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In this content analysis, we explored how students address instructor ideology in the university classroom through the social media platform Twitter. We employed Boolean search operators through Salesforce Marketing Cloud Radian6 software to gather tweets and identified English language tweets by how students referenced their instructor's ideology. Tweets originated in the United States (U.S.), the United Kingdom (U.K.), and Australia. Using qualitative coding procedures, we identified seven themes in the data that described how students wrote about instructor ideology on Twitter: "venting regarding instructor's ideology," "sharing classroom anecdote," "affirming instructor's beliefs/actions," "expressing grade concern," "articulating an opposing view," "reporting conflict," and "indicating confusion." Across categories, Twitter was employed primarily as a back-stage means to communicate expressive dissent regarding instructor ideology and also to demonstrate students' identity. We identified differences between categories based on the perceived ideology of the students' instructors as well as differences in the number of tweets per capita originating in each country.

A common perception exists in the media that university instructors are a liberal elite who use their positions to instill a biased perspective in their students. Exploring student attitudes in the United States and Australia, the present study examined how students' academic beliefs are related to their inferences of instructor ideological bias and the degree to which they identify as reacting to these inferences in the college classroom. Results of regression analysis using previously validated survey instruments revealed that students' academic entitlement and grade orientation (GO) predicted perceptions of instructor bias. In addition, students' GO predicted students' reactions to such inferred bias. Institutional differences, pedagogical implications, and areas for future research are discussed.

The role ideology plays in the university classroom has been debated since the publication of Buckley's "God and Man at Yale" (1951). The "Chronicle of Higher Education's" Special Report (2004) found that more than half of United States citizens polled felt that U.S. colleges and universities improperly introduce a liberal political bias into the classroom. A number of states have proposed legislation aimed at increasing ideological diversity in state-supported institutions of higher education. The American Association of University Professors reported nearly two dozen such bills since 2004; and while none have passed, they illustrate the concern many have over the issue of politics-centered ideological bias in higher education. Student populations have also felt the effect of this issue. If educators are to properly adapt their practices, research is necessary to fully understand the challenge posed by the perception of political bias on campus and how these perceptions may affect students. Existing research has focused on the effects of the perception of political bias without first exploring what is being perceived and by whom. Understanding student perceptions is crucial in allowing educators to create a learning environment that is both challenging and inviting for all students. This study explores how students experience the phenomenon of political bias in the college classroom and also demographic differences in how the phenomenon is experienced among the population of one midsized, public, land-grant university in the Southeastern United States. (Contains 4 tables.)

This study analyzed tweets from handles associated with the Russian Internet Research Agency in an effort to better understand the tactics employed by that organization on the social media platform Twitter in their attempt to influence U.S. political discourse and the outcome of the 2016 U.S. Presidential election. We sampled tweets from the month preceding the election and analyzed to understand the qualitative nature of these tweets as well as quantitative differences between how types of IRA Twitter accounts communicated. Seven categories of tweet behavior were identified: attack left, support right, attack right, support left, attack media, attack civil institutions, and camouflage. While camouflage was the most common type of tweet (52.6%), descriptive analyses showed it was followed by attack left (12%) and support right (7%). A variety of quantitative differences were shown between how account types behaved. • We sampled Russian Internet Research Agency tweets from the month preceding the 2016 U.S. Presidential election. • We analyzed tweets to understand IRA messaging as well as differences between how types of IRA accounts communicated. • Seven distinct categories of behavior were identified and categories were employed differently by account type. • We discuss implications for what findings mean relative to prevailing and competing narratives surrounding IRA activity. • Findings suggest the IRA was both sowing division while also supporting candidate Trump. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On January 27, 2017, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order that attempted to bar citizens and refugees from seven countries from entering the U.S. for a certain time period. One of the contexts most directly affected by this order was higher education. This study examined college and university communicative responses to the order from a public relations perspective. We qualitatively determined a range of responses from U.S. universities then quantitatively determined variables of particular colleges and universities that had a correlation to the nature of the responses. Responses were then assessed using public relations best practices. The data suggest variables with relationships to type of institutional response were number of international students and political stance of the state where the institution is located. While there was no single “correct” type of response, best practices suggest two options for appropriate responses to the order. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article the author discusses the implications of the rhetoric of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) about the system of higher education in the U.S. He is critical that the organization only does more harm than good since its claim are insubstantial and unproven. He contends that the organization's rhetoric is only good for its own fundraising initiative, but not for the improvement of the academia.

Five U.S. newspapers were searched for stories regarding childhood obesity. Of the 201 stories appearing in 1996, 2001, or 2006, 97 incorporated a public health frame (i.e., connects problem to the larger social and environmental context; exposes risk factors; includes information regarding preventatives and correctives). Significant risk factors were identified as unhealthy eating practices, lack of physical activity, and ads for junk food directed at children. Prevalent categories of preventatives and correctives focused on changes in diet, particularly in the home or in areas controlled by parents. Offered less frequently were suggestions regarding increases in physical activity. Consistent with previous research, the majority of both preventatives and correctives focused on individual-level as opposed to societal-level factors. Implications of these findings for the framing of news regarding childhood obesity are discussed.