Asserts that role-playing peer-response groups provide effective feedback and help students develop a sense of the characteristics of a particular audience. Illustrates with a sample lesson (a college application essay) by outlining five steps of the process. Offers other uses of the role-playing peer-response groups method. (PRA)

"Manga," or Japanese comics, differ from American comics by their lack of color, the attitude of their audience, and their acceptance of nudity. Several science fictional and action-oriented "manga" for young adult and general audiences are described. (AEF)

Reports on a survey of 78 newspaper editors. Includes information about the types of readership research that newspapers conduct, the extent to which such research has influenced editorial decisions, and the characteristics of newspaper organizations that conduct research. Suggests that while most newspapers conduct research, the type and quality…

Argues that practices of civic journalism are a fit focus for perfecting the needed methods to build a tradition of media performance assessment. Maintains that academicians and practitioners should join together in this effort. (TB)

College students judged the credibility of specially constructed news briefs about science. Their credibility ratings were influenced by area of research, plausibility of conclusions, and quality of research methods, but not by the social context of the research. Students justified their judgments with information in reports, prior knowledge, and…

Examines whether students engage in biased assimilation during in-class debates. Finds that biased assimilation only occurs when the student is arguing for her or his existing position on an issue. Concludes that, in order to eliminate biased assimilation, teachers should encourage students to debate the opposite position of their preconceived…

This paper reports the use of Rogers' diffusion of innovation perspective to understand the factors affecting educational innovation decisions, specifically in regard to in class electronic response systems. Despite decreasing costs and four decades of research showing strong student support, academic adoption is limited. Using data collected from…

A study tested responses of viewers (as opposed to news organizations and sponsoring firms) to video news releases (VNRs). Subjects, 81 undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory advertising course, viewed a 30-second message about McDonald's and the Big Mac in a VNR format or an advertisement about the Big Mac special "Meal…

This paper reviews "Slim Hopes: Advertising & The Obsession with Thinness," a 30-minute video produced by the University of Massachusetts' Media Education Foundation, which discusses America's compulsion with thinness. Although the format of the video is the traditional "talking head," over 120 print and television…

A critique predicated primarily on aesthetic considerations can show the potential a speech has to move an audience, but gauging a speech's actual effects on the audience is more difficult. A case in point is the United States Congressional investigation of the Iran-Contra scandal. Government officials and businessmen sold arms to Iran in exchange…

This study examined the relationship between the structure of narrative and false belief understanding in young children. A group of 109 children between 38 and 63 months were randomly assigned to one of two groups. Children in the first group watched a story on video, while children in the second group shared the same story in book format. The…

A study focused on audience selectivity and involvement before and during television exposure. Two types of selectivity were considered: program selection before exposure and changing channels while viewing. The study included four indications of audience involvement: intentionality, or anticipating TV viewing; attention or focused cognitive…

A design rationale for introducing electronic equipment (a group response system) for student interaction in lecture theaters is presented, linking the instructional design to theory. The effectiveness of the equipment for learning depends mostly on what pedagogic method is employed. Various alternative types are introduced, including: assessment;…

Providing a framework for Wisconsin educators to examine how they could include theater and drama within the school curriculum, this booklet presents five standards for students in grades 4, 8, and 12 that identify an element within theater that would enable students to know and understand theater by doing. The introductory section of the booklet…

Since 1986, KTNN Radio (tribally owned) has broadcast Navajo-language programming to the entire Navajo Nation. Its large broadcast range and position as the "Voice of the Navajo Nation" gives KTNN the "symbolic" power to affect linguistic change, as well as the unenviable position of being held to a high language standard although no such…