Communication Technology and New Media Commons^™

Hub Brief: Spamouflage Targeting Of U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, Darren Linvill, Patrick Warren

Media Forensics Hub Reports

The People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) campaign known as Spamouflage Dragon has targeted sitting U.S. Senator Maroc Rubio with an ongoing disinformation campaign. Attacks on Senator Rubio began in 2022 during his reelection campaign, apparently paused for nearly two years, but began again in September 2024 though at a much lower rate. This report will briefly outline the changing tactics Spamouflage has employed in their work against Senator Rubio.

Introducing The Transcendent Media Experience Model (Tmem), Sophie H. Janicke-Bowles

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

Eudaimonic media experiences are vast. A comprehensive theoretical model of inward- and outward-focused eudaimonic media outcomes, that can explain how they come about and how they can be discriminated, is still missing. The current manuscript introduces the Transcendent Media Experiences Model (TMEM) to categorize eudaimonic content and experiences as they pertain to healthy self-focus or outward-focused (transcendent) responses and outcomes using self-construal theory as a backbone. This model allows for a more cohesive understanding of when, how, and for whom inward- or outward focused eudaimonic media experiences develop and the mechanisms for why they do so. As such, the model …

Lindenwood Digest, October 9, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Lindenwood Digest, October 2, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

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 …

The Psychological Impacts Of Algorithmic And Ai-Driven Social Media On Teenagers: A Call To Action, Sunil Arora, Sahil Arora, John Hastings

Research & Publications

This study investigates the meta-issues surrounding social media, which, while theoretically designed to enhance social interactions and improve our social lives by facilitating the sharing of personal experiences and life events, often results in adverse psychological impacts. Our investigation reveals a paradoxical outcome: rather than fostering closer relationships and improving social lives, the algorithms and structures that underlie social media platforms inadvertently contribute to a profound psychological impact on individuals, influencing them in unforeseen ways. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced among teenagers, who are disproportionately affected by curated online personas, peer pressure to present a perfect digital image, and the …

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 …

Considering Ai For The Classroom To Boost Civic Learning And Democratic Engagement, Joseph P. Zompetti, Lance R. Lippert, Stephen K. Hunt

eJournal of Public Affairs

Artificial Intelligence (AI) poses significant risks to society generally and higher education specifically. However, it offers potential benefits in terms of students’ civic learning and democratic engagement. By equipping students with the skills to use AI for the common good and fostering their awareness of the potential dangers of AI, we can bolster democracy. In this article, we explore the status quo along with expectations and near-term predictions for AI. Next, we explore some of the most significant and common concerns related to AI. Finally, we draw upon a variety of resources, identify “best practices,” analyze the strengths and weaknesses …

Architecting Standards: Leveraging Ia To Drive Emerging Technology Standards​, Noreen Y. Whysel

Publications and Research

In this talk for the annual meeting of the W3C Information Architecture Community Group, I discuss how standards bodies can learn from the Information Architecture field to improve accessibility and usability. By adopting user-centered design principles and engaging in iterative feedback loops, standards organizations can create more relevant and practical standards that align with real-world applications. Emphasizing collaboration with industry experts and end-users will help ensure that standards evolve along with technological advancements.

In the meantime, key standards are examined, such as ISO 9241, which provides guidelines for usability and user-centered design, and the W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), …

Review Of The Heumann Perspective Podcast, Jennifer Woody Collins

Feminist Pedagogy

This media review of the Heumann Perspective podcast encourages educators to use it as a way to discuss and teach disability justice and activism.

Lindenwood Digest, September 25, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Comparing A Narrative And Didactic Approach To An Invasive Species Education Video, Tim Campbell, Bret Shaw, Amulya Rao, Jenna Klink, Feiran Chen

Journal of Extension

Video is a common tool for engaging audiences in Extension topics, yet evaluation of the different video production approaches is lacking. We compared learning and emotional outcomes after boaters in the Great Lakes watched either a narrative or didactic video focused on how to prevent the spread of an aquatic invasive species. There were differences in how each approach affected viewers, indicating that there can be utility in both approaches to video production. Extension staff that are creating videos should have these outcomes in mind to promote desired behaviors.

Lindenwood Digest, September 18, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Social Media, Technology, And The Higher Education Classroom, Brian F. Mcfadden, Nicole R. Clarity, Susan J. Drucker

Proceedings of the New York State Communication Association

This paper reflects on the ways that media technology infiltrate, push, and pull educators in the 21^st century. The authors write about the importance of including new technology in our courses to better prepare students for their future careers and lives while also acknowledging the challenges that inclusion can present. By highlighting how technology serves as a facilitator for classroom participation and the ways the emergent technology can enhance a journalism curriculum, the paper points to some of the ways that emergent technology in our classes can have an enduring positive effect on our students in the future. However, …

E-Service Delivery And People-Centric Development In The Digital Age: A Case Of Rural South Africa, Tapfuma Pashapa, Ulrike Rivett

African Conference on Information Systems and Technology

This paper explores the role of ICT proliferation in rural development, specifically in terms of improving public services within the South African rural context. The South African setting provided an opportunity to reflect on a people-centric approach that prioritizes social inclusion and public participation to balance a local government landscape historically skewed against rural areas. Interviews were conducted in rural municipalities to determine the development priorities of households and the impact of ICTs on rural development. The findings highlight that the economics of service delivery tend to favour service providers and those who are socio-economically advantaged. This results in varying …

Lindenwood Digest, September 11, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Lindenwood Digest, September 4, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Mobile Podcast Production: How To Educate And Engage Through Online Audio, Jacqueline V. Aenlle, Whitney Stone, Peyton N. Beattie, Jamie Loizzo

Journal of Extension

The use of podcasts in Cooperative Extension programs continues to grow. Ongoing research shows the benefits of podcasting for formal education, non-formal education, connecting with distance learning, and reaching a broader audience. This article will provide readers with steps to create an educational podcast. This article will be of interest for Extension agents and Extension programs that are moving to, or can be complemented by, a digital platform. Extension professionals can consider using podcasts and podcast analytics to complement existing programming, impact reporting, and promotion.

Bodies For Catastrophe: A Montage Study Of Palestinian Digital Labor, Francisco Ramos

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis investigates Palestinian digital labor through the method of montage. Digital labor, understood as bodily activity transfigured by digital machines into exploitable information, is examined within the context of Israeli surveillance technologies used against Palestinians. The study critically explores the dual political functions of these technologies: as tools of settler-colonial domination aiming to dispossess Palestinians, and as neoliberal mechanisms seeking to profit from the surveillance of Palestinian bodies. The second half of the thesis turns to the ways Palestinians engage with such technologies and unsettle the economic and colonial logics embedded in them.

The research is structured nonlinearly using …

Prurient Nature: Sex Work And Ethics At The Margins Of Finance, Esra S. Padgett

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation is an ethnographic and semiotic examination of the relationship between payment processing, transactional technologies, and the US adult industry. Based on twenty-four months of fieldwork in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, and Washington D.C., the dissertation demonstrates that transactional infrastructures, including payment processors, credit card systems, financial institutions like banks, as well as novel technologies like cryptocurrency, have become a key site for an ongoing ethical war around the politics of sex and sex work in the United States. On one hand, ethical fears around sex work have become qualifications for economic exclusion by financial institutions and private …