Social Media Commons^™

Social Media Influencers' Impact On Purchasing Decisions, Kennedi Kutz, Erin Flynn, Kiara Espinal, Julia Cheney

Proceedings of the New York State Communication Association

The study conducted entails how the usage of social media and the parasocial relationships with social media influencers impact the audience’s purchases as a consumer. The survey covers a wide range of questions discussing the different social media platforms, how often they engage on these platforms, and how often they click and engage with advertisements and influencers. It also covered questions that collected the demographics of the participants to give a better understanding of which groups are more likely to be influenced by advertisements and influencers. We have found that younger audiences are more likely to have their consumer purchases …

The Non-Apology Of Tyler, The Creator, John Gibaud

CAFE Symposium 2025

This project analyzes the behavior and statements of the musician Tyler, The Creator as compared to contemporary understandings of the steps, requirements, and functions of a public apology. In 2009, Tyler, The Creator began his career as a solo singer songwriter, using shock value tactics to gain the attention of the public with lyrics and online comments which glorified murder, sexual assault, and kidnapping. Outcries against the themes of the comments and lyrics called for an official public apology and acknowledgement from Tyler, The Creator, however, such a statement never came to fruition. Since his problematic debut, Tyler, The Creator …

Why Are Youtubers Bad At Apologizing?, Tejaswi Amatya

CAFE Symposium 2025

There has been an increasing number of youtuber apology videos in the past few years, but almost all the youtubers fail at apologizing. My poster delves deeper into why are youtubers so bad at apologizing and how they can improve.

Victim/Perpetrator, David D. Moy

Theses and Dissertations

Throughout this text, David Moy will discuss the inner working of his investigation on image overload and materialization. Through tactics of blurring, erasure, and layering he achieves obfuscation in his printed media. In doing so, he questions the compounding nature of image/text that negate themselves in the larger context of time in the digital age.

Organic Social Media Strategy For The University Of Akron, Alexander Busch

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This project develops a research-based organic social media strategy for the University of Akron, addressing the growing importance of digital communication in higher education and the need for authentic, student-centered engagement. Although the university maintains an active presence on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and X, its current content often reflects a corporate tone that limits relatability and audience connection. This project proposes an alternative content strategy instead: organic advertisements. These are unpaid, and rely on the algorithm to be promoted. The project proposes a five-week content calendar featuring mascot-driven campaigns and event-based initiatives to strengthen brand identity and …

#Mmiw On Instagram: Contemporary Representations Of Missing Indigenous Women, Girls, And Two-Spirit People​, Sydney E. Cathcart, Renu Pariyadath

University of South Carolina Upstate Student Research Journal

This research paper overlooks the disproportionate number of missing persons and violence towards Indigenous groups, particularly women. Communication research has pointed to mass media lacking coverage on missing or murdered cases of Indigenous people, contributing to invisibility of the issue and lack of attention to the problem. Individual efforts to increase sources of information have been utilized in social media to make up for where mass media lacks. Social media creators who look to raise awareness, mobilize grassroot actions, and expand community ties. Content analysis was used to analyze content in Instagram under hashtags relevant to #MMIW–Missing and Murdered Indigenous …

Topics Of Historical Memory In The Pr Activities Of Religious Organizations In Present-Day Ukraine, Vadym Sluysar, Yuliia Kondratiuk, Iryna Vitiuk, Oleksandr Mosienko

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article analyzes the role of religious organizations in Ukraine in shaping and preserving historical memory in the context of their PR activities. The article examines the contribution of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), the Roman Catholic Church (RCC), Protestant denominations, and Muslim organizations to the popularization of objective historical narratives. Through participation in memorial events, restoration of monuments, organization of scientific conferences, exhibitions, lectures, and publication of historical materials, religious organizations contribute to the formation of national and civic identity. Particular attention is paid to the coverage of tragic events such as the Holodomor, the deportation of Crimean …

The Kids Aren't Alright: "Indie Sleaze Revival" And The Commodification Of Subcultures On Social Media, Lauren Mar

Scripps Senior Theses

In 2012, the “indie sleaze” subculture is accepted to have “died” — the same year Facebook bought Instagram. Named retroactively by social media in 2021, the “indie sleaze” subculture and its “revival” online provides a rich ground for investigating how and why social media converts subculture into aesthetics. Drawing on Dick Hebdige’s 1979 theory of subculture, this project considers new understandings of the political, aesthetic, and affective relationships between digital media and subcultures. In examining the evolution of “indie sleaze” from its origins and manifestations in an escapist party scene of the aughts to its online simulations from 2021 to …

Social Media Through A Binary Lens: The Impact On College Students & Their Mental Health, Piper Mallchok

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

It is important to first understand how individuals use social media so that we can then understand how and why their use will change the individual impact social media will have. Some students experience a decline in their mental health when their social media use changes. There is an abundance of research on college students and social media, respectively, that also addresses gender as a variable. In this review, the research will be studied to further understand the voices of those who are not commonly included in research that operates under a gendered framework. Additionally, these ideas will be compared …

The Swiping Desire: Intimacy, Libidinal Capitalism, And The Digital Subject In The Tinder Swindler, Chanif Ainun Naim

Masyarakat: Jurnal Sosiologi

This article examines how dating applications operate as libidinal infrastructures that restructure and commodify intimacy within platform capitalism, using The Tinder Swindler as a cultural case study. Employing a visual-narrative approach within the framework of Critical Discourse Analysis, the film is analyzed to reveal the structural exploitation of user affect and desire. Grounded in Lacanian psychoanalysis and Baudrillard’s simulation theory, the study argues that these platforms capitalize on the subject’s ontological lack (manque) which fuels desire as the desire for the Other’s desire. This psychic lack sustains a perpetual pursuit of recognition that can never be fulfilled. The swindler’s hyper-curated …

Digital Orthodoxy And Political Populism In Eastern Europe: How Orthodox Media Facilitate Political Mobilization, Dmytro Garaschuk, Oleh Sokolovskyi

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines the intersection of Orthodox digital media and political populism in Eastern Europe, focusing on how religious institutions utilize digital platforms to facilitate political mobilization, reinforce nationalistic narratives, and undermine democratic institutions. Drawing on a comparative analysis of six countries–Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Georgia, and Montenegro–the study identifies a shared ideological matrix that fuses populist rhetoric with theological motifs. The research highlights the strategic use of digital media by Orthodox actors to construct moral binaries, sacralize political resistance, and disseminate disinformation framed in religious language. Particular attention is given to the role of the Russian Orthodox Church and …

Creativity, Fame And Power: A Critical Political Economy Of Social Media Comedy Skit In Nigeria, Idowu Badmus

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study explores social media comedy skits in Nigeria as a novel type of creativity that is both an economic and cultural activity with political and social implications within the context of the rapidly expanding global ecosystem of online content creation. Academic interest in social media comedy skits has grown as a result of their emergence as a popular culture within Nigeria's entertainment landscape. However, most research has focused on understanding this form of humour through its positive societal correlates. Hence, within the notion of industrialization of culture, which suggests that various methods of financing and arranging communication resources have …

Pokémon Go: Fostering Community In Location-Based Augmented Reality, Miranda Ward

Communication Studies

While most modern video games are played from the comfort of one's own home, Pokémon GO (2016) is a game that requires people to leave their homes and interact with other people in the real world. Pokémon GO contains community-building mechanics that reward players for interacting with each other and catching Pokémon. Due to this, players use third-party applications to organize meetups, particularly through Campfire, which is an app owned by the same company who created the game, Niantic. Uses and Gratifications Theory can be applied to understand why players choose to play Pokémon GO and what needs the game …

Data Security In The Apple Ecosystem: An Evaluation, Kayrene Woods

Cybersecurity Undergraduate Research Showcase

This study provides a comprehensive evaluation of data security within the Apple ecosystem, focusing on the company’s privacy policies, user perceptions, and the effectiveness of its App Store review processes. Employing an interdisciplinary methodology, the research examines Apple’s commitment to data protection, emphasizing transparency and user trust. A survey of user experiences revealed varying levels of engagement and understanding of Apple’s privacy practices, with only 32.8% of respondents having read the Privacy Policy and mixed opinions on its clarity. Additionally, concerns persist about third-party app security, with 39.7% of users expressing apprehension and skepticism about Apple’s App Store review process. …

Three Characters And Me(Me): Positioning Popular Culture To Unpack Emerging Teacher Identity, Gillian E. Mertens, Henry (Cody) C. Miller

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

In this article we narrate an instructional practice we implemented in two different teacher education courses that facilitated conversations about teacher identity through the use of fictional characters who were educators. This practice served two purposes in our course work: firstly, this activity presents students with an opportunity to demonstrate their media interests and career goals; secondly, this activity provides a quick, baseline assessment of how aspiring teachers view their profession and future practice. We detail student responses to this activity and consider how their choices of fictional educators fit into broader patterns we see in popular culture, specifically depictions …

Hell You Talmbout: Mixtapes As Method For Online Environmental Justice Pedagogy, Elspeth Iralu, Caitlin Grann

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

This paper takes on the mixtape as a pedagogical method for approaching urgent and critical topics within the undergraduate online classroom. Drawing on two case studies from different sections of an introductory course on environmental and social justice taught in an American studies department, we demonstrate how mixtape-inspired assignments offer a method for theorizing and enacting the connections between popular culture and critical scholarship around injustice in the humanities and social sciences while also altering the space of the classroom to promote deeper student engagement, comprehension, and reflection. We argue that introducing popular culture as both content and method within …

Using News To Start Class: How Small Daily Interactions Affect Larger Classroom Interactions, Laura M. Dumin

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

In 2013, I added an extra credit assignment to my freshmen composition classes encouraging students to bring in news stories each class period; this assignment was designed to encourage students to be more willing to participate in classroom discussions. We then spent the first few minutes of each class discussing the stories they brought. After using this assignment for a few years, I had anecdotal evidence to suggest that my students were generally more talkative in class after the first week or two of sharing news. These experiences made me want to see if I could measure some change or …

Texts, Affects And Teenagers: (Im)Material Transmissions Across France And Ireland, Taylor Still

Journal of Franco-Irish Studies

This article examines the circulation of texts between people, spaces and cultural perspectives, addressing disparate mediums from virtual transmission, including social media channels; to physical or material transmission in public space(s). Central to the internationalised transmission of texts, the recent emergence and popularity of channels such as TikTok and Instagram have allowed for more innovative, creative and collaborative literary practices. Focusing on young publics in particular, we interrogate how “viral” transmissive practices can work to re-produce, re-appropriate, and re-interpret literary texts. This article also focuses on the affective experience of these transmissive textual practices, and how the (non-)human interactions can …

Dangerous Speech As An Atrocity Early Warning Indicator: Measuring Changing Conflict Dynamics, Catherine Buerger, Susan Benesch

Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal

Dangerous speech, any expression that can increase the likelihood that someone will commit or condone violence against members of another group, can be a powerful early warning signal of impending mass violence. However, one cannot make a list of words that are dangerous, since the effect of the message depends not only on its content, but also on how it is communicated: by whom, to whom, and under what circumstances. What may be benign in one context may be extremely inflammatory in another. Thus, effective monitoring requires deep knowledge of the local setting and structural factors. The spread of dangerous …

Female's Digital Self-Making On Tiktok: Identity Construction Through A Framework Of Postfeminist Media And Neoliberalism (2016-2024), Lindsey A. Pritchard

Senior Theses

This thesis explores the relationship between TikTok's algorithmic design, women's identity construction, and the feminist historical context that shapes these constructions. In Chapter 1, "TikTok, Algorithmic Design, and Self-Making," I analyze how TikTok's algorithm functions and how these factors influence the curation and presentation of identity. This chapter establishes the foundational understanding of TikTok as a platform where identity performance is deeply intertwined with algorithmic design.

Chapter 2, "TikTok Feminism and Identity Commodification" examines the commodification of women's identities on the platform. It investigates the historical context of feminism and its evolution into postfeminism, analyzing how these narratives have been …

Social Media Influencers' Impact On Consumer Purchasing Decisions, Kennedi O. Kutz, Kiara Espinal, Erin Flynn, Julia Cheney

Proceedings of the New York State Communication Association

The study entails how social media usage and parasocial relationships with social media influencers impact the audience’s purchases as a consumer. The survey covers a wide range of questions discussing the different social media platforms, how often they engage on them, and how often they click and engage with advertisements and influencers. It also covered questions that collected the participants' demographics to better understand which groups are more likely to be influenced by advertisements and influencers. We have found that younger audiences are more likely to have their consumer purchases influenced by social media advertisements and influencers than older audiences. …

Cyber Crime Against Women's Personal Data On Online Platforms And The Role Of Pdp Laws, Ambar Alimatur Rosyidah, Farah Fajriyah, Rahayu Rahayu

JURNAL KOMUNIKASI INDONESIA

The presence of online platforms such as financial technology lending platforms is like a double-edged knife for women. These platforms pave the way for restrictions on women accessing loans. However, the use of fintech poses risks to women. They become victims of cybercrime with the existence of desk collectors who collect online loans and the third party who use the women's data. This study aims to examine the cybercrime implications of using fintech experienced by women related to fintech lending and then explore the role, data protection, and scope of the PDP Law as a solution. This study uses Qualitative …

Female Fandom In The Digital Era: ‘Alternative Universe’ For Promoting Thai Boys Love Drama, Monika Sri Yuliarti

JURNAL KOMUNIKASI INDONESIA

Digital era has changed human’s life, including in the practice of fandom. It results in a much broader dissemination of fans-related products produced by the fans, such as alternative universe (AU) as part of fan fiction. In addition, nowadays, Thailand popular culture is rising, especially with the boys’ love drama series (Thai BL drama) which caught foreign viewers’ interest, including Indonesians. This study explores how AU can be considered as a tool for promoting Thai BL drama which goes to fandom actively involvement in the promotion of a foreign country's cultural product with taboo value. It is a qualitative content …

Praying To Tiktok, Seeking The Self: How Rhetoric Reveals And Conceals The World’S Most Powerful Guru Of The Postindustrial Age, Samantha L. Gillespie-Hoffman

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Imagine a world where the most powerful leader is a wellness guru that runs an elaborate church with millions of followers. The guru is so powerful that everyone believes they can read minds and make ordinary people rich and famous. The guru controls forms of communication, media channels, consumer tastes, and what people eat, drink, say, and even think. What if this guru was not human but actually an algorithm? Does this sound like the plot of a science fiction novel? I argue that this scenario is closer to reality than most will admit. In this project, readers encounter a …

Enhancing Credibility And Fairness: A Qualitative Study Of Transparent Judging In The Festival Film Indonesia, Ngurah Rangga Wiwesa, Wan Hartini Wan Zainodin Dr, Dzaa Imma Abdul Latiff

Jurnal Sosial Humaniora Terapan

The implementation of a transparent judging process is vital for the credibility of the Festival Film Indonesia (FFI). Clear evaluation criteria, including aspects like theme, originality, technical execution, and cultural impact, should be publicly accessible to foster trust in the system. A diverse jury pool, comprising established filmmakers, rising talents, regional representatives, and experts in various film aspects, is essential to ensure a balanced perspective and reduce bias. Strengthening FFI's credibility also involves a robust nomination and selection process, with preliminary screenings by specialized committees to ensure high-quality contenders. Ensuring the judging process is free from undue influence through measures …

Memetic Memory As Vital Conduits Of Troublemakers In Digital Culture, Alexander O. Smith, Jordan Loewen-Colón

School of Information Studies - Post-doc and Student Scholarship

Recent fears of data capitalism and colonialism often argue using implicit assumptions about cybernetic technology’s ability to automate data about culture. As such, the level of data granularity made possible by cybernetic engineering can be used to dominate society and culture. Here we unpack these implicit assumptions about the datafication of culture through memes, which both act as cultural data and cultural memory. Using Alexander Galloway’s critical method of protocological analysis and descriptions of media tactics, we respond to fears of cybernetic domination. Protocols – the source by which cybernetic technologies enable automated datafication – enables us to respond to …

Atrocity Prevention In The Digital Era: Adapting Norms, Laws, And Code To Changes In The Ways Atrocities Are Committed, David J. Simon, Samhitha Josyula, Joshua Lam, Julian D. Melendi

Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal

Emerging digital technologies have changed some of the ways that genocides are planned and executed. This paper examines those differences, calling attention to how changes in the execution of genocide should prompt a shift in the approaches to atrocity prevention. It develops a conceptual framework addressing how atrocity prevention efforts might adapt to new technology within three realms of potential prevention efforts: the ethical (norms), the legal (laws), and the digital (code).

Sans Hommes, On N’Est Pas Rien”: Defying Patriarchy And Reclaiming Voices In Les Rivières, Warisara E. Sawin

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

This article explores Jennifer Solheim’s conceptualization of “the call to listen” in postcolonial Francophone cultural production, as she argues for the importance of engaging with and responding to immigrant and minority narratives within this cultural milieu. This article further explores the dynamic relationship between media consumption and artistic creation, specifically the innovative realms of “accented” and “intercultural” cinema that have emerged from the conditions of globalization and migration. The unique cinematic languages of these forms convey the intricate experiences of those living in exile or as part of post-migratory populations.

An in-depth analysis is presented on Mai Hua’s documentary Les …

The Blessed Assembly: Irreplaceable Physical Co-Presence In Worship And Healthy Hybridity Reimagined After The Pandemic In The Digital Age, Yvette, Ying Wai Lau

Doctor of Pastoral Music Projects and Theses

Because of the unprecedented and unexpected force of the pandemic since 2020, most churches around the world have experienced some online worship during the lockdown of their cities or the mandated closure of the church buildings. For many people, online worship seems to be an equivalent, if not better, alternative for gathering together—a physical co-presence in worship—even after the pandemic has ended. As necessary and vital as online worship experiences have been for Christians during the pandemic, the witness of the church from Pentecost throughout Christian history indicates that gathered worship in physical spaces is irreplaceable for faith formation and …

Phillis Wheatley Peters’S British Publicity Campaign, Susan Carlile

ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640–1830

Scholarship has tended to place its focus on Phillis Wheatley Peters’ unsuccessful efforts in America, followed by an account of one British figure, the Countess of Huntingdon, who patronized the publication of Poems on Various Subjects in London in 1773. However, the chronology of the British campaign, the modes of print publication, and the locations in which Phillis Wheatley Peters’ words were published deserve closer attention. This essay highlights previously unknown or unremarked upon British publications outside London, the Drewry Derby Mercury, the Ipswich Journal, the Hibernian, and John Gillies’s Memoirs of the Life of the Reverend George Whitefield, …