The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic found a fertile ground for the spread of online misinformation, with emphasis on social media. Avoiding misinformation spread requires rapid, engaging, and effective science communication in a clear, easy-to-understand, attractive, and entertaining format that can be readily shared online. Comics fulfill these characteristics, being a promising tool to fight misinformation on social media. The goals of this study were: 1) Develop a novel narrative comic strip to promote recognition of misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine among adult social media users (ages 18-65) based in the United States, drawing on the existing research on the Health Belief Model and Theory of Planned Behavior; 2.) Compare the comic strip evaluation and capacity to influence misinformation identification to those of an educational text about COVID-19 vaccination. 3a) Evaluate differences in the key outcomes (misinformation identification, and attractiveness, trust, perceived usefulness, willingness to share, and acceptance of each educational tool) across participants with varying demographic characteristics, health literacy levels, COVID-19 vaccination history, and demographic characteristics. 3b) Across the entire sample, evaluate the correlation between these constructs and health literacy, digital health literacy, vaccine attitudes, trust in science and health authorities, and social media use. Participants (N = 285) were recruited via social media advertisements and randomly assigned to the comic strip group (CS) (N = 92), educational text (TX) (N = 96), or a control 4 group (CL) (N = 97), which had not read any educational material. An online survey accessed the main outcomes (misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccines, evaluation of the educational tool (attractiveness, trust, perceived usefulness, willingness to share, and acceptance of the educational material). Participants also answered demographics questionnaires, COVID-19 vaccine concerns scale, and questionnaires on Health literacy, eHealth literacy, social media use, trust in health authorities and scientists, and COVID-19 vaccination history. Group CS answered questions regarding transportation into the narrative. There were no differences in misinformation identification between groups, possibly explained by a low sensibility of the misinformation identification instrument, timing of the data collection, and sensitiveness of the vaccination topic, subject to accrued attitudes, such as believing in misinformation. Participants with lower health literacy in group TX scored less on the misinformation identification questionnaire than those with higher literacy, which was not observed in the CS group, indicating that the comic strip may benefit better individuals with low health literacy. Vaccine hesitant/ refusers’ misinformation identification scores seem to have been benefited by the comic strip. The comic strip was better evaluated for trust in its content and acceptance than the educational text. Still, misinformation identification scores were not correlated to any evaluation construct in both groups CS and TX. Transportation into the narrative was positively correlated with all comic strip evaluation constructs but not with the misinformation identification score. Future studies should focus on exploring different styles and sizes of comic strips, using more heterogenous sample and addressing different health topics.

No description available.

Objective: The study examined alcohol consumption among college women ages 18 to 24. It helped to answer who, when, what, why and how much college women drink. It also examined how "girls gone wild" kinds of portrayals influence college women in excessive drinking and "outrageous" behaviors. Theory: A combination of drench hypothesis (Greenberg, 1988) and social cognitive theory (Bandura, 2001) was used as the guiding framework to understand the dynamic relationship of environmental and personal factors in learning and imitating behaviors seen in the media. Method: Two online studies were conducted. The first study was a structured interview conducted with 38 women and 29 men. Study 2 was a survey. A total of 449 college women took part in the survey. Some men (N=174) also took part in the study to provide men's opinions and some perspective on women who drink and behave outrageously. Results: The survey results show that 42% (N=169) of college women in the sample engage in heavy episodic drinking every weekend at house parties. As a result, some have gotten into fights, missed classes, experienced hangovers and vomiting, and have driven drunk. Nearly 14% (N=55) of the women in the study reported being sexually assaulted while they were drunk. In addition, the findings of the study shows that "girls gone wild" kinds of portrayals are perceived in different ways by different college women. Most college women view the behaviors as negative. However, some college women do evaluate the portrayals as positive. These women are likely to engage in similar outrageous behaviors. The "girls gone wild" kinds of portrayals are less likely to influence alcohol consumption among college women. A multiple regression analysis showed that outrageous behavior correlated with self-control, sexual outcome expected, positive evaluation of the "girls gone wild" portrayals and sensation seeking tendencies. Drinking on the other hand correlated only with sensation seeking tendencies and how much value was placed by the respondents on being social. The findings of the study also show that men assess drunken women as vulnerable and "easy." Conclusion: Interventions that include strategies for better self-regulation and explaining of potential negative outcomes are likely to be effective in drinking and drinking-related behaviors. Media literacy programs might help in critical evaluation of media content and thus reduce its negative influence. / Mass Media and Communication

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The constant growth in information and communications technology (ICT) broadens the capabilities of researchers to understand and interpret the social world. New multidisciplinary methods of measuring social realities are constantly being developed and improved. This methodological study aims to incorporate novel methods of automated, computerised content- and sentiment analysis software in order to produce a usable instrument for measuring public expressions on democracy from the social network site, Twitter. Adapting methods developed by O‟Connor et al. (2010) and using an online platform called Chatterbox Analytics Ltd., this study attempts to complement traditional survey research data on democracy. The creation of this method allows researchers to automatically and without deep programming knowledge, extract and analyse opinionated data from a substantial segment of the population, namely Twitter users. This is the first study, as far as this researcher is aware, that develops automated instruments for the measurement of expressions on democracy from online social networks. The rationale for the development of this instrument lies in the apparent recent rise in negative sentiment on democracy in academic spheres and political realities alike. Throughout history support for democracy has swayed, which in turn placed democracy on a rocky path of development. As negative opinions on democracy became overwhelming this system of governance was forced to adapt by changing its core structure. This could be the case again today. Authors such as Crozier, Huntington and Watunaki (1975) have already warned of a crisis of democracy in the 1970s. More recently authors such as Dalton (2004) and van Beek (2012) expressed opinions indicating that globally citizens are steadily becoming more critical of political parties, politicians, political policies and the whole democratic process. These negative sentiments might be indicative of what van Beek (2012:12) calls “an erosion in support for democracy”. Traditional survey projects examining opinions on democracy, such as the World Values Survey, offer insights into global expressions on democracy, but are time consuming, costly and complicated to conduct. The method developed in this study allows researchers to complement traditional survey data with insights that are automatically gathered and analysed from the influential social media network, Twitter. This introductory study finds that automated analysis of expressions on democracy from Twitter is indeed feasible. In order to express the extent to which the developed method is feasible, this study offers an example case, examining expressions on democracy from Twitter for the period of 1 May to 31 July 2012. Furthermore the study offers a quantitative manual evaluation of the accuracy of the developed measurement instrument. With the present level of content- and sentiment analysis technology this study finds that the accuracy of the results from this method, though informative, is still limited. The study therefore concludes with an advisory section highlighting methods for future studies to improve on the accuracy of this measurement instrument. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Deur die konstante groei in inligting- en kommunikasietegnologie (IKT) word die veld waaruit navorsers kan put om die sosiale wêreld te verstaan en te interpreteer al groter. Nuwe multidissiplinêre metingsmetodes om die sosiale werklikheid te verstaan, word konstant ontwikkel en verbeter. Hierdie metodologiese studie beoog om nuwe metodes van geoutomatiseerde, gerekenaariseerde, inhouds- en sentimentanalisesagteware saam te voeg om 'n bruikbare instrument vir die meting van publieke uitsprake oor demokrasie, op die sosiale netwerk Twitter te skep. Metodes wat deur O'Connor et al. (2010) en die aanlyn platform, Chatterbox Analytics Ltd ontwikkel is, is aangepas om 'n instrument te skep wat gebruik kan word om by te dra tot tradisionele opname-navorsingsdata oor demokrasie. Hierdie nuwe metode sal navorsers toelaat om outomaties en sonder veel programmeringsvaardighede opiniegelaaide data van 'n beduidende segment van die samelewing, naamlik Twitter gebruikers, te verkry en te analiseer. Hierdie is die eerste studie, sover hierdie navorser bewus is, wat geoutomatiseerde instrumente ontwikkel vir die meting van uitsprake oor demokrasie op sosiale netwerke. Die beweegrede vir die ontwikkeling van hierdie instrument vloei uit die oënskynlike onlangse styging in negatiewe sentiment oor demokrasie in sowel akademiese- as politieke sirkels. Die ondersteuning vir demokrasie het dwarsdeur die geskiedenis sy hoogte en laagtepunte gehad en hierdie onsekerheid het die ontwikkelingspad van demokrasie taamlik met dorings besaai. Die hele kernstruktuur van híérdie regeringsisteem was geforseer om hewig aan te pas elke keer wanneer die negatiewe opinies oor demokrasie oorweldigend geraak het. Dit wil voorkom asof demokrasie weer op die rand van verandering is. Skrywers soos Crozier, Huntington en Watunaki (1975) het alreeds in die 1970's gewaarsku teen 'n krisis rondom demokrasie. Meer onlangs het skrywers soos Dalton (2004) en van Beek (2012) opinies gelug dat burgers reg oor die wêreld stadig maar seker besig is om meer krities op politieke partye, politici en oor politieke beleide en die demokratiese proses in geheel raak. Hierdie negatiewe sentimente mag dalk 'n aanduiding wees van “'n erosie in die ondersteuning van demokrasie,”, soos Van Beek (2012:12) dit noem. Tradisionele opname-navorsingsprojekte wat na opinies oor demokrasie kyk, soos die „World Values Survey‟, bied wel 'n blik op globale uitsprake oor demokrasie, maar is duur, tydsaam en moeilik om deur te voer. Die metode wat in hierdie studie ontwikkel is, kan bykomende insigte tot tradisionele opname-navorsingsprojekte bring. Díé insigte word outomaties ingesamel en geanaliseer vanuit die invloedryke sosiale netwerk, Twitter. Hierdie inleidende studie bevind dat geoutomatiseerde analise van uitsprake oor demokrasie op Twittter inderdaad moontlik is. Ten einde die mate van sukses van hierdie metode wat ontwikkel is te illustreer, analiseer hierdie studie 'n datagreep van uitsprake oor demokrasie uit Twitter oor die tydperk 1 Mei tot 31 Julie 2012. Hierbenewens bied die studie ook 'n kwantitatiewe waardasie per hand wat die akkuraatheid van die ontwikkelde meetingsinstrument toets. Met die huidige ontwikkelingsvlak van inhouds- en sentiment-analisetegnologie vind hierdie studie dat die akkuraatheid van hierdie metode, alhoewel informatief is, tog beperk is. Die studie sluit af met 'n afdeling wat advies oor hoe verdere studies die akkuraatheid van hierdie meetinstrument kan verbeter, toelig.

Thesis "Comparison of the structure of topics in magazine Mateřídouška in the normalization era and in nineteen-nineties " deals with a comparison of the thematic structure of the children's magazine Mateřídouška published during the period of normalization and then after the major political change in 1989 (transition to democracy) in nineteen-nineties. It contains analysis of the content of the magazine focused on topics in four selected years. For the purpose of this thesis two years from the normalization era and two years from the democratic era were chosen: year 1971/1972 (volume 28), year 1988/1989 (volume 45), year 1991/1992 (volume 48) and year 1999 (volume 55). The aim of this thesis is to find differences between those volumes, describe them and evaluate them. Introductory part of the thesis gives information about the purpose of the research and about the methodology used in it. Theoretical part explains main media and psychological terms connected to the topic of the thesis - child reader, socialization process, agenda setting and social construction of the reality. Information concerning the historic context of every selected year, the portfolio of magazines for children published in those years and the status of the magazine Mateřídouška among them are also provided within this part. It also...

This master thesis' main topic is fashion and lifestyle blogs and the impact of the brands and the ideal of beauty that is widely promoted in the media on them. The aim of this thesis is to find out which type of the brands can be mostly found in the blog posts with personal style of the successful bloggers and if there is a type of physical appearance that prevails among them. I am using the quantitative image analysis of Gillian Rose to test these hypotheses on photographs of bloggers. I was inspired by the work of Catherine Lutz and Jane Collins. My hypotheses are tested on photographs from three websites (Lookbook, Chictopia, Bloglovin') where bloggers are hierarchized. Bloggers are opinion leaders. This means it is advantageous for the marketing departments of brands to collaborate with them because bloggers can effectively influence their readers. Brands play an important role in life of people that believe brands can non-verbally tell the character of the brand consumer. In these days the Eurocentric ideal of beauty and the ideal of thin bodies are forced especially on women by media. The thinness is in the advertisements connected with attractiveness and successfulness, which is transferred also in the real life of people. The conclusion of this thesis indicates that there are most often...

The thesis deals with the didactic potential of the magazine Mateřídouška, especially its possible application in the implementation of media education at primary school. The first part of the Thesis focuses on the theoretical knowledge of the psychological development of the child, reader literacy and media literacy and media education as one of the Curricula program for primary education. The second part is a brief analysis of magazine for primary school children. Subsequently, the work focuses longest stemming magazine for primary school children - Mateřídouška magazine. In the analysis are used knowledge presented in the theoretical part of the Thesis. Emphasis is placed upon the analysis primarily on the didactic potential Mateřídouška. The aim of the Thesis is finding if Mateřídouška magazine could be used in the implementation of media education at primary school.

A pesquisa partiu da observação de uma diminuição da polarização urbana do Rio de Janeiro sobre a Zona da Mata/Juiz de Fora (seu principal núcleo) em detrimento de Belo Horizonte. O objetivo deste estudo foi dimensionar essa gangorra da polarização metropolitana exercida na região por meio do futebol, a fute-polarização. A influência urbana sobre a Mata foi dimensionada. Partimos da presença do futebol no Brasil como fato socioespacial para chegarmos à Mata, onde elencamos o futebol como uma modernidade articulada com as redes de transportes e de cidades, e com seus divulgadores proeminentes (escolas, jornais e rádios). Ao contato com a novidade futebol, grupos sociais passaram a criar times e identificações por meio das sedes sociais, campos e estádios, formação de torcidas e de uma futeiconografia (insígnias, cores e mascotes) utilizada pelos clubes de futebol. Nas cidades matenses, o futebol foi favorecido pela ideologia do higienismo, pela destinação de espaços públicos defronte das igrejas (onde se jogava futebol) e pela divulgação exercida por imigrantes (italianos), estudantes repatriados do exterior ou internamente (comumente do Rio), além dos jornais e rádios. Em escala nacional e regional, traçamos a trajetória da mídia (dos impressos à TV) como meio de apreensão de torcedores, pois as cidades-sedes dos grupos de comunicação Rio e São Paulo obtiveram um extenso território sob domínio de suas agremiações de futebol. Assim, levantamos historicamente como o maior contato da Zona da Mata com o Rio de Janeiro fez dela uma região de influência carioca: caminhos e estradas seculares, além da penetração de emissoras de rádios e de televisão fizeram dos matenses torcedores dos times cariocas. Para tal, usamos fontes primárias (jornais, arquivos públicos, sites dos times). Além disso, a disputa entre Juiz de Fora e Belo Horizonte para sediar a nova capital de Minas (final do século XIX), aliada a uma posterior decadência econômica regional e da tardia conexão viária (meados do XX) e econômica com Belo Horizonte atrasaram a influência da capital mineira na Mata, refletida apenas nas últimas décadas. A partir de todo esse panorama passamos a dimensionar a polarização urbana via futebol. Analisamos e cartografamos as preferências clubísticas nos 142 municípios da Mata Mineira, que ficou cingida por uma diagonal NE-SW: a leste dela, domínio do Rio de Janeiro, e a oeste domínio de Belo Horizonte, além de São Paulo se postar na contenda em ambos os lados. Cotejamos os territórios das torcidas com as transmissões de jogos de futebol pelas rádios e pelas TVs (afiliadas da Globo) da região, que reforçam uma ou outra metrópole. Como senda analítica, utilizamos as noções de redes e de redes urbanas. Por fim, relacionamos a fute-polarização com a fute-iconografia a fim de discutir as identidades territoriais da região, que é comumente taxada na literatura de ter pouca mineiridade. Encontramos verdades, mas também exageros e omissões diante de uma suposta não/pouca vinculação Mata-Minas. Via futebol, concluímos que a polarização carioca é maior no S-SE da Zona da Mata, enquanto Belo Horizonte domina o N-NW, confirmando a hipótese inicial. / The research started from the observation of a decrease in the urban bias of Rio de Janeiro on the Zona da Mata/Juiz de Fora (its core) over Belo Horizonte. The aim of this study was to scale this seesaw of metropolitan bias exerted in the region through soccer, \"Soccerpolarization\". Urban influence on Zona da Mata was scaled. We start from the soccer presence in Brazil as socio-fact to come to the Zona da Mata region, where we list soccer as an articulated modernity with transport networks and cities, and their prominent advisers (schools, newspapers and radios). The contact with the new \"soccer\", social groups started to create teams and identifications through the head offices, fields and stadiums, training cheering and a \"Soccer-iconography\" (insignia, colors and mascots) used by soccer clubs. In Zona da Mata cities, soccer was favored by hygienism ideology, the allocation of public spaces in front of the church (where it was played) and the dissemination carried out by immigrants (Italian), returnees students from abroad or internally (commonly Rio), and newspapers and radio. At the national and regional level, we draw the media path (from printed form to TV) as a means of seizure of fans as the host cities of communication groups - Rio and São Paulo - obtained an extensive territory under the control of their soccer associations. Thus, historically we raised as the largest contact Zona da Mata region with the Rio de Janeiro made it a region of Rio influence: paths and secular roads as well as penetration of radio stations and television made the people of Zona da Mata region fans of Cariocas teams. To reach this we use primary sources (newspapers, public archives, sites of the teams). In addition, the dispute between Juiz de Fora and Belo Horizonte to host the new capital of Minas Gerais (late nineteenth century), together with a further regional economic decline and late road connection (mid-XX) and economic in Belo Horizonte delayed influence of the state capital in Mata reflected only in recent decades. From all this panorama we size the urban bias through soccer. We analyze and map soccer clubs preferences in 142 municipalities in the Mata Mineira, which was girded by a NE-SW diagonal: east her area of Rio de Janeiro, and the western area of Belo Horizonte, and São Paulo to stand in the strife in both sides. Comparing the territories of the fans with the transmission of soccer matches by radio and by TV (affiliated with Globo TV) in the area which reinforce one or another metropolis. As an analytical path we use the notions of networks and urban networks. Finally we list the \"Soccer-bias\" with the \"Soccer-iconography\" in order to discuss the territorial identities of the region, which is commonly taxed in the literature to have little \"mineiridade\" the peculiar characteristics of the inhabitants of Minas Gerais state. We find truths but also exaggerations and omissions in the face of an alleged no / little Mata-Minas Gerais state binding. Through soccer we conclude that the Rio polarization is greater in S-SE of the Zona da Mata, while Belo Horizonte dominates the N-NW, confirming the initial hypothesis.

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2017-12-15T11:36:15Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Francisco Beltrame Trento.pdf: 21869422 bytes, checksum: a3f6dcfdd56e97505e57f2865264ec30 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-12-15T11:36:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Francisco Beltrame Trento.pdf: 21869422 bytes, checksum: a3f6dcfdd56e97505e57f2865264ec30 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-12-06 / Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico - CNPq / Contemporaneity is characterized by the interweaving of human beings with multiple media forms, through material mediatic objects (our black mirrors). Also by stimuli and incorporeal enunciates that are embodied by them, or in which they momentarily crystallize themselves. These dispositives and networks have been represented in the audiovisual field, scenic arts, performance and literature frequently. The television anthology Black Mirror (Channel Four, 2011-2014; Netflix, 2016-), one of the fictional guides in our analysis, is a set of narratives that, exacerbating this state of things, discusses how those media ecosystems are intrinsically linked with the production of desires in the individuals. We aim to identify and map those modulations through a Spinozist semiotic of affects. Among the affects, we have identified the production of a desire to control, a mode of existence or set of ideas that presupposes that we have the total control of situations and absolute truth through the same media dispositives that involves us. We relate that to the production of subjectivity of the standard ideal neurotypical human being, or of the fine products that emerges from the processes of the antropotecnical eugenic machine, studied by Fabian Ludueña. Starting from this point, we aim to focus the communication processes as agencements or encounters (occursus). Following Black Mirror’s narrative, we seek to produce a mediatic cartography of good and bad encounters, not constructed through moral systems, but following Spinoza’s ethical evaluation, mapping composition and decompositions, increases and decreases of potency observing the semiotical production of desires through affections. Besides the desire to control, which emerged from the anthropocentric and anthropotechnical crusade, other types of desires can be machined in the subjectivities engaged to the omnipresent media dispositives as part of the contemporaneous capitalist system, as the desire of emulation or the desire of imitation, explained in Spinoza's “definition of affects”. The difficult task is to think escapes or lines of flight to these types of media agencements that can emerge performatively/artistically by experimenting with the same media materialities or enunciative apparatuses (we don’t consider them neither good or evil but they can be (re) allocated in agencements that produce good or bad encounters in a field of immanence). It requires to look for the production of good encounters and active agency, or to think new possibilities of world construction. We consider that, in the presence of the exhaustion produced by the control systems, minor and apparently contingent gestures and artistic practices can resist to the total control and normativity. It’s through them that we advocate in favor of an immanent critique of media, incongruent to identitarian bubbles and politics – that usually target moral judgement without observing events’ causality network and the desires agenced in its nodes. Against that, we ally with the philosophy of Baruch Spinoza, Gilles Deleuze, Catherine Malabou and other contemporary rereadings of the Dutch philosopher that can relate with them, as the work of Brian Massumi. To discuss the emergent issues of those complex questions, and try to develop an immanent media critique, Brian Massumi and Erin Manning bring us their particular interpretations of immanent critique, performed through research-creation art practices and minor/disruptive gestures / O cerceamento dos seres humanos por múltiplas formas de mídia, ou por meio dos objetos midiáticos materiais (nossos espelhos negros), ou dos estímulos e enunciados incorporais que deles derivam, ou que neles se cristalizam momentaneamente, tem sido discutido no campo audiovisual (cinema e televisão), nas artes cênicas, em performances e na literatura. A antologia televisiva Black Mirror (Channel Four, 2011-2014; Netflix, 2016-), um dos guias ficcionais de nossas análises, é um dos conjuntos de narrativas que, extremando essa possibilidade, mostra como esses novos ecossistemas e agenciamentos midiáticos modulam de distintas formas a produção de desejo nos indivíduos. Um de nossos objetivos é observar e cartografar tais novas modulações de desejo e afetos. Dentre elas, detectamos a produção de um desejo de controle, um modo de ser ou um conjunto de ideias de que temos o controle das situações por meio dos mesmos dispositivos midiáticos que nos envolvem. Procuramos enfocar a comunicação como agenciamento ou encontro (occursus). Por meio da narrativa de Black Mirror, buscamos produzir e identificar uma cartografia de bons e maus encontros, não mediante uma moral, mas sim, a partir da diferenciação entre os dois conceitos de acordo com a Ética, de Spinoza. Além do desejo de controle, outros tipos de desejos são maquinados nas subjetividades acopladas aos media onipresentes e suas inserções no capitalismo contemporâneo, como o desejo de emulação ou o desejo de imitação. A difícil tarefa é pensar os foras a esses tipos de agenciamentos midiáticos de controle, a partir das próprias ferramentas midiáticas maquínicas ou enunciativas, discutindo novas possibilidades de construção de mundos e possíveis. Diante da exaustão, os gestos disruptores e aparentemente contingentes resistem ao controle e à normatização. É por meio deles que buscamos advogar a favor de uma crítica imanente das mídias, que pretende não se adequar às bolhas e políticas identitárias discursivizadas nas mídias, visando a vigilância e o julgamento moral sem observar sua causalidade a partir de uma avaliação ética. Para pensar a comunicação como agenciamento ou encontro, bem como as particularidades dos desejos que se agenciam nessas redes, nos aliamos à filosofia de Baruch Spinoza, Gilles Deleuze, e a algumas leituras contemporâneas que com ela se relacionam, como as feitas por Brian Massumi e Catherine Malabou. Para discutir essa problemática e pensar uma crítica midiática imanente que não retroalimente o ideário de controle, Brian Massumi e Erin Manning, com suas versões do conceito de crítica imanente, auxiliam-nos nessa questão

<p>Abstract</p><p>Title: Foreign news coverage. Does the media influence the action in international crises? (Utrikesbevakning. Påverkar media agerandet i internationella kriser?)</p><p>Number of pages: 39</p><p>Author: Charlotta Andrésson</p><p>Tutor: Professor Lowe Hedman</p><p>Course: Media and Communication Studies C</p><p>University: Division of Media and Communication, Department of Information Science, Uppsala University.</p><p>Date of submission: 2007-01-03, autumn term of 2006</p><p>Purpose/Aim</p><p>The purpose of the essay is partly to examine if foreign news coverage influence the political agenda setting and the incentives of the public’s willingness to give charity for humanitarian crises. It is also to answer if the media are responsible for the possible consequences of the news coverage. My main questions at issue are:</p><p>1. Does the foreign news coverage influence the political agenda setting and the incentives of the public’s willingness to give charity for humanitarian crises?</p><p>2. Is media responsible for the possible consequences of their foreign news coverage?</p><p>I also ask a question at issue in a research of Swedish foreign news coverage in my essay to get a clearer picture of the foreign news coverage:</p><p>3. How does Swedish foreign news coverage relate to prior research?</p><p>Method:</p><p>The second chapter of the essay is a literature research of news selection and news values. The third chapter of the essay is a research of media’s influence on the world politics and humanitarian aid. These two chapters are literature studies based on prior research, theories and debates. The fourth chapter is an empirical study of a news programme on a Swedish TV-channel during a five months period between 2004 and 2005. My interest in the empirical study was to examine how the material was divided geographically and as regards contents. The fifth and sixth chapter of the essay consists of an analysis and a discussion.</p><p>Main results:</p><p>As my main result I concluded that the media influence the political agenda setting and the the incentives of the public’s willingness to give charity for humanitarian crises. The media throw light upon which crises that should be given priority to. The theories for news selection and news value agrees with the result of my research of Swedish foreign news coverage. I also concluded that the media alone was not responsible for the possible consequences for their foreign news coverage but that they are the premier channel of information about the world for most people.</p><p>Keywords: Foreign news, news selection and news value, CNN-effect, Media and political agenda setting, Media influence of humanitarian aid.</p>