Defines public affairs within the public relations context, recommends theory-building as a way to clarify issues, and proposes opening theoretical discussions to critical perspectives. (MS)

Argues for a multidimensional approach in the study of telecommunications, one that combines critical, historical, and social scientific research and methods. (PD)

Notes that while the Supreme Court decision in "Richmond Newspapers v. Virginia" enunciated the right to report, the response of lower courts on this issue has been mixed, and the impact of the decision is less than many suppose. (FL)

Presents the views of two experts on McLuhan's effect on communications theory and research. Levinson maintains that McLuhan performed the Socratic job of identifying the important issues in the communications field, while Gordon argues that McLuhan was a pseudointellectual known more for his guts than his talent. (MER)

Identifies the major insights concerning contemporary communication and media practices associated with the postmodern condition and evaluates their contribution to critical media studies. Suggests that postmodern media studies are themselves a symptom of the very postmodern culture they seek to analyze. (RS)

Relates the history of the focus group as a research tool, explores its recent revival, and reappraises the method and its appropriateness for media and communications research. Argues that the focus group discussion should be regarded as a socially situated communication. Discusses the various relations this may bear toward different approaches…

Outlines four factors that account for the relative lack of integration between mass communication and interpersonal communication researchers. Cites several forces that support segregation of the two research areas, yet notes that the recent turn to cognitive explanations of communication in both fields may create the climate for meaningful…

This study examines textual analysis methodology as applied to mass communication studies. It focuses particularly on the theoretical basis of textual analysis, the analytical process, and congruent theoretical perspectives. Although the term "textual analysis" is often used generically, this study differentiates textual analysis as…

What mass communication effects are possible that have not yet occurred because no effort has been made to achieve them? Why has there been only limited success in mass communication efforts attempted already? For people to be communicatively affected, they have to be behaviorally affected. People are generally weak behaviorally, especially in the…

Attempting to introduce a new viewpoint to communication studies, this speculative and philosophical paper posits technology as an "echo of consciousness." Section one examines technology as a manifestation of attitude, presenting the premise that technologies, consciousness, and systems are not separate components, but products of…

When education (teaching and/or learning) is considered to be an art, then it seems obvious that the methods of artistic inquiry would be appropriate analysis techniques. Such analysis seems to be rare or non-existent in educational technology. Semiotics, the theory of signs, provides one such set of methodologies for examining text. This…

In addition to investigative and interpretative reporting, journalists might adopt a new approach to the news--preventive journalism. Preventive journalism would concentrate on news and information that could be used to prevent crises and conditions upon which the mass media thrive. In one area, public health, preventive journalism could be used…

Argues that texts may be especially rhetorically effective when the content, the medium used to convey the content, and the real life experiences that make the content relevant are formally or structurally similar. Suggests that formal linkage creates rhetorical effect, and uses Burke's theory of forms to explain the effect of formal links. (MS)

Discusses the tradition of rhetorical theory and scholarship to sketch the chief characteristics of public communication. Suggests some implications for the study and criticism of contemporary media discourses of a rhetorical nature. (JK)

Argues that the doctrine of presumed harm, which was not addressed in "New York Times Co. v. Sullivan," remains a major problem in libel law. (FL)