The Pro/Con Campus Debate and Community Forum program at The Ohio State University serves the educational mission of the department of communication and contributes to the intellectual life of the student body and the larger community by emphasizing the needs of the audience. Eschewing jargon and rhetorical tricks, the program encourages the…

A study analyzed the attitudes of newspaper subscribers and nonsubscribers to determine whether the two groups were truly distinct, homogenous segments of the public or whether there were "atypical" subscribers and nonsubscribers. Data were gathered through telephone interviews with more than 1,000 adults in the southeastern United…

Several reasons for studying motion pictures and patrons' attitudes toward them include the following: (1) current data show that motion pictures account for 53% of the total United States spectator amusement expenditures; (2) the average weekly United States movie attendance has plummeted by more than half since 1930; (3) despite this decline,…

Seeking to uncover some of the factors involved in the comprehension of televised news, a study examined the responses of 425 television news viewers to questions about a news story appearing on a national network's evening newscast. The subjects were asked to name the stories they recalled from the newscast. Then the respondents' recall of the…

Providing an extensive, factual account of the controversy regarding the sale of a television station in Bloomington, Indiana, this paper presents a description of the legal issues involved, discusses the correspondence between the author and the purchasers of the station, outlines the justification for filing a Petition to Deny the transfer, and…

The first of two articles in this report offers a survey of how community ties lead to various psychological needs that are the motivation for newspaper reading. It identifies three distinct audience segments: the traditional audience, with permanent bonds to the community, whose need for information, guidance, and community surveillance leads to…

The three primary aims of this report were to investigate whether or not the single gratifications associated with the use of different mass media form some gratification dimensions more basic in their nature; to explore in what way these dimensions are related to the actual mass media content choices of the audience; and to investigate the way…

A recent broadcast on the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) entitled "The Incredible Maching" showed that public television is capable of reaching a large audience. To further explore its potential to reach larger audiences, PBS has subscribed to public opinion polls to become more systematically aware of wants, desires, needs, and dreams…

Mass persuasion involves a message production process which significantly alters or reinforces an attitude, belief, or action of the members of a large, heterogeneous audience. A synthetic communication model for mass persuasion has been constructed which incorporates aspects of several models created to describe the process of effective…

This paper attempts to extract and summarize the truth-, fact-, and reality-bases of Chaim Perelman's and Mme. L. Olbrechts-Tyteca's "The New Rhetoric." This paper considers: the four basic factors which the theorist needs to take into account when interpreting "The New Rhetoric"; the descriptive characteristics of the…

The revolution in two-way broadband communications envisioned for the future includes remote access to libraries, interactive educational programing, shopping at home, personal and property security, and many other services limited only by man's imagination and his ability to deliver the service at a price the consumer is willing and able to pay.…

Since broadcasters are mandated by the Federal Communication Commission to ascertain community needs prior to applying for or renewing licenses, their concern for finding effective audience-analysis tools is generally great. This paper briefly surveys the research conducted on expression of opinion through viewer and listener letter-writing and…

Explores some critical questions concerning the nature and functions of the dimension of audience-personification in rhetorical discourse. (MH)

This article looks at jazz dance as an expression of society, and states that its significance must be realized and that it must be made easily accessible to the general public. (CD)