Fails to replicate in Great Britain the results of a United States study showing "paranoid perception"--the association of lifelike television violence with the real world state of affairs. Raises doubts about the original (American) studies. (RL)

Argues that political debates can usefully be viewed as a "televisual" form. Shows how audiences bring conventions to the viewing of debates grounded in forms dominating television narrative. Illustrates this perspective by analyzing debates in the 1984 United States Senatorial race between Jesse Helms and James Hunt. (HB)

Updated and extended research on television viewing and magazine reading of older adults (n=74) and compared it with media preferences of college students (n=149). Results indicated older adults viewed more television, although viewing preferences were more similar than expected. Most respondents cited entertainment as primary motive for…

Investigates differences observed among German students regarding amount of television viewing. Finds a significant negative effect of need for cognition on viewing amount. Interprets this as a manifestation of individual-psychological escapism in which the lower viewers' need for cognition is, the less pleasant they feel when they have nothing to…

Presents a literature review that addresses sexism and gender misrepresentation on "Sesame Street," the world's most popular children's television program. Discusses the show's content and the correlation between increased exposure to "Sesame Street" and viewers' changes in attitude and behavior. Suggests the presence of gender…

A study explored the relationship between gender and talk show viewing motives. Students (109) from 6 randomly selected introductory communication classes in a midwestern university, 30 people belonging to a non-traditional student organization called "Oasis," and 8 residents of a retirement home were given Rubin's instrument to assess…

A study investigated the relationship between television program type preference and program choice in a multichannel situation. Program type categories were constructed which tapped in the program type distinction mentally represented in viewers' minds and a more elaborate measure of program choice options was developed. A total of 442…

A study addressed two issues: the degree to which television accurately reflects, lags behind, or exaggerates the presentation of divorce; and whether or not a cultivation effect influences estimates about divorce rates among couples. A questionnaire was designed for administration to participants, 175 undergraduate students in an introductory…

A study examined whether a relationship exists between childhood viewing habits and adult viewing behaviors. Questionnaires on childhood and adult viewing behaviors were completed by 557 students in a basic public speaking course, 86 residents of a university family housing unit, 74 vocational students, and 23 members of the local Jaycees…

Classroom observation data were collected from 32 presentations by 7 professors in the College of Medicine at Texas A&M University over the course of 9 months for a study of the potential of two-way television as an instructional medium. Half of the observations were made from two-way television mediated lessons transmitted from the Veterans…

Noting that daytime television serials have been used to teach a variety of subjects, including writing and language skills, this paper reviews literature on the nature of soap operas so that instructors can use them more effectively. Following an introduction citing studies on the educational uses of soap operas, the paper explores the following…

In television programing, pacing is generally defined as the relative speed with which a program appears to progress or the rate at which its material is presented. A study examined whether a fast-paced news show would produce a higher degree of accurate recall of content than would a slow paced program, and whether differences in pacing would…

A survey of 549 college students investigated the size and motivation of the campus audience for soap operas. About half the student population (40% of the women and 10% of the men) claimed to watch the daytime serials. Most of the women viewing the soap operas watched two or three serials per week, with 83.3% following at least two regularly, and…

Contained in this report are the results of a telephone survey conducted among households in the metropolitan television market for Boston, Massachusetts. The purpose of the survey was to determine the nature of the Boston television market and the role of WGBH. A random sample of 4157 respondents was obtained. Among the conclusions were that as…

This study examines the characteristics of the KTEH viewing community. KTEH is an educational television station serving the San Diego area. Eleven paid interviewers dialed 1582 telephone numbers selected randomly from the telephone books for metropolitan San Diego to obtain the data. It was concluded that the relatively low public awareness of…