Abstract This thesis addresses the issue of the effects of (repeated) exposure to death-related news content systematically and programmatically through a four-phase research project using a Terror Management Theory (TMT) framework. The central research questions that are posed include, ‘What are the effects for individuals of exposure to death in TV news?’; ‘When will individuals personalise death-related TV news as opposed to feel desensitised to it?’; and, ‘How do individuals cope with repeated exposure to death in TV news?’ The first three chapters provide an extensive literature review that integrates current research from the media effects and mass communication literature with that of experimental findings based on TMT. This leads to an overview of the research program. Then, a series of empirical chapters present findings from six experiments, using a mixed methods approach that incorporates both quantitative and qualitative data and analyses. Finally, in Chapter 9 trends within the quantitative and qualitative data across the studies are discussed along with the theoretical and broader implications of the findings. Overall, there are three primary aims of the research. (1.) To examine a) whether death in news media can prime personal mortality salience, thus eliciting death thought accessibility and cultural worldview fluid compensation defensive outcomes as theorised by TMT (increased nationalism, endorsement of affiliation needs and self-esteem bolstering), and b) whether it is only particular portrayals of death in news media that work this way (i.e., whether there are critical factors such as viewer-victim similarity or level of exposure, as identified in the media effects literature) that play a significant moderating role. (2.) To explore whether it is necessary for the outcomes of exposure to death in news media to be defensive or whether there are alternative and more pro-social outcomes related to the extent that the viewer elaborates cognitively on the content or views more rationally (as implicated in Cozzolino, Staples, Meyers, & Sambceti, 2004). This could be as a function of individual differences (e.g., in cognitive thinking style) or as a function of the situational or contextual factors that prompt one to consider death-related news content more personally (emotionally) versus rationally. (3.) To ask about the “repeated” nature of death primes in news media, given that news media is unique in its daily emphasis on death-related content. Towards this aim we seek to answer the following: Does repeated exposure lead to accentuation of the defensive fluid compensation effects or does it lead to diminished effects because of desensitisation and depersonalisation? This third aim is potentially the most complex and is an under-researched area with important real-world implications. Specifically, Study 1 addresses reactions to death in TV news using a written stimulus task for a range of dependent variables– namely, death thought accessibility, cultural worldview endorsement, and cultural worldview defence. Examining the same dependent variables, Studies 2 and 3 explore the effects of actual TV news footage of a bus crash with multiple fatalities and the role of viewer-victim similarity. Study 4 examines what happens when explicit instructions to imagine your own death are given while watching the same TV news footage. Next, Study 5 examines whether more pro-social effects rather than the typical TMT defensive reactions are possible when a method by Cozzolino et al. (2004) that involves deeper death reflection and the role of cognitive elaboration are explored. Finally, Study 6 addresses the question of repeated exposure to death in TV news, with a focus on whether prior death exposure leads to attenuation or heightening of typical TMT defensive outcomes. Together, results from the six studies indicate that exposure to death-related TV news does not lead inevitably to defensive reactions. While there is strong evidence that death in TV news increases death thought accessibility (especially compared to a non-death TV news control), critically, whether personal mortality salience (as evidenced by self and other death thoughts) is resultant is more variable. Qualitative data shows that people have a range of defensive strategies and resources available to them and that we are honed at detecting personal relevance. Rather than viewing desensitisation as a negative by-product of TV news consumption it seems that the self-protective features of desensitisation are note-worthy. Detachment or neutrality seems to help individuals cope with the barrage of death-related images and sound bytes broadcast via TV news. Conversely, a sensitivity to detect personal relevance helps serve an important surveillance function also geared towards self-protection and meaning making. When there is maximal similarity with the victims of TV news stories portraying death, we can expect viewers to perceive high personal relevance, to personalise news content and to process the content more emotionally, as opposed to feeling desensitised. Although the buffering role of high rational thinking was weak overall, contrary to TMT-based predictions higher rational thinkers were found to be more prone to cultural worldview defence in a number of instances. The theoretical implications for TMT, social identity-based theories, Cozzolino et al.s (2004) work, and relevant media effects literature are discussed. The primary implication for TMT is evidence that death-related TV news footage has the capacity to make personal mortality salient and that higher death thought accessibility often can be evoked by death-related TV news. However, when subsequent measurement of cultural worldview defence is undertaken after a three-minute delay, higher death thought accessibility does not necessarily lead to consistent evidence of defensive fluid compensation effects. These two dependent variables have not been measured together in the literature to date, so these findings provide a significant theoretical distinction for TMT. While death in TV news more likely promotes procreation or family-related defensiveness than national bias, a range of factors (such as detecting self-relevance, viewer-victim similarity, and one’s ability to adopt a rational thinking style) moderate effects in various situations. In particular, factors such as contextual news features, rational thinking, shock value or spontaneous realisation of relevance, and reminders of one’s own family or of one’s own or others’ death are important.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Television is the favoured news source for most Australians and is regarded as having the potential to influence public opinion. From its inception however, television has been regarded as ill-suited to cover economic and business issues because of a perceived reliance on visual material and an inability to deal with complex issues. This tyranny of vision has been mitigated by technological developments such as electronic news gathering (ENG) and satellites that provide large amounts of varied material as well as improvements in production tools that assist the visual presentation of abstract concepts. The presentation of complex issues has also been enhanced by the increased skills and knowledge among newsworkers. Economic and business news has become a staple in television news programs and has evolved from ritualised reporting of data such as market indices and exchange rates to a genre that shares broader news values such as consequence, conflict, proximity, human interest, novelty, prominence, political controversy and scandal. Economic and business news also shares the normal imperatives of television such as a strong reliance on scheduled occasions and reliable and prolific sources. In between occasions of economic, business and political controversy or scandal, these programs are able to rely on a steady supply of economic, business and investment information. Dedicated economic and business segments and programs and now even whole channels meet two sets of demands. One is those of niche audiences seeking news and information on economic and business conditions, economic debate and policy making, the activities of economic and business leaders and an opportunity to hear and observe economic and business leaders. The other is from broadcasters seeking to maximise their profits by attracting viewers in the AB demographic (those with the greatest disposal income) to otherwise poorly-performing time slots, by broadcasters seeking an inexpensive and dependable supply of programming material and by broadcasters seeking to promote their institutional role and specific programs through presenting material that is followed up by other media. Economic and business reports however, continue to portray issues in a limited way that neglects business’s interaction with workers and the larger social environment. Economic events are often framed as political competition. These reports present a hierarchy of sources and privilege political and business elites. Television news favours debate that is presented by individuals as contrasting causal narratives. Political and economic sources have become adept at presenting brief causal narratives in response to the requirements of television. This approach highlights celebrities and favours the promotion of agency over structure. The increase in total economic and business reporting boosts the interdependence of television and political and economic sources. Technological development is continuing and traditional free-to-air television audiences are being eroded by pay television and the internet. Although these are altering the nature of political, economic and business debate their overall influence is difficult to determine.

Thesis (M.A.)--Rhodes University, 2005. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on May 6, 2006). Includes bibliographical references (p. 124-135).

[pt] Como pode uma caixa gerar imagens? Esta era a dúvida de muitos brasileiros em relação à televisão, quando chegou ao Brasil. Durante mais de cinqüenta anos em nosso país, a TV passou por diversas transformações. Com o aumento do número de canais, e por conseqüência a variedade de programas, novas linguagens foram criadas. O que fez com que este novo veículo exibisse uma programação mais rica em relação às linguagens, uma vez que nos primórdios o rádio e o cinema eram as referências. O primeiro telejornal foi exibido no Brasil dois dias depois da estréia do sistema e fazia uso de poucos recursos. Hoje, diversos profissionais estão envolvidos na produção e no design da notícia. Basta olhar para os cenários de alguns telejornais que utilizam a redação como ambientação. Como é o caso do Jornal Hoje, Jornal Nacional, Jornal da Globo entre outros. A questão proposta para esta pesquisa surge a partir desta estética. Será que estes profissionais que aparecem atrás dos âncoras são percebidos pelos telespectadores? A movimentação dessas pessoas durante a transmissão do telejornal chamaria mais a atenção de quem está assistindo, de modo que a notícia não fosse compreendida? Para responder a estas perguntas foi realizado um estudo com dez telespectadores que assistem à televisão durante mais de três horas e quatorze minutos, tempo gasto em média com este veículo por dia, por aqueles que habitam a América Latina. Foi utilizado o Método de Explicitação do Discurso Subjacente. Os resultados alcançados mostram a importância da relação entre a linguagem visual e verbal oral nos telejornais. / [en] How can a box generate images? This was the concern of many Brazilians in relation to the television, when it arrived in Brazil. Since the beginning of the transmission, TV has passed for huge transformations. The number of channels has increased, and for consequence new programs and languages were created. These were enough to enrich what was shown on this new vehicle. The radio and the cinema were not the only references anymore. The first TV news was shown in Brazil two days after the system was inaugurated and few resources were used. Today, many professionals are involved in the production and the design of the news. In order to prove this statement, just take a look at the TV news that are anchored from the newsroom. In Brazil, it happens in Jornal Hoje, Jornal Nacional and Jornal da Globo The questions proposed for this research are related to this esthetic. Are those professionals, who appear behind the anchors in the news room, noticed by the viewers? Would the movement of these people, during the transmission of the TV news, call more the attention of the viewers, in a way that the news are not understood by them? To answer these questions, ten viewers, who usually watch more than three hours of television per day (average spent by those who live in Latin America), were interviewed. The Underlying Discourse Unveiling Method (UDUM) created by Nicolaci-da Costa was used. The reached results show the importance of the relation between verbal the visual and verbal language in the TV news.

Orientador: Murilo César Soares / Banca: Alexandra Bujokas de Siqueira / Banca: Rosangela Marçolla / Resumo: Esta pesquisa tem como objetivo: 1) investigar como são construídos os enquadramentos noticiosos televisivos no telejornalismo, por meio da análise comparativa de dois importantes telejornais brasileiros, sendo um de uma emissora comercial e o outro de uma público-educativa; 2) estudar o papel dos enquadres dos telejornais em um caso de violação dos direitos civis da cidadania. Para atingir tais objetivos, optamos por analisar o Jornal Nacional, a Rede Globo de Televisão, e o Jornal da Cultura de São Paulo, ambos veiculados no "horário nobre da televisão brasileira". Definidos por Gitlin (1980, p. 6-7), os enquadramentos da mídia são "padrões persistentes de cognição, interpretação e apresentação, de seleção, ênfase e exclusão, através dos quais os detentores de símbolos organizam de forma rotineira o discurso". Desta forma, enquadrar significa selecionar um aspecto de fato e satisfaze-lo, ao passo que as omissões podem ser igualmente fundamentais para conduzir a audiência. Para salientar os enquadramentos dessas emissoras televisivas distintas, escolhemos o caso do Morro da Providência, Rio de Janeiro, ocorrido em junho de 2008, que mostrou a participação do Exército na morte de três jornais e denúncia de propaganda política eleitoral feita por Marcelo Crivella. A análise mostra que os telejornais foram muito semelhantes e focalizam o aspecto informativo, não aproveitando este episódio para a educação cidadã dos brasileiros ou para reforçar os direitos humanos que foram violentamente violados / Abstract: This researh aims: to investigate how the television news framing are built in broadcast news, through comparative analysis of two major Brazilian news programs, one from a commercial TV station and the other from a public TV station; 2) to study the role of the frames of the news programs during the coverage of a civil rights of citizenship violatin event. To achieve the goals, we chose to analyze the Journal Nacional, from Rede Globo TV, and the Jornal da Cultura, from TV Cultura de São Paulo, both running in the "prime-time" of Brazilian television. "Set by Gitlin (1980, p. 6-7), media frames are "persistent patterns of cognition, interpretation, and presentation, of selection, emphasis, and exclusion, by which symbol-handlers routinely organize discourse, whether verbal or visual". Thus, to frame means slecting a point of fact and highlight it, while the omissions may also be critical to conduct the audience. To highlight the frameworks of those different television stations, we chose the case of Morro da Providencia, Rio de Janeiro, in June 2008, which showed the involvement of the army in the deaths of three young men, and the reporting of political election propaganda made by Marcelo Crivella. The analysis shows that television news programs were very similar and focused on the informational aspect, not using this episode for the Brazilian citizenship education or to enforce human rights that have been violently violated / Mestre

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The way news is presented on television news prompted me to find out the logic television follows to converge languages such as verbal and visual in order to report facts in its complex utterances. In this context, this work aims to show the strength of iconicity in the production of senses involved in the presentation of some open television news in Brazil. Therefore, this narrative is regarded as television news utterances, which consists of two dimensions of sense, plastic and semantic, working in conjunction with verbal language. The fragments chosen to analyze the corpus are taken from television news presentation performances, understood as everything that is given in the live studio. The method sought to approach the Spanish theory of image with the French semiology of social discourses. We considered the views of image authors such as Justo Villafañe, Norberto Mínguez, Rudolf Arnheim and Wassily Kandinsky. To understand the discursive semantic instance we approached the thoughts of Diana L. P. de Barros and Patrick Charaudeau. At the end, we made considerations that show the particularity of television news narrative run "live", a time similar to the time of the language designated by Émile Benveniste, and which is established at the time of the utterance. This time ends up influencing the formation of senses of the narrative of television news presentation. Based on how television news works its utterances live, it was possible to detect groups of effects of sense formed from the iconicity of images and molded according to the television news genre. They are effects of truth and reality, centrality, transience, and ubiquity. These senses are primarily made of an iconic scheme, created by image elements, and then they receive a thematic and a figurative structure as well as figurative addition. / O modo como as notícias são apresentadas no telejornal me instigou a procurar saber que lógica a televisão segue para fazer confluir linguagens como a verbal e visual, com o objetivo de relatar fatos, no complexo enunciado televisivo. Dentro deste contexto, este trabalho procura mostrar a força da iconicidade na produção de sentidos envolvidos nas apresentações de alguns telejornais de TV aberta no Brasil. Para tanto, tal narrativa é considerada como enunciado televisivo noticioso composto por duas dimensões de significado, a plástica e a semântica, atuando em conjunção com a linguagem verbal. O recorte do corpus de análise é feito em torno das performances de apresentação do telejornal, compreendido a tudo que é dado no estúdio ao vivo. O método aplicado procurou aproximar a teoria da imagem espanhola com a semiologia dos discursos sociais francesa. Foram considerados pensamentos de autores da imagem como Justo Villafañe, Norberto Mínguez, Rudolf Arnheim e Wassily Kandinsky. Para compreender a instância discursiva semântica foi feita aproximação com os pensamentos de Diana L. P. de Barros e Patrick Charaudeau. Ao fim, foram possíveis considerações que mostram a particularidade da narrativa noticiosa televisiva executada no tempo "ao vivo", um tempo semelhante ao tempo linguístico designado por Émile Benveniste e que é instituído no momento da enunciação. Tal tempo acaba por influenciar a formação de sentidos da narrativa de apresentação do telejornal. Com base na forma como o telejornal trabalha seu enunciado ao vivo, foi possível detectar grupos de efeitos de sentido formados a partir da iconicidade da imagem e moldados ao gênero telejornalístico. São eles os efeitos de verdade e realidade, de centralidade, de transitoriedade e o efeito de ubiquidade. Tais sentidos são constituídos primeiramente por um esquema icônico, elaborado por elementos de imagem, e em seguida recebem estrutura temática e acréscimo figurativo.

O presente estudo analisa como o veículo Emissoras Pioneiras de Televisão (EPTV) seleciona, trata e disponibiliza as informações ambientais relacionadas à água, através do seu programa de telejornalismo diário, o Jornal Regional (JR). A partir do reconhecimento da televisão como uma importante mídia de massa, que inculca e cultiva ideologias junto aos telespectadores, a intenção foi estudar as mensagens e representações da água no JR na região de Campinas, Estado de São Paulo, onde o programa é líder de audiência no gênero telejornal. Nessa região, o atual modelo de desenvolvimento promove a alta concentração demográfica, urbana, industrial e conseqüentemente, um dos menores índices de disponibilidade hídrica per capita e de qualidade de água do Brasil. Foram monitorados três meses consecutivos da programação do JR, selecionando matérias com referências à água para análise quantitativa e qualitativa. Também foi realizada entrevista com o gerente de jornalismo da emissora quanto ao processo de produção da notícia no JR. Através dos estudos bibliográficos verificou-se a relação mercantil e ideológica entre a Rede Globo (emissora que a EPTV retransmite para a região) e a EPTV, contextualizando o caráter privado, que é sujeito aos interesses da elite econômica e política. Nesse contexto criase uma representação da realidade que é uma forma de distorção sistemática pela qual os telespectadores vêem o mundo objetivo por um "filtro" que promove ou omite fatos de forma arbitrária. Nesse cenário verificou-se que a água nas mensagens do JR tem caráter de mercadoria, sendo sua disponibilidade resultado da gestão de recursos e desvinculada de sua condição natural e função ambiental. Os problemas ambientais que degradam a qualidade e limitam a disponibilidade da água na região são atribuídos ao consumo doméstico e sua produção de esgoto. As administrações públicas municipais são apontadas como as responsáveis pela reversão do quadro atual através do tratamento de esgoto. A água também é associada à imagem de meio ambiente que, por sua vez, é representado como ‘paisagem natural’ em uma perspectiva de espetáculo para o entretenimento do telespectador. / The present study analyzes how EPTV (Emissoras Pioneiras de Televisão - Pioneer Broadcasting Television Stations) selects, deals with and discloses environmental information related to water through its daily news program, the Jornal Regional (JR). Starting from the acknowledgment of television as an important mass media, which implants and promotes ideologies along its viewers, the intention was to study water messages and representations on JR in the region of Campinas, State of São Paulo, where the program is the audience leader in the genre TV news. In this region, today's model of development promotes high demographic, urban and industrial concentration and, subsequently, one of the lowest indexes of hydric availability per capita and water quality in Brazil. Three consecutive months of JR's programming were monitored, selecting for quantitative and qualitative analysis reports with references to water. An interview with the Press Manager of that broadcasting station was conducted on the news production process of JR. Bibliographic studies revealed a commercial and ideological relationship between Rede Globo (Major Broadcasting Station that EPTV rebroadcasts to the region) and EPTV, contextualizing a commercial relationship, which is subject to the interests of the economical and political elite. In such a context, EPTV creates a representation of reality, which is a form of systematic distortion by which viewers see an objective world through a "filter" that promotes or omits facts in an arbitrary fashion. In this scenario, water is regarded as merchandise on JR's messages, being its availability a result of resources management and disconnected from its natural conditions and environmental role. Environmental issues that degrade quality and limit water availability in the region are attributed to domestic consumption and sewage production. Municipal public administrations are appointed as responsible for the reversal of this situation by means of sewage treatment. Water is also associated to an image of environment which is represented as ‘natural landscape’ in a spectacle perspective for the entertainment of viewers.

[pt] O objetivo da pesquisa é analisar as representações dos sujeitos e espaços da cidade do Rio de Janeiro mediados no RJTV 1ª edição, telejornal regional produzido e exibido pela Rede Globo de Televisão. Partimos do pressuposto de que, ao narrar as cidades, os telejornais constroem representações sobre os espaços e sujeitos citadinos, construindo, simultaneamente, imagens de si mesmos enquanto dispositivos de enunciação. Para proceder à análise, construímos dois recortes. O primeiro recorte (temático) focaliza a epidemia de dengue no estado e município do Rio de Janeiro, assunto de maior evidência nas edições que compõem o corpus da pesquisa. A temática redimensiona o cotidiano da cidade do Rio de Janeiro tal como mediado no RJTV, de modo que outros temas sempre presentes, tais como violência urbana, tem seu destaque jornalístico diminuído. O segundo recorte (espacial) direciona o olhar para os modos como o RJTV 1ª edição se relaciona com as ocorrências que se dão nos logradouros e vias urbanas, espaços de circulação da cidade que constituem objeto de atenção cotidiana por parte dos profissionais do telejornal. Neste sentido, dada a relação entre telejornalismo e vida urbana, a pesquisa busca construir sentidos sobre os sujeitos e espaços da cidade do Rio de Janeiro mediados no RJTV a partir dos recortes mencionados. / [en] The aim of the present research is to analyze the representations of individuals and spaces in the city of Rio de Janeiro mediated in RJTV 1st edition, a local newscast produced and broadcast by Rede Globo television network. We base our study on the premisse that, while narrating the cities, newscasts construct representations of city spaces and individuals, simultaneously creating images of themselves as enunciation devices. Our approach to the analysis procedure is based on the most journalistically relevant theme in the newscast editions present in our research corpus: the dengue fever. The theme redimensions day-to-day life in the city of Rio de Janeiro as mediated in RJTV, so that other themes that are always present, such as urban violence, lose journalistic importance. When an epidemic is identified, the newscast increasingly invites more social individuals to comment on the theme, be them public individuals, important inhabitants or common people from the city. Therefore, RJTV acts as an institution that produces and configures meaning on said individuals and on the spaces wherein they circulate or live.

Being a journalist today can be a deadly pursuit, particularly for those covering conflict and other dangerous assignments. In 2004 more journalists and other media workers were killed than in the last ten years. While it is impossible to guarantee that journalists will not be killed or injured, kidnapped or detained, a policy has been created to help protect them in the course of their duties. This study examines the perceptions of journalists working for two international television news agencies about this safety policy called the ‘Joint code of practice for journalists working in conflict zones’. This policy was adopted in November 2000 by five major television companies including the television news agencies Reuters Television and Associated Press Television News. This study finds that the policy had significant flaws in how it was formulated and how it is communicated, implemented and reviewed. Recognising the existence of unequal relations of power and conflicting interests at play in any policy process, this study stresses that in the case of the journalist safety policy, all stakeholders should have participated in the relevant policy stages. This argument arises from researching the policy document as well as from the point of view of managers, and particularly journalists who work on dangerous assignments, either full-time or on a freelance basis for either of the two television news agencies. It finds that while journalists are not generally aware of the policy, they do practice many of its elements as well as a range of their own custom-made strategies to protect themselves. The result is to make the policy less effective than it could be.

The credibility of the American news media is increasingly under fire. Despite an exponential expansion of information available in the digital media era, increased political news coverage and commentary has brought growing apprehension over how much of today’s news can be trusted and believed. 24-hour cable news channels are among the media most often subject to this criticism. At the same time, the media operates under First Amendment freedom of press protection, a constitutional guarantee granted with the understanding that democracy can only succeed when its citizens are well informed. In the great experiment of our republic, a freely functioning news media fills this critical role, but only to the extent that it can be trusted to portray the truth. This research questioned the media’s ability to inform the public due to the proliferation of political news and commentary. Utilizing social judgment theory, this study offered two hypotheses: that news consumers will find more credibility in political news when presented by media outlets they favor due to political preferences, and that they will also find more credibility in non-political news when presented by media they favor due to political preferences. The study examined if there is a bleed over effect on the credibility of non-political news due to political news coverage. An experiment was conducted in which two politically diverse populations, Republicans and Democrats, where asked to rate the credibility of six stories. Three of the stories were political, three non-political. While the content of those stories remained constant for all study participants, the media brands associated with the stories alternated between Fox News and CNN to determine if the media source alone influences perceptions of credibility. Results from members of both political parties provided support for each hypothesis. Republicans assigned greater credibility to both political and non-political news stories when presented by their network of preference, Fox News. By comparison, Democrats demonstrated greater trust when those same stories where branded by their preferred network, CNN.