Communication Technology and New Media Commons^™

Return Serve: Exploring The Dialogism Of The Australia-China Relationship In Media Coverage Between 2020-2022, Jordan Hogan

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Australia and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have a dynamic bilateral relationship that is defined by interdependency and mutual political scepticism. This thesis provides an analysis of Australian and Chinese news media perspectives on this relationship. Via an in-depth examination of opinion pieces from national press, I map the significant developments of a period of deteriorating relations between 2020 and 2022. My study captures the more prominent, parochial and vitriolic media coverage of the unravelling relationship, and investigates the motivations, developments, differences, and similarities in the online publications of Australia’s national daily newspaper The Australian, and China’s Global Times. …

Gender Moderation On Students’ Adoption Of Whatsapp For Learning-Support Communication In Sub-Saharan Africa, Douglas Yeboah, Paul Nyagorme, Brandford Bervell, Godfred Yaw Koi-Akrofi, Awo Esaah Bempong

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

Gender moderation in students’ adoption of WhatsApp for supporting distance learning has not been explored. This study applied the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model to analyze the moderation effects of gender on students’ adoption intentions of WhatsApp for learning. Multi-stage sampling techniques were used to obtain 273 participants. Data were collected using structured questionnaire and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling. Results showed that gender significantly moderated the effects of(a) performance expectancy on behavioral intention such that the effect was stronger for males than females, and (b) social influence on behavioral intention such that …

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 …

Expériences Vécues Et Perceptions De Personnes Étudiantes Internationales Sur Les Mesures Et Les Services Offerts Par Les Universités Québécoises Pendant La Pandémie De Covid-19 = Experiences And Perceptions Of International Students Regarding Measures And Services Offered By Quebec Universities During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Farrah Bérubé, Jessica Dubé, Jorge Frozzini, Daniel Côté

Études primaires

Cet article fait état d’une partie des résultats d’une recherche menée auprès de personnes étudiantes internationales (PÉI) qui fréquentaient des universités québécoises pendant la pandémie de COVID-19. La recherche portait sur les usages sociaux des technologies de l’information et de la communication (TIC) et sur la qualité de vie des PÉI en période de confinement. Les résultats présentés et discutés dans cet article se rapportent plus spécifiquement aux expériences et perceptions des PÉI sur les mesures et les services offerts par les universités en contexte de confinement. Afin de répondre à cet objectif, des entretiens semi-dirigés, menés auprès de 40 …

Framing Theory Insights: The Co-Existence Of Frame Coupling And Frame Mirroring In Social Media And Online News About A Disaster-Affected Destination, Violetta Wilk, Ashlee Morgan, Greg Willson, Ruth Sibson

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Through the lens of framing theory, this paper explores social media and news media online narratives about a destination affected by a natural disaster. It presents original insights into the co-existence of frame coupling and frame mirroring in online content. Online news media, and local and overseas social media user-generated content (UGC) was examined. The aim of such triangulation of data, was to understand how different online sources framed the destination in the context of the disaster. 24,985 Twitter (now X) posts were sourced using Salesforce Social Studio and 1,248 online news media articles from Factiva. Leximancer-driven thematic analysis via …

Creation And Use Of Sbs’S The Boat; Principles For The Co-Creation Of Online Interactive Learning Environments For Innovative Digital Pedagogy, Prue Miles, Kylie Boltin

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Teachers and students rely more on online-learning environments than ever before, including open, trusted and high-quality online learning resources produced by public broadcasters. For educators, this represents both an inspiration and challenge in the wake of new techologies and online learning environments. This article is a case study of one such online learning environment created by Australia’s multicultural broadcaster, the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), an adaptation of Nam Le’s award-winning short story, “The Boat” (2008). SBS’s The Boat (2015) is an immersive online experience that explores a refugee perspective and is accompanied by SBSLearn online learning materials. The Boat (2015) …

An Updated Social Media Users’ Crisis Response Framework, Violetta Wilk, Francesca Stocco, Saiyidi Mat Roni, Ferry Jie

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Purpose: This exploratory study aims to investigate social media users’ reactions via user-generated content (UGC) to crisis-affected supply chains, through the lens of Situational Crisis Communication Theory, to: (1) ascertain whether the Social Media Users' Crisis Response (SMUCR) Framework is applicable to a prolonged, multi-brand, global crisis and (2) whether there is any evidence of online brand advocacy (OBA) and online brand detraction (OBD). Design/methodology/approach: Natural language processing (NLP) with Leximancer, enabled thematic and sentiment analyses of 295,024 X (Twitter) posts extracted over a three-year period. Findings: This study found that there were nine stages in social media users’ response …

Guiding Principles For Stakeholder Engagement In Supporting Children’S Digital Citizenship: The 4a Model, Kylie J. Stevenson, Harrison W. See, Emma Jayakumar

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This article outlines an evidence-based model of children’s digital citizenship stakeholder engagement, reporting the final outcome of a project conducted in the Asia Pacific region, titled Digital Safety and Citizenship Roundtables: Using Consultation and Creativity to Engage Stakeholders (Children, Policy Influencers, Industry) in Best Practice in India, South Korea, and Australia. This qualitative research positioned young children aged 3 to 13 years as key stakeholders in their digital citizenship development. Their views were communicated to adult stakeholders with an interest in digital citizenship policy and practice. The authors outline the 4A model, based on evidence collected from child and adult …

Beyond Gatekeeping: Web Series As Entrepreneurial Emancipation In The Contemporary Streaming Era, Sarah De Possesse, Brian Yecies, Steinar Ellingsen, Sue Turnbull

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This study explores fictional web series as a disruptive alternative to traditional television industry gatekeeping systems, offering actor/producers unprecedented pathways to creative agency and entrepreneurial career development. This research documents how practitioners, industry bodies, broadcasters, and audiences define “successful” web series, examining how “value” is generated beyond traditional economic metrics. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with a cross-section of Australian screen industry representatives, it applies an “entrepreneuring as emancipation” framework to reconceptualize the industrial significance of web series as vehicles for challenging established hierarchies. Finally, it analyzes how the low-budget format enables actor/producers to develop entrepreneurial identities through digital platforms while …

Submission To The 'Inquiry Into The Harm Young New Zealanders Encounter Online, And The Roles That Government, Business, And Society Should Play In Addressing Those Harms', Siobhan Healy-Cullen, Giselle Woodley, Lelia Green, Leon Huxtable

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

We are a group of researchers and educators from Aotearoa New Zealand (Massey University), and Australia (Edith Cowan University), who collaborate on research, grant applications, scholarly articles, policy debates and youth-led interventions to define and co-create strategies that support young people in navigating and processing their experiences with online sexual content.

We welcome the chance to submit to this parliamentary inquiry, and thank the Aotearoa New Zealand parliament for the opportunity to contribute our expertise and offer input into your deliberations. We are encouraged that the terms of reference stipulate that "not all young people experience the world in the …

Serial Killers And The Production Of The Uncanny In Digital Participatory Culture, Laura Glitsos, Mark Deuze

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Many theorists have expounded on what serial killing says about the social in any given context and the ways in which serial killing and media are entangled, in particular, Mark Seltzer, Jon Stratton and Elliot Leyton. However, in this article, we ask, how is serial killer mythology developing in relation to participatory culture typical of our current digital environment? In scaffolding discourse analysis with theories from various literature, such as Judith Fathalla and Mark Deuze, what we find is that people’s lives as lived in media open up radically new spaces through which media publics consume, cultivate and perform knowledge …

Use Of The Slur “Retard” Triples On X After Elon Musk Shares The Word In A Post, Bond Benton, Daniela Peterka-Benton

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

A joint study from Montclair State University faculty in the Joetta Di Bella and Fred C. Sautter III Center for Strategic Communication in the School of Communication and Media and the Department of Justice Studies shows that Elon Musk dramatically increased content containing the slur “retard” on X after using the term in a post. Highlights from the study include:

• A 207.5% increase in posts containing the r-word on X.
• 312,642 posts using the term r-word identified in the period studied.
• Google Trends Analysis showed a similar increase in online search activity related to the r-word.
• Indication of a broader …

Predicting Crises On The African Frontier Stock Markets With Investor Sentiment Indicators: A Machine Learning Approach, David Korsah, Lord Mensah

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

This study examined the predictive ability of machine learning algorithms in identifying crises within African stock markets. The study employed seven distinct machine-learning models, analyzing historical stock prices from eight stock markets, three major sentiment indicators, and the exchange rates of local currencies against the US dollar, with each data spanning from May 1, 2007, to April 1, 2023. Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) emerged as the most effective algorithm for predicting crises. Historical stock prices and exchange rates were identified as the most critical features for prediction. On the sentiment side, investors’ perceptions of potential volatility on the S&P 500, …

Preventive Health Care Information Seeking Behaviors Among Baby Boomers In Taiwan, Alexander N. Chen, Michael J. Rubach, Tracy Suter, Hsin Ke Lu, Mark E. Mcmurtrey

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Preventive health care is widely acknowledged as one of the most effective ways to reduce medical costs and enhance people's health. Preventive health care information (PHCI) is a crucial component. This study examines the PHCI-seeking behaviors of Taiwanese baby boomers. The study found some support for the idea that the preferred media used influenced the likelihood of Information seeking behavior. People with good health conditions were found to be more likely to seek PHCI, while people with greater health care needs sought out PHCI less frequently. The study examined social influences, which were found to be important. Three different types …

Pedagogy In The Age Of Ai: Exploring Generative Ai For Higher Education, Alison Munsch Phd

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents transformative opportunities for higher education, enabling personalized learning, enhanced student engagement, and efficient pedagogical practices. This tutorial-style article guides educators in integrating generative AI into their classrooms through hands-on activities, practical strategies, and reflective exercises. It explores the capabilities of AI tools such as ChatGPT, their applications across disciplines, and the ethical considerations for their use. By cultivating critical thinking and fostering student readiness for AI-driven futures, this article underscores the transformative potential of generative AI in higher education with an emphasis on the academic areas of business analytics, information systems, and computer science.

Surviving And Thriving In The Hybrid Cloud: A Review Of The Current Cloud Computing Landscape, Peter Munsch, Alison Munsch

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Background and Purpose

Both academic and industry institutions have increasingly migrated essential services to public cloud providers (e.g., Microsoft, AWS, Google) with mixed outcomes. Some industry leaders attempted to fully replace their on-premises data centers with public cloud services, a move not advised without thorough performance and cost analyses (Potel, 2023). Despite some organizations pulling back from the “Cloud First” strategy, the public cloud services market continued to grow, with revenue increasing by approximately 20% year-over-year since 2020 and surpassing half a trillion dollars in 2022 (IDC Worldwide Semiannual Public Cloud Services Tracker, 2H 2022). Cloud technologists suggested that hybrid …

Predicting Global Healthcare Supply Chain Delays: A Machine Learning Approach Leveraging Country-Level Logistics Metrics, Jeevan Sai Gali, Nima Molavi, Sepideh Alavi

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

In global healthcare logistics, ensuring the timely delivery of medical commodities is critical, particularly in low- and middle-income countries characterized by infrastructural limitations and operational uncertainties. This research introduces an advanced, data-driven predictive framework designed to forecast delivery delays by synthesizing granular, internal shipment-level data from the USAID Global Health Supply Chain Program (GHSC-PSM) with external country-level logistics capabilities indicators derived from the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI). Rather than relying on retrospective trend analyses, this study employs machine learning algorithms such as Random Forest, XGBoost, Support Vector Machines (SVM), and Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) to detect …

The Sisu Of It All: Authentic Application Of Vital Skills, Samantha Hull

STEMPS Faculty Publications

The article focuses on the integration of multiliteracy and media literacy within the Finnish education system and the role of school librarians in supporting this initiative. Multiliteracy is defined as the ability to obtain, combine, modify, produce, present, and evaluate information across various contexts and tools, fostering critical thinking and learning skills. The Finnish national curriculum emphasizes collaboration between classroom teachers and librarians to enhance educational experiences, with public libraries serving as vital partners in promoting lifelong learning. The article highlights the importance of creating authentic learning environments where students can practice real-world skills, ultimately preparing them to be engaged …

A Theoretical And Empirical Adaptation Of Signaling Theory For Digital Communication: Examining Organizational Brand Identity And Credibility, Victoria Barbeisch

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This dissertation adapts signaling theory for digital communication and tests its relevance in strategic communication, specifically concerning unobservable organizational traits like brand identity values. Signaling theory explains how parties with unequal information (senders/signalers and receivers) use signals to bridge knowledge gaps and influence decision-making. While rooted in biology and economics, its application in computer-mediated communication (CMC) remains limited. This research addresses this gap through two primary aims. Aim 1 presents the first comprehensive theoretical adaptation of signaling theory for digital communication, consolidating fragmented research across multiple disciplines. Aim 2 investigates the theory's relevance in strategic communication related to unobservable brand …