Visual Communication Division
2021 Abstracts
Research Paper • Student • Mohammad Ali, Syracuse University; Dennis Kinsey, Syracuse University • Crisis Management in this Visual Era: How People Perceive a Crisis-hit Brand Through News Media Pictures • Visuals in a crisis phenomenon remain largely understudied. This paper analyzes the post-crisis pictures relating to the 2020 Mauritius oil-spill incident. Utilizing Q Methodology, designed to understand people’s subjective perceptions, we identify at least two groups of people who had variant perceptions of recognizing various pictures as (un)forgiving of this crisis-hit Japanese company. The Attribution Theory is used to explain what pictures are more likely to shift people’s perceived crisis responsibility attributions toward the company.
Research Paper • Student • Christopher T. Assaf, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN • Video [Dis]Convergence and Discernable Logocentrism: Visual Journalists’ Experience during Video Implementation • This project examines visual journalists’ experience with legacy print leaders’ logocentrism during video platform implementation. Recognizing video’s potential as a digital-disruption solution, with prospects for increasing revenue and reaching new audiences, organizational leaders chose individual photojournalists for still and video platform convergence. Adhering to a word-centric ideology, leadership underestimated guidance, communication, and knowledge factors, creating uncertainty and slowing adoption. Collected through 14 interviews with visual journalists and viewed through Rogers’ (2003) diffusion of innovations theory.
Extended Abstract • Student • Alejandro Bruna, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile • Extended abstract – From “Betty, la fea” to “Betty in NY” – the impact of digital storytelling on telenovelas • This work investigates whether digital narrative (or “digital storytelling”) affects visual language and structure of Latin America’s most relevant television product: telenovelas. Using the most successful telenovela in television history (Ugly Betty) two versions were analyzed at a dramatic and narrative level: the original Colombian version (Yo soy Betty, la fea) and its most recent adaptation (Betty in NY). Findings show that digital narrative influences the melodramatic matrix of telenovelas, themes, motivations, plot and situations.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Sungwon Chung, Ball State University; Johnny Sparks, Ball State University • Extended Abstract: Cognitive and Attitudinal Processing of Visual Frames in 360-Degree Environmental Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Messages • This experiment examined the influence of visual content frames (gain vs. loss) and presentation modality (non-360 vs. 360-degree videos) on cognitive and attitudinal processing of environmental corporate social responsibility (eCSR) messages on viewers’ memory and attitudes. Frame and modality influenced storage (cued recall) of company names, but only modality influenced encoding (recognition) of company names. However, neither frame nor modality affected encoding of company logos. Content frame also impacted perceived message effectiveness.
Extended Abstract • Student • Umberto Famulari, Indiana University Bloomington; Lesa Hatley Major; Osman Mohamed Osman • Visualizing criminal jury trials: A quantitative content analysis of images in U.S. news outlets • “This study will contribute to the scholarship of visual framing and journalism by analyzing for the first time how U.S. news outlets visually represented criminal jury trials in the last eighty years. Drawing from visual framing theory (Coleman, 2010; Bock, 2020), the images that accompanied all the news stories about criminal jury trials from 1940 to 2020 were analyzed at the denotative and stylistic level (Rodriguez and Dimitrova, 2011).
Preliminary findings showed differences between different types of news outlets (national U.S. televisions, cable news, local news outlets and newspapers) in relation to how defendants, victims and jurors were portrayed in terms of gender, race, emotions and camera distance used. Implications of the study were discussed and analyzed.”
Research Paper • Faculty • Robin Hoecker, DePaul University • Paradise or propaganda? Jack Delano’s FSA images of public housing in Chicago • This study looks at Jack Delano’s 1942 photographs of the Ida B. Wells homes in Chicago, and how they shaped narratives of public housing and wartime propaganda. Delano’s photographs show well-dressed Black families in immaculate, furnished apartments, with structured community programs. These images are part of the U.S. government-sponsored photography project of the Farm Security Administration, later Office of War Information, that documented life among working class Americans between 1935-1944.
Research Paper • Student • Omneya Ibrahim, The University of Texas at Austin; Shahira Fahmy, The American University in Cairo • Revealing the Veil in Internet Memes and GIFs: A Comparative Framing and Stereotyping Analysis • This study bridges a gap in visual communication research based on an integrative framing analysis of internet memes and GIFs using the hashtag #Hijab following the 2019 attacks on Muslim mosques in New Zealand. We analyzed both the textual and visual elements used in these digital tools to unravel their framing and stereotyping of veil. While significant differences between memes and GIFs existed, both tools displayed support for the hijab, revealing clear patterns regarding a new progressive image of hijabi women in the contemporary digital environment. Findings show that memes and GIFs challenge the traditional stereotyping and submissive image of Muslim women that has long been portrayed in media. They also suggest that memes and GIFs are each unique and, although sometimes regarded as one by scholars, ought to be evaluated and examined separately and independently from each another in future research.
Research Paper • Faculty • Jin Kim, The College of Saint Rose • Crisis of Cosmopolitan Citizenship in Hong Sang-soo’s Films • Drawing on complex narrative as a heuristic tool, this study aims to provide one reading about narrative structure of Korean director Hong Sang-soo’s films. While his movies seemingly lack logic and coherency, the Korean auteur creates a unique sense of meaningless, intuition, and fragile memory in his movies. Examining similarities and differences among his 2017 and 2018 movies (The Day After, Grass, Hotel By The River, and Claire’s Camera), one of the major arguments of this study is that Hong’s film narratives consist of repetition, fragmentation, looped causalities, lucid subjectivities and, multiple universes. While Hong might defy ideological-social analysis of his films, one of the major arguments in this study is that is resistance against spatial-temporal linearity and narrative consistency is symptomatic to understand crisis of citizenship within global pandemic and political turmoil.
Extended Abstract • Student • William Kohler, Southern Illinois University; Yuhosua Ryoo, Southern Illinois University • Truly Korean? A Quantitative Study of Film Style Under a Colonial System • Was Korean cinema identical to or distinct from Japanese cinema in its use of film techniques during the colonial period? Using a statistical style analysis, we demonstrated that the two are different in every stylistic category, including sound, cinematography, editing, and mise-en-scene. We concluded that Korean films retained their own film style and identity under colonization and should be considered just as truly Korean as films from any other period.
Extended Abstract • Student • Anat Leshnick, University of Colorado boulder; Rivka Ribak • A powerful, spiritual, win-win situation: Commercial authenticity in professional birth photography • Online repositories of professional birth photography present a radical alternative to the medicalized depiction of birth in commercial reality programs. Arguably, birth photographers allow women to see birth and learn about it, document it from their own perspective, and share this personally significant event in the public sphere. However, these images are produced and consumed within a market economy in which notions of resistance – and compliance – appear naïve (Banet-Weiser, 2012). From this perspective, rather than medicalized as opposed to natural, and rather than passive as opposed to resistant, we propose to see birth photography as a site of commercial authenticity, in which birth photographers and birthing women co-produce a neoliberal birth story that is at once liberating and cynical. Drawing on interviews with nine birth photographers and nine women who hired photographers to document their birth, we explore the ways in which these artisans develop professional and aesthetic practices that distinguish them from others in the delivery room, highlighting the complicated ways in which authenticity is created and sold in contemporary cultural production.
Research Paper • Student • Ajia Meux, University of Oklahoma • Constructing Love: Visual Representation of Blackness in the Obama Marriage • A content analysis of 346 images was employed to study differences in racial presentations of Barack and Michelle Obama between the White House and African American media. The literature on symbolic interactionism, presidential and first lady presentation, African marriage, minority media, framing and visual representation suggested that there would be differences by medium in portrayals of the president and first lady on racial variables (egalitarianism, marital affection, racialist, ethnic/cultural, kinship, political). Findings indicate that, across White House and African American media, the couple were often presented as egalitarian and affectionate. Statistical testing indicate that African American media were significantly more likely to depict Michelle Obama with racialist elements and the Obamas as a happy and affectionate married couple than the White House. A contradictory finding indicated that the White House was significantly more likely to focus on the extended family bonds of African Americans by depicting the Obamas in the presence of other black people. This study is important because the Obamas are the first ethnic minority to hold the offices of president and first lady of the United States, and this study is the first to explore the two as an African American married couple. Findings extends research on how minority media help construct reality for their audiences and have implications for new White House image management strategies of presidents and first ladies.
Research Paper • Faculty • Danielle Kilgo, University of Minnesota; Robert F. Potter; Ryan Comfort, Indiana University • A Winning Combination: Effects of Visual Frames in Solutions Journalism Stories • Solutions journalism approaches in recent years have tried to combat pessimistic and avoidant responses in audiences by producing stories about social issues that also focus on attempts to solve the problems. Although scholarship on visuals in solutions journalism has lagged behind research about text, some studies have shown that visual framing emphasizing solutions leads to higher levels of narrative engagement and behavioral intentions (Dahmen, Their & Walth, 2019) and lower levels of negative affect (McIntyre, Lough & Manzanares, 2018) than visual framing emphasizing problems. This study adds to theory about visual frames in solutions journalism with an online 2 (story topic: drug addiction, homelessness) x 4 (visual frame condition: no photo, solutions only, problems only, combination) mixed design experiment that investigated the question of what visual frame might arouse the ideal mix of affective responses to leave people concerned and interested in solutions journalism stories. The results have implications for visual communication theory and for photojournalism practice.
Research Paper • Faculty • Chunbo Ren, Central Michigan University; Viorela Dan • Frames and Journalistic Roles in Chinese Reporting on HIV: Insights from a Content Analysis and Qualitative Interviews Focused on the Verbal and Visual Modalities • Extant work largely neglects visuals’ contribution to news framing and how journalists perform their professional roles. We address this research gap in two studies, and use HIV reporting in China as a test case. Study 1, a content analysis in seven newspapers (2000-2015), shed light on how words and visuals suggest different frames and journalistic roles. Study 2 used in-depth interviews with journalists to contextualize the findings in Study 1, especially on the word-visuals rapport.
Research Paper • Student • Yimeng Sun, New York University; Hiu Yan Ping; Lei Guo; Boqi Chen, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; David Assefa Tofu • Cross-Platform Visual Framing: Climate Visuals on News Websites and Twitter • To examine how the U.S. news media visually frame climate change, the study investigates how news media of different political orientations frame the issue differently across media platforms. We used content analysis to analyze 761 images covering climate change from news websites and Twitter. The results show that major U.S. news media of different political orientations used different visual elements to frame the issue, including various image types and image subjects.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Keith Greenwood; Ryan Thomas; Cory Macneil • What “Lens-Based Workers” Are Owed: An Exploration of the Photo Bill of Rights • This study will examine the Photo Bill of Rights, a recent initiative that centers the rights of “lens-based workers” and which presents an opportunity to evaluate the position of photojournalism within an evolving society. Through a textual analysis of the Bill’s contents, and a comparison with traditional ethical codes, the paper argues that the Bill represents a challenge to existing frameworks about what journalists owe the public by focusing on what journalists are themselves owed.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Darryl Frazier; Fred Vultee, Wayne State University • Extended Abstract: Ye Olde Europa Gin Mill: How war looked in isolationist cartoons of 1941 • This paper uses fantasy theme analysis to examine the rhetorical vision created by cartoonists for three major isolationist newspapers in the months leading up to US entry in the Second World War. These cartoons draw on both indexical and allusive properties to challenge or reinforce interpretations of current events, whether it is Uncle Sam stumbling toward a fight in someone else’s bar or a brave Charles Lindbergh landing at an unfriendly field.
Research Paper • Student • Yiting Wang, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa • Multimodal Analysis: Researching Short-form Videos and the Theatrical Practices • “Short-form video is one of the major approaches for people to present themselves on visual social media, such as TikTok. What is behind this type of visual communication? With the emerging field of social media and performance studies, can theatrical or performative discourse make sense of the video data? What would be a good method to study user-generated short-form videos (UGSVs)?
Digital living is performative, and theater is often integrated with social or political practices. This paper uses multimodal analysis for video analysis and draws concepts and practices from Chinese and western theater. Building on three theories (situation, suspense, and mimesis) in which the ontology of theater is often discussed, this paper demonstrates the modes and modalities of five videos originating from TikTok. The preliminary findings suggest three types of suspense and three types of mimesis practices that respectively answer how attention of audiences is retained, and how and why videos are reproduced and disseminated. We argue that imitation as a phenomenon and as a process can generate memes, and memes in turn invites more imitation. The crux at the back are the video practices that ridicule and critique, when different levels of resistance to politics, authority, or societal classes are shown.
Video analysis, under today’s ubiquitous visual data, requires robust updates. In addition to the contribution of a performative and theatrical perspective for the sense-making of short-form videos, this paper also contributes to the methods of video analysis in general and video analysis by using modes and multimodalities.”
Extended Abstract • Student • Frankie Ho Chun Wong • Extended abstract: [Multifaceted protest paradigm: the visual coverage of the 2019 Hong Kong protests in international news] • This study probed into the intersection between the protest paradigm and influence from national interests in news images, crucial in nonverbal news framing, in international news. International outlets’ visuals in reporting an iconic episode in the 2019 Hong Kong protests were comparatively investigated through framing and critical discourse analysis. Results suggest visual news frames consisted of spectacles but not explaining underlying causes, yet showing a between-outlet variance where frames reflected outlets’ political values at home.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Shannon Zenner, Elon University • That’s a Good Sign: The Typography and Design of Political Yard Signs • Most political communication researchers have focused on the textual content of political messaging, while ignoring how that same text is conveyed visually. This study is a content analysis of yard signs (n=151) posted in North Carolina during the November 2019 and March 2020 elections and the typography and colors used in those yard signs. Preliminary analysis indicates an overall preference for sans serif, all “caps” treatments but with some compelling differences by political party.
Sports Communication Interest Group
2021 Abstracts
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Kim Bissell, University of Alabama; Bummsoo Park, University of Alabama • Narratives and frames of firsts in women’s sports: A content analysis of newspaper coverage of Sarah Fuller and Power Five Football Introduction • Sarah Fuller became the first woman to ever play in a SEC or Power Five football game in November 2020, and news coverage of the event touted the historic nature of it all. Social media users, however, were critical of everything from her actual play to the words on the back of her helmet–Play Like a Girl. Using framing as the underlying theoretical framework, the present study represents a content analysis of news stories published about her play in two NCAA football games. Using a coding protocol developed by Billings and Eastman (2003) to identify descriptors used and the nature of those descriptors, 71 (of 107) news articles were included in the analysis. Of the 5,628 total descriptors coded, a majority were positively valenced and emphasized the historic nature of the event and that it represented a “first” for women in sport. These and other findings are discussed.
Research Paper • Faculty • Patrick Ferrucci, U of Colorado-Boulder • Covering sports, when there’s no sports: COVID, market orientation, paywalls and The Athletic • This study incorporates in-depth interviews with 43 journalists from the digitally native, venture-capital-backed sports journalism organization The Athletic. Through the lens of gatekeeping theory and utilizing the concept of market orientation, findings illustrate how having a somewhat strong market orientation could positively impact gatekeeping processes. Data illustrated that, during the pandemic, journalists at The Athletic collaborated more, and included more diversity in content. This positive result, which led to a subscription increase, is primarily due to market orientation, leadership, staff size and technological adoption, all organization-level influences on gatekeeping. This study concludes with analysis on how these findings can impact journalism in general and sports journalism specifically now and after Covid-19.
Extended Abstract • Student • Adrianne Grubic, The University of Texas at Austin • Proud: A Case Study of the Social Media Representation of Ibtihaj Muhammad • Media portrayals of sportswomen along with Black and Muslim women in general tend to be monolithic, focusing only on oppression of the body and the barriers they face for entry into sport. Using fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad as a case study wiht an eye towards transnational feminism, this multimodal discourse analysis study found her social media representation provides complex insight into what it means to Black, Muslim, and a woman in a traditionally white and elitist sport.
Research Paper • Faculty • Virginia Harrison, Clemson University; Brandon Boatwright; Joseph Bober • “A manifestation of their city as a god”: Gritty memes, the 2020 U.S. presidential election, and online representations of home • During the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Philadelphia Flyers mascot Gritty starred in political election-related memes. Using systematic discourse analysis, this paper analyzes 14 Gritty memes to understand the interplay of sport mascots, fandom and home, and meme co-creation. Evidence was found for meme intertextuality and polyvocality as well as four personas of Gritty that propelled the mascot to transcend sport and become a historic symbol of Philadelphia’s role in determining the election outcome.
Research Paper • Faculty • Guy Harrison, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Charli Kerns, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Jason Stamm, The University of Tennessee • Covering the Rooney Rule: A Content Analysis of Print Coverage of NFL Head Coach • While scholars and football insiders have given much attention to the NFL’s ongoing head coaching diversity crisis, the (mostly White) sports media’s coverage of the issue — and of systemic racism in general — has been uneven. 2020’s racial upheaval — and the ensuing commitments made by individuals and corporations to fight systemic racism — offered sports journalists an opportunity to reflect on and recalibrate their coverage of these issues, however. Employing agenda building as a theoretical framework (Lang & Lang, 1991; Rogers et al., 1993), and taking into account the United States’ racial upheaval in 2020, this study uses the content analysis method to compare the rate at which print sports journalists assigned to cover specific NFL teams broadly discussed race in their written coverage of the 2020 and 2021 NFL head coaching hiring cycles. Previous agenda building research has found that the media’s story selection has been influenced at times by external actors and events. In statistically comparing the written coverage of both hiring cycles, which took place before and after the events of 2020, this study explores the possibility that NFL beat writers may have been influenced by those events. The study found statistically significant increases in the amount of web articles that mentioned race during the 2021 hiring cycle, including stories that were written after a head coach was hired. These findings suggest that social movements may influence otherwise routine sports reporting.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • MILES ROMNEY, Brigham Young University; Kevin Hull, University of South Carolina; Kirstin Pellizzaro, University of South Carolina; Denetra Walker • “Where do I even begin?”: The Harassment of Female Local Sports Broadcasters • This study examines the harassment faced by female local sports broadcasters throughout the United States. The women in this study overwhelming report they experience sexism, gender discrimination, and harassment based on their gender. This poor treatment comes from the audience, station management, and the athletes on whom they are reporting. The participants share their stories and reveal some of the many difficulties they face while simply trying to do their job.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Kevin Hull, University of South Carolina; John Carvalho, Auburn University; Blake Waddell, Auburn University • Who’s Got Game? A Survey of College-Level Sports Media Programs and Classes • As more higher education programs throughout the United States begin sports media programs, this research answers the call to take a closer look at what types of classes are being offered. An examination of the programs at 90 different journalism schools found that the majority offered some type of sports media class. These classes involved both theoretical, lecture-style classes and hands-on skills classes. Further breakdowns of the classes within type of school will be discussed.
Research Paper • Student • Muhammad Fahad Humayun, U of Colorado-Boulder • Construction of Mediated National Identity Through Sports Journalists Twitter Feed • The purpose of this study is to analyze how Pakistani and Indian national identity was portrayed in selected Pakistani and Indian journalists tweets about the 2017 International Cricket Council (ICC) champions trophy final. This study draws on the conceptual framework of mediated national identity, which has been extensively covered in previous sociological literature (e.g., Bale, 1986; Li, Stokowski, Dittmore, & Scott, 2016; Nossek, 2004). This study employed textual analysis to analyze Tweets from 10 sports journalists during the Champions Trophy final 2017. Results indicate that Pakistani and Indian sports journalists attempted to construct narratives of national identity while tweeting during the live match. They did so by employing metaphors, symbols, and semiotic anecdotes unique to their own countries. As one of the first attempts to evaluate how Pakistani and Indian sports journalists construct narratives around national identity and national belonging through their live tweets during a global sporting contest, this study helps push forward an understanding of sporting national identity in South Asia through a study of social media.
Research Paper • Faculty • Mark Mederson, Loras College; Michael Mirer, University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee • Flipping the Frame: Rudy Gobert’s journey from episodic bad actor to thematic hero • Rudy Gobert’s positive COVID-19 diagnosis started the process that led to American sports shutting down in the early days of the pandemic. After the diagnosis, video of him touching reporters’ voice recorders at a press availability went viral. This framing analysis in five mainstream newspapers finds that over the course of 72 hours, Gobert went from a bad actor to a hero in news copy as an episodic frame focusing on his actions gave way to a thematic frame about the virus and its effects on the country.
Research Paper • Student Member • Dinfin Mulupi, University of Maryland, College Park • “Stick to tennis”? Media and public narratives in reaction to Naomi Osaka’s #BLM activism • This study examined social media commentary and news media framing of a Black woman athlete’s racial justice activism. Comments (N = 1,400) published to Naomi Osaka’s official Facebook page and online articles published by seven U.S. news organizations (N = 63) were analyzed qualitatively guided by framing and critical race theories. Facebook comments revealed frames of support, infantilization, and silencing of Osaka. News media framed Osaka’s activism as compatible with sports but sidestepped discussing racism.
Research Paper • Student • Vincent Peña, University of Texas at Austin • (Un)fair Pay to Play: Alienation, Exploitation, Labor Power and the NCAA • The argument about paying college athletes is not a new one and has long been a thorn in the side of the NCAA. However, there is a resurgence in the push for compensating college athletes amid a rash of legislation at the state level and court cases headed before the Supreme Court. This paper conducts a critical discourse analysis of this debate surrounding the compensation of college athletes that appears in both the popular and academic press. It examines news and sports media, as well as academic literature, major academic blog sites, and college newspapers. Using a Marxist lens, this paper examines the alienation, exploitation and labor power of major college athletes, especially those in the so-called moneymaking sports of basketball and football. It attempts to explicate the concepts in the context of college athletics and then look at the way various media outlets discursively perpetuate, challenge, or reify the alienation and exploitation of college athletes. Findings suggest that although there is a growing sentiment toward paying the players in some form, whether through granting them the rights to their name, image and likeness or providing them direct compensation, the arguments made by the media contribute to the alienation of college athletes from their athletic labor, and ultimately set the stage for the exploitation of these athletes.
Research Paper • Faculty • Gregory Perreault; Mildred Perreault • eSports as a news specialty gold rush: Communication ecology in the domination of traditional journalism over lifestyle journalism • Esports are becoming more popular with adults as they often result in prize money for those who play, and now even academic scholarships for Division 1 athletes. Therefore, online news might expand these opportunities to understand the impact of business news even further on investors and markets centering around eSports. This study included an analysis of news coverage in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Forbes and Business Insider from January 2018 to December 2020 has yielded 406 articles. Researchers coded these articles for specific marketing and public relations messages, and identified how various entertainment businesses have worked their support of these teams into the news coverage of eSports. We will argue that eSports represents a topic that would typically be covered through lifestyle journalism–after all, both gaming and sports are predominantly lifestyle specialties–that traditional journalism has dominated in order to reaffirm its privileged placement in the communication ecology.
Extended Abstract • Student • Brian Petrotta, University of Oklahoma • From Prohibition to Promotion: Discursive Power in the Legalization of Sports Betting • The discursive power perspective has increasingly been employed in the study of political communication, but only recently made its way into sports scholarship. This study will explore which speakers wielded discursive power by introducing, amplifying, and maintaining topics and frames at critical points in time in the evolution of sports betting legalization in the United States. Results will contribute to the emerging study of discursive power within the context of public policy.
Research Paper • Student • Shannon Scovel, University of Maryland • #TriathlonSoWhite: A critical assessment of the representation, underrepresentation and branding of intersectional bodies on the @USATriathlon official Instagram account • This paper critically evaluates the representation of intersectional bodies on @USATriathlon’s Instagram account in 2020 to understand how the organization viewed the sport during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results also reveal efforts to diversify representation in triathlon after a June 1 statement that committed the governing body to creating a more inclusive sporting space. @USATriathlon’s Instagram feed reproduces hierarchies of the white, able-bodied sporting male, though the 429 posts do also feature white women prominently.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Matthew Taylor, Middle Tennessee State University • Crowd Pleasers: Exploring Motivations and Measuring Success Among Independent Sports Podcasters • This study uses in-depth interviews with independent sports podcasters to explore their motivations for podcasting and to determine how they measure their success. The findings will contribute to a growing body of podcasting research that has given limited attention to sports thus far despite the rising popularity of the format, which currently ranks among the Top 10 most popular genres for podcast listeners over the age of 18.
Research Paper • Student • Maria Tsyruleva, University of South Florida; Travis Bell, University of South Florida • “Golden Spike”: Examining Atlanta United’s Communication Strategies and Brand Attributes from Launch to Kickoff • This research explores Atlanta United FC, a soccer club that achieved record-breaking average attendance, from the communication perspective. Utilizing thematic analysis of the press releases published between the launch of the club through the team’s first official game, the study examines communication strategies the new organization used and core brand attributes it communicated. The results extend the current knowledge on strategic communication in the sports industry and provide insights for public relations practitioners.
Research Paper • Student • Carolina Velloso • Making Soufflé with Metal: Effects of the Coronavirus Pandemic on Sports Journalism Routines • This paper investigates the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on sports journalism routines. Through open-ended, semi-structured interviews with 12 journalists, this study examines the challenges reporters faced, their adaptation strategies, and reflections on their professional capabilities. This paper argues that while the pandemic destabilized traditional sports journalism routines, respondents relied on previous experience and knowledge about their job requirements to find creative ways to combat the challenges imposed by the unusual sports seasons.
Small Programs Interest Group
2021 Abstracts
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Dawn Francis, Cabrini University • Methods for Teaching Social Justice Journalism • The roots of social justice journalism are over a century old. However, today, there are very few studies defining this genre and preparing journalism and mass communication educators to teach it to their students. This paper provides the results of an exploratory qualitative study into the pedagogical methods for teaching storytelling for social justice. It also takes the insights gained from this analysis and presents an initial model for teaching social justice journalism.
Research Paper • Faculty • Chris McCollough, Jacksonville State University • Building Sustainable Client Partnerships: a Non-Profit Outreach Center’s Value to Developing a Service-Learning Pedagogy • Pedagogical literature documents service-learning’s impact on students, the community, and educators alike. Benefits aside, concerns remain about the time- and resource-intensive nature of building, cultivating, and sustaining client-partnerships (Fall & Bourland-Davis, 2004). The paper is a case study of the development of a non-profit outreach center, its operating practices, its cultivation and maintenance of client partnerships, as well as a consideration of some of the challenges it faces.
Scholastic Journalism Division
2021 Abstracts
Extended Abstract • The Future of the Field: Journalism Degree Motivations, Roles and Relevancy of the Field • Faculty Papers • “Journalism students represent the future of the industry. Learning how they conceptualize journalism may build understanding of the field’s evolution. This survey research examines the motivations and perceptions of journalism students about the profession. Preliminary results show that students’ top motivations for pursuing journalism were related to creative reporting skills, continual learning, and travel in their job. They were also interested in current affairs and displayed a modest drive for addressing social injustices.” • Brian J. Bowe, American Univ. in Cairo / Western Washington Univ.; Lucinda Davenport, Michigan State University; Robin Blom, Ball State University
Research Paper • Student Activism vs. Student Journalism: Racial Justice, Free Speech, and Journalism Ethics in College Newspapers • Faculty Papers • Using two recent controversies involving campus social justice protests and student news organizations, this study uses an interdisciplinary lens to examine free expression and normative journalism ethics discourse. It explores themes related to First Amendment rights and values, journalism ethics, and racial justice, asking which are evident and absent in opinion journalism focused on the cases. It examines universities’ dual missions of supporting free expression and advancing the goals of diversity, equity, and inclusion. • Jason Shepard
Extended Abstract • Extended Abstract: “We’re Playing a Telephone Game”: Understanding How Teenagers Engage with News Through a Simulation • Faculty Papers • With misinformation at an all-time high, this study explores how high school students cope with inaccurate information and perceive journalists through observation of their skills in a breaking news simulation and post-study interviews. Results reveal that young people desire accurate information but lack the tools to correct it and that immersive learning experiences, like the one used in this study, can teach about the role of quality journalism in stopping the spread of false information. • Theresa de los Santos, Pepperdine University; Elizabeth Smith, Pepperdine University; Jillian Johnson, Pepperdine University
Research Paper • The long-term value of networking and diverse professional experience in online communication master’s program cohorts • Faculty Papers • A survey of alumni from a 10-year-old cohort-based online master’s program in digital communication showed that respondents felt high levels of sense of community both during the program and after graduation. Respondents reported regular interteraction with cohort members and valued the ability to network with peers from a wide range of communication subfields. Results suggest a cohort structure has strong networking benefits for online master’s students, although more identity-based diversity among cohort members is needed. Universities that currently utilize a cohort structure should more robustly promote this aspect of their programs in marketing and recruitment efforts. They should also take steps to maximize interactions between and among cohorts after graduation to enhance connections with a professionally accomplished base of alumni. • Shanetta Pendleton, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Rhonda Gibson
Research Paper • Pandemic grading strategies: A natural experiment with audio feedback in an introductory mass communications course • Faculty Papers • The COVID-19 pandemic realities of the Fall 2020 semester provided an opportunity to try integrated technology grading strategies. The natural experiment deployed personalized and generalized feedback to two sections of an introductory mass communications class for their first written assignment. A survey captured students’ perspectives about ‘helpfulness’ and ‘purpose’ of the grading implements. The results indicated that personalized feedback is preferred, and the combination of grading efforts, in general, is helpful. • Carolyn Hedges, Syracuse University
Extended Abstract • The Inconsistency of Journalism Education and Trauma-related Instruction • Faculty Papers • Although journalism educators believe trauma topics are important, curricular coverage is inconsistent. This survey examined the extent educators covered specific trauma topics. Participants rated the importance and extent of coverage across four domains in required classes: self-care, trauma-informed interviewing, trauma impact on community, and best community reporting practices. The commonly deemed highly valued topics include ethics of accuracy, sensitivity, respect for survivors, and privacy rights. Self-care was deemed important but often not covered in courses. • Joe Hight, University of Central Oklahoma; Elana Newman, University of Tulsa; Ilissa Madrigal; Bret Arnold
Research Paper • Teaching Data Science through Storytelling: Improving Undergraduate Data Literacy • Faculty Papers • This study notices a significant gap of data literacy between communication students and science students across four U.S. universities. This project develops an experiential teaching and learning platform (OCEL.AI) and proposes a story-centric approach to teach data gathering, analysis, modeling, application, and ethics to students. The results showed that the storytelling approach had significant impacts on students’ knowledge, appreciation, motivation, confidence, and competence in data science, even after controlling the effects of major and gender. • You Li, Eastern Michigan U; Ye Wang; Yugyung Lee; Huan Chen, University of Florida; Alexis Nicolle Petri; Teryn Cha
Research Paper • Student Journalists Exhibit Different Mindsets, Agree on the Need for Truthful Reporting • Faculty Papers • “This study investigates journalism students’ beliefs about the profession they seek to enter. Using Q methodology to explore the participants’ subjective conceptions of journalism, we map their attitudes and beliefs along four dimensions: impartial, neutral, point-of-view, and involved. Participants (n = 54) sorted 28 statements about journalism from “most like” their journalistic mindset to “most unlike.” Factor analysis identified two distinct mindsets among the participants, one expressing a traditional journalistic mindset, the other embracing a more involved, vocal journalism. Yet both factors expressed strong support for many facets of traditional journalism.
Extended Abstract • A Systematic Review of Media Literacy Interventions and the Case for Teaching a Logic-Based Debunking Approach • Faculty Papers • This study uses a systematic review to examine pedagogical approaches used to teach media consumers to debunk falsehoods and evaluate claims. We find that the fact-based “checklist approach” is dominant. This approach, while useful in some contexts, is limited. We make the case for teaching media literacy lessons through a less commonly used logic-based debunking approach in which students ask the question: In what world could this information or claim possibly be true? • Alexander Sussman; Elia Powers, Towson University
Research Paper • A mission-based argument for private K-12 student press • Faculty Papers • While the First Amendment does not guarantee student press within public schools, it does help affirm the value of such opportunities to student communities. Private schools do not enjoy such constitutional support, but may have a more powerful tool closer to home: their own school mission statements. This study analyzes nearly 500 private K-12 school mission statements to determine if the priorities identified by these programs align with the documented benefits of student journalism. • Erica Salkin, Whitworth University Department of Communication Studies
Research Paper • An Exploration of and Intervention to Increase Children’s Critical Analysis of News • Faculty Papers • To take the first steps in increasing children’s critical analysis of fake news, this study (N = 298, 10–12 y/o) looks into children’s fake news knowledge (qualitative) and a theory-based fake news e-learning intervention for children (quantitative). Results show that children do have knowledge on fake news, but that there a large individual differences. The fake news intervention (e-learning) did not increase children’s fake news knowledge and awareness, but it did increase their self-efficacy. • Sanne Tamboer, Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University; Anne Vlaanderen; Kirsten Bevelander, Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University; Radboud Institute for Health Sciences, Radboud University and Medical Centre.; Mariska Kleemans
Extended Abstract • How to Increase News Literacy via Interventions: Insights from Early Adolescents • Faculty Papers • As a first step in the development of news literacy interventions for early adolescents, we discussed with the target group what a successful intervention targeting their own age group’s news literacy should look like. In the focus groups, participants mentioned that it is a challenge to motivate their news literacy, but also discussed intervention elements that they believe can be effective. These are: competition and rewards, tailored content, the accessibility of the intervention, and interactivity. • Sanne Tamboer, Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University; Mariska Kleemans; Serena Daalmans, Radboud University, Behavioural Science Institute; Inge Molenaar, Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University; Tibor Bosse, Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University
Religion and Media Interest Group
2021 Abstracts
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Ibrahim Abusharif • Competing Binaries: “Sufism” vs “Salafism” in The New York Times • In recent years, there have been a string of violent acts committed by extremist Salafists and Taliban against Sufi Muslim worshipers, mosques, and shrines. In covering these acts, The New York Times reporters employ terminologies that seek to explain to readers what Sufism is. In doing so, the newspaper often uses words that unintentionally create a news frame that indicates a binary between Sufism and Islam itself. This study examines through qualitative textual analysis the usage of framing terminologies (such as “sect” or “strain” of Islam) in articles describing Sufism.
Research Paper • Student • LaRisa Anderson, University of Texas at Austin • “You can’t fight what’s already happening, right?”: A Case Study of Christian Live-Streaming • Amongst the myriad expressions of church, live-streaming services are a growing format of evangelism. This case study investigates two churches of varying sizes, demographics, and resources in Austin, Texas who use live-stream services in unique ways. Current literature on the interplay of religiosity and media are discussed including the influence of televangelism. I specifically focus on the nature of communal engagement in the context of live-stream as a definitive characteristic of church. As explicated by John Wright (1987)’s framing of community within the Church, this project explores: How do churches who use live-stream technology facilitate communal engagement? Or rather, how do church leaders intentionally replicate community online? To what extent are the producers of content for churches cognizant of the necessity for community formation? A total of six church officials and other religious personnel were interviewed for approximately 60 minutes. Each were asked to operationalize the community of their church in the physical space and the community they suspect is developing online. Interview data as well as observational field notes were used as source material for content analysis. The hypothesis that churches might neglect the online audience or minimize its use was supported. Findings indicate three suppositions for live-stream approaches: healthy discourse, points-of-entry, and innovation and expansion. These are aided by one constructive finding regarding the reactionary nature of technology adoption in the church. Limitations and future research suggestions are also discussed.
Research Paper • Student • Ruta Kaskeleviciute; Helena Knupfer; Joerg Matthes, University of Vienna • Who Says “Muslims are not Terrorists”? News Differentiation, Muslim vs. Non-Muslim Sources, and Attitudes Toward Muslims • In a quota-based experiment (N = 291), participants were confronted with news about terrorism. We manipulated source (non-Muslim, Muslim) and degree of differentiation between Muslims and terrorists to analyze effects on explicit and implicit attitudes toward Muslims. Undifferentiation predicted negative explicit attitudes but did not affect implicit attitudes. Participants perceived non-Muslim sources as more similar. The effects of undifferentiation on hostile attitudes were more pronounced when sources were perceived as similar compared to less similar.
Research Paper • Faculty • Suman Mishra, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville • Branded Spirituality: Gurus, Globalization, and Neo-Spiritual Nationalism in Indian Marketplace • Scholars have examined the role of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism in marketing practices and in shaping consumption, but similar research related to Hindu religion and associated spirituality in the Eastern marketplace has been scant. This study informs about the new trend of commodification of spirituality in India by examining the advertising of brands associated with prominent spiritual gurus in India. The study highlights how Indian gurus are harnessing the power of Hindu religion and spirituality and combining it with political ideology to add value to their brands and structure consumer choice. The process has worked to direct Indian consumers toward local brands and away from multinational brands by fostering spiritual nationalism, a movement expressed through messages such as sudhta (purity), Ayurveda (nature and naturopathy), rejuvenation, divinity, and swadeshi (local) in brand advertising.
Research Paper • Faculty • Gregory Perreault; Kathryn Montalbano • From Lifestyle Journalism to General News: Field Theory in the hard news turn of religion reporting • In the spirit of Ranly (1979) and Buddenbaum (1988), the present study analyzes the role of religion reporting with the journalistic field. Personnel cuts within newsrooms and the development of “religion reporters” operating from religious institutions necessitate a re-exploration of the field. At stake is the coverage of religion, a topic that continues to be near-and-dear to the vast majority of people in the United States, nearly 79 percent of which identify as religious (Putnam & Campbell, 2010). Simultaneously, the majority of the United States tends to think journalists cover religion poorly. Through the lens of field theory, this study analyzes 20 interviews with U.S.-based religion reporters who work for both mainstream and religious publications. This study finds that as a result of weak economic capital, religion reporting shifted to the general news beats of courts, crime and education. This shift yielded two results: a loss of specialization in reporting of religion, and a loss of much of the lifestyle journalism, or audience-oriented, guidance-oriented news, within the specialty. New entrants, in the form of reporting from religious organizations, offer a means with which to reintroduce lifestyle journalism into the field, thereby facilitating their entry into the field.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Brian Smith, Brigham Young University; Danielle Hallows; Maggie Vail; Caleb Porter; Alycia Burnett; Camilla Owens; Kateryna Kravchenko • Rise of the Religious Influencer? Examining Faith-Based Influence on Social Media • With their increasing impact, social media influencers are an emerging focus in communication research. Their influence on religious activity is of particular relevance, given the growing use of social media for religious and faith-based purposes. This study examined religious advocacy on social media through in-depth interviews with 20 faith-based influencers. Results showed a duality of social media use among influencers—evangelism and self-transcendence were primary motivations. Additionally, dialogic rather than monologic communication was dominant.
Public Relations Division
2021 Abstracts
Research Paper • Faculty • Award submission: Doug Newsome • Donnalyn Pompper, university of oregon; Eric Kwame Adae, Drake University • Public Relations and Sustainability across the African Continent: Using Afro-Centric Philosophies to Remember What’s Been ‘Forgotten or Lost’ • Assuring sustainability across the African continent – the cradle of humankind – is an ethical public relations responsibility. There is insufficient research about public relations as a tool for supporting sustainability goals across the world’s second-largest and second-most populous continent (Volk, 2017); one that the rest of the planet relies upon for forests serving as “lungs of the world” (Fleshman, 2008). To begin filling the gap, we address challenges of making sustainability happen here, given a long history of negative colonial and neocolonial forces operating in many of Africa’s nations. Despite these impediments, enduring are indigenous, pre-colonial Afro-centric philosophies of communalism/collectivism and harmony with the natural environment that support sustainability efforts. We interrogate six indigenous philosophies which resonate with values that make contemporary public relations ethical. We discuss why professional public relations shaped by Afro-centric philosophies is welcomed, globally, and is critical for addressing sustainability across the continent.
Research Paper • Student • Award submission: Doug Newsome • Erika Schneider, University of Missori • From Saving Face to Saving Lives: Prioritizing the Public in Public Relations • Traditional crisis communication literature emphasizes how organizations use communication to protect reputation by shifting attributions of crisis responsibility. The purpose of this study is to reevaluate this approach by comparing proposed framework strategies that serve to protect stakeholders with reputational messaging. Findings from this between-subjects experimental design study provide insight on how informed organizational decision-making, such as corrective action and organizational learning, can reduce feelings of anger while prioritizing stakeholder wellbeing in public relations.
Research Paper • Student • Award submission: Race & Public Relations • Drew T. Ashby-King, University of Maryland • Racism and Social Issues Management: Examining State Universities’ Responses to the Killing of George Floyd • Colleges and universities are social institutions often called on speak about social issues, such as responding to instances of racism on campus. Critics have suggested that when responding instances of racism on their campus, institutional leaders often ignore the racist act and harm caused and focus their discourse on diversity and inclusion. Considering this critique, this study used social issues management as a framework to explore how state flagship universities in the United States (U.S.) responded to an instance of racism that did not occur on their campuses. A qualitative analysis of all 50 U.S. state flagship universities’ initial public statement in response to the police killing of George Floyd led to three key findings: (1) institutions were made to speak on the issue by larger social discourse; (2) through their statements institutions (re)defined the issue as one of diversity and inclusion rather than racism and police brutality; and (3) guided by the logic of whiteness institutions legitimized their definition of the issue. Based on these findings, I argue that the initial conceptualization of social issues management did not adequality consider the power organizations have to define social issues through their discourse. Therefore, I conclude by suggesting an approach to social issues management that centers those most effected by the issue in order to promote social justice.
Research Paper • Student • Award submission: Race & Public Relations • Ryan Comfort, Indiana University • Rethinking cultural factors in government communication: A survey of environmental professionals working for indigenous governments • This study examined the use of and attitudes towards communication media by environmental and natural resource management personnel employed by indigenous nations in the U.S. Survey data on professionals’ use of media, attitudes, and perceived obstacles to better use of media for science & environmental communication revealed that concerns about sharing cultural ecological information may carry significant weight in the communication decision making process of indigenous environmental agencies.
Research Paper • Faculty • Award submission: Race & Public Relations • Tiffany Gallicano, UNC Charlotte; Olivia Lawless; Abagail Higgins; Samira Shaikh; Sara Levens • The Hybrid Firestorm: A Qualitative Study of Black Lives Matter Activism and the COVID-19 Pandemic • The combination of a global pandemic and an ignited social justice movement has created a saturated digital environment in which people turn to social media to navigate a hybrid firestorm fueled by both the Black Lives Matter movement and the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the circuit of culture has been studied in the context of a pandemic (Curtin & Gaither, 2006) and digital activism (Han & Zhang, 2009), research using any theoretical model to study a hybrid firestorm could not be found. This study consists of interviews with 25 participants involving their experiences in the hybrid firestorm. The circuit of culture is used, which is a model composed of five moments, to explore how meaning is created, interpreted, and contested in the context of a social justice movement and a global pandemic.
Research Paper • Faculty • Award submission: Race & Public Relations • Yeunjae Lee, University of Miami; Jo-Yun Li • Discriminated Against but Engaged: The Role of Communicative Behaviors of Racial Minority Employees • Grounded in the situational theory of problem-solving (STOPS), two survey studies investigated how racial minority employees in the U.S. perceive and communicate about the discriminatory situation within their organizations and how it affects their engagement levels. In Study 1 (N = 461), experiences and observance of both formal and informal discriminatory acts at work reduced racial minority employees’ engagement level, while their situational perceptions increased their communicative behaviors toward direct supervisor and peers, respectively. Communicative behaviors with supervisors, not peers, in turn, increased their engagement. Study 2 (N = 454) replicated and extended Study 1 in different contexts, revealing the moderating role of a diverse climate in increasing racial minority employees’ problem and involvement recognition and decreasing their constraint recognition about workplace discrimination situation. Theoretical and practical implications for race in public relations are discussed.
Research Paper • Faculty • Award submission: Race & Public Relations • Yvette Sterbenk, Ithaca College; Jamie Ward, EMU; Regina Luttrell; Summer Shelton, Idaho State University • Silence Has No Place A Framing Analysis of Corporate Sociopolitical Activism Statements • This study used a quantitative framing analysis to examine the company statements delivered by 105 Fortune 500 companies across 21 sectors in June 2020 in response to three social justice issues that took prominence that month in the United States: Black Lives Matter, immigration laws, and LGBTQ rights. The study uncovered which companies and sectors did not make statements, and, among those that did, what messages were most common.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Lindsey Anderson, University of Maryland • Serving Public Interests and Enacting Organizational Values: An Examination of Public Interest Relations through AARP’s Tele-Town Halls • Public interest relations (PIR) is an approach to public relations scholarship and practice that contributes to the social good by integrating the concept of public interest into organizational goals and values. The need for PIR was emphasized during the COVID-19 pandemic as publics looked to organizations for information about a variety of topics (e.g., symptoms, vaccines). AARP created a series of tele-townhalls to communicate with its publics, who are considered to be members of a “vulnerable population” during the pandemic. In order to understand how AARP’s Coronavirus Tele-Town Halls reflected the practices of PIR, I completed a critical thematic analysis of 28 virtual sessions that were hosted in 2020-2021. The analysis, which was guided by the tenets of PIR, found that AARP’s communication (1) highlighted common life course milestones of its publics, (2) emphasized the quality of the information, and (3) provided avenues to engage with the organization and its experts. Based on these findings, I developed theoretical implications that reflect a critical perspective on PIR and suggest future research avenues that seek to build this ethical and socially meaningful approach to public relations.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Song AO, University of Macau; XIAO QIAN, University of Macau • Understanding the implementation of Enterprise Social Media on Employee Communication: An Affordance Perspective • The research adopts the technological affordance approach to examine the role of enterprise social media (ESM) in employee communication in the context of mainland China. The research postulated that organizations can actualize affordances of ESM to achieve certain goals. Using Enterprise WeChat (EWeChat) as the example, the research interviewed 37 participants to explore organizational goals and actions of EWeChat affordance actualization in mainland China. Thirteen EWeChat affordances and means of actualization (i.e., association, control, diversity, feedback, outeraction, perpetual contact, persistence, personalization, portability, privacy, social presence, synchronicity, and visibility) for specific organizational goals were identified. The research explicates ESM affordance actualization as the interaction between ESM and organizations, and also between ESM and employees. The research sheds light on how organizations in mainland China can effectively configure their ESM for certain purposes of its mobile application in employee communication.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Anita Atwell Seate, University of Maryland; Brooke Liu, University of Maryland; Samantha Stanley; Yumin Yan; Allison Chatham, University of Maryland • Relational Tensions and Publics during Disasters: Investigating Organizational Relationships Ethnographically • Relationships are essential for a fully functioning society. Through a multi-sited rapid ethnography, we show how organizations achieve their mission through organizational partners and active publics in the context of disasters. We provide insights into relational tensions that occur in organization-public relationships (OPRs) and how communication can address those relational tensions. In doing so, we answer calls for broadening methodologies to examine OPRs. Overall, we demonstrate the value of continuing to theorize the network approach.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Brandon Boatwright • Exploring Online Opinion Leadership: An Analysis of the Influential Users on Twitter During the Online Conversation Around Anthem Protests by Prominent Athletes • The current study explores the role of online opinion leaders on Twitter in conversations around anthem protests by prominent athletes. The aim of the study is twofold: (1) identify the influential opinion leaders in Twitter conversations related to Colin Kaepernick and Megan Rapinoe, and (2) further understand how and why social media users participate in conversations online about controversial subjects. Ultimately, results from this study extend the network paradigm in public relations research by examining the role of individual users in the construction of a discursive landscape of issue networks. The study combines social network analysis with in-depth interviews in order to adopt a more wholistic framework for studying online opinion leadership in the context of public relations research.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Open Competition • Denise Bortree, Penn State University; Michail Vafeiadis; Pratiti Diddi, Lamar University; Ryan Wang • Extended abstract: Promoting diversity and inclusion: How Fortune 500 companies talk about diversity on Twitter • This study examines more than 11,000 tweets on diversity topics posted by Fortune 500 companies in 2019. It identifies the 18 most common topics in six general areas – workplace diversity/inclusion, gender/women, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, disability and activism. Corporations with higher CSR ratings tend to post more diversity-related tweets. Analysis suggests that companies tend to use different topics in original posts and retweets/replies/comments on diversity. Engagement rates on diversity topics vary widely.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Luke Capizzo, James Madison University; Meredith Feinman • Extending civic values in architectures of listening: Arendt, Mouffe and the pluralistic imperative for organizational listening • This conceptual paper introduces the concept of civic listening to augment organizational listening theory and practice. Drawing from the writing of Arendt and Mouffe, it centers pluralism, agonism, deliberation, and reflection as central to listening and delineates the functions and values of civic listening to add to existing architectures. This new perspective points toward deeper, more nuanced, and more equitable organizational engagement in civic discourse and firmer ground for contentious issue engagement.
Extended Abstract • Member • Open Competition • Ioana Coman, Texas Tech University; Jiun-Yi Tsai, Northern Arizona University; Shupei Yuan, Northern Illinois University • Extended Abstract: Toward an Audience-Centric Framework of Situational Corporate Social Advocacy Strategy: A pilot study • Increasingly companies engage in Corporate Social Advocacy or Political Activism. Yet how publics expect companies to take a stance (sometimes even action) on controversial issues remains unclear. We propose an audience-centric approach to investigate how audiences expect companies to act on hot button issues and their reasoning process, through a mixed-method analysis of a survey (N=388) conducted at a public University. Results highlight a need to further understand CSA from audience perceptions.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Yuan Wang, City University of Hong Kong; Yi-Hui Christine Huang, City University of Hong Kong; Qinxian Cai, City University of Hong Kong • Exploring the Mediating Effect of Government–Public Relationships during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Model Comparison Approach • This study proposed, tested, and compared two models to examine the antecedent and outcome of government–public relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic. It conducted three surveys of 9,675 publics in Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. It found that publics’ perceived governmental responsiveness leads to their satisfaction with and trust in the government, which influence their word-of-mouth intention about the vaccines. Furthermore, relational satisfaction and trust mediate the relationship between perceived responsiveness and word-of-mouth intention.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Taisik Hwang, Suffolk University • A Comparison of Twitter Use by Different Sector Organizations • “Given the shifting nature of communication environment, this study attempts to discover how leading nature education organizations utilize social media to effectively reach and build relationship with their audiences. Specifically, it employed a content analysis to examine how the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), U.S. National Park Service (NPS), and National Geographic (NG) take advantage of Twitter to better communicate with their external publics. Out of a total of 6,286 tweets sent by these organizations for a six-month period from January to June 2018, a random sample was used for quantitative analysis. Findings show that there are significant differences in these organizations’ use of message functions as well as mentioning of brand names associated with them. For example, both UNESCO and NPS tend to focus on building community with their external stakeholders, whereas NG’s tweets mainly involves the information function. The current study
will benefit other non-profit organizations by revealing ways in which these organizations purposefully use social media to fulfill their mission and suggesting practical guidelines to strategic communicators in public-sector organizations.”
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Open Competition • Grace Ji, Boston University; Cheng Hong, California State University Sacramento • Feeling elevated: Examine the mediation role of elevation in CEO activism on employee prosocial engagement • With a survey of 600 U.S. employees, this study investigated the effect of authentic leadership on employees’ prosocial advocacy engagement in the context of CEO activism. Employees’ moral elevation and organizational identification were examined as mediators. Results showed authentic leadership elicited employees’ positive emotion of elevation and enhanced their identification with the company. In turn, employees’ affective (elevation) and cognitive (organizational identification) responses mediated authentic leadership’s impact on motivating employees’ activism participation.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Eunyoung Kim, Auburn University at Montgomery; Sung Eun Park, Webster University • Influence of identification, relationship, and involvement of a donor on attitudes towards and behavioral intentions to online donation via SNS • This study seeks what factors predict publics’ behavioral intentions to online donate and share words via social media. Relevant literature was reviewed, and an online survey was conducted to examine hypotheses. The results show that identification, involvement, perceived credibility, and attitudes towards online donation predict intention to donate via social media, while attitudes towards helping others, identification, involvement, and site features affect the intention of Word-of-Mouth. Theoretical and practical implications are presented in the discussion and conclusion.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Sora Kim, The Chinese University of Hong Kong • Public Expectations of Government Pandemic-Crisis Communication What and How to Communicate during the COVID-19 Pandemic • Through two representative online surveys in Hong Kong (HK) and the U.S. (US) during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study investigates, from a public-centric perspective, public expectations of effective government pandemic-crisis communication. It looks specifically at what publics want to be communicated in times of a global pandemic and how. In each region, the findings identify four significant dimensions. Three are culturally universal dimensions—basic responsibility, locus of pandemic-crisis responsibility, and disfavor of promotional tone. The fourth is culture-specific—personal relevance for HK and frequency for the US. Among the significant dimensions, the most highly expected is what people consider government’s basic responsibility in pandemic communication, that is, a basic responsibility dimension. This includes providing instructing and adjusting information and securing accuracy, timeliness, and transparency in pandemic communication. In both regions, respondents preferred by far traditional media and non-governmental sources to social media and governmental sources.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Sining Kong, Texas A & M University at Corpus Christi; Huan Chen, University of Florida • Revisiting SMCC Model: How Chinese Public Relations Practitioners Handle Social Mediated Crisis • As social media is widely used by Chinese organizations, this study comprehensively examines how Chinese public relations practitioners cope with social mediated crisis and how culture interacts with social mediated crisis response. An in-depth interview was used to collect data from twenty-three Chinese public relations practitioners, who had experience in dealing with crises and issues via social media. Results showed that Chinese public relations practitioners use diverse social media platforms to satisfy the publics’ gratifications and social media usage preferences. Besides, results also showed the importance of matching information form and information source in responding social mediated crisis. Furthermore, it revealed how the uniqueness of Chinese culture moderated Chinese public relations social mediated crisis response, such as maintaining harmony and avoiding direct confrontation, collaborating with opinion leaders and influencers to shape publics’ opinions, using no response, apologizing, and self-mockery, and emphasizing the importance of media relations.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Sushma Kumble, Towson University; Pratiti Diddi, Lamar University; Maggie Whitescarver • Social Listening using Machine Learning to Understand Sense Making and Content Dissemination on Twitter: A Case Study of WHO’s Social Listening Strategy During COVID-19 Initial Phase • The study utilized unsupervised machine learning techniques to the CERC framework on 6.1 Million Tweets between January to March 2020 to understand the sensemaking process during COVID-19 among Twitter users. The study also used content analysis to examine WHO’s response to the popular emerging conversations. Results indicate that while WHO’s messaging addressed the dominant topics during the timeframe but did not effectively address misinformation. The paper discusses the implications and recommendations for health communication practitioners.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Sun Young Lee, University of Maryland–College Park; Duli Shi, University of Maryland; John Leach; Saymin Lee; Cody Buntain, New Jersey Institute of Technology • Global Companies’ Use of Social Media for CSR Communication During COVID-19 • The purpose of the study was to examine how companies have communicated their efforts to address COVID-19 on Facebook and Twitter and to evaluate the effectiveness of their message strategies. We conducted a content analysis of 992 Facebook posts and 1,957 tweets between March 11 and May 20, 2020, from the 2020 RepTrak’s 100 most reputable companies. About one-third of the messages (n = 1,059) were related to companies’ responses to COVID-19. Companies mostly highlighted CSR efforts related to their expertise, partnership efforts, or financial resources. The majority of messages did not specify a particular group’s interests, but when they did, the most impacted groups, such as frontline personnel and employees, were addressed. Companies mostly used social media to employ one-way message strategies, but incorporating multimedia and expressing appreciation to others were found to be effective message strategies for engaging publics emotionally. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Hyunmin Lee, Drexel University; Emma Whitehouse, Drexel University • What do you mean by doing the right thing?: Examining corporate social advocacy frames and transparency efforts in Fortune 500 companies’ website • This study examined the state of corporate social advocacy (CSA) initiatives among Fortune 500 companies via a content analysis of their official websites. There is a need to critically examine the ways in which CSA is communicated to create a normative understanding as to what constitutes of ethical and transparent CSA communication. Findings showed that episodic frames were popularly utilized to communicate about CSA and transparency efforts varied according to CSA type and location.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Juan Liu, Columbus State University; Bruce Getz, Columbus State University • How Nike and Gillette Survived the Tension between Corporate Social Advocacy and Boycotting Backlash • Both 2018 Nike’s Colin Kaepernick and 2019 Gillette commercial campaigns received backlash on social media over their messages addressing controversial social-political issues. Drawing on legitimacy theory, this study examines how polarized boycotting and advocating messages on Twitter affect interactive engagement and perceptions of corporate social advocacy. In both Nike and Gillette conditions, individuals who expressed strong value alignment with brands’ campaigns, were more susceptible to be affected by polarized tweets. When evaluating brands’ motivations for corporate social advocacy, results showed that individuals with weak value alignment were more likely to be affected by polarized messages. However, this pattern is only found in the Gillette condition. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Open Competition • Stephanie Madden, Penn State University; Nicholas Eng, Penn State University; Jessica Myrick, Penn State University • Public Perceptions of Using the Wireless Emergency Alert System for COVID-19: Lessons for State Government Crisis Communication • On November 25, 2020, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) sent out a COVID-19 public health message via the Wireless Emergency Alert system. Using survey (N = 212) and interview (N = 19) research, this study sought to understand the targeted publics’ reaction to this message and factors impacting potential behavior change after receiving this message. Because COVID-19 response has relied on state governments, this research provides important findings for government communicators at the state level.
Research Paper • Student • Open Competition • Yufan “Sunny” Qin, University of Florida; Alexis Fitzsimmons, University of Florida; Eve Heffron, University of Florida; Marcia DiStaso, University of Florida • Communicating the Big Picture with Employees: The Impacts of CEO Vision Communication on Employee Engagement • Communicating an organizational vision with employees can be critical to help employees internalize the vision, which might in turn increase their willingness to get engaged with the work and subsequently achieving higher goals. The aim of this study is to examine whether and how CEO vision communication could influence employee engagement. This study also proposes employees’ perceptions of work meaningfulness and organizational identification as the potential underlying mechanism that mediate the relationship between CEO vision communication and employee engagement. An online survey was conducted with employees across various industries in the U.S.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Margaret Ritsch, Washington State University; Erin Tomson, Washington State University • Internal Activism at Amazon: Rhetorical Strategies and the Public Relations Response • “This study examined the public relations response to employee activism at Amazon during the Covid-19 pandemic. Public relations has typically been examined from a functional perspective, which largely ignores the power dynamics between an organization and its employees, who are important stakeholders that contribute to the organization’s public image. Critical theory provides a useful lens to examine the dynamics of organizational power and control, although this approach has typically been applied to the study of internal communication dynamics. The study addresses this gap by using a critical rhetorical approach to examine Amazon’s response to employee activism. Researchers conducted qualitative content analysis of news media coverage and Amazon’s company content (e.g. websites and public statements). The data indicates that Amazon spokespeople used aggressive rhetorical strategies in their communication with and about employee activists that discouraged unionization and ultimately attempted to prevent current and former Amazon employees from speaking up about their experiences working for the company.
Keywords: activism, employee, public relations, internal communication”
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Baobao Song; Weiting Tao • Unpack the Relational and Behavioral Outcomes of Internal CSR: Highlighting Dialogic Communication and Managerial Facilitation • The current study examines how corporate social responsibility (CSR) communication and management contributes to internal public relationship building and employees’ megaphoning behaviors. Specifically, it investigates how organization-public dialogical communication (OPDC) about CSR and the organizational leaders’ facilitation behavior towards employee CSR engagement influence employees’ perceptions of two different distinct types of organization-public relationships (OPRs), i.e., communal and exchange relationships. Structural equation modeling results of 660 on-line survey responses suggest that OPDC has a positive association with communal relationship and negative association with exchange relationship. Facilitation behavior positively contributes to employee exchange relationships. Both communal and exchange relationships are positively associated with employees’ positive megaphoning. Whereas negative megaphoning is negatively linked with communal relationships and positively linked with employees’ exchange relationships with the companies. This study contributes to the growing body of literature on internal CSR communication and management. More importantly, this study uncovers nuanced effects of CSR on internal public communal and exchange relationship building.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Open Competition • Edson Tandoc Jr; Pei Wen Wong, Nanyang Technological; Chen Lou; Hyunjin Kang, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication & Information, Nanyang Technological U; Shruti Malviya, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication & Information, Nanyang Technological U • EXTENDED ABSTRACT: Public Communication in the Age of Fake News • The rise of fake news has posed threats to societies around the world, affecting various institutions. One area that has not been sufficiently explored is how it has affected public communication. This study examines how the rise of fake news has affected the roles, resources, and routines of public communicators in Singapore. Through in-depth interviews, this research explores how various communication officers across Singapore’s government agencies perceive, and respond to, the fake news crisis.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Brooke Witherow, Hood College • The role of community and social capital in community building • While the role of social capital in community building has been discussed previously, the terms community and community building are rarely defined (e.g. Dodd et al., 2015; Jin & Lee, 2013; Sommerfeldt 2013a, 2013b). This qualitative case study examines the role of community and social capital in community building through community policing. 26 semi-structured interviews with police administration, patrol officers, and community leaders were conducted. The interviews with patrol officers occurred during seven ride-alongs.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Leping You; Linda Hon, University of Florida; Yu-Hao Lee • Examining Value Congruence and Outcome-relevant involvement as Antecedents of Corporate Political Advocacy • Drawing from the theoretical foundation of corporate political advocacy (CPA), this study aims to understand value congruence and outcome-relevant involvement as the antecedents of CPA that companies should consider when taking a stance on contentious sociopolitical issues. This study conducted a 2 x 2 online experiment to examine how both antecedents affect consumers’ attitudinal evaluation on the credibility and legitimacy of a CPA and predict consumers’ supportive behavioral intentions toward a CPA.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • April YUE, University of Connecticut • Navigating change in the Era of COVID-19: The Role of Top Leaders’ Charismatic Rhetoric and Employees’ Organizational Identification • “The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has had tremendous and swift effects on organizational change. This study examined how organizations can leverage leadership and employee resources to facilitate positive change outcomes. Drawing from the self-concept based motivational theory of charismatic leadership and substitutes for leadership theory, the current study proposed a theoretical model connecting top leaders’ charismatic rhetoric, employees’ affective commitment to change, and employees’ turnover intention. Furthermore, the study investigated contingencies that may modify the relationship between leadership communication and followers’ outcomes. Results from an online panel of 417 U.S. employees showed that top leaders’ use of charismatic rhetoric during change led to followers’ affective commitment to change, which decreased their turnover intention. Furthermore, employees’ organizational identification moderated this relationship. When employees have low identification with their organizations, top leaders’ charismatic rhetoric to address the immediate change is more needed.
Keywords: leadership communication, charismatic rhetoric, change communication, organizational identification, affective commitment, turnover intention”
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Xueying Zhang, North Carolina A&T State; Ziyuan Zhou, Bentley University • The influence of issue attitude on consumers’ reaction toward corporate social advocacy: A moderated mediation path through cognitive dissonance • Corporate social advocacy (CSA) has gained increasing attention in public relations research. The psychological mechanisms regarding how consumers react to a CSA position that conflicts with their own have not yet been examined. Employing cognitive dissonance theory, this study examines how consumers’ preexisting attitude toward an issue influences their reaction to CSA through cognitive dissonance. An experiment (study1) and a survey (study 2) were conducted on Qualtrics with participants recruited from MTurk. Gay marriage rights and gun control issue were chosen as the CSA topics. The results indicated that a conflict between a consumer’s preexisting attitude and a corporation’s stance on a controversial issue leads to cognitive dissonance. Dissonance mediates consumers’ responses to counter-attitudinal CSA, in terms of perceiving the company as biased and intending to boycott the company. Value involvement and CCI significantly moderated the effect of consumers’ attitudes toward CSA on cognitive dissonance, but the effect varies between the two issues. The results help PR practitioners to better understand the segmented consumer audiences and provide a few pieces of practical advice to minimize the potential risk of expressing advocacy on a position of a controversial social political issue.
Research Paper • Faculty • Open Competition • Ziyuan Zhou, Bentley University; Chuqing Dong, Michigan State University • Matching words with actions: Understanding the effects of CSA stance-action consistency on negative consumer responses • Corporation social advocacy (CSA) is a popular topic in public relations research. However, few studies have considered the issue of consistency between corporations taking a stance on a controversial issue and acting accordingly. This study proposed a new concept, CSA stance-action consistency, to investigate the negative consumer responses when corporations violate their CSA promises. A 4 × 2 between-subject experiment indicated that CSA stance-action consistency significantly predicted negative word-of-mouth and boycott intentions. Besides, social issue activism moderated such an effect, while CSA record did not. This study added one more piece of evidence on the risks of CSA and encouraged corporations to fully understand stakeholders’ expectations of CSA before getting involved with controversial issues.
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Ayman Alhammad, University of Kansas • How China used Twitter to Repair Its Image amid the COVID-19 Crisis • “In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries have suffered in different ways politically, economically, and socially because of this health crisis. China registered the first case of COVID-19 and found itself the recipient of negative publicity, some of which, stated by scientists, blamed China for the virus in a Wuhan laboratory, or covered the nature of the disease until it was out of control (Verma, 2020). Because of comprehensive widely negative consequences, China’s image has been distorted in many countries. That led the Chinese government to use a different medium to deal with the crisis, one of which is social media platforms. As Saudi Arabia is one of China’s important economic partners, Beijing is concerned that health crises could affect negatively its economic interests in Saudi Arabia. In fact, China has faced serious obstacles in terms of import and export goods (Hayakawa & Mukunoki, 2021).
China decided to employ digital diplomacy by making its ambassadors communicate with the local and international communities (Brandt & Schafer, 2020). Chinese ambassador, Chen Weiqing, speaks to Saudis via Twitter as Saudi Arabia is ranked eighth in the world with 12.45 million users (Statista, 2020).
This paper examines the image repair strategies that the Chinese ambassador in Saudi Arabia employed during the coronavirus pandemic to restore China’s image there. This study adopted rhetorical analysis, building on the theoretical framework proposed by Brinson & Benoit (1999).
An examination of the ambassador’s tweets revealed a variety of image restoration strategies, including denial, bolstering, compensation, and minimization.”
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Zahedur Arman, Southern Illinois University Carbondale • The Networked Huawei Agendas during the US-China Trade War: The Interrelationships between Huawei, the News Media, and Public Tweets • This study examines interrelationships between the networked Huawei agendas, the U.S. and Chinese news media agendas, and Twitter users’ issue agendas on Twitter during the US-China Trade War. Social network analysis is used as a theory and method to analyze Huawei’s public relations activities on Twitter, news media, and Twitter users’ network. This study found that Huawei’s direct networked agenda setting to Twitter users is more successful than the news media’s networked agenda-setting to the Twitter users. This study is among the first to explore cross-nation networked agenda building and networked agenda setting effects on Twitter. It also found that the US media did not follow Huawei’s networked agendas, but the Chinese media followed the corporation’s issue agendas during the US-China trade war. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Bugil Chang, University of Minnesota • I Distrust You All Because One of You Did Something Wrong: Spillover Effect of Distrust Elicited by an NPO’s Crisis on Overall NPOs • This study examined how public distrust formed by the crisis of an NPO spills over to other organizations in the same and different sectors through experiment. Overall, when faced with a crisis, the participants distrusted not only organizations in the same sector as the crisis-stricken organization but also organizations in a different sector. The effect was fully mediated by participants’ perceived distrust toward the crisis-stricken organization.
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Enzhu Dong, University of Miami; Dongqing Xu • From CSR to Employees’ Megaphoning Behavior: The Roles of Communal Relationship and Corporate Reputation • This study examined how employees’ perceived overall CSR activities impact employees’ positive megaphoning through the mediation of employees’ perceived communal relationship and communal willingness, taking the moderation effect of perceived reputation into consideration. To address the hypotheses, a survey among employees across different organizations was conducted. Results of the moderated mediation examination supported the hypotheses. These findings contributed to the understanding of CSR effects on employee communication behavior and provided implications for organizational management.
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Yoosun Ham, Indiana University; Ejae Lee, Indiana University; Eugene Kim, The Media School, Indiana University Bloomington; Sung Hyun Lee • Examining Publics’ Comparative Evaluations of Government Communication and Strength Ties as Predictors of Country Reputation • During the COVID-19 outbreak, media tended to report on how different Asian countries — China, Japan, and South Korea — were handling the situation by using comparisons. U.S. citizens have been exposed to information about Asian countries and could compare and evaluate how those countries’ governments communicate with their citizens to help contain the new coronavirus. This study attempted to examine how country reputation could be associated with publics’ comparative evaluations about the dialogic communication competency of a foreign country’s government through news media exposure about how that government contained and/or mitigated the new coronavirus. This study also investigated associations between the perceived tie strength between the U.S. and Asian countries and those countries’ reputations. This study used online experimental surveys. Its findings suggest that country reputation was significantly associated with comparative evaluations about mutuality and openness in Asian countries’ government dialogic communication and perceived tie strength with the U.S. government. Theoretical implications and practical contributions are discussed.
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Jie Jin, University of Florida • Can CEO Activism be Good for the Organization? The Way CEO Activism on Sexual Orientation Equality Achieves High Young Employee Work Engagement • “Whether a CEO should speak out about controversial issues is a hotly debated topic across the United States. In today’s politically polarized environment, Americans have changed their expectations about whether companies and CEOs should lead social change. Contrary to the conventional wisdom that CEOs shouldn’t avoid taking actions unrelated to their business, the purpose of this study is to examine how CEOs’ pro-sexual orientation equality statements may lead to young employee work engagement from the perspective of social exchange theory. A conceptual model with nine propositions is proposed to reveal how CEO activism generates positive employee outcomes.
Keywords: CEO activism, sexual orientation equality, work engagement, social exchange theory”
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Nana Kwame Osei Fordjour, University of New Mexico; Timothy Kwakye Karikari, University of International Business and Economic, Beijing, China • Twitter styles by the leaders of the 116th US House: A concurrent triangulation • Situating our study in the context of a global pandemic and a time of seeming polarization in the US, we analyzed the tweets (n = 480) of Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. We employ the concurrent triangulation approach and blend three theoretical approaches to analyze their credit-claiming behavior, position-taking, attacks as well as the salient frames in their tweets. Findings indicate there is no significant difference in their position-taking and credit-claiming tweets, however, Majority Leader McCarthy tweeted more negatively than Speaker Pelosi. We uncover four salient frames which are: Economic debate, electoral integrity, COVID-19 response, and the appointment of Supreme Court Justice. Ultimately, we juxtapose the qualitative frames with the quantitative findings to give deeper understanding into the three quantitative categories and provide insights into the implications of such tweets.
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Michelle Rossi • How has the United Nations portrayed International Women’s Day before and after founding UN Women? • By applying feminist theory and framing for public relations, this research explored the range of debate within press releases distributed about International Women’s Day before and after the founding of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, UN Women, in 2011. Using Ethnographic Content Analysis (ECA), this study found that press releases were more descriptive about events in the decade before, and more focused on actions in the decade after.
Research Paper • Student • Student competition • Dongqing Xu • Different Brands Stealing Thunder: How Brand Personality Impacts Crisis Response Strategy Choice • This study aimed to examine the impact of brand personality on participants’ brand perceptions and crisis response evaluation. To be more specific, the study aimed to examine how stealing thunder (i.e., brands disclosing the crisis and response before revealed by the third-party) as a proactive response strategy could impact brands with different personalities in crises. Employing a 2 (brand personality: sincere vs. exciting) × 2 (crisis response type: proactive vs. reactive) experimental design, the study found the buffering effect of sincere brand personality on participants’ perceived credibility, brand attitude, and purchase intention in crisis. In terms of crisis performance evaluations, brand personality was found moderating the effectiveness of the stealing thunder strategy, such that stealing thunder lost its power when employed by a sincere brand. These findings contributed to the extant brand personality literature and suggested a potential boundary of the stealing thunder strategy.
Research Paper • Faculty • Teaching competition • Virginia Harrison, Clemson University • Teaching Philanthropy: How Can Public Relations Courses Prepare Future Fundraisers and Motivate Giving? • Scholars have suggested that fundraising education is a specialty of public relations. This study examines how a fundraising-specific service-learning project may help prepare future fundraisers. A survey of qualitative and quantitative data was administered to public relations students in a fundraising-focused class and in other service-learning classes. Students in the fundraising-focused class were more knowledgeable about nonprofits but were not more inclined to enter the profession. However, they were more motivated to donate after graduation.
Research Paper • Faculty • Teaching competition • KiYong Kim • Dynamic Capabilities and Social Media Education: Professional Expectations and Curricular Preparation • “When Covid-19 impacted regular communication dynamics for organizations, social media became even more prominent in brand communications. A growing body of research confirms training in social media is an essential part of knowing “”how to”” reach one’s organization’s publics (Kruset et al., 2018; Plowman et al., 2015), making social media a mainstay in the public relations educational curriculum (Meganck et al., 2020). This study seeks to bridge the themes found by Kim (2021) related to public relations practice and dynamic capabilities (Teece, 2007) with social media educational practices. This study suggests that there is a link between dynamic capabilities and social media educational practices.
Keywords
Dynamic Capabilities, Social media education, public relations professionals, Case studies, scenarios, experiential learning, digital leadership, VUCA”
Research Paper • Faculty • Teaching competition • Amanda Weed, Kennesaw State University; Adrienne Wallace, Grand Valley State University; Betsy Emmons, Samford University; Alisa Agozzino, Ohio Northern University • Leveling the Playing Field: Assessing Issues of Equity, Transparency, and Experiential Learning in the PRSSA Bateman Case Study Competition • This study provides the first academic research examination about the Public Relations Student Society of America Bateman Case Study Competition. Research-based insights identify varying perspectives on if the competition meets current students’ needs. Through insights gained from a survey of faculty and professional advisers of 2017-2020 Bateman competition teams, the authors have identified critical perspectives and areas for improvement to the competition along the issues of equity, transparency, and experiential learning. Study results address alignment of knowledge, skills, and abilities identified by the Commission on Public Relations Education and university curricula.
Political Communication Division
2021 Abstracts
Research Paper • Faculty • Saifuddin Ahmed; Teresa Gil-Lopez • Engaging with vilifying stereotypes: The role of algorithmic use in perpetuating misinformation about Muslim congresswomen • We examine the role of algorithmic use in believing and sharing misinformation about US Muslim congresswomen. Analysis of survey data suggests that those with more frequent algorithmic use and lower cognitive ability were more likely to believe and share misinformation. Those high on nationalism and prejudice against Muslims were also likely to believe misinformation. Most importantly, higher algorithmic use tends to strengthen such beliefs. The study highlights the role of algorithms in perpetuating misinformation.
Extended Abstract • Student • Osama Albishri, University of Florida; Ghada Alwaily, University of Leicester; Ahmed Alqarni, Virginia Commonwealth University; Wyne Wanta • Iran and the U.S. Elections: Building an Agenda of Anxiety and Concern • This study investigates the relationship among political candidates’ messages, news coverage, and congressional legislation regarding Iran’s related issues during four U.S. presidential elections between 2004 and 2020. A dictionary-based approach and sentiment analysis were conducted to explore the three levels of agenda-building. The preliminary analysis shows that U.S. interests in the Middle East was the most salient issues for media and Congress, while Iran’s nuclear program was the most emphasized issue in the presidential debates.
Research Paper • Student • Shola Aromona, University of Kansas • To share or not to share? Political actors and the spread of political misinformation on Twitter • The continued interest in misinformation remains unarguably relevant, given the political climate not just in the US but all around the world. In a post-truth era, social media has not only been used to spread information that are untrue, but it has also been used to counter false narratives. Also, the connectedness of the world makes information travel faster and social networks and social media play a role in how misinformation is spread. Nowadays, it is easier for information to be shared within one’s close social networks which usually consist of friends and family, especially if the information originated from someone in that network. However, little is known about other potential sources of misinformation, such as political elites, who are not necessarily one’s friends or family and who do not belong in one’s close social network, but who are opinion leaders and are influential in the information that an individual consumes on social media. This pilot study used an online experiment to investigate individuals’ likelihood to spread political misinformation based on whether a political leader or non-political leader is the initiator of the [mis]information. By looking at the political attribute of a misinformation initiator, this study contributes to scholarship on misinformation as it extends our knowledge on how misinformation is diffused on social media.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • megan boler, University of Toronto • Polarization, Emotion and Race in Social Media: Innovative Methodologies and Challenges of Affective Discourse Analysis • In the context of the so-called “post-truth” crisis, emotions have resoundingly replaced facts in our fast-moving, affectively-driven internet-based culture. Scholars are challenged to develop innovative methods for studying emotion and affect within studies of popular culture, social media, and political communications. This talk presents methodological innovation and research findings from our cross-platform digital ethnography of social media from Twitter, Gab, and Facebook, and qualitative discourse analysis of 1800 social media posts related to Black Lives Matter and the Capitol Riots. Our work provides a significant contribution to a nascent field of studies by specifically engaging an interdisciplinary theoretical framework that includes affect theory or politics of emotion alongside qualitative research of social media.
Research Paper • Faculty • Porismita Borah; Rico Neumann • The 2016 presidential election coverage: Use of Twitter as a source and the media framing of the race • Informed by gatekeeping, agenda-setting, and framing theory, the main purposes of this paper are to examine (1) the use of Twitter as a source in the media coverage, and (2) the media content of that coverage to better understand how they framed those stories, and if there was any relationship between the two. Findings show that compared to Clinton, Trump’s Twitter posts got more attention, and the media coverage continue to be more strategically framed.
Research Paper • • Gayle Jansen Brisbane • “Strong enough to battle the liberals”: How social identity solidified White evangelical Christian women’s support of Donald J. Trump and sustained their distrust of news outlets • This research examines White evangelical Christian women’s social/religious identity and how this distinctiveness influences their political standpoints, voting behaviors, and opinions of perceived out-groups, including news outlets. While appreciating that numerous theoretical aspects are at play in this complex subject matter, an analysis of social/religious identity can provide focal insight and understanding when deliberating Christianity, politics, gender and the media in reference to the nature of evangelical Christian women’s support of Donald J. Trump as the United States President.This qualitative study employed focus groups and semi-structured in-depth interviews with evangelical Christian women. The participants in this study consider their religious identity as such a vital aspect of their character, it motivates their viewpoints in numerous aspects of their lives, including individual motivations, group stimuli and political impulses. Consequently, how they construct their religious identity, as well as how and why they react to in-group threats is a focal element for this exploration.
Research Paper • Faculty • Xiaoxia Cao, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Atinc Gurcay, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee • The Anxiety Factor: Moral Traditionalism, Interpersonal Contact Diversity and Support for Transgender Candidates and Rights • An online survey was conducted to investigate what influence public support for transgender candidates and rights. It found that moral traditionalism was negatively associated with support for transgender candidates and rights. The diversity of interpersonal contact with transgender individuals not only was positively related to the support but undermined the negative relationships between moral traditionalism and the support. More importantly, the study showed that anxiety toward transgender people mediated all the relationships observed here.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Yingying Chen, University of South Carolina • (Extended Abstract) The Contagion of Political Incivility in Response to Donald Trump’s Election Campaign Videos on YouTube • This study examines what factors predict the contagion of political incivility in response to a highly polarized political campaign video on Donald Trump’s official YouTube channel. It perceived incivility as a behavioral contagion process and examined the formation and the evolution of incivility in YouTube comments. I used dynamic network analysis to track the temporal changes in the uncivil comments from the most controversial presidential election campaign video on Donald Trump’s official YouTube page. The study contributes to the current literature by understanding what explains online political incivility. Findings also provide implication to the platform intervention to the spread of uncivil behavior.
Research Paper • Faculty • Hsuan-Ting Chen, Chinese University of Hong Kong; Wai Yin, Ivy Fong • When exposure to fake news and fact-checking promote fake news sharing: The moderating role of partisan strength and need to evaluate • Using data from a panel survey, this study examines the extent to which exposure to fake news and fact-checking lead to fake news sharing and investigates the moderating roles of partisan strength and need to evaluate that represent motivated reasoning in the relationship. The findings suggest that exposure to fake news not only directly but also indirectly affects fake news sharing through fact-checking. In addition, partisan strength enhances the direct effect of exposure to fake news on fake news sharing, while need to evaluate strengthens the indirect effect of exposure to fake news on fake news sharing through fact-checking. This study highlights the threat of exposure to fake news, but also calls attention to the risk of politically motivated and biased fact-checking for the spread of misinformation and disinformation.
Extended Abstract • Student • Yujia Cheng, Department of Journalism, Hong Kong Baptist University • Extended Abstract: [Understanding Citizens’ Reaction to Political Scandals in Taiwan: A Survey Study] • Previous research on public opinion towards politicians’ scandals shows that citizens may have different perceptions on them: some scandals may have severe consequences while some may not. Based the theory of motivated reasoning and literature on media influence, this article constructs a model that draw political attitudes, media use, perceptions on scandals and evaluation of the politicians together to explain the underlying mechanism of political psychology and media preference. Most of the hypotheses are supported.
Research Paper • Student • Shreenita Ghosh, University of Wisconsin -Madison; Porismita Borah • Behavioral Effects of Partisan URLs sharing on Social Media Users: How Partisan Coverage of Vaccines receives differential Networked Sharing and Interaction on Facebook • Vaccination is widely known as one of the most successful methods of preventing communicable infectious diseases (Andre, Booy, Bock, Clemens, Datta, John, Lee, Lolekha, Peltola, and Ruff, 2008). However, researchers have noticed a hesitation in many individuals to take the vaccine ranging from cautious adapters to outright deniers (Puri, Coomes, Haghbayan, and Gunaratne, 2020). Researchers argue that an individual’s information consumption (Dixon, 2021) and political affiliation (Krupenkin, 2020) may impact both how they perceive the vaccine and have a behavioral impact on whether they get vaccinated. Past research has concentrated self-reported behavioral impact of self-reported surveys (Krupenkin, 2021), social media data (Puri et. al. 2021; Jennings, Stoker, Willis, Valgardsson, Gaskell, Devine, McKay and Mills, 2021), or news media data (Dixon, 2021) on people’s Covid-19 related behavior. However, given the hybrid hyper-partisan media ecology which engulfs citizen, it is important to analyze the interaction between traditional media and social media coverage on Vaccines to understand its impact on public’s thoughts, affect and behavior. This study fills this gap in current literature by analyzing the articles by 23 publications (8 left-leaning, 7 right-leaning, and 8 centrist). A triangulation of topic modeling, Facebook link sharing analysis, and ANOVA analysis help the study conclude that partisan news URLs with differential topic prevalence have varied sharing patterns and emotive responses from the public.
Research Paper • Faculty • Homero Gil de Zúñiga, University of Salamanca/Penn State University; Pablo González-González, University of Salamanca; Manuel Goyanes, Carlos III University • Pathways to Political Persuasion: Linking Online, Social Media, and Fake News with Political Attitude Change Through Political Discussion • “There is a vast research tradition examining the antecedents that lead people to be politically persuaded. However, political opinion and attitude change in social media has received comparatively scarcer attention. This study seeks to shed light on this strand of the literature by theoretically advancing, and empirically testing a structural equation model linking online, social media, and fake news exposure, with political discussion, and political persuasion in social media. Drawing on autoregressive causal tests from a two-wave USA survey panel data collected in 2019 and 2020, results indicate that online, social media, fake news and political discussion are all positive predictors of individual political attitude change. Furthermore, structural equation tests reveal that online and social media news lead individuals to be exposed to fake news which, in turn, predict higher levels of political discussion, ultimately facilitating political persuasion in the social media realm. Limitations and further suggestions for future research are also included in the study.
Research Paper • Faculty • Homero Gil de Zúñiga, University of Salamanca/Penn State University; Zicheng Cheng, Pennsylvania State University; Pablo González-González, University of Salamanca • Effects of the News Finds Me Perception on Algorithmic News Attitudes and Social Media Political Homophily • Prior literature on political filter-bubbles suggests an overall positive association between social media use and political news diversification. Sometimes, this might not be the case. There is a burgeoning literature examining three important but distinct strands of scholarship: news finds me perception (NFM), people’s attitudes toward algorithmic news, and political homophilic discussion and information networks. For the first time in the literature, this study theoretically and empirically connects these independent but interrelated issues. We argue that NFM or the perception that ‘one’ can be well informed about public affairs without actively seeking information as news will find ‘me’ through ‘my’ networks, also tend to nurture a positive attitude towards news being presented by algorithmic decisions, rather than human editorial ones. We also contend that the NFM’s over-reliance on news generated from peers within one’s social network support the development of homogeneous political networks in social media (political homophily). Results based on a variety of OLS regression models (e.g., crossectional, lagged, and autoregressive) from a US representative panel survey, as we all as autoregressive structural equation model tests, indicate that this is indeed the case. This study serves to specifically clarify when and how social media and the NFM facilitate politically homogeneous filter-bubbles.
Research Paper • Student • Jing GUO, Chinese Univeristy of Hong Kong • Examining how digital platform diversity contributes to social media news engagement in China • This study examines how digital platform diversity contributes to social media news engagement in China with an on-line survey among mainland Chinese adult netizens regarding their reading of China-U.S. trade war news on-line. Moderated mediation analysis of the data shows that pro-attitudinal exposure and news elaboration are mediating the positive relationship between platform diversity and social media news engagement while inner political efficacy is playing a moderating role on the relationship between the two mediators.
Research Paper • • Mark Harmon • Wealth Mindset and Political Division • “The researcher investigates “attitude toward wealth” as a marker containing implicit assumptions that connect politicians with voters. The researcher notes conservative or right-wing individuals, much more than liberal or left-wing individuals, see poverty as a person’s moral failing and wealth as consequence of good choices and moral uprightness. This research examines the universality of that difference by looking at corollary extrapolations on the source, value, and public policy toward wealth. These examinations are done through secondary analysis of five major public opinion surveys: U. S. General Social Survey, 1972-2018; American National Election Study 2016; World Values Survey wave six, 2010 to 2014; European Social Survey, round nine, 2018; and Latinobarómetro, 2018. The researcher also tests corollary extrapolations on four smaller domestic U.S. polls. The connection between political philosophy (left v. right, liberal v. conservative) robustly correlated with the vast majority of 70 measures of wealth-related opinions across all nine surveys analyzed. The researcher cautions these rather consistent correlations do not imply causation. Instead, political communication should consider wealth attitudes as a globally relevant marker of left-right differences, and an important message factor signaling to voters a shared worldview about the nature, source, value, and desirable public policy about wealth.”
Research Paper • Faculty • Ceri Hughes, Cardiff University; Marina Morani, Cardiff University; Stephen Cushion, Cardiff University; Maria Kyriakidou, Cardiff University • Due and undue impartiality. How context policed BBC reporting during the UK and US elections • Democracy presupposes an informed electorate, an electorate which largely must rely on media sources to relay the requisite information from the politicians on the ballot. In the UK media ecology, how such information is relayed is strictly mandated during elections and thus often typically operationalised with a “she-said-he-said” style of reporting. This research, with an examination of BBC reporting of the four leading politicians involved in the 2019 UK and 2020 US general elections, questions whether such a model remains apposite when two of the he-saids have a propensity for misinformation. This research further examines the contexts and ways BBC journalists interact with politician’s claims and the manner they employ correctives to instances of misinformation. An uneven employment of fact-checking style reporting is found and a continued employment of balance masquerading as impartiality.
Research Paper • Student • Yanru Jiang, University of California, Los Angeles • Conspiracy Mentality, Motivated Reasoning, Conspiracy Adoption: Effects of Ideology and Participation on Electoral Conspiracy Endorsement • From voting fraud to Russian interference, electoral conspiracy theories have circulated on social media since the 2016 presidential election with alarming magnitude. This study selects popular conspiracies reflecting various political ideologies and conducts multiple survey rounds (n=500) to compare and contrast the effect of partisan affiliations on conspiracy endorsement. Based on econometric modeling and the theories of conspiracy mentality, motivated reasoning, as well as the social aspects of conspiracy adoption, the results indicate that higher levels of political affiliation and knowledge correlate to stronger conspiracy endorsement for conservative conspiracy beliefs over liberal ones. Additionally, increased political participation heightens the endorsement of liberal conspiracy theories among both Republicans and Democrats.
Extended Abstract • Student • Xin Jin, Department of Media and Communication, City University of Hong Kong; Zimeng An; Yanru Jiang, University of California, Los Angeles • Effects of Hong Kong Local Identity on the Intention to Use Health Code during COVID-19 • Combining Kong Kong local identity scale and health belief model, this study proposed an integrative model and confirmed the indirect and negative effect of Hong Kong people’s local identity on their intention to use the health QR code during COVID-19 through the mediation of perceived benefit of using the health code
Research Paper • Student • Minos-Athanasios Karyotakis, School of Communication HKBU • Macedonian Name Dispute: Contentious Securitization and the Perceived Role of Media and Journalists in Greece • While research into securitization studies have focused extensively on all the essential elements of Securitization Theory (securitizer, emergency acts, securitized object, acceptance of the audience, and the successful securitization process) the connection amongst the securitization process and the role of the media and journalists are still under-researched. This paper situates itself in that gap. For examining this gap, interviews with 42 important political actors were conducted, such as anti-fascists, Greek parliamentarians, and their staff members. The interviews focused on researching the events associated with the Macedonian Name Dispute (MND), which overshadowed the Greek discourse from 2018 to 2019, leading to solving one of the oldest and the most potent territorial name disputes of the globe. This research paper shows that the process of securitization can be contentious, as there were at least two securitization processes in the MND. One that was promoted by the government and the other one by the dominant right-wing opposition party of New Democracy, which became the new government eventually after the national elections on the 7th of July 2019. In this contentious process, the side that controlled the media and the journalists resulted in successfully maintaining longer its securitization.
Research Paper • Student • Minos-Athanasios Karyotakis, School of Communication HKBU • Communicating the Macedonian Name Discourse on the Candidates’ Websites in Northern Greece‘s Regional and Municipal Elections of 2019 • Territorial name disputes are used as political tools at a national or international level to attract people’s interest and to shape the relevant discourse. These disputes can lead to the empowerment of specific actors in political competitions. There are differences though amongst these disputes. For instance, some do not have actual territorial claims, such as the Arabian/Persian Gulf or the Macedonian Name Dispute (MND). Besides, even if there are actual territorial claims, these disputes are represented and perceived as independent entities in the countries’ discourse, primarily when they become a tool in political competition. Nevertheless, they have not been studied in-depth through the lenses of the communication field. Thus, this research paper employed critical discourse analysis (CDA) to study the use of the MND on the websites of the eight most prominent candidates of the regional and municipal elections of 2019 in Thessaloniki and Central Macedonia, as MND is one of the oldest territorial name disputes in the world. Furthermore, it has been used in the political competition of Greece for almost 30 years, primarily through the last years (2018 & 2019) due to the ratification of the “Prespes Agreement” amongst Greece and the country now-named North Macedonia. This study revealed that politicians employ this communication tool for provoking powerful emotions linked with the Greek identity. After all, MND, like other territorial name disputes, seems to preserve a dominant discourse in which the emotional factor dictates the truth and goes against those who oppose this existed regime of truth.
Research Paper • Student • John Kelsey • Do Twitter Comments Influence Credibility Perceptions of News Posts? Exploring MAIN Model • Online comments continue to offer a means through which media users can gain information and learn from others as well as express opinions and participate in global conversations. Comments can lead to thoughtful deliberation and present new ways of thinking, but have also demonstrated themselves to be divisive and exacerbate polarization. Collectively, social media networks (SMNs) such as Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit hold almost 3.5 billion users and provide commenting, liking, and sharing as featured affordances through their platforms. Due to such large audiences likely being influenced and learning socially through online comments, an online, 2 X 2 experiment (N = 250) informed by the Modality-Agency-Interactivity-Navigability (MAIN) model tested how susceptible to the effects of user generated comments (positive vs. negative) and metric cues (likes and shares) readers are in their evaluations of credibility, issue importance and comment position. Findings indicate the valence of a comment to be highly predictive as to how credibility may be assessed and the likelihood that a comment position will be adopted; however, engagement cues vary in their influence and predictive ability. Study results also indicate the MAIN model’s bandwagon concept to be a robust tool in explaining information processing and the relationship between identity, collaborative filtering, and credibility.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Devin Knighton, Brigham Young University; Christopher Wilson, Brigham Young University; Alycia Burnett • The Self-Censoring Majority • This study examines the spiral of silence theory in the context of social media and political communication. It finds that the majority of self-censoring to the hardcore minority on both ends of the political spectrum. This study is in progress; however, all data has been collected and most of the analysis is complete.
Research Paper • Faculty • Matthew Kushin, Shepherd University; Francis Dalisay, University of Guam; Jinhee Kim, Pohang University of Science and Technology; Amy Forbes, James Cook University; Clarissa David, University of the Philippines, Diliman; Lilnabeth Somera, University of Guam • Creative self-efficacy, political decision-making, and offline and online political participation: Findings from a cross-national survey • This study examined the role of creative self-efficacy in political engagement and civic outcomes. A cross-national survey of participants living in Australia, South Korea, the Philippines, and the U.S. (U.S., Hawaii and Guam) (N = 807) was conducted. Findings suggest that creative self-efficacy was positively associated with political efficacy and skepticism and negatively associated with apathy. Creative self-efficacy was indirectly associated with offline and online political participation through political efficacy and skepticism.
Extended Abstract • • Taeyoung Lee; Melissa Santillana; Ivan Lacasa-Mas, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya; Ivy Ashe • The Antecedents and Consequences of Conspiracy Beliefs Around COVID-19 • This study examines several factors that may contribute to COVID-19 related conspiracy beliefs, and the relation between conspiracy beliefs and attitudes toward protective health behaviors. Findings from a U.S. nationally representative, two-wave online panel survey (W1: N= 1,119; W2: N= 543) showed a negative relationship between conspiracy beliefs and mask-wearing attitudes, indicating harmful, real-world consequences hindering global preventive behaviors. We also found the reciprocal causal relationship between trust in scientific institutions and conspiracy beliefs.
Extended Abstract • Student • Danielle Ka Lai Lee, Washington State University; Tsz Wa Yip; Mina Park; Kyu-Min Lee • Users’ Engagement to Online Forum in Social Crisis • Civil resistance is facilitated by online discussions and citizens’ engagement is crucial to bring forth collective actions. Under the backdrop of Anti-ELAB movement in Hong Kong, we investigated online discourse that contributed to user’s engagement to forum discussions. With content analysis of 329 posts from a popular online forum, we found that posts that reflected collective intelligence contributed to users’ engagement, whereas posts that purely expressed emotions did not affect the engagement. Implications are discussed.
Research Paper • • Taeyoung Lee; Tom Johnson; David H. Weaver, Indiana University • Which Way Do I Go? Need for Orientation, Media Use, and Knowledge about COVID-19 • The present study explores the relationship between the need for orientation (NFO) and knowledge/misperception about COVID-19 using a two-wave national representative survey (W1: N= 1,119; W2: N= 543). The findings suggest that moderate-active NFO rather than high NFO better explains individuals’ level of knowledge and misperception. We also found that different media use (vertical media and horizontal media) and individuals’ epistemic beliefs (intuitionism and rationalism) have distinct implications for knowledge and misperception about COVID-19.
Research Paper • Faculty • Sangwon Lee, New Mexico State University; Andreas Nanz, University of Vienna; Raffael Heiss • Platform-dependent Effects of Incidental Exposure to Political News on Political Knowledge and Political Participation • Encountering news on social media is common even for individuals not actively looking for it – a phenomenon referred to as incidental exposure to political news (IE). A growing body of research has explored how IE on social media relates to political knowledge and participation. Yet, little research has considered that the effects of IE may differ across platforms. This study examined platform-dependent effects (across Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube) of IE on political knowledge and participation using panel data collected during the 2020 U.S. election. We found that IE might not be entirely beneficial. While IE on Facebook and Twitter does not affect knowledge or participation, findings suggest that IE on YouTube can dampen political learning. However, at the same time, IE on YouTube leads to more political participation, especially for those with higher level of need for orientation. This raises important questions of the consequences of uninformed political participation.
Research Paper • Student • Xining Liao, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Alex Zhi Xiong Koo, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Wisconsin-Madison • How Fans Become Nationalists in China? Effects of Idol Adoration and Online Fan Community Engagement • While some studies about Chinese fandom politics see Chinese fan groups as a potential force that may challenge the existing political orders, others scholars argue that the Chinese government has been co-opting fan groups and idols to transform fans into nationalists. By utilizing online national survey data collected in 2019 (n=510), this study seeks to test these competing claims. The findings suggest that among individuals who have participated in online fan community activities, stronger idol adoration is associated with stronger nationalistic sentiments, and eventually leads to more frequent online pro-government expression. Moreover, the degree that a fan participates in online fan community activities positively moderates the effect of idol adoration on nationalistic sentiments. While among individuals without online fan community engagement, the aforementioned indirect effect almost disappeared. The implications of these findings to our understanding of fandom nationalism in China are discussed.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Juan Liu, Columbus State University; Bruce Getz, Columbus State University; Lydia Ray, Columbus State University; Florence Wakoko-Studstill, Columbus State University • Examining the Effects of Social Media Fact-checking and Political Knowledge on False Beliefs • This study examines the interplay between two mechanisms (e.g., fact-checking and political knowledge) on misinformation belief during the 2020 Presidential Election. Results show that political knowledge acts a moderator between the effect of exposure to false claims on perceived credibility and belief in misinformation. Participants, who possessed higher levels of political knowledge and were exposed to misinformation with a fact-checking label, perceived the message as less credible and less likely to believe in that claim.
Research Paper • • Jo Lukito • All’s (Un)fair in Trade and War: Linguistic Framing Effects in News about U.S.-China Tariffs • This study examines news framing of tariff policy during the U.S.-China trade war using two methods: a computational content analysis and a survey experiment. The results of the former show that outlets varied in their sentiment towards tariffs; however, the majority of articles about U.S.-China used war metaphors. Results of the experiment reveal how pro-tariff framing devices and war metaphors can subsequently affect people’s perceptions of China and language use.
Extended Abstract • Professional • Kate Luong; Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick, The Ohio State University • Pre-Election Confirmation Bias vs. Informational Utility: Election Outcome Prediction Affects Selective Exposure • Extant research theorized a reduced preference for ideologically consistent information for partisans who anticipated the opposite party to win an upcoming election, here termed election prediction. The current study explicitly measured election prediction immediately before the 2020 election and tracked selective exposure to consistent and discrepant information. Additionally, stimulus sampling was employed to increase the generalizability of the findings, which provided the first direct evidence for the influence of election prediction on pre-election confirmation bias.
Research Paper • Student • Douglas Porpora, Drexel University; Afrooz M., Drexel University • Citizen Videos vs. Legacy Media Visual Reports: The Coverage of the 2019 Iranian Oil Protests • In response to nationwide protests to a government hike in the price of petrol, the Iranian government shut down the internet for over a week during November 2019. The only information to make it out were some 500 citizen videos of the protests. This paper shows how those citizen eyewitness imageries were an important adjunct and corrective to what the Western legacy press otherwise reported.
Research Paper • Student • Macau K. F. Mak, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Alex Zhi Xiong Koo, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Hernando Rojas, University of Wisconsin-Madison • Social media engagement against fear of restrictions and surveillance: The mediating role of privacy management • As various countries implement restrictions on online speech and online surveillance programs, their impact on social media engagement was widely investigated in communication studies. However, these studies did not capture the moment when these restrictions and programs were just implemented and citizens experienced a high level of uncertainties. Addressing the implementation of national security law in Hong Kong, this study uses two-wave panel data to understand political engagement on Facebook shortly after the implementation of new legal restrictions. The analysis showed that pan-democratic and localist users (those who tend to oppose the government) were less likely to engage on Facebook, compared with pro-establishment users (those who support the government). Meanwhile, we also found a serial mediation path in which pan-democratic and localist users showed greater fear, which encouraged more active privacy management and subsequently a higher level of engagement. This mediation path is moderated by political disagreement encountered on Facebook.
Research Paper • Faculty • Michael McCluskey, U. of Tennessee, Chattanooga; Nagwan Zahry, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga • Strategic issue management and COVID-19: Analysis of Twitter from 50 governors • Governors used Twitter to communicate strategic issue management of COVID. Analysis of 51k tweets from 50 governors demonstrated politically polarized differences among followers, with Democrats favoring COVID themes and Republicans liking non-COVID themes. Pandemic fatigue explained less emphasis on COVID tweets over time. Evidence suggests stronger polarization among followers than among the governors’ messaging.
Research Paper • • Mike McDevitt • In a Hurry, Bored, Angry at Professors: How Punitive Populism Infiltrates Media Education • This study explores how professional enculturation channels anti-intellectualism into the formative attitudes of college students as they begin to identify with populist conceptions of the press. In this first study of how punitive populism infiltrates media education, data are drawn from questionnaires distributed to undergraduates at five US colleges. A concluding section contemplates implications for cross-national research on media education and for illuminating the hidden curriculum that gives traction to punitive populism.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Patrick Meirick, University of Oklahoma • Fox News, political comedy, and (motivated?) reasoning in beliefs about global warming: Evidence from a large-scale panel survey • A panel survey (N = 6,862) examined the roles of media use, party, political knowledge, and their interactions in the dynamics of belief in global warming. After controlling for prior belief and a host of covariates, 2012 Fox News viewing was negatively related and 2012 political comedy viewing and other news viewing were positively related to belief in global warming in 2016. All three findings were moderated by three-way interactions with party and political knowledge.
Extended Abstract • Student • Milos Moskovljevic, City University of Hong Kong; Muhammad Masood, City University of Hong Kong • Differential Outcomes of Political Meme Exposure and Engagement: A Path Towards Political Trust and Participation • The aim of this research is to illuminate both expressive and reception effects of political memes. Most scholars nowadays link online political memes with the qualities of participatory civil culture since they are often seen as a form of political and social critique. The survey data collected from Hong Kong in February 2021 (N = 933) proves that political meme engagement and exposure is correlated to political participation.
Research Paper • Student Member • Dinfin Mulupi, University of Maryland, College Park; Linda Steiner, University of Maryland • Gender and Presidential Candidates’ Self-presentation on YouTube Videos • This study interrogates gender differences in the self-presentation strategies of entrants in the 2020 U.S. Democratic Party presidential primaries via campaign advertising-style videos posted on their official YouTube accounts. A qualitative analysis of videos of 18 candidates indicates men and women employed similar props, tropes, and rhetoric, and self-presented as friendly. However, women emphasized their motherhood status more. Women candidates also used clothing to establish professionalism while men did not.
Research Paper • Student • Andreas Nanz, University of Vienna; Joerg Matthes, University of Vienna • Seeing Political Information Online Incidentally. Effects of First- and Second-Level Incidental Exposure on Democratic Outcomes • We distinguish two levels of incidental exposure (IE) to political information, first-level (mere scanning) and second-level (effortful processing). In three panel surveys (N1 = 450, N2 = 524, N3 = 901), we investigate the effects of the two levels of IE on multiple political outcomes. We find null effects on political knowledge for both levels. However, second-level IE affects online political participation, social media use for political information, and political expression positively. Implications are discussed.
Research Paper • Student • Nana Kwame Osei Fordjour, University of New Mexico; Godwin Etse Sikanku, Ghana Institute of Journalism • Vice-presidential candidates, language frames and functions across two continental divides: An analysis of acceptance speeches • Given calls for the more inclusion of women in the political space and political studies, we analyze the nomination acceptance speeches of two female vice-presidential candidates, from countries with different socio-economic backgrounds. Our analysis builds on two institutionalized theories for studying political discourse. The authors uncover in both speeches, four similar and salient feminine language frames synonymous to women in the political space. We advance the argument that the similarities in the language frames employed by both candidates can be attributed to the biological orientation of women as well as the connection between the role of a vice-presidential candidate and the traditional role of a spouse. Our findings also highlight a slight difference in the salience of functions of political campaign discourse between both politicians. Our findings provide insights into the implications of the language frames employed by both politicians and reinforces the possibilities of comparative studies across continental divides.
Research Paper • Student • Danny Parker, University of Wisconsin-Madison • The Politics of Resistance: An Ethnographic Examination of Political Alienation and Radical Disengagement of the Rural Underclass • This study is an examination of the political identity of the rural White American underclass. Topics investigated were political beliefs, information consumption and sharing, and the influences of deprivation and institutional trust on political identity formation. To accomplish this, this study conducted observations daily for a month of a small rural underclass community and conducted five extensive interviews with low-income, rural White people to understand how their lived experiences have shaped their perceptions of democracy.
Research Paper • Faculty • Philip Baugut, U of Munich; Sebastian Scherr, Texas A&M University • Perceptions of Media Bias in Reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: On The Influence of Antisemitic Attitudes in Seven Non-Partisan Countries • News about the Israeli–Palestinian conflict is of global relevance, and it has been the focus of communication studies aiming to expand our understanding of hostile media perceptions. Drawing on the different faces of antisemitism, this study explains hostile media perceptions among a sample of N = 7,001 individuals from seven non-partisan nations (Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, and the USA). The findings indicate that both traditional Judeophobic attitudes and anti-Israelism, a contemporary expression of antisemitism, lead news audiences to perceive media hostility towards Palestine, particularly when the issue has greater subjective importance. However, in line with motivated reasoning, we also observed that anti-Israelism was associated with perceived media hostility towards Israel. These findings demonstrate that individuals may simultaneously perceive hostile media bias towards two parties in a conflict. Arguably, if observers of a conflict are hostile towards one party in the conflict, they will side with the party’s enemy and may be motivated to perceive their hostile attitudes as consistent with mainstream media coverage.
Research Paper • Student • Cheryl Shea, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Yanru Jiang, University of California, Los Angeles; Wendy L.Y. Leung, The Chinese University of Hong Kong • Asking the Enemy of My Enemy for Help: Transnational Grassroots Outreach on Twitter in #HongKongProtests • This study extends the organizational-centred transnational advocacy network by presenting how grassroots users strategically utilize social media platforms for achieving their diplomatic and individual-centered engagement with foreign actors. The network analysis and natural language processing of Twitter outreach on Hong Kong protests (N = 88,800) identify the key opinion leaders and the grassroots narratives under three core themes: geopolitics, moral values and humanitarian concern. The low threshold of Twitter participation provides extra direct channels for grassroots users to engage with foreign politicians and get their narratives heard. The grassroots found to tailor more emotion-charged discussions to trigger sympathy, rather than appealing by traditional moral values. The digital grassroots advocacy network also found to have more actors such as corporates and celebrities being involved, given the ability to instantly respond to political incidents and controversies.
Research Paper • Student • Jian Shi, Syracuse University; Adriana Mucedola, Syracuse University; Tong Lin; Kandice Green • The Politics of Behaving Badly: How Ingroup-Outgroup Conditions Affect Individuals’ Perceived Credibility and Partisan Ambivalence • This study inquired how political ingroup biases affect judgments of politicians when they address sexual misconduct allegations. 198 participants viewed a news article about an accused politician in a 2 by 2 between-subjects posttest only factorial design. Results indicated a positive relationship between ingroup perceptions and politician credibility, and a positive relationship between ingroup perceptions and perceived ambivalence. Ingroup-outgroup conditions also moderated the relationship between perceived credibility and perceived ambivalence. Implications are discussed below.
Research Paper • Student • Christian Staal Bruun Overgaard, The University of Texas at Austin • Perceiving Affective Polarization: How Media-Induced Meta-Perceptions Drive Affective Polarization • Two studies establish perceived affective polarization, or perceptions about affective polarization, as a theoretically important concept. A nationally representative survey (n = 1,010) reveals that Americans think their political opponents dislike them more than is the case. I theorize a conceptual framework, positing that news and social media content drives perceived affective polarization, which then fuels affective polarization. An experiment (n = 549) provides preliminary evidence of this causal pathway. Theoretical implications are discussed.
Research Paper • Student • Marlis Stubenvoll; Alice Binder; Selina Noetzel; Melanie Hirsch; Joerg Matthes, University of Vienna • Living is Easy with Eyes Closed: Avoidance of Targeted Political Advertising in Response to Privacy Concerns, Perceived Personalization and Overload • The following study investigated the effects of privacy concerns, perceived personalization and overload on three different avoidance behaviors in response to targeted political advertising. Findings of a two-wave panel study (N = 428) in the context of the [EUROPEAN CITY] election showed that privacy concerns increased attention withdrawal and privacy protective behaviors. In contrast, perceived personalization decreased avoidance through attention withdrawal and blocking. Attention withdrawal behaviors further inhibited privacy protective behaviors over time.
Research Paper • Student • Yan Su • The conditional indirect effects of traditional and social media news use on political participation in Hong Kong: Examining the communication mediation model • In Hong Kong, multiple political activities have attracted the world’s attention recently. However, the extant evidence about the conditionalities under which traditional and social media news use could affect political participation in Hong Kong remains sporadic rather than conclusive; mixed results have abounded. Against this backdrop, the current study is anchored by the communication mediation model and analyzed the 7th wave of the World Value Survey (WVS) data. Findings suggested that both traditional and social media news use were positively associated with political participation in Hong Kong. Moreover, political discussion was a significant mediator between traditional media news use and political participation. Additionally, post-materialistic value was found to be a significant moderator upon which the indirect effect of traditional media news use on political participation was contingent. Findings provided insights into nuanced media effects as well as understanding of social movements in Hong Kong.
Research Paper • Faculty • Alec Tefertiller, Baylor University; Jacob Groshek, Kansas State University; Raluca Cozma, Kansas State University • Speak Up or Quiet Down? The Spiral of Silence, Opinion Leadership, Social Capital, and Presidential Candidate Support on Social Media • Recent polling results suggest voters might be hesitant to express their voting intentions in presidential elections, despite the vibrant social media activity of candidate supporters. Using a national, representative survey, this study sought to determine if the spiral of silence influenced social media sharing, or if other factors encouraged the sharing of political endorsements. Based on the study findings, the best predictors of social media sharing intentions were opinion leadership and bridging social capital.
Research Paper • Student • Yu Tian, Syracuse University; Lars Willnat, Syracuse University • Anti-Muslimism in a Partisan Hybrid Media Environment: Examining the Relationships Between Media Exposure, Biased Views, Social Trust, and Acceptance of Muslims • This study examines how media exposure might influence Americans’ acceptance of Muslims in a partisan hybrid media environment. Results indicate that Republicans exhibit significantly lower acceptance of Muslims compared to Democrats and Independents. Conservative news reduced acceptance by soaring biased views toward Muslims whereas liberal news increased acceptance by cultivating more social trust. Furthermore, frequent social media use fostered acceptance of Muslims via the mediation of social trust. Thus, social trust functioned as an important mediator between media exposure and higher acceptance of U.S. Muslims.
Extended Abstract • Student • Amanda Trigiani; megan boler, University of Toronto • Victimhood, Morality, and Identity Politics in Social Media: Understanding Affective Polarization during the US Election • As people use social media to discuss the US Election and Jan 6 2021 Capitol riot, often in conjunction with the BLM protests from Summer 2020, polarized narratives surface as people try to make meaning of the circulating views and position themselves within those discourses. This cross-platform digital ethnography of social media from Twitter, Facebook, and Gab, and qualitative discourse analysis of 1800 social media posts from the political left and right related to Black Lives Matter and the Capitol riots. We engage the concept of ressentiment to deepen our understanding of affective polarization on social media and how the binary oppositions of “us/them” within social media debates reinscribe collective identities rooted in “victimization”, virtues, and perceptions of “others” as perceived threats. The different stories told by in-groups and out-groups shed light on the affects surrounding moral judgment, influenced by race relations, which distinctively shape affective polarization.
Research Paper • Student • Mengyao Xu, Missouri School of Journalism; Lingshu Hu • Tracking Moral Divergence with DDR in Presidential Debates Over 60 Years • This study discovered the formation of one crucial challenge that US presidential debate is facing – lack of real clash and issue discussion – from an institutional perspective, manifesting how the transformative process in politics caused by mediatization contribute to this challenge drawing upon Moral Foundation Theory as a prism, and therefore shedding lights to the development of more pointed and fruitful political conversations that may better serve our democracy.
Research Paper • Faculty • Masahiro Yamamoto, University at Albany; Jay Hmielowski, University of Florida • An Examination of Social Media Use and Campaign Participation from Cross-Cutting Communication and Social Identity Perspectives • This study, drawing from the literatures on cross-cutting communication and social identity theory, tests the interactive effects of political use of social media, partisan-ideological sorting, and social media network heterogeneity on campaign participation. Data from a two-wave web survey show significant three-way interaction effects. The relationships news consumption and opinion expression on social media have with campaign participation are contingent on levels of sorting and network heterogeneity, such that the relationships are positive for those whose have an aligned political identity and heterogeneous social media networks.
Research Paper • Faculty • Michael McCluskey, U. of Tennessee, Chattanooga • Risk Governance during The COVID 19 Pandemic: A Quantitative Content Analysis of Governors’ Narratives on Twitter • We content analyzed 7000 governors’ tweets using the CDC’s Crisis Emergency Risk Communication model. We found that the most salient communication objectives included addressing rumors and misunderstanding, followed by describing response efforts. Acknowledging crisis with empathy and segmenting audience were the least communication objectives. Our results suggested that the salience of communication objectives vary by political partisanship and crisis phases. New emergent sub-categories included attention to mental health, call for social influencers, and hope for the future.
Participatory Journalism Interest Group
2021 Abstracts
Research Paper • Faculty • Kenzie Burchell, University of Toronto Scarborough; Stephanie Fielding, University of Toronto • I did my best to show their pain: Participatory genres of photojournalistic witnessing • This paper analyzes an emerging genre of participatory reporting by eyewitness image producers turned professional photojournalist stringers of the Syrian conflict. Borrowing the subjective authenticity of UGC and the diaristic war blog, their AFP Correspondent blog posts stand in contrast to traditional international agency content by providing accounts of the embodied, relational, and temporal dimensions of their experience, each central to the practices of witnessing and bearing witness by UGC producers and photojournalists alike.
Research Paper • Faculty • Deborah Chung, University of Kentucky; Hyun Ju Jeong; Yung Soo Kim • Working together? Contributing and Adopting Citizen Visuals From the Lens of Social Media Usage, Perception, and Visual Attributes • We examined how visual professional journalists and citizen journalists use and view Facebook and Twitter and investigate the role of three visual attributes on their tendency to contribute or adopt citizen visuals. Findings reveal citizens adopt Twitter for dissemination and interpretation; professionals use both platforms mainly for interpretation. The visual quality attribute functions as a mediator for citizens primarily on Facebook for soft news. No significant mediating models were found in the visual professionals’ data.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Jennifer Cox, Salisbury University • Reacting to Black Lives Matter: Facebook Engagement with News Coverage During the Summer 2020 Protests • This study examined 286 posts from the six most-viewed U.S. news outlets on their Facebook feeds about the Black Lives Matter movement and protests following George Floyd’s death by during summer 2020. Users engaged with stories at a high rate, though engagement declined throughout the summer. Users engaged most frequently with posts featuring anti-BLM and pro-police frames using a variety of reactions. Additional analysis will reveal specific ways in which users engaged with posts.
Research Paper • Faculty • Letrell Crittenden, Thomas Jefferson University; Andrea Wenzel, Temple University • “I Think We Are Truly Ignored” – An Assessment of How Small Town Media Serves the Information Needs of BIPOC Residents • Much has been written recently about how emerging news deserts have impacted small towns across America, and how the loss of news coverage has had an impact upon the sense of community in such places. Nevertheless, little effort has been made to detail how BIPOC communities in particular are served by local media. This is an issue, given the changing nature of small towns, which are increasingly becoming more diverse. This study, which uses a Communication Infrastructure Theory framework, assesses how BIPOC residents of a small town in the Mid-Atlantic are served by local media within their community. Through a series of focus groups and a community discussion involving local media, we interrogate how BIPOC members of this town feel about their place in local news coverage, and investigate how they share and receive important information inside of their community through an assessment of the community’s storytelling network. We find that BIPOC residents do not feel represented in local media, and that storytelling networks, which are siloed by racial and language barriers, have also failed to adequately serve BIPOC residents.
Research Paper • Faculty • Muhammad Fahad Humayun, U of Colorado-Boulder; Patrick Ferrucci, U of Colorado-Boulder • Understanding social media in journalism practice: A typology • While the intersection of social media usage and journalism practice enjoys a prominent place in many scholarly inquiries throughout the field of journalism studies, a comprehensive understanding of this body of literature is lacking. This study attempts to alleviate this problem. Through a systematic analysis of more than 200 studies primarily focusing on how journalists utilize social media in newswork, this paper first classifies social media usage into three broad categories: news construction, news dissemination, and branding. Next, this study introduces a typology that visualizes and explores three dimensions of social media use: motivation (self vs organization), prevalence (sporadic vs prevalent) and disruption (disruptive vs normalization). Our findings illustrate potential future research areas.
Research Paper • Faculty • Avery Holton, University of Utah; Valérie Bélair-Gagnon; Diana Bossio, Swinburne University; Logan Molyneux • “When You’re Out Here On Your Own”: Journalists, Harassment and News Organization Responses • Drawing on interviews with American newsworkers, this study finds that journalists are facing acute, chronic, and escalatory forms of harassment on social media at a time when they are being asked to be more engaged and participatory. Harassment is reported more by journalists self-identifying as women. Journalists also report a lack of resources from news organizations to help prevent and cope with this harassment. Left to address increasing amounts of harassment on their own, journalists report searching for ways to alleviate harassment, including consideration of disengaging from social media and audiences and leaving the profession.
Newspaper and Online News Division
2021 Abstracts
Research Paper • Open Competition • Student • Mohammad Ali, Syracuse University; Dennis Kinsey, Syracuse University • Deceptive Power of Fake News: Perception of Believability Centers around Visuals, News Media, Social Media and Shared Values • This paper examined a sample of 32 different types of fake news items to understand people’s perceptions of deception in various types of fake news items, regardless of communicators’ intend to deceive. Using Q Methodology, this study yielded five types of fake news content (e.g., visuals, social media, congruence, news media, and unknown sources) that different groups of people perceive as (un)likely to be deceptive. Findings should help better understand and combat fake news.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Rana Arafat, City University of London • Rethinking hybridity in diaspora journalism: A study of exiled Syrian journalists’ advocacy networks and role perceptions • Using digital ethnography and in-depth interviews, this study offers a comprehensive understanding of how diaspora journalists maintain connections with their authoritarian homeland and advocate for transnational human rights and political reforms after fleeing its repressive political sphere. To this end, the paper examines how anti-regime Syrian diaspora journalists engage in transnational advocacy practices through building hybrid digital networks that blur boundaries between journalism, activism, human rights advocacy, social movements, and civil society work. The paper further investigates how these advocacy practices shape the diaspora journalists’ perceptions of their roles as well as their understanding of the different political, economic, procedural, organizational, and professional factors that influence how they perform them. Findings demonstrate that diaspora advocacy journalism poses various challenges to traditional journalism paradigms as journalists’ roles go beyond news gathering and publishing to include petitioning, creating transnational solidarity, collaborating with civil society organizations, and carrying out various institutional work. Sensational coverage, state intervention, journalists’ political leanings, funding pressure, and accessibility of sources also pose serious limitations to diaspora journalists’ advocacy efforts. An advanced theoretical model that maps out the influencing factors on news reporting and advocacy networking in the unique transnational conflict context is further proposed.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Mitchell Bard, Iona College; Michael Mirer, University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee • Elite Journalists’ Narrative Evolution in the 2018 Midterm Elections on Twitter and in Print • A qualitative textual analysis of tweets and articles by elite newspaper journalists on and after election night in 2018 relating to the shifting narratives relative to whether or not the Democrats enjoyed a “blue wave” victory in the midterm elections. Results show that frames set on Twitter on election night persisted for five days in the New York Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal before a new narrative took hold.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Jason Martin, DePaul University; Gerry Lanosga, Indiana University • The Impact of Public Transparency Infrastructure on Data Journalism: A Comparative Analysis between Information-rich and Information-poor Countries • This study surveyed data journalists from 71 countries (N=345) and analyzed 483 data journalism projects from 50 countries to compare how transparency initiatives influence data journalism process and product. Differences in data journalists’ attitudes toward data from public institutions, types of data used, and topics covered in data-driven projects were examined. We find cross-national differences are explained by contextual factors related to transparency infrastructure, which influences the potential of data journalism to hold government accountable.
Extended Abstract • Open Competition • Faculty • Hsiang Iris Chyi, University of Texas at Austin • The Best of Times, the Worst of Times: The Impact of Covid-19 on Digital Subscriptions • A persistent problem facing U.S. newspapers is users’ lukewarm response to their digital offerings. The print edition, despite continued disinvestment and dramatic price hikes, remained the most consumed format for most newspapers. Has COVID-19 changed this and narrowed the persistent print-digital gap? Among the 20 newspapers under study, most reported substantial growth in digital subscriptions. However, the quickened declines in print circulation and the gigantic print-digital price gap have caused a decline in overall revenue.
Extended Abstract • Open Competition • Faculty • Brian Creech, Temple University; Perry Parks, Michigan State University • Promises granted: Venture philanthropy and the tech industry’s increasing authority over the journalism field • The past half-decade has seen the rise of venture philanthropy as specific kind of charitable giving in the journalism industry driven by actors in tech industry, primarily Google and Facebook. This paper interrogates venture philanthropy as a specific kind of shift in the journalistic field, discursively intervening in order to define sustainability and market success as partially dependent on actors and structures from the tech industry.
Extended Abstract • Open Competition • Faculty • Lucinda Davenport, Michigan State University; Joseph Grimm, Michigan State University • Diversity Sourcing Tool: Intentions, Self-Observation and Learning • By intentionally engaging the diverse groups that comprise a community, journalists build trust that all people are being represented and informed. This research used mixed methods to learn if a new sourcing tool helps students in real-time to intentionally include diverse sources in their coverage. Preliminary results appear to indicate that the sourcing tool is successful, which could have implications for building trust with audiences and helping journalists analyze sources real time instead of after-the-fact.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Danielle Deavours, University of Montevallo; Will Heath; Kaitlin Miller, University of Alabama; Misha Viehouser; Sandra Palacios Plugge; Ryan Broussard • Reciprocal Journalism’s Double-Edged Sword: How Journalists Resolve Cognitive Dissonance after Experiencing Harassment from Audiences on Social Media • Reciprocal journalism is a daily practice for most American journalists. Previous studies have shown this practice benefits journalists, their newsrooms, and the audience (e.g. Coddington, Lewis & Holton, 2018; Barnidge et al., 2020). Although scholars like Lewis, Zamith, and Coddington (2020) provide evidence that journalists experience harassment when interacting with audiences online, causing them to view audiences less favorably, further explanation is needed as to why journalists would continue to practice reciprocal journalism if it subjects them to online abuse. Through in-depth interviews with professional journalists, the study finds journalists experience cognitive dissonance after experiencing harassment during reciprocal journalism, but they are not likely to stop practicing interacting with audiences due primarily to organizational and individual benefits that are perceived as greater than the negatives in audience interactions. Additionally, the study finds journalists feel personally responsible for resolving feelings of dissonance and often use unhealthy dissonance resolution techniques like avoidance, victim blaming, or perspective-taking to deal with online abuse. The end result could mean dangerous consequences for individuals and the industry long-term. Results suggest a cultural shift in the industry would be necessary to significantly ease dissonant cognitions among individual journalists. Through the examination of harassment’s effect on journalists’ willingness to interact with audiences on social media, this study expands current understandings of the normative practice of reciprocal journalism.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Elina Erzikova, Central Michigan University; Wilson Lowrey • Struggling to stay alive: Russia’s provincial journalism adapts to the COVID-19 pandemic • This study adopts an ecological approach in examining Russian regional journalists’ adaptations to COVID-19. Interviews with journalists showed that a worsened economic situation has led to increased dependence on government subsidies. Generally, journalists avoided questioning authorities’ response to COVID, with some publishing government press releases and others focusing on practical tips for readers. There was also some minor deviance via social media. Overall, the crisis aggravated ongoing problems that have already been crippling these newspapers.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Teri Finneman, University of Kansas; Will Mari, Louisiana State University; Ryan Thomas • “I Didn’t Know How We Were Going to Survive”: COVID-19’s Disruption of U.S. Community Newspapers • As journalists dealt with a nonstop news cycle in the early months of the pandemic, many of their newspapers also faced financial distress. Unable to rely on their centuries-old, ad-centric business model, U.S. community newspapers had to turn to other resources to survive. This study features oral histories with 24 journalists and state newspaper association directors in six states for a deeper understanding of how community newspapers survived the industry’s economic crisis in early 2020.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Professional • Lei Guo • Elephant in the room: A study of the impact of emotional experiences on burnout among Chinese reporters • Drawing on Grandey’s model of emotional regulation at work, this study is conceived to examine emotional experience of Chinese frontline reporters and its effects on their job burnout. The survey with 276 Chinese reporters reveals the effect of the demand on emotions at work and reporters’ experience of engaging in emotional labor magnify their levels of job burnout. Meanwhile, the use of problem-focused coping strategies can help reporters reduce their job burnout caused by emotional labor engagement. Findings in this study fill the gap in understanding the mechanism of reporters’ emotional labor engagement and its impacts on their job burnout. The theoretical and empirical implications of these findings are discussed.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Amanda Comfort; Beverly Horvit, University of Missouri; Camille McManus • How partisan is partisan? Media framing of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Job Act • In 2017, Congress passed huge changes to the tax code. A mixed methods framing analysis of Fox News and CNN online news and Associated Press coverage shows they reported the same issues – the wealthy and corporations would benefit, and deficits would rise. All three relied most on Republican sources, but Fox News turned more frequently to conservatives than did CNN, and CNN cited more liberal sources than Fox. AP coverage fell between the two.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Su Jung Kim, University of Southern California; Jacob Nelson, Arizona State University • Predicting News Sharing in Social Media from an Integrated Approach • News sharing on social media has become one of the central components of news production, consumption, and (re)distribution. Yet studies of social media platforms as a news channel have suffered from three significant limitations: a failure to consider the interplay between situational and individual factors, a dependence on U.S.-based data, and a lack of distinction between types of sharing behavior. The result is a portrait of social media news sharing that exaggerates the role of news content and downplays the characteristics of social media platforms as well as people’s own preferences and perceptions when it comes to news and social media more generally. This study addresses these gaps by drawing on survey data collected from a representative sample (N=1,008) of the South Korean population by Nielsen Company Korea (Nielsen, hereafter) to examine how individual and situational factors within the social media environment influence different types of social media news. Our results offer a clearer portrait of how and why people share news via social media, one where the individual characteristics of both news stories and news audiences are just one piece of the puzzle that determines news sharing.
Extended Abstract • Open Competition • Faculty • Allie Kosterich, Fordham University Gabelli School of Business; Ziek Paul • A Reckoning for the Media Industry: Examining the implementation of CSR communication on diversity • In this paper, we aim to understand if and how corporate social responsibility communication related to diversity from news organizations deemed to have more successful diversity practices differs from that of those with less successful diversity practices. Understanding the relationship between successful, institutionalized diversity practices and CSR communication is important, especially as news organizations attempt to integrate and institutionalize their diversity commitments within the context of other CSR priorities and the news media landscape at large.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Juan Liu, Columbus State University • Media and Good Governance: Examining Role of Valenced Framing in Perceptions of Good Governance • Media play a vital role in strengthening and promoting good governance. This study explores how valenced frames affect perceptions of good governance by examining two governance issues (Flint water crisis and Syrian refugee crisis). The study reveals that participants exposed to good governance framing of issues yield higher approval of government performance than participants exposed to bad governance news stories. An analysis of moderating influence of political knowledge reveals that participants with higher levels of political knowledge are more susceptible to valence framing effect, but this pattern is only found in the case of Syrian refugees. These findings contribute to a growing body of research and literature around valence framing effect. The study then addresses these results in the context of on-going critical governance issues.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Justin Martin; Krishna Sharma • Getting News from Social Media Influencers and from Legacy News Media in Seven Countries: The ‘More-and-more’ Phenomenon and the New Opinion Leadership • This study examined media use and media-related attitudes as predictors of getting news from social media influencers (SMIs) in seven Arab countries (N=5,166). The study hypothesized that getting news from SMIs is not an “alternative” for people who are disenchanted with mainstream news, but rather that SMI news use is, itself, a form of mainstream news consumption. Specifically, we hypothesized that getting news from legacy digital media and even from print media would positively predict SMI news use. This hypothesis was largely supported. In all seven countries, digital legacy news use was a strong, positive predictor of actively acquiring news from SMIs, providing strong evidence of the more-and-more phenomenon first identified by Lazarsfeld et al. (1944). Moreover, in none of the countries was a belief in media credibility negatively associated with acquiring news from SMIs, a relationship we would expect to see if SMIs represented a mainstream news alternative. Implications for research on SMIs, digital news acquisition, and media credibility are discussed.
Extended Abstract • Open Competition • Faculty • Karen McIntyre, Virginia Commonwealth University; Kyser Lough • Evaluating the effects of solutions and constructive journalism: A systematic review of audience-focused research • The practice and study of constructive and solutions journalism has been growing in recent years, led by claims of positive audience effects. However, the results sometimes conflict with one another. At this stage, we find it necessary to systematically review the existing literature on the effects of solutions and constructive journalism in order to 1) better understand the bigger picture of potential effects and 2) provide guidance for future research.
Extended Abstract • Open Competition • Faculty • Dylan McLemore, University of Central Arkansas; Christopher Roland, University of Central Arkansas • The Role of Self-Categorization and Perceptual Media Effects in Selective Exposure to Election Fact-Checking • As newsrooms devote more resources to fact-checking, this study considers the social psychological factors that influence whether people will actually read them, and if they do, what perceptions they’ll take away. Third-person perception and hostile media perception predicted avoidance of fact-checking election content. The degree to which a supporter self-categorized with a candidate, however, did not significantly affect selective exposure to or perceptions of fact-checking. A summary of the study is presented within the confines of a 1,500-word extended abstract.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Newly Paul, University of North Texas; Gwendelyn Nisbett, University of North Texas • The numbers game: How local newspapers used statistics to frame the coronavirus pandemic • Data and visualizations are an important part of local health news. Systematic data sourced from credible sources provide context to stories and educate audiences. Data visualizations help simplify complex statistical information and increase audience interactivity. Journalists associate statistics with objectivity, and use them to quantify risk in crisis situations. This study explores how local news used data to cover the coronavirus pandemic. We examined 170 data-driven articles published in the Dallas Morning News and the Houston Chronicle to examine the predominant data sources, data-driven narratives, and use of interactive elements. Results indicate reliance on government sources, prevalence of hard news stories, localization of statistics, contextual presentation of data, and abundant use of visualizations. However, the coverage lacked human-interest stories, interactivity in infographics, and failed to adequately reflect the diversity of the communities covered by the two newspapers. Data-driven stories did not always provide access to the underlying databases; nor did they always explain the methodology used to gather and analyze the data. While the readable format of the articles and the updates on infection rates can inform audiences, we argue that coverage that ignores broader data trends can cause readers to feel negative, which can push them toward news avoidance.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Gregory Perreault; Jon Peters; Brett Johnson; Leslie Klein • How Journalists Think About the First Amendment Vis-à-Vis Their Coverage of Hate Groups • This study, based on in-depth interviews with U.S.-based journalists (n=18), explores the increasingly fraught circumstances in journalistic reporting on white supremacists. We examine how journalists think about the First Amendment vis-à-vis their coverage of hate groups. Through the lens of media ecology, and First Amendment principles and theories, we argue ultimately that journalists who cover hate groups use the First Amendment to identify their place in the journalistic environment.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Frank Russell, California State University Fullerton; Miguel Hernandez; Korryn Sanchez • #BREAKING in L.A.: Twitter Use in a Regional News Market • This quantitative content analysis, based on gatekeeping theory, examines Twitter use by Los Angeles news media. Network broadcasters, nonprofit news media, and the Los Angeles Times demonstrated skillful use of Twitter affordances: quote tweets, retweets, hashtags, mentions, and video. However, commercial broadcasters used these functions mainly for branding. Broadcasters were more likely to post or share tweets about weather, crime, and traffic, while two resource-constrained newspapers were more likely to post about sports.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Arthur Santana; Toby Hopp • Seeing Red: Reading Uncivil News Comments Guided by Personality Characteristics • Whether on a news or a social networking site, comments following news stories are often beset with incivility. This article uses a Uses & Gratifications framework to understand why certain people are more drawn to uncivil comments than civil ones. Using eye-tracking technology, this research compares the attention a reader gives to uncivil comments and compares it against certain personality characteristics. Findings suggest that certain readers spend more time reading uncivil comments than civil ones.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Jared Schroeder, Southern Methodist University • Who, What, and How: Analyzing Judicial Constructions of Journalism in Twenty-First Century Cases • Emerging technologies have increasingly challenged the role of journalism in the information ecosystem, leaving journalists and journalism scholars to reexamine the role and mission of journalism in democratic society. At the same time, state and federal judges have constructed a discourse regarding how they define journalism in the twenty-first century. They have done so while facing a variety of cases in which bloggers, message board posters, website publishers, and others have claimed protections that have historically been primarily associated with traditional journalists. Ultimately, judges have constructed a discourse about journalism that combined concerns regarding how closely the process and practices the publishers used to gather and communicate the information aligned with traditional journalistic work, the public-service value of the information, and the journalistic credentials of the publisher. Though concern for how the work was created and who communicated it, jurists consistently conveyed the public-service role was most instrumental in their evaluations, often rationalizing broad expansions of what legally constitutes journalism.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Student • Hanxiao Wang; Jian Shi, Syracuse University • Intermedia Agenda Setting during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Computational Analysis of China’s Online News • Based on intermedia agenda setting, the current study examines how official media and semi-privatized commercial media on Weibo platform covered the COVID-19 pandemic. Both supervised machine learning and time series analysis were employed to analyze 350,059 Weibo posts released by 3,883 news sources between December 2019 and April 2020. Our results indicated that China’s official media did not necessarily set the agenda for semi-privatized commercial media in this highly controlled media environment. Implications were discussed.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Burton Speakman, Kennesaw State University; Aaron Atkins; Marcus Funk • Flooding the Gates: Conservative Media, Hunter Biden’s Laptop Conspiracy and Gatekeeping in the Social Media Era • Social media have eroded gatekeeping abilities of traditional, mainstream journalists and publications, allowing coordinated campaigns to force popular social media topics into mainstream news coverage. Analysis of a coordinated conservative campaign to promote a baseless conspiracy about Hunter Biden’s laptop in the waning weeks of the 2020 general election indicates that far right actors can overwhelm gatekeeping functions at conservative media by flooding social media with constant conversation on a favored topic. Similar efforts to flood mainstream news media with the same topic were partially successful but failed to overwhelm or manipulate mainstream gatekeeping. Findings suggest a new concept of “gateflooding” to describe manipulative and repetitive social media activity.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • ESTHER THORSON, Michigan State University; Carin Tunney, Michigan State University; Kevin Kryston, Michigan State University • An Evolutionary Approach to Why People Seek and Avoid More Information About Negative News Stories • Americans are awash in negative news. This study examines how people respond to reading negative stories. The amount of fear induced, story importance, efficacy feelings, and individuals’ attributes of optimism and perceived utility of news are all significant predictors of the degree to which people report intending to seek and avoid more information about the stories. The evolutionary psychology of human approach and avoidance is the guide to the design and interpretation of the study.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Professional • Patrick Walters, Kutztown University • Redemption vs. #MeToo: How Journalists Addressed Kobe Bryant’s Rape Case in Crafting His Memory • This study examines how journalists addressed Kobe Bryant’s 2003 rape case in coverage of his death. The qualitative textual analysis examines 488 stories, produced by 18 news organizations across the U.S. between Jan. 26 and Oct. 31, 2020. It finds most omitted the case, and that stories referencing it often included a sanitized version as part of a redemption narrative, a speed bump on Bryant’s road to greatness.
Research Paper • Open Competition • Faculty • Andrea Wenzel, Temple University • Auditing whiteness: Structural barriers to antiracist newsrooms • Newsrooms across the U.S. are struggling to address the effect of structural racism on stories they tell and who gets to tell them. This study explores the efforts of one news organization to pursue greater equity and inclusion. Using a combination of participant observation and interviews, it follows a metro newspaper through the process of conducting a diversity and inclusion audit of its content and newsroom practices. Drawing on Gidden’s structuration theory, it examines how whiteness is supported by layered and invisible structures including journalism norms, traditions, and practices that overrepresent white sources and center white audiences, structural racism that limits workplace opportunities, and limited local journalism funding. It then explores how journalistic agents either reproduce these norms and traditions or seek to transform the institution and its practices. Finally, taking a normative stance that more inclusive and antiracist journalistic practices are a goal that can and should be pursued, the paper reflects on how transformation may be aided by efforts that attempt to make visible and challenge structures of whiteness.
Extended Abstract • Open Competition • Faculty • Lars Willnat, Syracuse University; Yu Tian, Syracuse University • Passive News Consumption, Social Media Use, and Public Perceptions of Journalistic Roles • This study explores the relationship between passive news consumption (“News Finds Me”) and public support for traditional journalistic roles. Based on data from an online survey conducted in March 2021 with a national sample of 1,200 U.S. adults, we investigate how the individual components of the “News Finds Me” concept are associated with perceptions of journalists, trust in media, and four traditional journalistic roles (interpreter, disseminator, adversarial, and populist-mobilizer).
Research Paper • Open Competition • Student • Avery Holton, University of Utah; Homero Gil de Zúñiga, University of Salamanca/Penn State University • Discerning Whether It’s ‘Fake’ News: The Relationship Between Social Media Use, Political Knowledge, Epistemic Political Efficacy, and Fake News Literacy • This study contributes to unpacking mechanisms that help people identify fake news, seeking to theoretically connect people’s general social media use, political knowledge, and political epistemic efficacy with individuals’ fake news literacy. Results from a two-wave panel US survey data suggested that the more people used social media, were politically knowledgeable, and were able to find the truth in politics (epistemic political efficacy), the better the chances they could discern whether the news is ‘fake.’
Research Paper • Open Competition • Student • Jingwei Zheng, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University; Edson Tandoc Jr • What You See and What You Think: Exploring News-ness Perceptions and News Media Repertoires in Singapore • This research explored how audiences in Singapore define news (i.e., news-ness) and how such understanding is shaped by the ways they access news (i.e., news media repertoires). Through a national survey, this study found five types of news repertoires as well as five types of news-ness perceptions. We also found that news-ness perceptions are related to how users access news. For example, news-ness perceptions of news omnivores differ from those of other types of users.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Kathleen Alaimo • A profession in flux: How Covid-19 coverage is pushing the boundaries of traditional journalism • This study argues that Covid-19 is a “critical incident” leading journalists to reconsider how and why they conduct newswork. A textual analysis of metajournalistic discourse in webinars and newspaper op-eds examines how journalists are evaluating news practice in response to Covid-19. Findings indicate that to protect standards of accuracy journalistic role conceptions, norms, and practices are in a state of renegotiation as journalists push the boundaries of “normal” journalism toward an emerging “post-normal” journalism.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Kathleen Alaimo • It’s all rhetoric: Dominant climate change discourses in a UK and US newspaper • This study argues that media discourse is influential in the formation of national climate legislation. Using the dominant climate discourses identified by Leichenko and O’Brien (2019), critical discourse analysis was employed to investigate the language of The Guardian and the New York Times. Findings indicate that UK elite press coverage is more integrative and critical than US reportage. Regarding the UK’s policy success US media might consider incorporating integrative and critical discourse in climate coverage.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Ahmed Shatil Alam, University of Oklahoma; Wahida Alam, New Age • How Newspapers’ Social Media Editors in Bangladesh Use Official Social Media Accounts • For the last several years, the newspaper industry in Bangladesh has been using social media for disseminating news and connecting with readers. This exploratory study sheds light on both issues through the lens of the Gatekeeping theory. Following interviews with 17 social media editors who worked for 14 national newspapers in Bangladesh, the study found that the overall traditional gatekeeping roles of these journalists had undergone substantial changes as they were heavily concerned about audience demands and reactions. Social media editors also feel pressured from their bosses, advertisers, and the audience to maintain their gatekeeping roles. These journalists even considered their jobs as “marketing” or “selling” of news and experienced volatile treatments from their colleagues in the newsrooms. Although they are in charge of multiple most of them had no prior training of any sort in social media management.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Matthew Chew, Nanyang Technological University • Journalists as Platypuses? — Understanding the Hysteresis and Habitus of media startups • “Media startups tend to stretch the boundaries of journalism, but are still influenced by values and ideas from legacy journalists. Guided by Bourdieu’s field theory, this study will utilize in-depth interviews to examine the disconnect between these new entrants and legacy newsrooms. This study proposes that there is a hysteresis in the field, which set the stage for media startups to flourish. These new agents don a media startup habitus, a blend of the traditional journalistic habitus and the startup habitus that is developed out of circumstance and as a response to the changing requirements of media and journalistic work.
Keywords: Field Theory, Startups, Habitus, Hysteresis, Journalistic Identity, Qualitative, Innovation, Mismatch”
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Meagan Doll, University of Washington • For People, For Policy: Journalists’ Perceptions of Peace Journalism • Compared to studies on peace-journalism content, little research examines journalists’ perceptions of peace journalism despite theoretical suggestions that individuals influence content production. To address this relative disparity, this study examines the social conditions shaping journalists’ perceptions of peace journalism using a hierarchy-of-influences perspective and data from 20 interviews with East African journalists. Findings suggest that journalists understand peace journalism as either more people-oriented or policy-oriented and these perceptions correspond to varying degrees of professional precarity.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Laura Harbert, Ohio University • The Public’s Frame: News outlets, YouTube comments and the 2018 Teacher Strike in West Virginia • This paper summarizes a study of comments (N=1,961) posted on YouTube videos about the 2018 teacher strike in West Virginia. Analytics software and a hand-coded qualitative analysis of the text showed that themes of teachers, education, and people were prevalent, along with the nature of work in education, and fairness in teacher pay. Interdisciplinary and inter-methodological approaches in social analytics were discussed as a way to deepen understanding of media and journalism texts.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Andrea Lorenz Nenque, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill • Post-Ghosting: The depletion of local government coverage after a county’s newspapers became ‘ghosts’ • This case study documents the decline over time of news about a rural county’s local government entities through quantitative and qualitative content analysis as the community lost its newspapers, finding that despite multiple online startups that sought to fill the gap, local government coverage suffered significant declines in both the quantity and quality of news stories once the newspapers disappeared. The community’s critical information need for local government news was left unfilled in the years following the closures.
Extended Abstract • Student Papers • Student • Margaret McAlexander, University of Memphis • Extended Abstract: The State of Online News Advertising • This research explores the prevalence of display and native advertising in online print news media. To achieve this goal, this research uses a content analysis of three newspapers ranking highly in circulation among major U.S. outlets over a full calendar year. This research provides an analysis of the state of online news advertising in 2020 through the collection of data regarding the presence or absence of advertisements and the qualities of such advertisements.
Extended Abstract • Student Papers • Student • Rowan McMullen Cheng, University of Minnesota: Twin Cities – Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication • Busking the News: Metajournalistic Discourse and Author-Audience Relationships on Substack • This study examines author-audience relationships through Substack newsletters. Using the metajournalistic discourse framework, newsletter discourse is analyzed around two primary trends: (1) author-audience relationship maintenance, (2) boundaries between legacy media and newsletter authors. A qualitative textual analysis of 57 texts across 25 newsletters identifies that authors construct boundaries between themselves and legacy media as well as encourage audience participation. This study furthers research on journalistic labor, news audiences, metajournalistic discourse, and emerging digital formats.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Kelsey Mesmer, Wayne State University • An “assumption of bad faith”: Using fake news rhetoric to create journalistic teaching moments • Using the Communication Theory of Resilience, this project explores how journalists negotiate, adapt, and work to transform a social climate of hostility toward news media. Interviews with 38 journalists who frequently encounter anti-media rhetoric revealed strategies for mitigating this rhetoric, most commonly by turning conversations into teaching moments. By doing this, journalists educate the public about the purpose of the press and journalists’ routines, illuminating a critical, overlooked aspect of media and news literacy interventions.
Extended Abstract • Student Papers • Student • Sohana Nasrin, University of Maryland; Bobbie Foster, University of Maryland Phillip Merrill College of Journalism; Md Mahfuzul Haque • “Without a fixer, it is just an idea, but with a fixer, it will be a story.”: Bangladeshi local news producers’ perspectives on their work and extant challenges • Local news producers (referred to as LNP hereafter), sometimes known as “news fixers” or “fixers,” are an integral part of foreign news production. These local media workers serve as the eyes and ears of foreign correspondents in an unknown land and ensure the safety of foreign correspondents, especially in conflict zones. But perhaps the most important contribution of their labor is rendered through their interpretation of the events and occurrences so that the rest of the world can make sense of it all through the lens of journalistic storytelling. In this study, we present Bangladeshi local news producers’ case to understand their perspectives on their job. Through semi-structured in-depth interviews, we try to understand who they are and what impact they seek to have on the global journalism industry through their work. All of our interview participants identified cultural differences as a challenge. Our most important finding perhaps is that the local news producers still operate within a colonial framework. By focusing on Bangladeshi local news producers, we inform the existing literature in three significant ways: 1)We introduce local news producers labor in a developing country (i.e., Bangladesh) that usually gets international media attention while grappling with frequent natural disasters, poverty, migration, and other social anomalies, 2) We add the non-western perspective by focusing on the Global South, and 3)We contribute to understanding of the local news producers’ perspectives on their job instead of focusing on the foreign correspondents’ views on the local producers’ jobs.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Michelle Rossi • How different market oriented news organizations portrayed news coverage about the CARES Act? • Drawing from the CARES Act’s news coverage, this study investigated how different funding models in news organizations modulated the debate on the most expansive stimulus bill in modern American history. Market theory, news sources, and journalistic role performance in news content were the frameworks applied to this qualitative study. Some of the findings consist of differences in the assessment of objectivity as a journalistic norm, and similarities as the indirect use of government-official sources.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • William Singleton, University of Alabama • The Role of Anonymity and Race in Online News Story Comment Sections • This study expands upon previous research examining incivility and negativity of online comments. Guided by deindividuation theory and its connection to anonymity, this study explores whether online comment forums associated with crime stories involving Black suspects yield more racially charged language than comment forums associated with crime stories involving white perpetrators. A quantitative content analysis of the comment sections in Advance Local’s news websites examined racial comments about crime stories involving Black and White criminal perpetrators and suspects. Findings revealed a significant association between crime stories and racial comments based on the race of the suspect. In addition, the study’s prediction that comment sections connected to Black crime stories would feature multiple comments with racial language also was supported.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Wencai Hu; Mengru Sun, Zhejiang University; WEI HUANG • Public Perceptions and Attitudes towards the Application of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism: From a China-based Survey • “In the face of the pervasive influence of artificial intelligence (AI) on journalism and media, the current research probe deeply into the public perceptions and attitudes towards the application of AI in Chinese journalism. The current study aims to answer several highly concerning questions by academics, the AI industry, and the journalism industry. A large online survey was conducted to examine the public’s existing knowledge, emotions, concerns, preferences, and expectations of AI in the Chinese journalism industry. It was found that the public is in general familiar with the application of AI technology in the field of journalism and media, among which the most acquainted aspect was describing some news products that apply the AI. The public’s emotions towards the news broadcast by AI simulated anchors were mainly positive. Compared with the news content, the public believed that the form of news report benefits most from the application of AI. The public prefers the types differently in terms of different media content and news production processes.
Finally, the majority of the public believed that AI and traditional modes should be complementary to each other in future news production. Practical suggestions were proposed to the AI industry, journalism, government, and the public.”
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Huu Dat Tran, Kansas State University; PHAM PHUONG UYEN DIEP, Kansas State University • “Timely, Accurately, Avoid Unnecessary Panic”: How Vietnamese Newspapers Framed the COVID-19 Pandemic during the Initial Stage • Via content analysis of COVID-related articles (N = 1127) published in three prominent Vietnamese newspapers between January 23 and March 6, 2020, this study investigates how Vietnamese newspapers framed COVID-19 when it was first recognised in Vietnam, as well as their attempts to shape the public’s perception and behaviours towards the pandemic. Two frames, namely health severity and attribution of responsibility, were found to be predominantly used by VnExpress, Thanh Nien, and Tuoi Tre, thus highlighting the media’s role in Vietnam in disseminating information and calling for collective participation in pandemic precautions. Other elements, including the messages’ tone and sources, were also examined. Findings were then compared to previous studies concerning COVID-19 framing to illustrate the different approaches the media of various countries adopted. It should be noted that during the period, newspapers in Vietnam had to follow governmental orders, which required the media to provide punctual, accurate information while also avoid causing unnecessary panic. The argument that Vietnamese newspapers were a bridge connecting the Vietnamese government and their citizens and that they contributed to Vietnam’s initial victory against COVID-19 was supported.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Carolina Velloso • Source Diversity in Nonprofit News: A Comparative Analysis of The 19th* and The New York Times • This paper compares source diversity in The 19th*, a woman-focused nonprofit newsroom, and The New York Times. It also asks whether reporter gender influences sourcing patterns. Through a quantitative content analysis of 236 articles and 857 sources, this study interrogates whether The 19th* – which has the centering and elevating of women’s issues as its core objective – carries out that mission through greater inclusion of women as sources, both expert and non-expert, in its articles.
Extended Abstract • Student Papers • Student • Courtney Weider, California State University, Northridge • Local Newspapers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Understanding Journalists and Communities in Los Angeles • This study examines how local newspapers have adapted during the COVID-19 pandemic, including how routines of journalists have been impacted and how they are engaging their communities. In-depth interviews were conducted with 25 journalists throughout Los Angeles, focusing on those serving Black and Latino neighborhoods that have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Findings will advise newspapers, educators, and funders on how to support the local newspaper ecosystem to ensure communities stay informed and engaged.
Research Paper • Student Papers • Student • Yiyan Zhang; Briana Trifiro, Boston University • “The Chinese Virus” and Conditional Partisan Framing? An analysis of the cross-platform partisan framing in American news coverage of China’s role in the COVID-19 pandemic • The COVID-19 pandemic – a global public health crisis – has given rise to US new coverage about China, where the first cases were identified. However, the framing strategies used among different news outlets remain understudied. By conducting a structural topic modeling (STM) analysis on both website news and tweets published by 27 major US news outlets regarding China’s role in the COVID-19 pandemic, this paper examines how framing varied across left and right media and whether the publishing platform moderates the partisan framing. The results show support for both cross-partisan and cross-platform differences. Right media tend to adopt more sensational and attitudinal frames compared to left media. The gap between the two partisans was in general wider on Twitter than on news websites. Implications on media effects studies and activism against hate crimes are discussed.
Minorities and Communication Division
2021 Abstracts
Extended Abstract • Student • Faculty Research Competition • Annalise Baines; Hyunjin Seo, University of Kansas; Muhammad Ittefaq, University of Kansas; Ursula Kamanga; Fatemeh Shayesteh, University of Kansas; Yuchen Liu • The COVID-19 pandemic aggravated existing challenges for racial/ethnic minority immigrants in the United States in obtaining health information and seeking health care. Based on in-depth interviews with 52 racial/ethnic minority immigrants in the U.S. Midwest, this study analyzes how they navigated online information related to COVID-19, how their race/ethnicity played a role in online health information seeking during the pandemic, and their perspectives on getting vaccinated against the virus.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Shaniece Bickham, Nicholls State University; Rockia Harris, LSU; Jinx Broussard, Manship School, LSU • This study conducts a qualitative textual analysis of the discourse surrounding former U. S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vice President Kamala Harris as they achieved major political milestones. Articles from two respected Black and two premiere mainstream newspapers are analyzed, and intersectionality is employed to ascertain the extent to which racial and gender stereotypes were prevalent. Preliminary findings show Clinton received more coverage than Harris, but Harris’s coverage included more race and gender mentions.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Robin Blom, Ball State University; Gabriel B, Tait, Ball State University; Curtis Matthews, Ball State University; Elena Lazoff • Diversity is an intricate subject in educational settings and an important aspect of ACEJMC accreditation. That body has recently announced changes in the wording of the Diversity and Inclusiveness standard after ongoing complaints that the old standard did not facilitate the changes needed. This study focused on the vocabulary of ACEJMC site-visit reports to explore what concepts are (not) discussed in affirming diversity. For instance, terms as belonging and antiracism are absent from the reports.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Grace Choi, Columbia College Chicago • #Foxeye is a beauty trend that has been under scrutiny on social media, especially on TikTok. Initially created to elongate the look of a person’s eyes, it has been criticized as a racist representation of Asians, mainly because of the signature pose where beauty creators pull back the corners of their eyes to showcase the look. In order to understand how #foxeye has been interpreted by various TikTok video creators, a comparative content analysis of 507 TikTok videos was conducted. Applying framing theory, this exploratory study identified video information, video creators’ identities, video production components and messages. Results indicated that although there were more beauty videos than Asian activism videos, Asian activism videos had more social media engagements that created conversations about racism. Moreover, beauty video creators were mostly White while Asian activism video creators were East Asian. The results highlight the dominant discourse in the beauty industry and complex understanding of self-identity through deconstructing this beauty trend.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • George Daniels, The University of Alabama; Lillie Fears, Arkansas State University • Using archival materials available to capture research efforts in the early years of the Minorities and Communication Division, this study takes a historical approach in cataloging the scholarship on journalism and mass communication issues for those in racial minority groups presented between 1972 and 2020. Of 661 papers analyzed for this study, 358 or 54% were authored by a female or had research teams with a woman as first author.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Danielle Deavours, University of Montevallo; Will Heath; Ryan Broussard • Modern American journalism practices rely heavily on the use of expert sources. Traditionally, white, male officials are the primary sources journalists use in traditional media (Humprecht & Esser, 2017). This silences underrepresented voices, leading to symbolic annihilation of minority communities in media coverage. Journalists often cite their inability to reach communities outside of their own perspective as a primary reason for this symbolic annihilation, but what happens when reporters’ networks of power are widened through digital connections? Previous research has explored the role of social media as a tool for newsgathering (Agbo & Okechukwu, 2016), and some studies suggest social media can provide the opportunity for journalists to reach previously inaccessible communities (Van Leuven et al., 2015). Yet, the network theory of power (Castells, 2011) suggests some nodes of these digital networks can create elite sources like officials or influencers that may uphold traditional sourcing practices and hegemonic power structures (Van Leuven & Deprez, 2017). Utilizing qualitative interviews with professional journalists in traditional media outlets, this study seeks to understand whether tapping into broader networks of power through social media helps journalists combat symbolic annihilation of sources or whether hegemonic structures continue despite widened access to multiperspectival resources.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Jerry Crawford; Joseph Erba, University of Kansas; Amalia Monroe-Gulick, University of Kansas; Pamela Peters, University of Kansas • The financial pressures experienced by many Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have worsen during the pandemic. The use of open access resources as a substitute to subscription models may assist HBCUs navigate dire budget forecasts. This study investigates access to research resources at HBCUs with a journalism and mass communications program, as well as perceptions of open access among librarians and instructors. Results reveal access disparities among HBCUs and favorable perceptions towards open access.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Summer Harlow, University of Houston • Based on interviews with 28 journalists following George Floyd’s murder, this study uses #BlackoutTuesday and posts of black squares on social media in support of Black Lives Matter to explore to what extent journalists are redrawing the boundary between journalism and activism when it comes to taking stances for racial justice. Findings reveal journalists of color and young journalists are change agents, pushing traditional journalistic doxa like objectivity from an orthodox to a heterodox status.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Magda Konieczna; Ellen Santa Maria, Temple University • Journalistic objectivity has long been in flux. This paper examines what we term “journalistic edge cases”: situations in which journalists aim to subvert norms, and managers push back, reprimanding the journalists and removing them from coverage or firing them. We find journalists arguing that objectivity works differently when reporting on minority groups; managers counter that objectivity is universal. This examination offers insight into how journalism is evolving, in particular in this moment of racial reckoning.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Yeunjae Lee, University of Miami; Weiting Tao; Jo-Yun Li • Grounded in the situational theory of problem solving (STOPS) and social identity model of collective action (SIMCA), this study aims to examine the motivations of minority publics—Asian Americans—in the U.S. engaging in activism against racism and xenophobia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results of an online survey with Asian Americans in the U.S. suggested that the Asian American publics’ identity enhanced their perceived injustice, efficacy, and situational motivation to counter racism and xenophobia, which in turn facilitated their online activism on social media. Online activism, then, drove their offline activism. Theoretical and practical implications on collective actions from the minority public are discussed.
Extended Abstract • Student • Faculty Research Competition • Victoria Orrego Dunleavy, University of Miami; Ekaterina Malova, University of Miiami; Diane Millette, University of Miiami • In this study, we examined supportive memorable messages received by Black and Hispanic first-generation students from family members and mentors and explored how issues of demographic similarity affect protégé’s perceptions of mentor support and mentor satisfaction. First, results indicate that students may benefit from activating both mentoring and family connections to succeed in college. Second, students find the same-gender mentoring relationships more satisfying. Thus, students, mentors, and families should be educated on the benefits of supportive communication.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Teresa Mastin, Michigan State University; Alina Freeman, Michigan State University; Susan Reilly • “This paper explores advertising trade publications’ coverage of the 600 & Rising social movement, which was launched to dismantle systemic racism in the advertising industry. The visibility of the Black Lives Matters movement and the murder of George Floyd served as catalysts for two Black advertising professionals to lead an effort to address how the advertising industry perpetuates systemic racism through its portrayals of African Americans and Blacks.
Research Paper • Student • Faculty Research Competition • Christina Myers; Linwan Wu, University of South Carolina • “This study investigates expressions of the African American experience by examining song lyrics published by Black musicians during two critical time periods in civil rights – 1960-1969 and 2010-2020. To determine the predominate narratives that arise from their songs (N=3,302), LDA-based topic modeling as well as a comparative analysis was employed. Findings indicated the presence of seven topic categories – ‘Love/Relationships,’ ‘God/Religion/Spirituality,’ ‘Social/Activities,’ ‘Wealth/Status,’ ‘Sex/Sexual Desire,’ ‘Social/Political Issues’ and ‘Alcohol/Drugs/Substance Use.’
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Jessica Retis, University of Arizona; Amara Aguilar; Laura Castaneda, USC • Preliminary findings of a larger project examine the experiences of Latinas in journalism. Drawing on Latino/a Critical Communication theory, the new Latina Critical Journalism Studies approach places Latina journalists at the center of the analysis and focuses on intersectionality (gender, race, class, age, language, migration status); diversity, equity and inclusion; news media practices; and structural challenges. A recent survey shows Latina journalists face distinct challenges in the workplace ranging from sexism to racism.
Extended Abstract • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Nathian Shae Rodriguez, San Diego State University • This study evidences how the pop culture pedagogical practice of using Selena as a cultural anchor for a media and communication course can be employed as practice that reflects on, and incorporates, methods that critique and respond to hierarchies of power and identity. Students critically analyzed Latinx mediated representations though pop culture media and highlighted connections with politics and cultural identity, particularly in border regions. Students were empowered to combat racism, homophobia, and other oppressions.
Research Paper • Faculty • Faculty Research Competition • Yong VOLZ, University of Missouri; Indah Setiawati, University of Missouri • This study explores how Asian American journalists define and negotiate their collective identities both in panethnic and professional terms. Focusing on the case of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA), our analysis finds that, instead of problematizing the blanketing panethnic identity, AAJA members tactically and collectively present themselves as a more homogenous racial group in order to maximize their presence and amplify their voices in both newsrooms and the public sphere. They also publicly vocalize their solidarity with other minority groups, especially with their African American colleagues during the “Black Lives Matter” movement, as a way to insert themselves into the broader social justice project. In addition, they capitalize on their ethnic identity to enhance their journalistic authority when covering identity issues. Our findings add to the thin literature on Asian American journalists as they try to position themselves in the social and professional arenas. This study also highlights the impact of the highly racialized moments of 2020, which was compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matters, on the Asian American journalists.
Extended Abstract • Student • Faculty Research Competition • Farrah Youn-Heil, University of Georgia; Yan Jin, University of Georgia • This study proposes a new conceptual model for understanding interracial communication apprehension (IRCA), delineating how people of color use various communication practices (Orbe, 1998) and coping strategies (Lazarus, 1991) to cope with communication apprehension (McCroskey, 1970) triggered by or associated with racial representation in television-entertainment media and public discourse on race-related topics. In-depth interviews are conducted to provide initial examination of the new IRCA model. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Extended Abstract • Student • Student Paper • Tania Ganguli, University of Minnesota • Stories about deportation, like all pieces of journalism, include background information – that which isn’t explicitly tied to sourcing – which helps identify and reify common knowledge. This study examines that unattributed text to understand how those words construct the reality of deportation of Latinx migrants. By analyzing text from 2014 and 2018 at three newspapers on the U.S./Mexico border, this study illuminates how the construction of Latinx migrants changed as the American political climate shifted.
Research Paper • Student • Student Paper • Farah Harb, Wayne State University • The Arab ethnicity encompasses many countries — from North African nations like Egypt and Tunisia, to Gulf countries like Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, to Mid-East countries like Lebanon and Syria. Although the general language in these countries is Arabic, natives to each country speak different dialects and follow different traditions. For example, although Kuwait and Saudi Arabia (both Gulf countries in the Mid-East) are neighboring countries, their dialects and traditional attire are so different that one can tell them apart just by the way they speak or dress. The same goes for other Arabic-speaking countries. Due to historic influences, some of these Arab countries speak French as their second language (e.g., Lebanon, Syria, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia), whereas the rest speak English. There are significant differences in the Arabic spoken by a Moroccan person, compared to Arabic spoken by a Lebanese person. While there are similarities between Arabs who come from these different countries, major differences include variations in cultural dialects, religions, traditions, dress codes, liberalism, and so on. Although Arabs come from different backgrounds, Hollywood has long portrayed them as different shades of barbaric (Shaheen, 2003). The term “barbaric” here refers to attributes that have been falsely associated with the Arab image and constantly perpetuated through TV shows, movies, books, paintings, and other forms of art and media.
Extended Abstract • Student • Student Paper • Jaquela Chalise Macklin, The University of Alabama • Many scholars have done research on mental health care, but there are few studies on mental health care in the Black community, particularly how the mass media impacts the stability of Black people’s mental health. This paper focuses on using cultivation theory and conducting qualitative research by way of interviews with the intent to gain first-hand accounts from Black people about the state of their mental health and how mass media possibly impacts it.
Extended Abstract • Student • Student Paper • Ajia Meux, University of Oklahoma; Britney Gilmore, Texas Christian University • This study seeks to explore the relationship between locus of control, online and offline activism and sharing and forwarding behavior of videos of unarmed Black people being murdered by the police. This research is important because it attempts to define the particular sharing and forwarding behavior at the granular level of online activism based on the idea of control for a population who is often marginalized and underrepresented in more formal areas of political power.
Research Paper • Student • Student Paper • Erin Perry, Wayne State University • This visual rhetorical analysis of a viral image from a 2019 interview between CBS journalist Gayle King and singer R. Kelly uses co-cultural theory to make three arguments. First, presumptions are widely held about Black women’s demeanor in the workplace. Second, Black women are members of a co-cultural group that uses various communicative strategies to constantly resist the Angry Black Woman stereotype. Third, Black women and their allies appropriate stereotypes into opportunities for their praise.
Research Paper • Student • Student Paper • Chelsea Peterson-Salahuddin, Northwestern University • In line with the theory of information poverty, one could argue that women of color may face high barriers to news information seeking. However, social and political trends point to the ways women of color are highly informed. Motivated by this tension, this study engaged focus group interviews to examine women of color’s news information seeking habits. Findings suggest holding a woman of color identity does not deter, but motivates news information seeking processes.
Extended Abstract • Student • Student Paper • Madhavi Reddi, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill • This paper introduces the concept of shared identity endorsement narratives in political campaigns of minority candidates to provide a framework for researchers to examine celebrity endorsements along the lines of shared racial/ethnic/cultural identity. Using examples of endorsements of Kamala Harris by North American celebrities of Indian descent, I outline four elements of shared identity endorsement narratives in political campaigns – 1) entertainment value, 2) engagement with identity politics, 3) timelessness, 4) solidarity and validation.
Research Paper • Student • Student Paper • Robert Richardson, University of Texas at Austin • A growing number of Black female newscasters are embracing natural hair on television, breaking a long-established requirement for anchors and reporters of all races to have straight hair. This study asks questions about industry pressures to conform to White normative standards and individual issues of identity and expression. Interviews with 25 Black women who work as on-air talent reveal newsrooms are becoming more accepting of natural styles but there is still progress to be made.
Research Paper • Faculty • Student Paper • Tanya Gardner; Wei Sun, Howard University; Carolyn Stroman • “On May 25, 2020, in the midst of the pandemic crisis, an innocent Black man, George Floyd, died as a result of police brutality. This event sparked nationwide protests against racial inequality, led by the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. While the number of COVID-19 cases continued to increase in many states, and as businesses began to re-open, there were fears that the BLM movement protests contributed to the resurgence of COVID-19 spread (Meyer, June 1, 2020). In a time of political and racial division, people expressed their support for, or opposition to, the claim that there was a connection between the protests and the rising number of cases.
This study aims to investigate how social media users make sense of the relationship between COVID-19 and BLM, and how health disparities of COVID-19 and race have been discussed in Twitter posts. The findings of the research will increase our understanding of how social media impacts knowledge regarding public health crises.”
Extended Abstract • Student • Student Paper • Xue Gong, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Shanshan Jiang; Fangjing Tu, University of Wisconsin-Madison • Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese and the broader Asian communities have become the target of resurgent racism both online and offline. Combining Twitter data, governmental data and COVID case data, this study uses both interrupted time series analysis and traditional time series analysis to investigate how anti-Asian sentiments in social media are systematically enhanced by a series of socioeconomic factors and discursive opportunities provided by demagogue attacks on the Asian communities. The results shed implications on building racial justice during a pandemic like COVID-19.
Research Paper • Student • Student Paper • Kris Vera-Phillips, Arizona State University • This research paper explores the erasure of Filipino nurses from American medical television shows in order to highlight biases in media that lead to a scripted reality that ignores an essential community of workers who are responsible for the daily care of patients. This paper examines the relationship between Filipinos and American power structures. It will also investigate the issue of erasure in television shows through the lens of postcolonial and critical race theories.
Research Paper • Student • Student Paper • Jiehua Zhang • Ethnic media play important roles in constructing or reconstructing ethnic identity, facilitating the acculturation process, and encouraging political participation among ethnic groups. The current study looked at the moderation effects of ethnic news use in the relationships between political ideology and presidential evaluations among Chinese Americans during the Covid-19 pandemic when the virus was called “Chinese virus” by some news media and the former president. Relying on a survey of Chinese Americans conducted between October and December 2020, the study showed that while conservative Chinese Americans were more likely than liberals to approve of the former president Trump, the effects of political ideology on the presidential evaluations were diminishing for people who used ethnic media more frequently to get news.
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