Examines the ways in which individuals' perceptions of media use are influenced by others. Explains that three recent theories--critical mass theory, social influence model of media use, and adaptive structuration theory--suggest that individuals' perceptions of media emerge as a result of their interaction with others. Reports on a study that…

Explores how discrimination based on differences in skin complexion and physical characteristics among African Americans is conveyed by the mass media. Shows that blacks in advertisements have lighter complexions and more caucasian features than those in editorial photographs, and that the females have lighter complexions than their male…

Discusses the important role that anthropological knowledge can play in the study of mass communication, focusing on the contributions that anthropology can make to journalism and mass communication research. Urges journalism and mass communication departments to work cultural studies into their curricula. (MM)

Presents a case study of the media coverage of the 1992 presidential campaign of Larry Agran. Explains that there are three ways of thinking about whether a candidate should be covered or not: national journalistic logic, local journalistic logic, and public logic. Suggests that the three ways are not always in agreement. (TB)

Discusses research on the effectiveness of computer-based instruction (CBI) and proposes computer modeling as a tool to redirect CBI research toward more theoretically relevant and prescriptive research. Limitations of media comparison studies and media replication studies are described, and computer modeling in CBI research is reviewed. (48…

Discusses media-related changes in Russia, Poland, and Hungary since the 1980s. Reviews current media theories in the United States for their ability to guide research into media processes in these three countries. Finds that much media research has paid insufficient attention to economic forces, international relations, the state, political…

Proposes a framework to join journalists and communications scholars in dialog about conditions that best promote public dialoge of democracy itself. Sketches a news policy model, reviews research indicating areas of agreement about the dynamics of press-government-public interactions, and looks at steps toward a field of study built around these…

Discusses how culture and civilization are profoundly affected by the advent of new forms of media. Describes relevant theories by various cultural critics. Analyzes these theories of culture and provides a synthesis of their implications. (HB)

Investigates the use of the term "family" by Earvin "Magic" Johnson, his peers, and the media in their rhetorical efforts to defend Johnson after his announcement that he had human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Discusses the power of key words such as "family" to influence attitudes in the American culture. (RS)

For a researcher with a serious interest in studying popular culture, the collective negligence of the entertainment industries, the scholarly community, and the government is a given, but some action to preserve American mass media artifacts can be undertaken. Contrary to the myth of unlimited access to information, certain regions of the public…

A review of the literature useful for public relations researchers and students explored the primary legal concerns that public relations practitioners face, including first amendment rights, insider trading, regulations when working with foreign organizations, disclosure, privacy, copyright/trademark law, advertising, and defamation. Public…

The current Australian scene is a good example of how American culture as portrayed in the mass media is reflected by a receptor national culture. Australia, sharing a similar history and a common language with the United States, has virtually no resistance to American culture. Some differences in national characteristics, such as the Australian…

Communication researchers should ask more explicit questions concerning the processes by which mediated messages can create, modify, or reinforce beliefs about social actors and social environments. There are four general categories into which to divide variables concerning processing strategies for mediated social information: source…

A response to Richard E. Clark's conclusion that media research needs to stop emphasizing descriptive research and focus on prescriptive research designs and questions, this paper reiterates the distinctions between disciplines and applied fields of study, and suggests that these distinctions should be evident in the descriptive/prescriptive…

Independent investigations have demonstrated consistent relationships among family communication, cognitive style, and media behavior when any two of these variables are associated in the same study. The evidence so far supports the hypotheses that family communication patterns are associated with different strategies for dealing with persons and…