It is not easy being green: A critical discourse and frame analysis of environmental advocacy on American television
March 2018
Environmental advocacy on American television draws upon utterly exhausted stereotypes, which have become part of a popular discourse. This article serves as an installment in an ongoing project at York University. It analyzes the ideological framing and discursive construction of environmental advocacy, suggesting that such portrayals perpetuate cognitive injustice through the perpetuation of stigmatizing discourses....
Accurate expert deception detection: Faulty premises in Vrij et al. (2015)
February 2018
This essay is a rejoinder to a commentary by Vrij et al. (2015) that was critical of Levine et al.’s (2014) experiments showing exceptionally high deception detection accuracy by expert interrogators. We contend that highly accurate deception detection is possible under conditions where contextualized communication content is diagnostic and where an interrogator is allowed to actively solicit honest confessions....
Coverage and content analysis of agricultural transformation agenda news in selected newspapers in Nigeria
January 2018
Importance of accuracy and conciseness of type and content of information being disseminated to the populace in respect of a development intervention to avoid misleading the populace cannot be overemphasised. Given the strategic importance of Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) in policy drive of Nigerian government and useful lesson it has for repositioning Nigerian Agriculture in a bid to salvage Nigeria’s...
The passing of a champ: Newspaper coverage of Muhammad Ali’s death
October 2017
This study analyzed coverage of Muhammad Ali’s death in three newspapers: Khaleej Times, The Guardian and The New York Times. Guided by framing analysis, the one-week long coverage period between his death and his burial provided insight into how Ali was portrayed both inside and outside the ring. The study suggested four frames to this media coverage: Ali the celebrity, the entertainer, the humanitarian, and the...
Readability and political discourse: An analysis of press releases of Ghanaian political parties
September 2017
Press releases have enormous influence on public opinion since the media sets agenda for public discussion. Thus, press releases are essential communication tool for political parties. For press releases to be effective, however, they must be readable. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to evaluate the readability of news releases of the two major political parties (National Democratic Congress (NDC),...
Assessing the market for motion graphics in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
August 2017
Motion graphics, as a field, has been developed and utilized most in Western broadcast television markets. As an attention-grabbing device, and as a means to communicate information, it appears in all aspects and modes. The Western markets value these techniques, and how they support the promotion of products and the understanding of complex, multi-layered information in relativity short amounts of time. This...
Kinesthesia and catharsis: An analysis of ‘Bhumika’
May 2017
Kinesthesia is a transformation of mental state into physical catharsis, the embodiment of psychological pain into physical. The layers of mental disturbance are enfolded into physical actions performed through the parts of body. To Eisenstein, physical actions are always motivated by the psychological. Kinesthesia in the form of dance is the transformation of emotions into one’s self. The film ‘Bhumika-The...
Mediating effect of word-of-mouth in movie theatre industry
March 2017
This study examines the role of word-of-mouth in the movie theatre industry. Word-of-mouth is tested as a mediator between pre-release studio actions (stars, production budget, and number of screens) and box office revenue. The results suggest that word-of-mouth fully mediates the relationship between stars and box office revenue. A partial mediation of word-of-mouth occurs in case of production budget and number of...
Exploring cyberloafing behavior in South-central Ethiopia: A close look at Madda Walabu University
February 2017
The Internet has made a significant impact on work and the personal lives of people working around the world. While access to the Internet has changed the ways work can be carried out, it has also increased the opportunities for people to cyberloaf, while under the guise of doing work. Cyberloafing is employees’ non-work related use of internet while working hours in any organization. Of late, it is a burning...
Framing of environment in English and Tamil newspapers in India
January 2017
Media coverage of environmental issues helps the readers to understand the concepts that shape their beliefs and perspectives. Media professionals play a vital role on how the public perceives environmental issues. The media does the diverse framing of reality of environmental issues. The study aims to find how the English and Tamil newspapers in India have covered environmental issues and identify the differences among...
Agenda setting via gate-keeping theory in the press coverage of presidential candidates in Kenya
December 2016
The paper uses gate-keeping theory to explain how the press sets agendas. It analyzes how the press covered the presidential candidates in the Kenya’s 2013 General Election. Three newspapers are analyzed: the Nation, the Standard and the Star Newspaper. All have a country wide presence and are considered mainstream newspapers. The major aim is to cement understanding about how the press performs its duties of...
Gossip Girl setting fashion trends: Lebanese young viewers’ identification with media characters
November 2016
This article aims at expanding the knowledge of identification with the fashion of media characters on the series Gossip Girl (Schwartz and Savage, 2007). Since the subject has already been investigated abroad, this article helps gain an understanding of the topic in Lebanon, and its influence on Lebanese female teenagers and young adults. The theory of Identification is adopted throughout the study. The article uses a...
The tree of life and courageous: Comparative analysis on faith-based filmmaking
October 2016
This thesis analyzes the story structure of two films, The Tree of Life (2011) and Courageous (2011), and their similarities and differences in storytelling and Christian themes. Using screenwriting scholar Robert McKee’s theories on story structure, this comparative analysis highlights the plot elements, conflicts, dialogue, and overall execution of the two films in order to identify their agreement or...
The communicativeness of incantations in the traditional Igbo society
October 2016
This paper examines the communicativeness of incantations in the traditional Igbo society. Incantations are given force by oral tradition, a practice whereby the social, political, economic and cultural heritage of the people is communicated by word of mouth from one generation to another. It was the most predominant part of communication in many parts of Africa. Prior to colonialism, the African society, including the...
Attribution of government responsibility for H1N1 flu pandemic: The role of TV health news sources, self-efficacy messages, and crisis severity
September 2016
This experimental study (N=146) investigates how sources in television news (government official vs. doctor), perceptions of crisis severity (high vs. low), and perceptions of self-efficacy messages (presence vs. absence) in TV news stories about the H1N1 flu affect the public’s perception of the government responsibility for the public health crisis and their personal control for preventing contraction of the...
Information and communication technology access and use and competency level among second-cycle school teachers in Ghana
August 2016
One hundred second-cycle school teachers in Ghana (average age 38) were surveyed to explore their access to and the use of information and communication technology (ICT) tools, and their level of competence. The Global Citizenship Survey instruments were adapted to collect the data. The study adopted the descriptive research design and data was analysed using descriptive statistics and Chi square test. The findings of...
Framing of climate change issues in Indian television news channels
July 2016
Climate change affects the lives and livelihood of people. Unless and until people understand the climate science, they will not be able to cope with the extreme events that are likely to occur. The media plays a major role in disseminating scientific information on climate change, and the general public becomes aware of it through the media. This research is an analysis of a six years of coverage of climate change...
Transcendence through social media
June 2016
The emergence of social media has created a sudden shift in the dynamics of societal structure. It is no more a physical, aural and visual attribute to meet, communicate or gather at a given time and place. It is the age of online, and the social media is hogging the limelight to capture as many as ‘netizens’ to indulge and express their thoughts and ideas through social media. Keeping this broad spectrum in...
Expanding media arena, communication skills and youth participation in newspaper discourse
May 2016
In Nigeria, newspaper arena for youth participation has been expanding in the past ten years, especially with the advent of the Internet. But researchers of youth communication seem to be drawn away from traditional media to Internet-enabled media thereby paying inadequate attention to this phenomenon. And it appears that, due to this inadequate attention, a clear case of increasing inclusiveness in Nigeria’s...
Influencing factors to mobile phone adoption among urban youth in Botswana
January 2016
Drawing from the focus groups and semi-structured interviews conducted on urban youth in Botswana, this study adds to the literature of mobile phone adoption among youth in the global South. The study indicates that mobile phone adoption among youth in Botswana is predominantly influenced by factors such as the need for connectedness, cost and perceived usefulness of mobile phone handsets. Moreover,this study...
Sex stereotyping in advertising and effects on the self-esteem of Nigerian women
January 2016
This study examined the relationship between how sex stereotypes are presented in advertisements, and the value women attach to themselves in the society with regards to their self-esteem. Survey method was adopted for the study using questionnaires to sample 200 hundred female students of Benue State University Makurdi. Findings revealed that, like many other studies carried out in the past by scholars, advertisements...
The examination of parent-adolescent communication motives, relational maintenance and intimacy in the uses of communication technologies
December 2015
Both parents and adolescents have adopted a wide range of technologies in their daily lives. Most scholars are interested in the consequences of individuals’ technology addiction and relational development while little attention is given to their family relationships through the communication of new media. Drawing from the perspectives of media uses and gratifications, this study develops an empirical model by...
Propagating health insurance: A formative evaluation of broadcast media programs sponsored by National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in selected Northern States
November 2015
This paper is based on a survey carried out in 2013 to assess the formative potential of broadcast programs designed to propagate the need for health insurance among citizens in six Northern States of Nigeria from 2007 to 2012. Like many insurance schemes across the world, the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) envisaged contributors to pay into common pools to enable health care providers to attend to the...
Contested identities: Historical critique of dress as a communication symbol
November 2015
This article discusses the historical associations of dress as a significant symbol of communication in society. Particular attention is given to women within the African and Western contexts in relation to how dress was utilized as a conduit to relay information about the social customs and ills that were prevalent. The phenomenon of dress is a significant symbol of communication that can serve as a window into...
Journalists’ perception of the communicativeness of selected Nigerian hip-hop contemporary songs: A Port Harcourt City survey
October 2015
This study sought to ascertain the communicativeness of some top Nigerian hip-hop songs, as perceived by journalists practicing in Port Harcourt, bearing in mind the fact that music is a form of expressive communication. The study design was predominantly survey. Out of a population of 420, a sample size of 197 was drawn at a confidence level of 95% and a confidence interval of 5 using the sample size calculator. The...
Correlations between cultural orientations and successful aging of Filipino elders
September 2015
Through the years, the topic of aging has been investigated in relation to the elders’ place in cultural traditions, the roles they played in managing the family, their functions in the community, the challenges they faced as a result of their physical and psychological changes, and their well-being as they aged. Although there still seems to be a deficit in research about elders, considering their growing...
Effects of Indian movies related to Kashmir issue on Pakistani youths
August 2015
This has been observed that due to many reasons, Indian movies are very popular in general public of Pakistan and particularly in young generation. This study focuses on the effects of Indian movies on Pakistani youths with special reference to Kashmir issue. Kashmir issue is a core issue between two neighbor countries - India and Pakistan. After the brief introduction and background of the issue, this is analyzed that...
The use of social media technology in universities: A case of Solusi University, Zimbabwe
July 2015
The twenty first century has witnessed a swift development in the production and usage of the Social Media Technology. Universities and other tertiary institutions have eagerly welcomed this development. However, a number of educationalists and material developers have foreseen the dangers of undue reliance and misuse of technology by these university students. This research wants to find out how productive do Solusi...
Is That Real? Understanding Astronomical Images
July 2015
This study examined what is believed to be “real” in images and how people – particularly non-experts – respond to and understand information that astronomical images attempt to convey. A convenience sample of 1,956 responded to an online survey created for this research. Results indicated that belief in the veracity of astronomical images is normally distributed, with males somewhat more...
Undergraduate students use of mobile phones: Exploring use of advanced technological aids for educational purpose
April 2015
As India has the world’s second largest mobile phone user base (over 893.3 million users, May 2011) and Wireless communication has emerged as one of the fastest diffusing media on the planet, fuelling an emergent ‘mobile youth culture’, it will be interesting to explore the attitude of undergraduate students towards the use of mobile phones for educational purposes. We all know that mobile phones...
Analysis of an interpersonal conflict: The office fictitious or non fictitious conflict and ending
April 2015
The Office was analyzed to determine if television shows portrayed believable conflicts and resolutions in real life. One episode was analyzed, “Dinner Party,” and important interpersonal relationship problems were documented for evidence that correlated with the research previously founded. The episode was watched multiple times and patterns inside of the research were corresponded with what occurred in the...
Interactivity and cyber democracy: The case of Zimbabwe’s online newspapers
April 2015
This paper discusses the potential for promoting cyber-democracy through interactivity on news websites. The paper views interactivity and cyber-democracy on the online arena as central to free expression. The paper argues that the Internet is endowed with possibilities to promote the threefold ideal for public deliberations, that is, a conducive virtual environment for interactivity, cyber-democracy and a broadened...
Reinterpreting some key concepts in Barthes’ theory
March 2015
The paper makes clear some basic concepts in semiotic studies like signifier, signified and referent and core concepts in Roland Barthes’s theory are restudied with new developments especially in connotateurs, meta-language and meaning transfer, which play a key role in understanding how myth is constructed with the two mechanisms of naturalizing and generalizing. With the new understanding, the paper studies the...
Communication without content? On how theory of communication can have its horizons broadened by Whitehead's thinking
March 2015
According to Whitehead, the things of world are at the same time strange and provoking. We do not perceive them, but rather prehend them; they occupy us before we occupy them. The prehension happens at first as affection and only afterwards as cognition. Therefore, its approach is before anything else aesthetic, not ethical. Even so, beauty...
Celebrity and health promotion: How media can play an active role in cancer prevention and early detection
March 2015
It is well-known that celebrities can influence the mass public, helping to shape behaviours and attitudes. The goal of this research is to understand the impact of a celebrity’s cancer news on Brazilian society. Our hypothesis is that news about celebrities with cancer attracts much public attention, but the media squander the chance to educate, inform and enlighten the public about this disease. We studied the...
Model of communicative competence formation
February 2015
In recent years, in line with the communicative and especially cognitive-communicative approaches in native and foreign methodology, the problem of forming the abilities of communicative competence "as the main component of the professional qualifications competency of the modern specialist" is being actively developed. At the same time, monitoring the process of teaching FL in educational establishments...
Mediatizing security operations: An ethical and professional assessment of Media coverage of insecurity in Kenya
February 2015
This study sought to establish the adherence to professional and ethical principles of reporting insecurity matters by journalists in Kenya. Kenya has continuously grappled with national security issues since the 1998 US embassy bomb attack. Terrorist attacks have become a frequent and major cause of insecurity. This has been aggravated by the frequent sectarian, religious and ethnic violence in various parts of the...
Emergence of discursive voices and simulation of polyphony: The identity of science in a Brazilian magazine
January 2015
The aim of this paper is to analyze the construction of identity of science in a Brazilian magazine that covers science. We take identity as a discursive construction and use theories of Discourse Analysis and polyphony of Bakhtin to unfold which discursive voices are present in the magazine’s discourse. Our analysis is divided in three stages: 1) localization of speakers and enunciators, 2) description of...
Non-verbal immediacy’s role in student learning
January 2015
Clear and effective communication is essential. Nonverbal communication specifically has a vital role in communication. There is inconsistent data on the effect of nonverbal communication used by instructors and the impact on student learning within the higher education environment. This research study sought to find distinct correlations between instructors’ nonverbal communication and student learning. Based on...
Application of ICTs in family planning and birth control in Awka-South L.G.A, Anambra State, Nigeria
December 2014
The power of information and communication technology in information dissemination cannot be overemphasized. ICTs are the new technologies that have significantly changed today’s landscape by being a driving force that stimulates developmental change in digital age. This great transformation has served as a tool for information dissemination in the world and has carried information on family planning and birth...
Media preferences and perceptions: The case of Bahir Dar University instructors
December 2014
The main intent of this study is to empirically examine media preferences and perceptions of instructors at Bahir Dar University (BDU) in selected faculties, colleges and school. The survey method of research was employed to conduct the study, and questionnaire was used as a data collection tool. Proportionate stratified random sampling technique was used for the selection of instructors. The findings reveal that Bahir...
Access and comprehension of information by profound deaf youngsters in Brazil
November 2014
The deaf community is less well informed compared to hearing groups and this communication difficulty hampers not only the acquisition of accurate general information but also puts the deaf community at a health risk. When profound deaf students were asked about their sources of information, a younger group mentioned friends and family, and an older group answered newspapers, television, and internet as their first...
Interactivity in Saudi online journalism
November 2014
The research aims to investigate the interactivity of four Saudi Online Journals. Two of these online journals were the Riyadh and Okaz Online Journals, which are also found in the printed versions. However, the other two journals used in this research paper are the Alweeam and Sabq Journals, which do not have print versions, and are only published online. The data were collected based on an analysis of the existing...
The effect of system generated cues on users’ perceptions of organizational trustworthiness, competence and goodwill
October 2014
This study examines how inherent social media system cues may affect perceptions of an organization’s credibility during crisis. Due to their bi-directional nature, social media platforms generate system cues, such as user comments on Facebook and number of followers on Twitter. Thus, even if organizational messages are informative and articulate, they may be scrutinized or perceived as less credible due to system...
Correlations among attitudes about aging, willingness to communicate, communication satisfaction, and self-esteem of Filipino elders
September 2014
With the aim of understanding how Filipino elders function in the communication context, this study sought to determine their attitude about aging, willingness to communicate, and communication satisfaction, and how these variables correlated with their self-esteem. Eight hundred and one willing and able elders from different sectors of society were included in the study. Mixed methods such as survey,...
An assessment to the use of Facebook as a communication tool by Midlands State University students from 2012 to 2013
August 2014
This article seeks to examine the use patterns of Facebook by Midlands State University (MSU) students as a communication tool from 2012 to 2013. It focuses on MSU students in Zimbabwe focusing on how social media networks such as Facebook can be used by university students to communicate academic, social and political issues in their day to day lives. Again, this will reflect on the efficiency and cultural...
Audience westernisation as a threat to the indigenization model of media broadcast in Nigeria
August 2014
Based on semi-structure interviews and secondary data, this paper examines the westernization of audiences - among other phenomena - as a serious challenge to the indigenization paradigm in Nigeria in particular and Africa as a whole. It pragmatically argues that this westernization of local audiences theoretically implies the shaping of media output (programming) according to audience interest which,...
Evolution on the front page visuals in The Tribune during 2001 & 2011
July 2014
The front page of a newspaper is very important for every newspaper, my study examines the evolution on the front page visuals of The Tribune in the year 2001 and 2011. Being one of the oldest newspaper of India, it was founded on 2 February 1881, in Lahore, Pakistan but after the partition in 15th August 1947 it was shifted to Punjab, India. During the study period one major change found, was the size of the newspaper...
Media systems beyond national boundaries: Towards a new paradigm?
June 2014
In recent decades, media systems went through deep transformations, due to social phenomena such as globalization and digitalization; thus, they are to rewrite their boundaries, closely related as those of national states in which media operate. Since the Four theories of the press, studies on communication systems assumed the nation as a privileged frame for the analysis of the relationship between media, political and...
The quality of nutrition research reporting by leading daily newspapers in India
June 2014
Background: Newspapers are an important form of Mass media which plays significant role in health promotion, and is crucial for social development. Studies revealed that newspaper reports lacked consistency in presenting nutrition research results to the readers. A study was conducted with a hypothesis “Newspapers often highlight nutrition research findings disproportionately in order to draw reader’s...
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