Describes a courseware development project at the University of Oregon which explored use of interactive video with mentally disabled students to teach life enhancement skills. Discussion of the results of a pilot study of one of the modules includes information on student achievement and teacher and student reactions. (MBR)

Describes a study comparing the way cognitive manipulations affected the emotional responses of preschool and elementary school children to a frightening film, i.e., telling children the presentation is not real, and role-taking. Emotional responses of 9- to 11-year-olds were modified by instructional sets while 3- to 5-year-olds' responses were…

The Communications Tech and Policy section of the Proceedings contains the following eight papers: "The Wayward Bureaucracy: Government Assessment of FCC Organization and Performance" (Philip M. Napoli); "Understanding Internet Adoption Dynamics" (David J. Atkin, Leo W. Jeffres, and Kimberly Neuendorf); "Online…

The Mass Communication and Society section of the Proceedings contains the following 11 papers: "A Cynical Press: Coverage of the 1996 Presidential Campaign" (Sandra H. Dickson, Cynthia Hill, Cara Pilson, and Suzanne Hanners); "JMC Faculty Divided: Majority Finds Dozen Uses for Research" (Fred Fedler, Maria Cristina Santana,…

The "Early Childhood/Teen Communications Project" conducted a pilot investigation of two grade 7-8 combination classes at a K-12 alternative school in Seattle, Washington. The students (approximately 55) were given the opportunity to work with media literacy materials over a four-week period for about 1.5 hours each day. This paper describes the…

C-SPAN videotapes provide an innovative database that promises to be a significant benefit to researchers of public figures and issues by allowing researchers to analyze public figures in their own words, without journalistic interpretation. Such analysis was applied to Ross Perot's 1992 campaign in addressing his perceived insensitivity to…

Suggesting it is a good idea for students to try their hands at doing media research themselves, this book presents a number of research projects that students will find interesting and that they can do with minimum experience in a limited amount of time. The second edition has added chapters on experimentation, historical research, comparative…

Studies the use of audiovisual media (radio, television, and audio-cassettes) in a technology course at the Open University in Great Britain. Results show that each type of media lends itself to a particular teaching function in distance education. (Author/JJD)

Reports the findings of a study that replicated work done in the early 1970s concerning the media preferences and reading interests of intermediate grade children. Shows that the reading interests of boys remained much the same, with those of girls changing. Both groups continued to prefer television over print media. (FL)

Reports results of a survey showing that magazine editors are not pleased with the quality of journalism graduates and presents editors' suggestions for improving the journalism education curriculum. (RL)

This paper begins with an historical review of research on television and children, summarizing the major questions asked and the knowledge gained about the medium. The authors then describe a new focus of research, dealing with the form of the television medium, not just its content. (Author/SJL)

Describes results of a field study where 74 people were interviewed about their experience with using either an electronic or a printed version of a brief project description. The popular belief that electronic information systems are more efficient was not confirmed. Methodological problems of comparative media studies are discussed. (Author/LRW))

Shows that audience recall of AIDS public service announcements (PSAs) is related to message appeal types, cultural identity, and gender. Finds that strong emotional appeals are better remembered than rational ones; U.S. viewers recalled more than international participants; and college women recalled more than college men in general, and…

Describes the fragmentary recall of aural and visual messages and discusses the implications for instructional design. Topics discussed include cognitive processes; the characteristics and selection of various media and the relationship to fragment processing skills; classroom activities based on fragmentary recall; and direction for further…

Focuses on the extent of teenagers' news media exposure in the Soviet Union and America and its apparent impact on their information about nuclear issues. Finds that the Soviet teenagers were much more knowledgeable than American students about issues having to do with nuclear war. (MS)