Affirms the third-person effect perceptual-bias hypothesis that people perceive news media coverage to exert greater influence on other people than on themselves. Finds no association between third-person perception and support for restrictions on press coverage of the O.J. Simpson murder trial. (SR)

Examines a particular rhetorical and narrative strategy--irony--used in a particular genre of contemporary journalism--investigative reporting--to tell stories about suffering and injustice. Argues that irony "in" journalism presents several ironies "of" journalism. (RS)

Asserts that, although government leaders stress the role of television in "comforting" the people, an analysis of key challenges to the centralized authority suggests that such comfort may come at the expense of local and regional participation. (PRA)

Contributes to scholarship on the media, mnemonic agents, and collective memory by examining the special role played by Israeli media in the struggle over the commemoration of Yitzhak Rabin. Shows how the media, especially television, became the main mnemonic site and the most influential mnemonic agent in these processes. Looks at how Rabin's…

Presents the first investigation of the effects of experience with a particular program series on children's subsequent television viewing behavior and comprehension. Notes three- to five-year-old regular, experienced viewers of "Blue's Clues" were compared to new, inexperienced viewers. Suggests that a television series can teach children a style…

Looks at how intellectuals in the second quarter of the twentieth century responded to the rise of radio broadcasting, recovering some rich ideas about interactivity and intimacy in mass communication. Suggests that radio and television marked the end of mass communication understood as a form of communication that constitutes its audience and…

Offers a "guard dog" metaphor for the functioning of the mass media, suggesting that media perform as a sentry for groups having sufficient power and influence to create and control their own security systems. Delineates this perspective from others, and suggests several hypotheses that may be derived for testing the utility of the guard dog…

Assesses the prevalence and context of violence in prime-time television programming using a random, representative sample. Shows that, regardless of the time of day, viewers are likely to encounter violence in roughly 2 out of 3 programs. Identifies specific channel types and genres that feature potentially harmful depictions of violence during…

Builds a theoretical argument to explain both why human beings are interested in news and why much news content involves the identification of environmental threats and deviance. Argues that the desire to receive and transmit information is biologically and culturally derived, and that both biology and culture have a profound impact on the form…

States that television has been a "single-station medium" in Israel since 1968, and that cable television is a recent innovation for that country. Describes an experiment that compared houses with cable to ones without, and found that houses with cable had markedly different viewing habits. Concludes that these findings suggest a…

Presents a general mathematical model of the diffusion of innovations that incorporates mass media and interpersonal influence. Suggests that policymakers can use diffusion models to evaluate the effectiveness of media versus interpersonal campaigns, make comparisons between subgroups, and evaluate the effect of a policy. (RS)

Asserts that suspension by the Federal Communications Commission of the Fairness Doctrine (which required broadcasters to air controversy and air it fairly) has not led to greater amounts of controversial programing. Argues that cancellation of the rule may in fact have limited the airing of controversy. (SG)

Contributes to scholarship on democracy, community, and journalism by examining the interplay between communication, democracy, and community at an inner-city neighborhood newspaper. Concludes that, through its focus on neighborhood culture, acknowledgment of conflict, and attempts to provide a forum for the neighborhood's self-definition, the…

Draws upon overlapping disciplines (the sociology of interaction, ethnomethodology and conversation analysis, and the pragmatics of philosophy of ordinary language) with a common interest in the intelligibility of the social practices of everyday life, to investigate how it is that television and radio appear as unproblematically and meaningfully…

Investigates the media's potential to affect audiences' interpretations of news events. Compares perceptions of the causes of the 1996 presidential election outcome among listeners to Rush Limbaugh, listeners to other political talk radio, consumers of mainstream news media, and nonconsumers of news media. Finds Limbaugh listeners were more likely…