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The COVID-19 pandemic raised important questions about news patterns of interaction on social network sites (SNS) and instant messaging platforms (IM), especially in the context of the massive replacement of face-to-face interactions with mediated interactions, due to the restrictive measures taken in many parts of the world. In this context, by means of a national survey conducted in Romania (N=1160), we investigated people's willingness to engage on social media and instant messaging platforms about the topic of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results show that people are eager to share information about the topic on both SNS and IM, less interested in getting involved in debates, and even less in voluntary work. All these behaviors are predicted by trust of SNS and news consumption on these platforms, perceived size of the personal digital network, belief in conspiracy theories about the virus, uncertainty about the impact of the crisis, and level of education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to expand the agenda setting theory and its later ramifications, by complementing them with the hypothesis of the articulation function of mass-media. Defined as the capacity of the media to offer people the words and expressions associated with defending specific points of view, the articulation function suggests a new ramification of the agenda setting theory, namely the key words level of agenda setting. Building on the third-level assumption about the transfer of issues and attributes from the media to people's agenda in bundles, we argue that each issue is in fact transferred together with a set of "key words", corresponding to the additional sub-topics related to the issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union (EU) is under severe pressure, due to the multiple crises it has to manage. Among them, the refugee crisis is remarkable, since it is shaking both the individual member states and the EU as a whole. The media coverage of the refugee crisis is important because the media still are the main source of information concerning distant issues (the refugee crisis included), and as such it facilitates people's access to social reality. Using the perspective of agenda-setting and the conceptual background of framing theory, we aim to (1) identify the most prominent frames online media employ with reference to the refugee crisis, and (2) reveal the tone of voice online media use when portraying issues related to this crisis. To achieve these two goals, we content analyzed 1493 online news articles, published between April 15, 2015 and February 29, 2016. Main findings show that online media outlets mainly refer to the refugee crisis in terms of responsibility and conflict, in this order of prominence. At the same time, online media portals prefer using a reasonably balanced viewpoint when portraying the refugees, and a slightly negative one in terms of attitudes towards the European Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we show that, in the aftermath of the economic crisis, Romanians remain among the most enthusiastic citizens of the European Union, in what concerns trust in the European institutions, projections for the future, the image of the EU and general attitudes toward the union. Relying on data provided by eurobarometers since the Romanian integration, we argue that the reasons for this peculiar position of Romanians within the EU is largely due to how people evaluate the economic and political performance of their own country: from evaluations of the economy to trust in national institutions, Romanians are very pessimistic about how their country handles the present situation and about perspectives for the future. In this context, they turn to the European Union as to a Savior, who represents their hope and promise for a better future, for economic prosperity and security. This is the reason why, more than five years after the beginning of the financial crisis, Romanians are still among the most optimistic citizens of Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agenda setting and framing have been shown to affect public opinion on a variety of topics through accessibility and interpretation schemas. Since most of the citizens lack a direct experience in European matters, media might be a key dimension in determining how citizens approach issues related to the European Union. Therefore, this study examines the effects of agenda setting and framing of European subjects on citizens' interest and interpersonal conversations agenda. The research is based on a comparative analysis between two corpus of articles published between 1-31 March, 2013 and 25 April-25 May, 2014 on the two main online news portals in Romania (ziare.com and hotnews.ro), and 39 in-depth interviews. The findings show that citizens rely on national media for information about the EU; thus, through agenda setting and framing effects, media provide a solid base for debate as well as interpersonal discussion parameters. However, citizens' concern about EU topics is relatively low and their involvement is driven by a national or personal relevance of the topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Romanian Journal of Communication & Public Relations is the property of College of Communication & Public Relations, NUPSPA Bucharest and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Romanian Journal of Communication & Public Relations is the property of College of Communication & Public Relations, NUPSPA Bucharest and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Romanian Journal of Communication & Public Relations is the property of College of Communication & Public Relations, NUPSPA Bucharest and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Media coverage of politics represents a vivid imagery of the increasingly fractured relationships between journalists, governance and ordinary people. Based on empirical findings, and noting the exacerbation of the phenomenon during the presidential campaign of 2009, we argue that Romanian media became polarized in an unprecedented manner, fact that increasingly brings into question media ethics and journalistic responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, the older territorial and national boundaries of a world continuously changed by globalization, migration, the expansion and further integration of the European Union, and similar wide processes, are constantly redefined. As a recent phenomenon, and in relation to the transformations involved by those processes referred at, the quest for national and transnational identity has intensified. Given the successive enlargement waves and the requirements of the integration process within the European Union, citizens of the member states are confronted with an increasing need of legitimization, of redefining their identity as well as their position, within the process of reconfiguration of the political, social and economic surrounding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results of a research on two national representative samples of high school pupils and freshmen from state universities in Romania.1 It focuses on reasons for dropping school during high school or during the first undergraduate year, and on factors that encourage pursuing higher education (bachelor's degree or master's degree). We construct theoretical models using demographic predictors, as well as a new dimension concerning materialistic values, in order to identify sources of inequity in higher education to undergraduate and graduate levels, which will be further used to suggest education and employment policies recommendation to improve chances to access to high levels of education. Findings show that gender is a key predictor, showing general trends of evolution in higher education. The most prominent sources of inequity are family income and parents' level of education, as well as a dimension of the materialistic scale, the role of possessions in defining success. We also suggest new areas of inquiry in the field of education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses cultural identity from the perspective of systems theory. I argue that when people find themselves in new cultural contexts, their cultural identity, as a self-regulating system, reacts and determines an adaptation effort, which should re-establish the lost equilibrium. I will address this issue following theoretical delimitations of culture, cultural identity and systems theory. In this new light, the problem of European identity raises new questions and interpretations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the main outcomes of globalization is the emergence of global brands. Such brands are virtually recognizable in multiple cultures, although it is very difficult to predict if the meanings associated with a brand are to be quasi-identical in different cultural spaces of the world. Different advertising strategies, on the one hand, and culturally associated values on the other hand influence the way people decode brands, as specific advertising signs. This article discusses the possibility of quantitative and qualitative research in advertsphere research (the semiotic space outside which no decoding of advertising sign is possible), given the epistemological assumptions beneath the concept of advertsphere and suggests the main directions to follow in an attempt to study advertising signs' meaning in different cultures. This kind of cross-cultural analysis is subject to several challenges, such as understanding the social dimensions of advertising signs, acknowledging the role played by the country of origin of different brands, dealing with local adaptation of a global concept etc, but above all is challenged by the choice of a method of inquiry. The main purpose of this article is to discuss this particular methodological challenge and to situate the cultural semiotic research in perspective for future inquiry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role of own evaluation of financial situation in people's vote decision for the 2008 U.S. presidential election. Economy was considered the most important issue in 2008 election; therefore a correlation between socio-economic status and voting was expected. The findings shows that income played no role in the vote decision, and that the correlation between people's financial situation and their choice of president is explained by people's approval/disapproval of the incumbent party and the former president. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Romana de Comunicare si Relatii Publice is the property of College of Communication & Public Relations, NUPSPA Bucharest and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)