<p>ABSTRACT</p><p>Object: “To depict, the relation between the journalists and sources in the news process, and how each work in the EU arena when making news about the EU”</p><p>Method: Qualitative interview</p><p>Material: Interviews with journalists from the DN, SVD, Aftonbladet and Europa Posten, and with the head of the press of the Swedish representation of the EU commission.</p><p>Main results: The complexity of the EU seemed to develop the kind of relation the journalists have with their sources, where the source cansupply the relevant information, without the journalist getting lost in the mass of it that the EU produce daily. But more than so, the relation appeared to be based on a mutual interdependence as each seek to reach their goals. Since 90% of the public form their opinion about the EU through the media, the EU has special press people working on all the contacts with the journalists. At the same time they are aware that the journalists need them in order to get the information they need to make news about the EU. The complexity of the EU field requires more pressure on the journalists, on their work as EU-journalists, than on other fields. And there is a need of a great deal of knowledge about the EU and independence to the source, in order to avoid going by the EU: s own agenda.</p><p>Keywords: EU-journalism, news, politics, EU commission, democracy</p>

<p>Abstract</p><p>Purpose/Aim: In my essay I study the use of Internet with information overload as my perspective. I compare two age groups in order to find out whether there is a difference between generations in how they use the Internet and experience the vast amount of information that is found on the net.</p><p>Material/Method: I gather information from six frequent World Wide Web users to find out whether they are experiencing information overload when using the Internet in their spare time and how they structure and make sense of the vast amount of information that is found on the net. I use semi-structured interviews to gather qualitative, not quantitative, material for my study. I have also used literature and websites on information overload, the Internet, and connected themes in order to get a broader picture of the subject and help me analyse the material.</p><p>Main results: The main results of my study are that frequent Internet users do not feel that they suffer from the vast amount of information found on the World Wide Web. They rather enjoy it and if they have heard the term information overload they assume that it does not apply to their use of the Internet. They have special routines to help them structure up and make sense of the information.</p><p>The differences between the age groups are minor. The younger group draws a parallel between knowing about computers and knowing how to use the Internet whereas the older group thinks of information searching skills as a measure of how good you are at using the Internet. The younger ones were more likely than the older ones to get ideas from commercials on what to look for on the net.</p><p>Almost every respondent described a difference between generations during the interview. They thought that the elderly people using the net are more likely to suffer from information overload. The result of the study does though show that age does not matter very much in this case. The time you spend using the Internet is more important: After learning the basic methods you can learn how to structure up and find information while using the net.</p><p>Keywords: Internet, website, homepage, discussion group, newsgroup, community, e-mail, eshop, online entertainment, online games, search engine, communication, case study, information overload.</p>

The Mobile phone has contributed to massive changes in the way that human beings communicate with each other and is a part of society’s globalization. Opinions differ in the area of user interface where some feel that mobile phones exclude users such as senior citizens or users with an intellectual or a physical disability. Universal Design –‘design for all’, is a vision that intends to bring about settings, products and services that suits as many people as possible irrespective of an individual’s needs and prospects. The criteria for ‘design for all’ are among other things flexibility, user friendliness, comprehensibility and a high tolerance for mistakes. The purpose of this essay was to investigate the mobile phones graphic user-interface from the theory of a universal design. From this general purpose the study looked more closely at senior citizens perspective of mobile phones graphic user-interface. To achieve empirical support for the study a qualitative method in the form of interviews was used. All of the individuals that participated in the study felt that the mobile phone is a very good and beneficial invention. Mobile phones bring about a feeling of security and safety since one can always reach family and friends in the event of a crisis. The participants were included in the study if they were capable of using mobile phones to reach others and for others to reach them. However, individual’s that did not have the technical ability to understand the other possible functions of the user-interface were excluded from the study. It is difficult to provide a interface that is Universal, because every individual is unique.

In this thesis I'm trying to examine the meaning potential of visual elements and layout in a Swedish newspaper front page and the same newspaper's website's start page, drawing on theories about multimodality and social semiotics developed mainly by Theo van Leeuwen and Gunther Kress. The study is focusing on Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet and the website aftonbladet.se and compares these three different days. In this thesis I also try to examine what the newspaper communicate about its identity through the different visual components. My conclusion is that visual elements and layout have a great importance regarding what a newspaper communicate about how the news articles should be read, but what can be said about a company's identity mostly depend on the genre the newspaper belongs to and how well the reader knows that particular genre.

ABSTRACT Purpose/aim: Are there any differences between how “old” and “young” groups within social movements in Sweden view (value) and use alternative and mainstream media? Material/method: The answer to the research problem is sought by conducting qualitative research interviews with representatives of four different groups: Alternativ Stad, Folkkampanjen mot Kärnkraft-Kärnvapen, Attac Sverige and Ingen Människa är Illegal. The theoretical framework consists of research on social movements, especially on their relation to media, and on alternative media. Main results: There exist some, but not great, differences between how “old” and “young” groups view and use mainstream and alternative media. The differences are relatively small when it comes to views on media and somewhat larger concerning media use. These differences in media use stem mostly from the differences in organizational structure. Keywords: Social movements, alternative media, mainstream media, media views, media usage.

We have made a qualitative study of what the students at Södertörns högskola use Södertörns högskola’s intranet Kurswebben for and how they experience the use of it. For this purpose we have made a qualitative interview examination with six students. The empirical material has been analysed according to our own analytic model which is based on existing usability theories and consists of the tree parts content, function and design. Our conclusion is that the students use Kurswebben mainly to keep themselves updated, download teaching material and schedules. According to our study, the students most of the time experience their use of Kurswebben as simple, but sometimes have a reluctance to visit it. The reason is that the students experience that Kurswebben is complicated, boring and many functions do not work or are experienced as unnecessary and irritating. Through a usability examination and a restructuring of Kurswebben´s content, function and design the needs of the students could be met.

Abstract Aim: The aim of the study is to analyze ten different columns written by Linda Skugge, in order to see what kind of rhetorical means she uses to get her message across. It is also to examine if, and to what extent, these means are of female nature, and to see what kind of persona Skugge uses in order to be trustworthy. Method: Rhetorical analysis of ten columns written by Linda Skugge Main results: The study has shown that Skugge´s rhetorical strategies differ from the ones recommended in theories about female speech. Skugge writes with a lot of character and emotionally based arguments, which, according to the theories, is more of a male way of speaking. Skugge gives an impression of being strong, competitive and offensive in her character, but also reveals that her role is consciously chosen in order to receive respect and to gain power. Number of pages: 42 Course: Media- and Communication studies D University: Department of Information science, University of Uppsala Period: Spring 2005 Tutor: Amelie Hössjer Keywords: rhetoric, rhetorical analysis, feminist studies, persona, Linda Skugge

Abstract Purpose/Aim: The aim is to investigate if there are any differences in the reporting from the Olympic games and the Paralympic games, according to different periodicals or magazines, with focus on Paralymics and sports for handicapped. If so, what are those differences? Material/Method: The material consists of two periodicals, or magazines; Svensk idrott which is the official paper for the swedish Riksidrottsförbundet, and Handikappidrott, which is the official paper for the swedish Handikappidrottsförbundet. Articles considering the summer games in 1972 and 1976, 1984, 1996 and 2000 was studied with regard to models developed by Algirdas J. Greimas. The methods are both quantitative and qualitative. Main results: The main results are that the biggest difference between the periodicals really lie in the selection of articles and also in the amount of articles published, considering the games. In Handikappidrott, the articles are aimed towards an initiated audience who are supposed to know much about handicapped people and their sports. Svensk idrott focuses a lot more on different aspects of the Olympic games, such as politics and economy. Also has the aspect of normalisation been of current interest – the problem is that the more of handicapped people and issues that are presented to the audience in order to pinpoint the normality of the issue, the more focus come to lie on what is different from the non-handicapped, and in that way enlarge the gap between handicapped an non-handicapped. Keywords: Olympic games, Paralympics, actants, narrator, implied author, normalisation

ABSTRACT Object: “To depict, the relation between the journalists and sources in the news process, and how each work in the EU arena when making news about the EU” Method: Qualitative interview Material: Interviews with journalists from the DN, SVD, Aftonbladet and Europa Posten, and with the head of the press of the Swedish representation of the EU commission. Main results: The complexity of the EU seemed to develop the kind of relation the journalists have with their sources, where the source cansupply the relevant information, without the journalist getting lost in the mass of it that the EU produce daily. But more than so, the relation appeared to be based on a mutual interdependence as each seek to reach their goals. Since 90% of the public form their opinion about the EU through the media, the EU has special press people working on all the contacts with the journalists. At the same time they are aware that the journalists need them in order to get the information they need to make news about the EU. The complexity of the EU field requires more pressure on the journalists, on their work as EU-journalists, than on other fields. And there is a need of a great deal of knowledge about the EU and independence to the source, in order to avoid going by the EU: s own agenda. Keywords: EU-journalism, news, politics, EU commission, democracy

Abstract Purpose/Aim: In my essay I study the use of Internet with information overload as my perspective. I compare two age groups in order to find out whether there is a difference between generations in how they use the Internet and experience the vast amount of information that is found on the net. Material/Method: I gather information from six frequent World Wide Web users to find out whether they are experiencing information overload when using the Internet in their spare time and how they structure and make sense of the vast amount of information that is found on the net. I use semi-structured interviews to gather qualitative, not quantitative, material for my study. I have also used literature and websites on information overload, the Internet, and connected themes in order to get a broader picture of the subject and help me analyse the material. Main results: The main results of my study are that frequent Internet users do not feel that they suffer from the vast amount of information found on the World Wide Web. They rather enjoy it and if they have heard the term information overload they assume that it does not apply to their use of the Internet. They have special routines to help them structure up and make sense of the information. The differences between the age groups are minor. The younger group draws a parallel between knowing about computers and knowing how to use the Internet whereas the older group thinks of information searching skills as a measure of how good you are at using the Internet. The younger ones were more likely than the older ones to get ideas from commercials on what to look for on the net. Almost every respondent described a difference between generations during the interview. They thought that the elderly people using the net are more likely to suffer from information overload. The result of the study does though show that age does not matter very much in this case. The time you spend using the Internet is more important: After learning the basic methods you can learn how to structure up and find information while using the net. Keywords: Internet, website, homepage, discussion group, newsgroup, community, e-mail, eshop, online entertainment, online games, search engine, communication, case study, information overload.