This study explored whether student journalists believed they shared news topic preferences with the public. Previous research suggests journalists are very different from the audiences they serve, which may influence their perceptions of audience story preferences because of the social identity theory and the social distance corollary. A national…

Public speakers believe their nervousness is more apparent to others than is actually the case, a phenomenon known as the illusion of transparency. Study 1, in which participants delivered a public speech to an audience, provided evidence of this phenomenon. Despite this, a substantial minority of participants (36%) thought that the audience would…

This article focuses on the writing strategies second-language students use to compose on social media sites. These alternative and unconventional sites for learning provide language learners opportunities to acquire language by using multiple modalities to respond to various rhetorical situations. In comparison to these sites, academic writing…

Although students must understand the rhetorical medium that they use to present their proposals to their fellow classmates, they must also understand how audiences shape the rhetorical medium and shape how they create texts. Surveying audience members can help students figure out the best strategies to present their proposals and, in doing so,…

No matter the medium--magazines, newspapers, or TV--institutional leaders need to hit the right tone and convey specific talking points to their audience. A media-savvy leader doesn't just provide accurate information; he or she can help change the tenor of a discussion and build support for crucial institutional initiatives. No university is an…