The purpose of the current study is to examine how the prime time television show 24 frames torture by US government officials almost exclusively in scenarios of high-consequence, high-confidence that are not supported by public opinion polls, provide contextual rationalizations that are unrealistic, show torture methods as a viable means to gain needed information, and show enemy combatants torturing U.S. citizens. Through a quantitative content analysis of torture on the television series 24 and an analysis of focus groups reactions to select episodes of 24 portraying torture in such scenarios, the study seeks to investigate the role of entertainment media in influencing public opinion and providing backstage context from which opinions may be formed. The study examines how fictional portrayals of an event or issue such as torture can enter into political discourse on the subject. The study builds on prior research on how and when entertainment media provide context and frames to the public that the news media cannot, and helps further our understanding of how entertainment media can enter into public discourse and inform public opinion.

This study employed the Defining Issues Test (DIT) to complete the analysis and comparison of the moral development of mass communication students, specifically those who major in advertising and journalism. The DIT is an instrument based on Kohlbergs moral development theory and is a device for assessing the extent to which a person has developed his or her moral schemas. Results indicate no statistically significant difference in levels of moral development between sampled students majoring in journalism and advertising; no difference in levels of moral development between students who have and have not completed a course in media ethics; and no difference in moral development between students who have or do not have professional media experience. This finding argues that despite the large differences found in the moral development of journalism and advertising professionals, the students sampled are similarly morally developed. The findings also argue that if the goal of mass communication programs is to increase the moral development of students, the programs could benefit from reassessing media ethics education and media internship opportunities.

The purpose of this paper is to illuminate how the practice of democratic citizenship compares to ideals of it. I hope to provide a clear view of what contemporary democratic citizenship means, how this conception has been formed, and how democratic citizenship can be effectively practiced to serve the ideals held by democratic citizens. To do this, this paper will be comprised in several parts. After an initial explanation of the theoretical perspective used, I will explore how democracy was understood and implemented in the formative stages of United States government. Next I review contemporary practices of citizenship before examining how presidential primary debates are a reflection of contemporary democracy. Finally, I talk with young people about their perceptions and performances of citizenship. In these conversations I hope to learn how the meaning of citizenship impacts their actions as democratic citizens.

In an effort to combat the AIDS epidemic around the world, the Product (RED) campaign aims to engage consumers in an economic initiative with exclusive products from their corporate partnerships. Academic journals claim that this effort is a new form of Cause-Related Marketing (CRM), even though it involves many Public Relations strategies and tactics. Product (RED)s unique nature is unlike previous CRM campaigns due to its corporate partnership agreements. Researchers have not previously studied initiatives such as Product (RED) through either Public Relations or Marketing theories. Davids (2004) Convergence Theory creates a cyclical model to merge both Public Relations and Marketing theory where both fields compliment each other in strategy and outcomes. Cancel et. al.s (1997) Contingency Theory states that Public Relations strategies function along a continuum of either advocacy or accommodation tactics. The purpose of this study was to understand the creation process of the Product (RED) campaign in order to fully comprehend how social activism campaigns combine both Marketing and Public Relations strategies. This research compiled interviews with Product (RED) campaign organizers, corporate partners, and social responsibility analysts. Results showed a blend of both Contingency and Convergence Theories, applying a mix of accommodation and advocacy strategies. Interviews displayed differing levels of consumer and corporate engagement, as well as key campaign elements to include for future social activism campaigns.

The growth in popularity of social video games that appeal to a wide variety of audiences offers new opportunities for in-game advertisers to reach beyond the traditional gamer market. The current study aimed to test the effectiveness of in-game advertising placements in the popular video game, Guitar Hero III, based on the Limited Capacity Model of Mediated Motivated Message Processing (LC4MP). The Limited Capacity Model predicts that experienced gamers utilize fewer mental resources when playing video games because the repeated action of playing video games eventually becomes automatic. An experienced gamer would therefore have a greater capacity to remember in-game advertisements. The model also predicts that a video game that places a high cognitive demand on gamers leads to a decrease in mental resources available to process the gaming environment. The study included an experiment and a survey as well as BIOPAC equipment to provide physiological measures of heart rate. Results suggest that gamer experience does not significantly impact brand recall or brand attitude and that significant differences exist between players and watchers. Study results also indicate that the gamers perception of a brands fit in the video game significantly influences brand attitude. The study bears important implications for in-game advertisers because the results indicate that in-game advertisers should carefully consider both the content and nature of video games when developing in-game brand applications. The study results also suggest that the LC4MP lacks predictive abilities in terms of in-game ad recall when placed in a gaming context.

Americans adoption of the Internet has spawned the increased usage of this medium for direct-to-consumer advertising by pharmaceutical manufacturers, despite the widespread controversy over the ethics of the practice, the educational value of direct-to-consumer advertising, and the ultimate cost of the practices to the public. While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulates the industrys advertising within traditional media, the agency does not yet impose standards for direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription medications on the Internet. This content analysis of the visual and textual cues of 100 direct-to-consumer Web sites for prescription medications identifies the unexpected strong presence of gain frames relative to loss frames, as well as the manufacturers focus on educating consumers, evident within the Web sites considerable utilization of informational advertising appeals and informational rewards. Possibly, the Internets ability to support rich media and the virtually unlimited space on the Web sites encourages these manufacturers to employ informational appeals and offer a variety of informational rewards. While the data reveal the manufacturers strong usage of interactive elements, the industry can improve by fully utilizing the features of the Internet to truly benefit patients as an information source, while attracting prospective consumers. While several shortcomings are evident, including the infrequent usage of minority actors within the advertisements, the pharmaceutical industry appears to have effectively regulated itself through applying the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations direct-to-consumer advertising standards for traditional media to the World Wide Web. Implications of these findings for the pharmaceutical industry and the public are discussed, in addition to the studys impact on future research.

Seventeen years after the Challenger accident, the space shuttle Columbia and its crew were only forty miles from Kennedy Space Center when the shuttle exploded during re-entry to the Earths atmosphere. The explosion killed all seven astronauts onboard. NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations immediately jumped into action, declaring a contingency and following the Agency Contingency Action Plan for Space Flight Operations. As a public sector organization, one that must report to Congress and the American public, NASA is held to different standards than private organizations when it comes to releasing information. To understand how public sector organizations handle crises, the strategies and tactics NASA used following Columbia and how closely the agency followed the contingency plan, this study takes a look at NASA from an internal perspective using interviews with six people who were NASA employees at the time of Columbia and one journalist who covered the story. Through the interviews those who were there and handled the crisis explained that they followed the plan very closely, but that the key in having a plan is to allow for flexibility and to make sure employees understand how the plan works by holding rehearsals. Tactics used during Columbia included everything from press releases to press conferences, with NASA Web site playing a crucial role in the dissemination of information. NASA chose the strategy of open and honest communication following Columbia, which served the agency well, earning it praise from the media and the public. This idea of open and honest, or transparent, communication was crucial for NASA as a public sector organization and the organization provides a model for communication following a crisis that other public sector organizations could follow.

This dissertation explores the potential and role of the Internet-based media in the Kyrgyz Republics political processes after the 2005 March Revolution. It uses a model of interaction between the government and citizens through various types of realities: the reality constructed and imposed by the state-controlled media, the reality created by alternative, independent sources of information online, and the realities experienced by citizens in their daily lives. The model pulled together various theories from political science, sociology, psychology, and mass communication and focused on the exit-voice-loyalty options available for the citizens in response to governance practices. The research project uses a mix of qualitative and quantitative research methods. The results of content analysis have shown that in coverage of the 2007 Constitutional Referendum, independent Internet-based media indeed constructed a reality alternative to the official propaganda imposed by state media and were more critical of the government in terms of good governance practices than the state media. Further, the results of surveys and focus groups provide the evidence that Internet-based media play a significant role in shaping perceptions of good governance among politically interested Internet-based media users toward more negative evaluations of and higher levels of frustration with the government performance. Finally, the Internet media use is associated with the higher levels of intent to leave the country (i.e., exercise the exit option) among the research participants with low political interest.

Considerable research has been devoted to detailing how news framing structures public opinion. As a major rhetoric device to present information to the public, framing has the capacity of enlightening the public on the costs and benefits of particular policy choices. However, few studies have examined media framing of international trade and its impact on public opinion, and no study to date has connected how framing of international agreements might affect individual investment attentions. This study attempts to fill this gap in the literature by examining individual responses to pro-trade versus anti-trade and gain versus lose frames. It further extends existing literature by considering the impact of framing on individual investment intentions suggesting that framing has effects beyond opinion and may impact actual behaviors. Even though the frames in communication do influence individual preference choices concerning foreign trade policies, these policy options are also subject to powerful influence of individual pre-existing schemas about international trade. These predispositions could help not only redistribute the scarce resource of attention and construe incoming stimuli, but also orientate public opinion on foreign trade policies and even influence individual behavioral responses.

My study examined how inner-city adults perceive and experience the Internet as a civic engagement tool, and if they view the Internet as a tool for environmental advocacy. Research shows a consistent divide between those with Internet access and those without. Individuals living in low-income minority communities are the least likely groups to be Internet connected. Consequently, the Internet could further separate historically marginalized communities from important government and social resources rather than bringing them closer. Qualitative research methods were used to reveal socially-constructed perceptions of the Internet as a civic engagement tool in the inner city. Grounded theory techniques helped develop a solid final interpretation. My objective was not to compare low-end of the divide users with more affluent users but to broadly explore whether inner city adults perceive the Internet as a tool for environmental advocacy. My findings revealed problems of crime, drugs and violence as a result of persistent unemployment in the inner city far outweigh concerns of environmental risks. Overall,participants were confident in their ability to solve local problems and bridge with local organizations, but they feared retaliation, community apathy, and misplaced priorities would keep them from achieving their goals. Participants preferred face-to-face communication for mobilizing support and media for staying informed. Experienced users viewed the Internet as a valuable information-seeking tool. Participants viewed the Internet in positive and productive ways that helped them with school, employment, and important personal matters. Noticeably absent from the findings was participants view of the Internet as a communication technology. Finally, the primary barriers to Internet access in the community were costs, personal time, insufficient public access, and navigation problems. For important matters, though, participants found ways around barriers by reaching out to social support networks, including friends, family and co-workers. My study contributes to both theory and practice. Diffusion of Innovation predicts adoption of new technologies based on certain attributes. Findings reveal relative advantage and compatibility of the Internet shapes participants view of the Internet. The findings also offer important insight to environmental policy makers and civic leaders for engaging inner city residents in 21st century environmentalism.