Television permeates our daily lives. Ninety seven per cent of New Zealand households have a television set and the average watching time is estimated at 20 hours per week (Grimes and Tyndall, 1999). This exposure to television has been recognised as an important factor in the way we see and identify ourselves as a nation - how we seek to find signs and symbols that construct a shared identity and culture that make us New Zealanders and distinguish us from other nations.Using narrative theory combined with critical discourse analysis this thesis aims to show that, even in factual programmes, stories can be constructed that convey messages of nationhood and belonging, creating and recreating a national identity that present New Zealanders in a positive way and seek to bind them as a nation.Three episodes of the television series Heartland, a popular documentary in the mid-1990s that explored the people and lifestyles in different locations around New Zealand, were selected for analysis focusing on narrative structure, the social actors and the role of the narrator. Critical discourse analysis was employed to look at the connection between language, image and text, and discursive practices as well as the relationship the text has in a socio-cultural context.The analysis found that the programmes followed a similar narrative structure to that of a fictional story involving changes in states of equilibrium that created a sense of concern or anxiety associated with what it means to be a New Zealander. However the subsequent resolution of these anxieties combined with the entertaining role of the programme presenter Gary McCormick and the involvement of social actors, resulted in a version of New Zealand's national identity being represented as a reality through a positive discourse of the population working towards a socially and culturally harmonious society.

Abstract Japanese anime being an important part of modern and contemporary popular visual culture, its aesthetic merits, its roots in Japanese visual arts as well as its rich symbology derived from Japanese folkloristic, literary and religious themes are worth investigating. This research aims to track the visual links between Edo and Meiji period monster art (y??kai-ga) paintings and modern day anime by concentrating on the works of Edo and Meiji period painters and the post-war period animation and manga series Gegegeno Kitaro, created by Mizuki Shigeru. Some of the Japanese origins of anime and manga imagery can be traced back to the early 12th century Ch??j?? Giga animal scrolls, where comic art and narrative pictures first appear. However, more recent sources are found in woodblock prints of the late Edo period. These prints are the forerunners of manga in that dialogues appear with the image, generally no anatomical details are given nor are they in perspective, but often a mood is expressed in a cartoon-like manner. The visual rendering of y??kai (monsters) is a Japanese cultural phenomenon: y??kai paintings originate in the Muromachi period, and take up part of the visual arts of that era. The distinct monster (y??kai) imagery emerging in the late Edo to early Meiji periods is the focus of this research. Investigating the Gegegeno Kitaro series, the study pinpoints the visual roots of the animation characters in the context of y??kai folklore and Edo and Meiji period monster painting traditions. Being a very popular series consisting of numerous episodes broadcast from the 1960s to the present time, by analyzing the changing images related to the representation of monsters in the series the study documents the changes in the perception of monsters in this time period, while it reflects on the importance of Mizuki??s work in keeping visual traditions alive and educating new audiences about folklore by recasting y??kai imagery in modern day settings in an innovative way. Additionally, by analyzing and comparing character, set, costume and mask design, plot and storyline of y??kai-themed films, the study attempts to shed light on the roles the representations of y??kai have been assigned in post-war Japanese cinema.

In respect to the nature and development of scientific knowledge and issues of abstraction and irrationality in science, there is evidence that the fundamental forms of inspiration and origins of methodology are common to both scientific and artistic research. Also, the results of artistic practice, although far more culturally specific and subjective, are arguably complementary to those of scientific research. What are then the methods used and results obtained when one makes art about scientific theories, using technologies derived from the results of scientific research? Furthermore, how does this 'art about science' affect our understanding of the relationship between art and science? These are some of the issues and ideas which I explored in my MA research project works between 2000 and 2005, and which I discuss in this exegesis. Through my research, I constructed a series of works which focused increasingly upon theories in physics and mathematics not only in an attempt to understand and communicate the theories to a wider audience, but also to communicate the historical and philosophical frameworks such theories were based upon. Through this I developed a working methodology which took inspiration from, but also subverted and critiqued the scientific theories and methodologies I was examining. The digital media tools I used, such as video, audio and programmed interactivity, opened up a line of communication between the disparate fields of artistic and scientific inquiry. The result was a series of interactive digital media and installation art pieces that explored various aspects of science, which were exhibited in both art and science spaces, and drew a wide range of responses from the scientific and general community.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Nevada, Reno, 2006. / "May, 2006." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 63-70). Library also has microfilm. Ann Arbor, Mich. : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [2006]. 1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm. Online version available on the World Wide Web.

<p>Abstract Författare: Lovisa Bergman Titel: Ungdomars avvikande och hotfulla beteende i media Uppsats: Sociologi C, 41-60 p Handledare: José Pacheco Högskolan i Halmstad Sektionen för hälsa och samhälle Vårterminen 2007 Syftet med min uppsats är att genom en diskursanalys av mediatexter klarlägga hur avvikande beteende bland ungdomar framställs av media och därigenom kan konstrueras i samhället. Syftet leder fram till följande frågeställningar:</p><p>o Vilken bild skapar medias framställning av ungdomar med avvikande beteende?</p><p>o Vilka följder genererar medias bild?</p><p>Som teoretisk ram för min studie har jag valt Erving Goffman, Michel Foucault och Emile Durkheim som utgångspunkt för min studie som även till stor del grundar sig i tidigare forskning inom området där artiklar från Brottsförebyggande rådets tidsskrift Apropå blir användbara i min analys. Jag har använt mig av den kvalitativa metoden diskursanalys. Slutsatser som framkommit är att media framställer en ganska hotfull bild av ungdomar i samhället och medias närmande av underhållningsindustri innebär att det många gånger är en vilseledande och inte helt sanningsenlig bild som skildras (Apropå Nr 3 2001). Detta avgör att media är stor del i konstruktionen av det avvikande beteendet hos ungdomar. Medias hotfulla bild av ungdomar visar att de inte lever upp till förväntningar av moral vi har i samhället, de blir avvikare och ungdomar som grupp stigmatiseras, vilket innebär att deras beteende blir misskrediterande och stämplas med ett stigma (Goffman 2002). Deras beteende sårar våra kollektiva känslor och sammanfogar oss gentemot avvikarna (Durkheim 1978). Genom det skrivna ordet får media en stor makt och diskursen reproducerar sig genom media som instans och deras ord blir till allmängiltiga sanningar hos oss (Foucault 1993). Då diskursen i media även ligger till grund för beslut i regering och riskdag bekräftar att den hotfulla, långt ifrån alltid korrekta bilden får stora följder i samhället. Ungdomar får därmed stå till svars för problem som inte är typiska enbart för ungdomar utan som är mer generella samhällsproblem. Nyckelord: Ungdomar, avvikande beteende, hotfull bild, media, diskursanalys</p>

No description available.

<p>Purpose/Aim: The aim is to study the critics own views upon their profession and upon the development of criticism, and to thereafter set this in relation to contemporary theory and debates.</p><p>Material/Method: A qualitative study pursued through personal interviews. The results are categorized and split into different themes.</p><p>Main Results: Through media convergence and a changed media culture the conditions for criticism have also been altered. But in spite of various negative prophecies, these changes cause no serious threat to criticism. New forums and new forms of criticism actually increase the importance of the traditional ditto as the authoritative voice that holds the field together. Still, there are questions and fears about a future seemingly less and less predictable. The pace of these changes and the increased influence of the market can pose a threat unless the leadership doesn’t actively choose to uphold and protect traditional criticism.</p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.) -- Central Connecticut State University, 2006. / Thesis advisor: Prescott "... in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Modern American History" Includes bibliographical references (leaves 146-151). Also available via the World Wide Web.

This study employed a survey research design to identify factors that facilitate university faculty to integrate computer-based technologies into their teaching practice. The purpose of the study was to measure the practices and perceptions of higher education faculty toward instructional technology. The designed survey instrument established a series of five personal profile categories. The five categories were used as variables manipulated to enable a series of statistical analyses to examine factors that enable faculty to use technology in their teaching. The survey was electronically administered to faculty in 36 universities in the Appalachian Region; a target population of approximately 4000 potential survey respondents. A total of 427 faculty from 22 of these institutions responded to the survey, which was approximately 10% of the total population. The findings, showed statistically significant correlations between the teaching with technology subscale and personal technology use subscale. This may suggest that personal use and personal knowledge are indicators of whether or not university faculty will use technology in their teaching. Additionally, a statistically significant difference was found between the extent to which female faculty reported using technology compared to male faculty members. The generational factor (age), was not shown to have any significant relationship with the frequency of faculty members’ use of technology, but results indicated generational differences on the personal requirements profile. Lastly, one finding related to the personal requirements profile indicated that the most common requirement for using technology reported by the faculty was the knowledge that doing so would enhance students’ learning.