destinations by examining the strategies used by the accounts. 50 randomly selected photos were used from …

The Impact Of Artificial Intelligence In The Customer Journey: A Case Study Of Bosch Usa And Defy South Africa, Tariro S. Munyengeterwa

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to gain traction and is increasingly reshaping the media and marketing communications field. While significant research has been conducted on the impact of AI in other fields, there is little empirical evidence on how AI is affecting the customer journey. The present study explored both organizations’ current use of AI tools and how customer perceptions about AI affect AI usage and adoption through the lens of diffusion of innovation theory. The research was conducted using mixed-method qualitative research. In-depth interviews and a case study content analysis were conducted to collect and analyze the data. The results …

Virtual Reality For Public Speaking Rehearsals: Student And Faculty Perceptions, Carrie A. Saltsman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Speeches and speech rehearsals are an important part of many basic communication courses. However, instructors are developing new ways for students to rehearse their speeches every day; one way may be for students to use virtual reality. Although virtual reality is somewhat of a new innovation, it is effective in various settings, including higher education, and more specifically, the speech classroom. However, this efficacy may not matter if students and instructors are unwilling to adopt it into the classroom. Diffusion of innovation theory, developed by Rogers (2003), focuses on how an innovation is diffused and adopted. Using two of the …

Friendship In The Digital Age: Implications From A Philosophy Of Communication Approach, Tiffany Petricini

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Friendship is a central relationship-style that grounds us. Much of the literature on the effects of technology on our relationships, especially friendship, has taken a skeptical approach. The notion of friendship is historically-situated, thus, it requires attention in each era and has prompted questions throughout human history. Our time is no exception. Changing cultures and redefinitions of basic human institutions have led us to our current moment, in which we are experiencing a loud and continuing debate on the effect of technology on our lives. Advancements in science have allowed us to understand our past and present in new ways. …

Trends In Advertising: How The Rise In Artificial Intelligence May Influence The Field Of Content Strategy, Joel Eaton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Whereas prior research on artificial intelligence has dealt with automation in fields like medicine, engineering, and computer science, this research study seeks to answer the question, “To what extent can AI be creative in the context of content strategy?” To answer this, this study employs content analysis using 16 online news and blog articles from primarily marketing organizations to identify and explain key variables surrounding the relationship between the computer and the creative professional. This study has found that the core belief that AI will play the future role of creative assistant in the context of content strategy is shared …

Measuring The Connective Action Of Black Lives Matter Activists: A Psychometric Investigation Into Twitter Data, Paige Alfonzo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many protest movements from the last twenty-first century have become increasingly networked and personalized. Several scholars have tapped into this change coining terms such as participatory action, digitally mediated action, computer-mediated communication, issue-based organization, and what I focus on in this project, connective action. Building on the ideas percolating across the literary landscape at the time, Bennett and Segerberg (2012) introduced the logic of connective action based on emergent characteristics they observed in post-2010 large-scale social movements. Both the logic of connective action and related work have become deeply ingrained in today's social movement scholarship. As such, I felt it …

System Update: Technology Based Intervention For Students With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Marisa C. Simoni

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Post-school outcomes are unfavorable to students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Despite these outcomes and significant academic challenges, students with IDD have the potential to learn adaptive and life skills that lead to a more independent and fulfilling life through intentional intervention strategies. This dissertation explores technology-based interventions for students with IDD. Manuscript 1 presents a synthesis of literature related to technology, IDD, and a system of supports that schools utilize for tiered intervention delivery. Based on the findings, a new framework, Systems of Support for Technology Intervention (SSTI), is introduced to help guide school psychologists in choosing appropriate …

When Humanity Meets Technology: Contemplating Neil Postman's Critique Of Advertising, Yingwen Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project aims to contemplate Postman’s critique of advertising and offer insights to understand Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) in today’s mediated environment. As an essential component of IMC, the history of advertising demonstrates and documents that the medium of communication has an extensive influence on IMC practices. The concern about how communication media affect human perception, understanding, and behavior, resides within the central claim of the study of media ecology. Thus, this project investigates IMC through the lens of Postman’s media ecology perspectives, and argues that Postman’s prescient ideas provide both hope and constructive insights. Moreover, Postman’s thermostatic perspective, rooted …

Political Journalists Tweet About The Final 2016 Presidential Debate, Hannah Hopper

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Past research shows that journalists are gatekeepers to information the public seeks. Using the gatekeeping and agenda-setting theory, this study used a content analysis of tweets from political journalists during the final 2016 presidential debate to examine social media usage in efforts to convey information to followers and whether social media has allowed for journalists to present a more transparent view of candidates to the public. This study used feminist political theory to further analyze whether the tweets from political journalists portrayed Hillary Clinton, the female candidate, with stereotypical “female” traits, such as more emotional and more trustworthy. Applying these …

“Friendship With A Brand”: Parasocial Interaction With Burger Brands On Social Media, Alexander E. Carter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study represents a content analysis of the efforts of real-world brands to facilitate parasocial interaction with their followers. The researcher examined these social media exchanges through the scope of parasocial interaction theory, uncertainty reduction theory, and social response theory. The researcher examined posts in mid to late August 2017 and utilized a code sheet to find confirmed parasocial interaction triggers by brands, and examples of parasocial interaction in the posts of those brands’ followers. The researcher looked to see if the utilization of previous research in controlled environments could provide the framework for studying the non-controlled conditions of …

Emergent Narrative: Stories Of Play, Playing With Stories, Eric Murnane

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Emergent narrative, a phenomenon of unexpected contextual stories arising through play, has been researched in the field of game studies since 1999. However, that discussion largely lies in the realm of theoretical stories which are generated by either the system or the player. The purpose of this dissertation is to deepen our understanding of emergent narrative by examining real-world examples of the phenomenon. Four hundred player posts were gathered from forums relating to the video game Skyrim (a large, open world fantasy roleplaying game) and analyzed using a mixed-method framework which is informed by digital ethnography, fan studies, and game …