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Public service advertisements, disseminated via the mass media, have been credited with "positive attitudinal effects" in past research, but only certain kinds of such advertisements are really effective. Of the types of appeals used in television commercials--informative, emotional, "establishment" (or status quo), and fear--the establishment appeal had the least favorable effect on a test group of 248 sophomore college students. In fact, both the establishment and information-based appeals elicited decidedly negative attitudinal responses from those surveyed, although older, more socially secure, and female respondents tended to favor such appeals. Emotional appeals were most effective with all the respondents, even overcoming fatalism. The test results suggest the production of public service advertisements for specific subgroups of television viewers. (CH)

Past research into the effects of "exposure" in political advertising indicates that massive "exposure" campaigns alone can show good, and sometimes dramatic, results in elections. This research is partially confirmed by a study of several mass media public relation efforts designed specifically to increase citizen recognition of the name of obscure candidates. Simple "exposure" political messages tested on a group of subjects yielded substantial increases in the recognition of the name used in the test and other positive results. Thus, campaigns in which obscure candidates attempt to win offices via extensive mass media advertisements for "name recognition" can expect a high degree of success. Also, the subjects' encounters with political advertisements stimulate them to seek more information about the candidates, but increasing encounters with the messages result in much less information seeking. Mass media campaigns for "exposure" can be obviated, however, by party loyalty, strongly held prejudices, or poor advertising content. (CH)

The nature and extent of the news media coverage of political advertising in the presidential campaign of 1972 was shallow and spotty at best. The candidates' political advertising strategies received limited coverage by reporters and commentators. Even the "prestige" press--16 major newspapers--provided limited coverage to the nature and problems of political advertising. Pollsters, however, reports that political advertising had a profound effect on the public's rank-ordering of campaign issues. Thus, it can be concluded that an important aspect of the 1972 campaign, the nature and effects of political advertising, was virtually ignored by the news media. (CH)

Lists and annotates nearly 200 articles on mass communication, grouped according to topic. Topics include advertising, audience and communicator analysis, broadcasting, courts and law, criticism and defense of media, journalism education, government and media, history and biography, foreign countries, management, public relations, and women and media. (GW)

Purpose: The key factor of modern society development is mass media, and nowadays its demanded business model is the translation of advertising information. Methodology: The solution to the research problem posed in this work required the application of the following methods: theoretical analysis, typological analysis, content analysis, and periodical comparative study. Result: Specialized periodicals in the field of culture occupy a separate niche in the system of modern mass media and are focused on specialized needs meetings of different social audiences. This type of media is also involved in advertising communication. First of all, this happens due to the maintenance of its activities, the preservation of quantitative self-sufficiency and the substantial identity of this type of periodicals. The article is devoted to the consideration of Russian specialized periodicals in culture as a communication channel demanded by society. Applications: This research can be used for universities, teachers, and students. Novelty/Originality: In this research, the model of Russian Specialized Periodicals in Culture as a Modern Communicative Channel is presented in a comprehensive and complete manner.

The general objective of the study was to find out factors underlying ethical considerations in the production of information and how the print mass media publish the information. This paper examines the extent to which ethical principles are considered in the process of productions of newspapers by Kenyan media houses. The study was guided by Roxborough’s Principle of Ethics theory of 1979, which holds that communication should always be guided by ethical principles which he points out as the principle of social responsibility. Descriptive cross-sectional research design was used. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the target population who are the staff of one media houses. Systematic random sampling was then used to choose respondents from five departments whereby a sample size of 160 respondents were selected. Data was collected by the use of questionnaires where drop and pick method was used. The primary data collected was analyzed with the help of SPSS (Statistical Packages for Social Sciences) Program. The data collected was analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The study established that editors focus on ethical issues such as unnamed sources; confidentiality; misrepresentation; obscenity, taste and tone in reporting; paying for news articles; plagiarism; discrimination; covering ethnic, religious and sectarian conflict; recording interviews and telephone conversations; privacy; intrusion into grief and shock; sex discrimination; financial journalism, protection of children; victims of sexual crimes; use of pictures and names; innocent relatives and friends; acts of violence; editor’s responsibility, and advertisements. It was recommended that both the media houses and the public in Kenya should be sensitized on the complexities surrounding the concept of ethics in journalism.

This article examines German print sport journalists’ perceptions, experiences, and relationships with Bundesliga clubs’ public relations (PR) staffers and each club’s designated press spokesperson, as well the impact of a competitive, multitier 21st-century media environment on their jobs. All Bundesliga clubs are now disseminating more multimedia content on their own through official Web sites and social media such as Twitter and Facebook. Meanwhile, the German newspaper industry is in a state of transformation and decreased prominence among mediums in German sport journalism. A survey of print journalists who cover Bundesliga clubs showed that these changes have affected the historic symbiotic relationship between the sporting press and Bundesliga clubs. Power and media autonomy have increased for Bundesliga clubs and their designated press spokespersons, while print reporters are more dependent on the clubs’ PR staffers to provide access. The surveyed journalists recognize the increasing power of television in German sport journalism, but nearly half do not consider this as negative for their jobs. These print sport journalists are called on to find new ways and types of media content to begin restoring the needed balance in a symbiotic relationship between independent press and PR, while also distinguishing their work from televised media content.

Newspaper sports journalists training to enter the field will be asked to know different skills from their predecessors. Also, newspaper editors are concerned about the journalistic skills of their future employees. This research investigated job skills desired of the next generation of sports journalists within newspaper organizations. Through a factor analysis, four underlying dimensions were found: broadcasting skills, editing skills, reporting skills and sports knowledge. Mean scores showed reporting skills having the most importance.

Critics of agricultural news claim farm media and mass media coverage of agriculture is systematically distorted, a condition that could seriously affect the agricultural information system. A national survey used agricultural journalists as expert judges to assess how well three types of print journalists cover agricultural news. Their assessments indicated that mass media reporters who do not regularly cover agricultural news tend to write agriculture stories that are superficial and stereotyped but not biased toward agricultural interests. Farm magazine writers' stories are not superficial or stereotyped, but writers are uncritical of agriculture, biased toward agroindustry, and overlook important social and environmental issues. Newspaper farm beat reporters are closer to farm magazine writers in not trivializing agriculture and closer to general newspaper reporters in avoiding close ties with industry. Both farmers and public thus receive biased and fragmented reporting that may polarize their views on current agricultural issues. Even if reporters are aware of critical shortcomings in their coverage, improvement may require reduction in structural constraints on story choice.

The teaching of societal, legal, and ethical issues is critical to an advertising education because the subjects increase students' understanding of the field, raise their awareness of broader effects beyond the promotion of products and services, and inform students of their responsibilities as professionals. This study examined how these subjects were taught at ninety-one universities and colleges in the United States. It found complex and cacophonous structures with high level of variation by which the courses were organized. An analysis of seventy-five syllabi found diverse sets of goals, extraneous content to advertising, little agreement on textbooks, and inconsistent standards to measure student performance. While the main mission of adver- tising education is to instruct students in the management, creation, and implementation of strategic communi- cations, courses that cover ethical, legal, and societal issues add context and depth to give students a greater understanding of the field. Without a foundational level of knowledge in these three subjects, future advertising practitioners are destined to be mere "bricklayers rather than architects."1 This article examines the structure and components of ethical-, legal-, and societal-issue courses, as the courses exist in the current curricula of the advertising academy at U.S. universi- ties and colleges. The purpose is to determine if any general conclusions can be drawn from an overview of the manner in which these courses are organized and taught. For this investigation, teaching ethical issues about advertising is defined as pedagogy related to the behavioral conduct of people in the advertising field and to their relationships with peers, clients, authences, and greater society. The teaching of legal issues about advertising is defined as pedagogy related to the resolution of matters within the framework of various legislative, judicial, and regulatory bodies of government. The teaching of societal issues is defined as pedagogy related to examining the institution of advertising and the social or cultural system in which it exists. Research Agenda The need for this examination is acute. Christians2 discussed the teaching of mass media ethics from a philosophical perspective, but no survey of pedagogy specifically related to practical teaching of ethical, legal, and societal issues in advertising was found. Literature related to the teaching of advertising law was scant.3 A course about advertising and society was listed as part of a concentration for an ideal curriculum in advertising education;4 yet, no literature was found that discusses how educators teach or might teach subjects such as advertising's role in the American economy and consumer culture, stereotypes, and the portrayal of gender and ethnic images, the effects of advertising on children and other vulnerable people, the promotion of controversial products, the influence of political advertising, and the use of social marketing.5 The literature on teaching ethics was much more developed but limited to particular topics that were ancillary to the question of what comprises an education in advertising ethics. Researchers have studied practitioners' perceptions of ethics,6 the factors influencing students' reactions to ethical dilemmas,7 educators' moral qualifications to teach advertising ethics,8 impacts of ethics instruction on advertising and public relations graduates,9 and whether advertising texts adequately cover ethical issues.10 Researchers comment on the relevance of ethics to advertising education,11 and the educator's role in teaching ethics.12 Martinson advocated particular methods of teaching advertising ethics but did not provide broader information about how the academy addressed the subject.13 The most recent survey of teaching ethics in mass communication was only partially relevant here, because it surveyed journalism ethics courses.14 Even more problematic, that study, instead of directly examining the curricula, asked educators to report their educational goals, research, and teachingrelated activities, and perceptions about mass media ethics as a subject within journalism and mass communication programs. …

The aim of this report is to present a ranking of Communication journals covered in Google Scholar Metrics (GSM) for the period 2008-2013. It corresponds to the H Index update made last year for the period 2008-2012 (Repiso & Delgado López-Cózar 2013). Google Scholar Metrics does not currently allow to group and sort all journals belonging to a scientific discipline. Therefore, in an attempt to overcome this limitation, we have used the diversity of search procedures allowed by GSM to identify the greatest number of scientific journals of Communication with H Index calculated by this bibliometric tool. The result is a ranking of 434 communication journals sorted by the same H Index. Journals are also grouped by quartiles., EC3: Evaluación de la Ciencia y de la Comunicación Científica

The mass media are recognized by many social scientists as important sources of medical information for lay people and as a positive influence on those working in the health care professions. However, there is a lack of study about print and mass media reporting on major health problems in developing countries such as Mexico. This article presents the findings of a study conducted to identify specific messages that the Mexican print media convey to the general reader about chronic diseases, especially one of the most important and pervasive, diabetes. We undertook a comprehensive review and content analysis of secondary source media reporting in the Boletin (Bulletin)--published by the Department of Education and Health, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Xochimilco. The Boletin summarizes all articles related to health matters published in 12 national daily newspapers and 3 magazines. Our study covered all issues of the Boletin from 1992 through 1996. Our findings indicate that at times the press and popular print media disseminate an incomplete and often biased picture of chronic diseases prevalent in Mexico. Specifically, the press gives equal or more important coverage of acute diseases, or to AIDS, than to other major chronic conditions. The press also reproduces the biomedical model of disease and does not address topics important to certain segments of the population, including the patient. Moreover, the media may present an overly idealized impression of the capability of health services. Consequently, this failure to address the issues of certain widespread, chronic illnesses is severe enough to ask about the role of the press in medical health care reform. We conclude by suggesting areas for further research.

Market‐based and press‐freedom variables were tested as predictors of “interactive” online journalism at the Web companions of 17 English‐language Asian newspapers. A multidimensional conception of interactivity was used in the analysis. The findings suggest that market‐based variables predict only certain facets of an online newspaper’s interactivity. Press‐freedom variables were not fruitful predictors.

Many colleges and universities training student journalists in campus media organizations are considering converging print, broadcast, and online into one organization to adapt to industry trends and the new technological environment. Some are asking prudent questions (Pratte,1997) about why journalism educators should undertake such a paradigm shattering activity how print, online, and broadcast can merge, how the new organization will run, and what problems to expect. Over five years, students and faculty at Brigham Young University created a converged newsroom that brought together student broadcast, print, and online journalism into one organization. This article examines the convergence experiment using data gathered from stakeholder interviews, document analysis, observation, and a survey of students. In the first section we discuss the industry and technology-driven rationale converging newsrooms in educational institutions. The second section of this article examines the first steps toward convergence using the future search process and whole systems planning. The third section describes the generic changes in converged newsrooms and the editorial process flow in the BYU newsroom. The final section examines problems created by convergence, including the identity and commitment of students, alignment with industry and curriculum, and the increased complexity of processes. There are immense time and resource costs associated with creating converged newsrooms in colleges and universities. Prior to initiating a convergence project, institutions should consider factors externally and internally driving convergence. External forces The last century has seen an evolution to newsroom organizations from competitive to cooperative and now, in some cases, to convergence. Competition between newspapers in the United States was the norm for more than 300 years (Shudson, 1995). During that time, journalists forged the way for many freedoms and rights under which all forms of mass media are protected today (Weaver & Wilhoit, 1986). In the 1920s and 30s the immediacy of radio began to affect newspapers circulation, and publishers had difficulty adjusting to the new competitive marketplace (Beasley, 1996). With television in the early 1950s, came a new and even more powerful competitor, and since then each medium has battled for market share (Boyd, 1993). But economic forces and new technological capabilities in the 80s and 90s brought some of the once competing media organizations under the same cooperative roof. Gannett, The Chicago Tribune Company, and others initiated cooperation between their electronic media holdings and print holdings in order to create a competitive advantage in the marketplace. These cooperations kept the media organizations separate but found strategic touch points where information could be shared to make both organizations more competitive (Hammond and Porter, 1997). In the 90s increased return on investment expectations (Pavlik, 1996) and the emergence of the Internet has pressured media organizations to converge under the same organization. Pew Center Research (1998) indicates almost half of Americans are online. Information specific to the interests of the user, such as stock quotes, weather, traffic, etc., has drawn a large audience to Web sites. The Pew research suggests that increased Internet use creates an appetite for in-depth reporting and may channel readers to newspapers and magazines. It may also reduce time spent watching television. More are obtaining news from broadcast news Web site for (22%) and national newspaper Web site (16%) than Web site without affiliation (1998). This trend is important because it shows that the consumption patterns of news are changing. No longer are readers or viewers medium loyalists. A reader/viewer will see a story on one medium and follow the story, based on their own interests to another medium to get other views or greater depth. …

International surveys of biomedical researchers and of public information officers, along with further evidence, show a medialization of science in the interactions of (biomedical) science and journalism. It is argued that this implies the institutionalization, professionalization and strategic utilization of media contacts by scientific sources on the individual and organizational level. Furthermore, the growing importance of the organizational context for the regulation of science-journalism interactions is shown. Driving force for the media orientation of science is the need for public legitimation of science in general and of research organizations in particular, leading to the goal of media visibility, which in turn requires compliance with the expectations of the mass media. Medialization of science has consequences, first, for the kind of public constructs of research advocated by scientific sources which partly reflect the strategic motives underlying the communication approaches by scientists and research organizations’ public relations departments. Second, there is evidence for a wide-spread consideration of “public resonance goals” by scientists in decisions about research. And, third, the demand for public visibility of scientific sources along with the orientation of the mass media at public relevance and values has consequences for the governance of science because it motivates scientific actors to seek – or at least claim – compliance of their research with public expectations.

The first deadly bioterrorism attack in U.S. history in late 2001 caught many news outlets, and public officials, unprepared. Early news coverage of what became known as the “Amerithrax” case was frequently alarmist in tone and included inaccurate information that likely contributed to a climate of confusion and fear. Since then, media interest in the topic has expanded because of the federal government's controversial investigation of the crime, as well as questions about a massive expansion of programs and spending to prepare for future biological attacks. Early missteps in coverage highlighted the need for a thoughtful approach to bioterrorism reporting that emphasizes planning, training and restraint. Keywords: anthrax; bioterrorism; journalism; mass media; Rajneeshee

This paper uses survey data from Nigerian college students to illustrate the fact that the introduction of new media technology does not in itself solve problems of gender equity in information access. Fewer women than men in the sample read a newspaper or listened to the radio daily, and women were more likely than men to identify television as their "most credible" source. Furthermore, women were less likely than men to identify news programming as preferred television content. Overall, the data suggest that despite equiv alent access women seemed to be getting less news information out of the available system.

The influence of news media on audience cognitions, attitudes, and behaviors in the realm of politics, race relations, science, and health has been extensively documented.Agenda setting and framing studies show that news media influence how people develop schema and place priorities on issues, with media stories serving as a major source of issue frames. Although news media are an important intermediary in the translation of scientific knowledge to different publics, little has been documented about the production of health news and factors that may predict media agenda setting and framing in health journalism. We used data from a 2005 national survey of U.S. health reporters and editors to examine predictors of source, resource, story angle, and frame usage among reporters and editors by variables such as organizational structure, individual characteristics of respondents (such as education and years working as a journalist),and perceptions of occupational autonomy. Multivariable logistic regression models revealed several differences among U.S. health reports and editors in the likelihood of using a variety of news sources, resources, priorities, and angles in reporting. Media agenda setting and framing theories suggest that practitioners familiar with media processes can work with journalists to frame messages, thereby increasing the probability of accurate and effective reporting. Results from this study may help to inform interactions between public health and medical practitioners and the press [corrected].

Mass media campaigns have long been a tool for promoting public health. How effective are such campaigns in changing health-related attitudes and behaviors, however, and how has the literature in this area progressed over the past decade? The purpose of the current article is threefold. First, I discuss the importance of health mass media campaigns and raise the question of whether they are capable of effectively impacting public health. Second, I review the literature and discuss what we have learned about the effectiveness of campaigns over the past 10 years. Finally, I conclude with a discussion of possible avenues for the health campaign literature over the next 10 years. The overriding conclusion is the following: The literature is beginning to amass evidence that targeted, well-executed health mass media campaigns can have small-to-moderate effects not only on health knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes, but on behaviors as well, which can translate into major public health impact given the wide reach of mass media. Such impact can only be achieved, however, if principles of effective campaign design are carefully followed.

Gary Schwitzer, former medical correspondent at CNN and now a professor of journalism, listed “10 troublesome trends in TV health news,” making the important point that most people today get their health information from the media, and from TV in particular. In this article, the author presents Schwitzer's list and expands it with 10 more troublesome trends. Good health reporting should provide a straightforward, balanced, comprehensible summary of health issues that provides context to information-hungry consumers; it should rarely be sensational, but always skeptical. And there should be a lot more of it.

The Internet — specifically its graphic interface, the World Wide Web — has had a major impact on all levels of (information) societies throughout the world. For media professionals whose work has primarily been defined as creative storytelling — whether in advertising, journalism, public relations or related fields — this poses fascinating opportunities as well as vexing dilemmas. The central question seems to be to what extent storytelling can be content– or connectivity–based, and what level of participation can or should be included in the narrative experience. Although these two issues have been part of creative decision–making processes in media work before the Web, new technologies of production, distribution and communication are ‘supercharging’ them as the central dilemmas in the contemporary media ecosystem. This paper discusses the history and contemporary examples of media work combining various elements of storytelling as a hybrid form between content and connectivity, and considers the normative and economical implications for the professional identity of media workers in journalism and advertising.

A ocorrência de sucessivas epidemias de dengue no Brasil ressalta a importância da divulgação de informações pela mídia, pois, como esfera de mediação das sociedades contemporâneas, a mídia produz, amplifica e faz circular informações e significados que afetam as decisões das pessoas. Com o objetivo de contribuir nessa discussão, analisou-se a cobertura do principal jornal diário de Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil, sobre as epidemias de dengue naquela capital entre 1996 e 2000, buscando-se avaliar a prioridade do noticiário para a doença e os enfoques privilegiados. Foram selecionadas 446 notícias, classificadas segundo o tema abordado nos títulos e nos textos das matérias. Verificou-se que o número de notícias guardou estreita relação com o número de casos de dengue registrados, com "picos" de cobertura coincidindo com a ocorrência de epidemias. A prioridade jornalística na cobertura das epidemias e o pouco espaço destinado à prevenção observados neste estudo apontam a necessidade de se considerar, no campo de atuação dos serviços de vigilância, estratégias de divulgação de informação nos meios de comunicação, visando propiciar intervenções mais participativas e, assim, mais eficientes para a prevenção de epidemias. The occurrence of successive dengue epidemics in Brazil highlights the importance of information dissemination by the media. As a sphere for mediation in contemporary societies, the news media produce, expand, and circulate information and meanings that affect people's decisions. In order to contribute to the discussion, this study analyzes coverage by the main daily newspaper in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, on dengue epidemics in that State capital from 1996 to 2000, assessing the priority ascribed to the epidemics as news and the various approaches to the disease. Some 446 news stories were selected, classified according to the themes approached in the titles and in the body of the articles. There was a close relationship between the number of news stories and the number of reported dengue cases, with "peaks" in coverage coinciding with outbreaks. According to this study, the news priority for epidemics and the limited space reserved for prevention highlight the need for epidemiological surveillance services to consider strategies to disseminate information through the mass media, aimed at fostering more participatory interventions that would thus be more efficient in the prevention of epidemics.

In this article we describe from which sources science writers who write about medicines in daily newspapers get their ideas and information. This study was undertaken because mass media, and therefore newspapers, can play an important role in the diffusion of information about medicines. Two approaches, interviews and a content analysis, were used to answer the research questions. Both methods show the importance of professional medical journals and information from universities and their hospitals as sources of ideas and information. Although the pharmaceutical industry did not seem to play a role as source of ideas and information according to the journalists, it is the third most frequently cited source of information in the newspaper articles. To gain a better insight in the role of the pharmaceutical industry as source of ideas and information for newspaper journalists further research is necessary.