In an attempt to shed light on the further sophistication of opinion leadership in online communities, this study examined the forces and structures that affect their formation in the League of Legends subreddit. By investigating what users thought about the various types of individuals with which the communicate, the researcher hoped to begin to understand and record how those forces work bother on this particular subreddit and in mass media beyond. Opinion leadership continues to be an integral force in deciding what information is consumed by a public and under what frames and agendas it is contextualized. If researchers can operationalize formal definitions for the influences and structures that occur online, they can better navigate the deep waters that are global communication on the internet.

Media sociologists have produced much research on the systems of production of media content. Photojournalism, however, largely has been ignored in these studies. This paper presents the findings of an ethnographic study of work routines and photojournalism practices at three newspapers. The study explored the extent to which routines and practices are affected by professional norms and values and organizational needs and beliefs. The study also explored how these factors influence the content and aesthetic qualities of newspaper photographs. Findings suggest that photo editors and photojournalists operate under many of the same constraints as other media workers. The findings also show that photojournalists are socialized to newspapers. expectations by fellow photographers and photo editors. To gauge professional accomplishments, photojournalists rely on peers, professional organizations and competitions.

This study investigated how two college newspapers cover race and how the papers employed racial stereotypes when describing sources. One of newspapers is a student-produced paper at a private university. The other is a student-produced newspaper at a public university. The study conducted content analyses of front-page news stories in both college newspapers. The sources in the story were analyzed for racial stereotypes. Stereotypes were identified based on frames used in modern racism research. A t-test and chi-square were used to compare the coverage of minorities to Whites. Once the quantitative content analysis was completed, I used textual analysis to identify what ways the news stories used stereotypical coverage of minorities. The study used critical media theory.

Data obtained through content analysis of articles about or concerning President Reagan in Newsweek, Time and U.S. News & World Report during two time periods indicated that no relationship existed between time and variance of news coverage given to Reagan. Three content analysis measures were used: comparison of favorable and unfavorable statements, amount of coverage and number of quoted words. The study is composed of four chapters: Chapter I introduces the study, Chapter II presents the data, Chapter III evaluates the data and Chapter IV summarizes and makes recommendations.

This investigation sought to describe the organization, function, and scope of the internal public affairs program of Carswell Air Force Base, Texas. Data came from in-depth interviews, office files, and military publications. The Carswell Air Force Base internal public affairs program appeared to be without direction and reactive in nature. Personnel had little or no formal journalism or public relations training and demonstrated only a vague awareness of the relationships between publics, tools, and activities. Still, the job seemed to get done, although perhaps not as well or as efficiently as possible. This raises the question: Where does formal journalism or public relations training fit into the running of a public affairs/relations office?

The study examined the similarities and differences in the public relations programs of the six Southern Baptist Convention-owned seminaries. Using data collected from surveys and interviews, the study found the general perception of public relations at each seminary good, although some constituencies did not understand the public relations program's purpose. Cooperation among the six seminaries was limited, and most respondents said individual needs kept the seminaries from working more cooperatively. The diversity of primary job responsibilities makes cooperation limited since all programs do not share the same assignments. Limited historical documentation is available on the growth of the public relations programs. The study includes four chapters: a general introduction; an historical overview; analysis of data; and conclusions and recommendation for further study.

This study was concerned with determining how the Algerian dailies, El Moudjahid, and El Djomhouria, and the United States dailies, The New York Times and The Christian Science Monitor, which function in two different press systems, compare in reporting international news in terms of type and tension. This study concludes that the four dailies are similar in type of news; they report more news than editorials, more straight news than in-depth reports, more news of elites than common people, and more news from the Third World than from the Western World or the socialist bloc, and they differ in tension in that the tension within international news was higher in the two United States dailies than in the two Algerian dailies.

This study compared the editorial positions of two magazines, The Christian Century and Christianity Today, on seven social and moral issues, then compared each magazine's positions with the opinions of their intended audiences. A directional content analysis was conducted that determined the editorial positions. On all four issues for which comparison was possible, the magazines demonstrated a marked difference in direction. These positions were compared with the published opinions of those social groups identified as representative of each magazine's intended audience. There was marked disagreement between each magazine and its intended audience on three of the five issues for which comparison was possible.

The purposes of this study were to determine the characteristics of the subscribers to the local community newspaper, to determine what the subscribers read most and what they read the least in the local publication, and to determine the role of the small newspaper within the metropolitan area.

This study explains the development of Business Week from its beginning in 1929 to 1975 and its changes over this forty-five-year period in format, content and editors. The study shows how Business Week developed, reflecting the history of American business, industry, labor, and the rise of the consumer, and recorded the growth and changes in the magazine's format, news departments, services and features, and staff. The study traces the development of Business Week in three periods, 1929, 1930-1950, and 1955-1975; and concludes that Business Week is the leading magazine publication in the business press. The sources of data for this study primarily include the executives of Business Week and the magazine itself.

The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes of journalism students in Dallas high schools toward the meanings and images of journalism careers. Eleven out of eighteen Dallas high schools participated. A total of 211 respondents, 145 females and 66 males, completed the questionnaire. The first part of the analysis involved the comparison through percentage tables illustrating the similarities and differences of the groups. The second part of the analysis involved the semantic differential scales and the mean profile comparisons for the groups. Although the seven branches of journalism did differ significantly from one another, the male and female subjects did not differ significantly in their meanings of the concepts.

This study described the operation and organization of the United States Army's Second Armored Division's Public Affairs Office, with emphasis on the differences between garrison and field operations. The study found that the function of the division, public affairs office is to keep both the internal and external public(s) of the division informed concerning the activities of the division. The office is organized into three branches: command information, public information, and administration. During garrison operations, all members of the office operate from a building at Fort Hood, Texas. During field operations, office personnel organize into teams in order to provide information to all public(s), internal and external.

The problem of this study was to determine which publications available to Texas credit union managers are selected for reading and on what bases these choices are made. The study considered independent publications and those within the credit union industry. Survey respondents were Texas credit union managers. The study found that managers depend heavily on the two publications of the state trade association, two to three publications of the national trade association, and the state regulatory agency newsletter in cases of state-chartered credit unions. Independent publications function as secondary information sources. It was recommended that the Texas Credit Union League combine its two publications and that the Credit Union National Association consider combining publications.

Solutions journalism, rigorous reporting on responses to social problems, has gained great traction in the last decade. Using positive psychology theory, also known as the theory of well-being, this qualitative study examines the impact of reporting while using solutions journalism techniques. Applying the five pillars of positive psychology theory: positive emotion, engagement, positive relationships, meaning and accomplishment (PERMA), this study used interviews and content analysis to investigate how journalists are applying the tools of solutions journalism as well as what they hope to accomplish in the process. Findings revealed that the application of solutions journalism techniques produces hope and community engagement resulting in flourishing and positive change for individuals, communities and all involved in the reporting process.

This study examines African American stereotypes in film. I studied six directors, Kathryn Bigelow, Spike Lee, the Russo Brothers, Ryan Coogler, Tate Taylor, and Dee Rees; and six films Detroit, BlacKkKlansman, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Help, and Mudbound. Using the framework of critical race theory and auteur theory, I compared the common themes between the films and directors. The main purpose of my study is to see if White or Black directors predominantly used African American stereotypes. I found that both races of directors rely on stereotypes for different purposes. With Black directors, the stereotype was explained further through character development, while the White directors used the stereotype at face value with no further explanation.

This study focuses on dark-skinned, Black women's representation in Black sitcoms. Through a mixed-methods use of a comparative textual analysis and focus group, the content and context of episodes from A Different World and Dear White People are explored to illustrate portrayals of dark-skinned, Black women and how these portrayals affect dark-skinned, Black women's self-esteem. Its findings contribute to colorism research by exploring colorism in Black sitcoms. Because this topic is largely unexplored, this study seeks to begin a conversation about dark skinned, Black women's representation in Black sitcoms. The main objective is to ultimately improve their depictions and roles in Black sitcoms and hold Black creatives responsible for the role they play in promoting colorism and its ultimate effect on Black women's self esteem.

This two-part mixed-methods study analyzed the Twitter activity of two regional magazines – D Magazine and Texas Monthly – and how social media editors implement strategies to maintain journalistic integrity (news values, topics, and ethical standards) while increasing engagement.

Online fandom communities exist as a hub of subcultural construction for people across the globe. For queer people, fandom represents a space to safely converge over mutual interests. Previous research has focused on queer fans and popular music fans independently, often taking a pathological approach. This study qualitatively examines queer participants in the Katy Perry fandom through surveys and one-on-one interviews. The theoretical backbone of the study is built around uses and gratifications theory, seeking to understand motivations for fandom participation. The concepts of the heteronormative matrix and queer resistance are additionally incorporated to analyze how LGBTQ+ fans combat societal norms. This research found seven motivations for queer fans to participate in online fandom, providing insight into an understudied community.

As entertainment reflects a culture's ideology, it is important for researchers to study its messages and subsequently its potential meanings. Entertainment has the power to inform and persuade, creating models for behavior with which the public interacts. The entertainment texts for the purpose of this study are the Castle television series and the Nikki Heat novels. Together, they create a unique multi-layer fictional world. By using postmodern, feminist, communication, and entertainment theories, the results of this study provide a tightly focused lens which views a narrow aspect of entertainment media. Each text was thoroughly examined using textual analysis, Feminist Poststructuralist Discourse Analysis, and conversation analysis. Contrary to expectations, the results indicated that the Castle and Nikki Heat texts support hegemonic ideology, particularly through the use of exaggerated stereotypes, strict gender roles, imagery, and narrative choices that help perpetuate rape culture. The discussion outlines how these results can be interpreted through the dominant messages presented in the texts. This research is intended to serve as a foundation for future research regarding entertainment media.

Most newspapers today are struggling to survive in an increasingly fragmented and digital media environment. How have their owners or corporate parents shaped or adapted their business practices to in order to thrive? This question guides the overall approach to this study. The focus is on one newspaper, the Dallas Morning News. In particular, how has the News used corporate messages to respond to the changing media landscape? This study employs forms of rhetorical and discourse analysis to determine the effectiveness of the News' corporate messages during a 10-year period in order to answer this question. This study finds that the News used inconsistent and ineffective corporate communications throughout this tumultuous period.

The purpose of this study is to examine gender bias in sports media from the perspective of the sports columnist. The research analyzed 1,082 sports columns written by ten columnists (five male, five female) at newspapers across the United States. The columns were scrutinized to determine if the column subject was male or female. Results found that 84.4% of the sports columns were written about male athletes or men's sports compared to only 9% devoted to female athletes and women's sports. The research also found that female sports columnists write about female sports 12.7% of the time, while male sports columns only dedicate 6% of their columns to female athletes or women's sports. Newspapers with a larger circulation were more likely to have sports columns about female sports than were newspapers with smaller readerships. Six of the columnists were then interviewed to get their opinions on gender issues in sports journalism.

This research investigated high-school journalism educators’ use and teaching of convergence technology, as well as their self-efficacy, job satisfaction, job dissatisfaction, and burnout. In general, instructions and uses of multimedia tools were not as prevalent as traditional-journalism instructions and tools. One-third of the teachers expressed moderate or strong levels of burnout in terms of their emotional exhaustion. Although both job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction were strong predictors of burnout, self-efficacy was not. Job dissatisfaction was the strongest predictor of burnout, but contrary to the past research, gender turned out to be the second strongest predictor. Qualitative in-depth interviews with a controlled random sampling of survey respondents revealed that maternal mindset and gender roles strongly contribute to female high-school journalism teachers’ expressed burnout and emotional exhaustion.

In order to survive in a hyper-competitive media marketplace, managers must constantly evaluate new technologies and their potential impact on the industry. Using theories on innovation management in organization, this study examined the processes used by managers at daily newspaper in the U.S. during the time period of 1992-2005 to plan for publishing content online. Fourteen subjects, all of whom held management positions during this time, were interviewed at length about their experiences. Their responses reveal that the processes were generally haphazard. This was a result of several factors, some of which were external to the newspaper industry, and others which were cultural, internal forces. Despite a general level of disorganization in the processes, the responses do identify some practices that can be used as blueprints for media organizations that wish to rethink their approach to potentially disruptive technologies.

Representations of people with a developmental disability are virtually not covered in the media. Although there is little coverage of people with developmental disabilities in the media, there are a few entertainment television characters who have Down syndrome and are represented in the media. This study will take a look at the history of how people with disabilities were represented in the media and examine how two television characters with Down syndrome were portrayed on the shows by examining their self-esteem. This study seeks to focus on portrayal of people with Down Syndrome because the physical features that people with Down Syndrome possess are easy to identify. Specifically, the study examines the portrayal of self-esteem in two television characters, Corky Thatcher (Life Goes On) and Becky Faye Jackson (Glee). The researcher will also examine how the portrayal of self-esteem in the two characters is similar or different in people who have Down Syndrome. In the study the researcher found that the representation of the character Corky was different from the character Becky. But both characters tackled issues that affected the Down Syndrome community and it affected their self-esteem. Corky and Becky were different from the interviewees in the way they …