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The Fair City Production Line: An Examination Of Soap Opera’S Potential Contribution To The Public Sphere, Edward Brennan

Articles

Between December 2000 and February 2001 the Irish soap opera Fair City ran an unprecedented, risky and controversial abortion storyline. This came before a looming referendum on the legality of abortion. Here, Fair City was not just offering entertainment, but provoking debate and discussion on a divisive issue in Irish society. In this case, and many others, it appears that soap opera, by promoting such discussion, may contribute to the formation of public opinion in contemporary civil society. Heretofore, most academic studies have overlooked the possible consequences of soap opera for civil society, public opinion and the democratic process. This …

Contents

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Assessing Sensitivity: A Critical Analysis Of Gender In Teaching Basic Communication Courses, Laura C. Prividera

Basic Communication Course Annual

This critical study utilized a liberal feminist perspective to examine how communication teachers talked about gender issues in their basic communication classes and displayed gender sensitivity in their pedagogical practices. In-depth interviews and observations were conducted with fifteen teachers from seven mid-western academic institutions. The data revealed six themes, which describe how gender issues were marginalized and minimized in the talk and teaching practices of many of my research participants. Such marginalization may perpetuate disparities in the academic experiences of male and female students taking the basic communication course.

Freedom Of Expression In The Republic Of Georgia: Framing The Attempted Shut-Down Of The Independent Tv Station, George Sulkhanishvili

LSU Master's Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine the perception and the level of freedom in the media of the Republic of Georgia. The study examines the media’s perception of freedom by identifying the frame newspapers used while covering the event between the government and the independent media outlet. The main interest is to define the predominant frame. A content analysis of 115 news articles of the four Georgian daily newspapers find that responsibility and conflict frames were more frequently used than economic consequences frame and morality frames. The study concludes that the Georgian media have considerable freedom from external …

Media Coverage Of The 2003 Parliamentary Election In The Republic Of Georgia, Baadur Koplatadze

LSU Master's Theses

The November 2, 2003, parliamentary election caused a significant political crisis in the Republic of Georgia. During the election campaign, the political parties questioned the desire of the government to carry out a fair election. They blamed President Edward Shevardnadze for fabricating the election. After the election, the opposition parties did not recognize the results and claimed that there were massive fabrications (the number of people who voted was much more than the number of people who were in voters’ list). The public supported this position, and several huge demonstrations demanded the resignation of President Shevardnadze. Two weeks after the …

Country Roads Magazine: Has The Move From The "Country" Influenced Baton Rouge Advertisers' Buying Habits, Arianne Parker Bellizaire

LSU Master's Theses

Country Roads magazine celebrated its 20th anniversary in September of 2003. Founded by Dorcas Woods Brown in 1983, the publication prides itself on offering its readers a cultural events guide showcasing events, festivals and destinations from Natchez, Mississippi, to New Orleans, Louisiana. Readers have watched the magazine evolve over the years. However, nearly two years ago, readers experienced one of the biggest changes. The magazine moved its headquarters from St. Francisville to Baton Rouge. This study evaluated Baton Rouge advertisers' reactions the move. The researcher modified and tested the Country-of-Origin Effects (COO) on a smaller scale by examining City-of-Origin effects. …

A Case Study Of The National Advancement Plan At Louisiana State University As Implemented By The Lsu Foundation In The Memphis, Tennessee, Area, Elizabeth Nealy

LSU Master's Theses

Because university foundations are facing increased pressures as the result of declining funds and increased competition, they must learn to use more effectively a wide range of marketing activities and demographic segmentation. Prospect identification may be one such tool. The literature on non-profit philanthropy suggests that the demographic segmentation of alumni and prospect screening and subsequent identification may serve as appropriate criteria. This case study examines how giving levels, involvement levels and attitudes of donors may vary as a result of the implementation of the National Advancement Plan, a systematic peer screening model and communications tool developed for a university …

"Don't Pooh-Pooh Our Poo Poo": Penalty, Subsidy, And Refusal To Fund In The Aftermath Of National Endowment For The Arts V. Finley, James Gaddy

LSU Master's Theses

Legal scholars said the National Endowment for the Arts v. Finley decision would create a "chilling effect" in government subsidy programs, and it unlawfully expanded the government speech doctrine. By analyzing cases that subsequently use Finley for a substantive part of their rationale, this article argues the opposite: the courts have rejected the government's attempts to interpret the decision as one that allows viewpoint discrimination and have not allowed the government to further a broad reading of the decision. The article also argues that, under the government speech doctrine, Finley provides the controlling precedent for truly "hybrid speech" cases where …

The Catalyst To Harm Standard: Punishing Speech That Facilitates Harm, J. Colin Trisler

LSU Master's Theses

The Catalyst to Harm Standard is a specific standard that sets forth step-by-step criteria for the courts to follow so that they can factually determine if the speech in question falls into the category of protected or unprotected speech. This Standard labels certain speech as “bad” not because of its ideological or social content, but because it is speech that is linked to a definitive social harm that the legislature has the constitutional authority to prevent or punish. This Standard uses three criteria to determine the liability of speech that has allegedly caused harm. In order to meet these requirements, …

Credibility And Authority On Internet Message-Boards, Ryan Goudelocke

LSU Master's Theses

This research aimed to provide some proof or refutation of the hypothesis that online communities develop specialized vocabularies, often technical jargon, and use elements of those vocabularies, here labeled “tokens,” to ascribe credibility and/or authority to other posters. The literature from a variety of communications fields relating to this topic was summarized as a progression from an early “limitations” model of computer-mediated communication (CMC) to a later “opportunities” model. The drawbacks of current research were outlined and some new paths were sketched, including the methodology employed here. Several discussions from different Web sites, each containing hundreds of posts, were tabulated …

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, Scott Titsworth

Basic Communication Course Annual

Now 16 years old, the Basic Communication Course Annual continues to hold a unique and instrumental status among peer communication journals. Notably, the Annual is the only national communication journal devoted to research and scholarship pertaining to the basic communication course. What started as an infant in 1988 has grown into a bright young-adult with an admirable sense of self.

The success of the Annual is entirely attributable to the community of scholars who have supported the journal over the years. All of us should be thankful for the leadership provided by the previous editors: Deanna Sellnow, Craig Newburger, and …

Bias In The Evaluation Process: Influences Of Speaker Order, Speaker Quality, And Gender On Rater Error In The Performance Based Course, Paul D. Turman, Matthew H. Barton

Basic Communication Course Annual

This study examines how variations in speaker order increase the potential for rater error in the performance based course. Seventy-six undergraduate raters were randomly assigned to one of eight treatment groups and asked to grade eight-week training course. Speaker order and presentation quality varied across groups and an ANOVA was used to examine significant differences across rater assessments, feedback quality and rater gender. Significant main effects were identified in each of the eight treatment groups suggesting that speaker order influenced rater scoring.

Written Speech Feedback In The Basic Communication Course: Are Instructors Too Polite?, Dana L. Reynolds, Stephen K. Hunt, Cheri J. Simonds, Craig W. Cutbirth

Basic Communication Course Annual

The present study investigates written performance feedback through the lens of politeness theory. Study 1 examined the types of comments instructors offer to students when they provide written feedback on speeches as well as the relationship between these comments and students' grades.

Results demonstrate that instructors used an overabundance of positive politeness messages and virtually no negative politeness messages. Students who received a higher grade were more likely to receive fewer face threats and more positive politeness messages than those students' who received a lower grade. The results also suggest that instructors are more willing to threaten a students' negative …

Communication Lab Peer Facilitators: What's In It For Them?, M. Tanya Bran-Barrett, Judith A. Rolls

Basic Communication Course Annual

Peer tutors have been used extensively within the communication discipline to enhance students' learning experiences (Hill, 1981; Webb & Lane, 1986). Research suggests that peer tutoring can have positive rewards for tutors and tutees (Goodland & Hurst, 1989; Topping, 1996). However, there is little to no research that explores the benefits received by peer tutors who run small group communication lab sessions for basic communication course students.

The qualitative data from focus group indicate that peer facilitators experienced: 1) self-development in terms of their self-esteem, confidence, and respect from themselves and others; 2) improved public speaking skills and better interpersonal …

Speech Laboratories: An Exploratory Examination Of Potential Pedagogical Effects On Studies, Adam C. Jones, Stephen K. Hunt, Cheri J. Simonds, Mark E. Comadena, John R. Baldwin

Basic Communication Course Annual

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects speech laboratories have on students enrolled in basic public speaking courses. Specifically, the researchers attempted to gain a student perspective about visiting a speech laboratory through qualitative methods. Ten semi-structured student interviews were conducted and the collected data were transcribed verbatim before being analyzed using the constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Lincoln & Guba, 1985).

The results of the analysis provide initial support that speech laboratories do, to some degree, assist students with their public speaking skills and help them manage their public speaking anxiety.

Creating A Dialogue For Change: Educating Graduate Teaching Assistants In Whiteness Studies, Kristen P. Treinen

Basic Communication Course Annual

Research indicates that minority students are underrepresented in our classroom curriculum (Churchill, 1995; Delpit, 1995; Ladson-Billings, 1994). Our schools are often entrenched in the Eurocentric model of education from content to methodology. In this paper, I discuss antiracist pedagogy and whiteness studies, offer a justification for utilizing antiracist pedagogy with work in whiteness studies in the communication classroom, and provide one model for incorporating antiracist pedagogical practice with graduate teaching assistants. This essay is intended to help create a dialogue with GTAs, basic course directors, and communication faculty about antiracist practices in the communication classroom.

From Spectators Of Public Affairs To Agents Of Social Change: Engaging Students In The Basic Course Through Service-Learning, Lynn M. Harter, Erika L. Kirby, Katherine L. Hatfield, Karla N. Kuhlman

Basic Communication Course Annual

Much literature bemoans the attitudes of Generation X (and their successors) toward civic participation (e.g., Putnam, 2000) and indeed education itself (e.g., Sacks, 1996). However, we have found students to be highly engaged when they have opportunities for active learning, such as those found in well designed service learning projects. We see this pedagogy as a small antidote to the sense of powerlessness that often pervades our culture. Drawing on diverse literatures, we explore theoretical reasons for using service-learning and illustrate its usefulness in speech communication basic course. Our discussion is organized around two key themes: (a) connection of self …

Special Forum On The Philosophy Of Teaching Education As Communication: The Pragmatist Tradition, Chad Edwards, Gregory J. Shepherd

Basic Communication Course Annual

We take the basic course in communication to be a site where associated living is experienced, and where individuals practice the democratic art of referencing and articulating their own behaviors and beliefs to those of others. This democratic practice is associated living is, as American pragmatist and educational philosopher John Dewey insisted, communication itself -- "conjoint communicated experience." In this essay, we provide an overview of this pragmatist educational metaphysic and discuss a few consequences of metaphysical beliefs about education.

Teaching And Learning In The Spirit Of Friendship, William K. Rawlins

Basic Communication Course Annual

This article discusses how the ideals and practices of friendship can provide an edifying ethic for the interactions and relationships of educators and students in the basic communication course. It examines three facets of friendship in the Western tradition, four dialectical tensions of the educational friendship, a collection of six virtues associated with teaching as friendship, and some limitations of the educational friendship.

Native Virtues: Traditional Sioux Philosophy And The Contemporary Basic Communication Course, Daniel P. Modaff

Basic Communication Course Annual

Teaching and learning in the basic communication course can be informed by the traditional Sioux virtues of bravery, generosity, fortitude and wisdom. The virtues are forwarded as a set of ideas that may equip the reader with an alternative way to think about course material, pedagogical practices, and classroom interrelationships. The essay concludes with the limitations of an concerns with the virtues in the contemporary basic course.

Taking Risks And Embracing Difference, Margaret R. Laware

Basic Communication Course Annual

Thinking about the public speaking classroom as public space provides a generative metaphor as long as critiques of public space, particularly feminist critiques, and critical pedagogy theory are considered. These critiques recognize the importance of encouraging students to engage with the public world in such a way that they see their own paper to effect change. Risk-taking and confronting issues of racism and sexism are integral to this process.

Special Forum On The Philosophy Of Teaching: A Synthesis And Response, Jo Sprague

Basic Communication Course Annual

The ways that an individual professor, a department, or a campus talks about the basic communication course can be arrayed along a broad spectrum of attitudes. At one end of a continuum are those who look at the course with a blend of intellectual contempt and embarrassment (Burgoon, 1989) or who believe that an assignment to teach such a course counts as penance or banishment. For many or most of our colleagues the characterizations fall in a more positive central zone, construing the course as a rich source of student enrollment or a fertile recruiting ground for majors.

The authors …

Author Information

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Submission Guidelines

Basic Communication Course Annual

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Basic Communication Course Annual Vol. 16

Basic Communication Course Annual

Full Issue (332 Pages, 3.945 MB)

Index Of Titles Volumes 1-15; Index Of Authors Volumes 1-15

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Back Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.