Written to appeal to a general audience that wants to think more deeply about the nature of the media, their messages, and their effects on both individuals and society, this book serves as a broad introduction to the thinking that ties educators together in the common goal of educating a media literate generation. It is written from a critical…

Presents evaluation criteria for Internet and World Wide Web resources. Scope, content, graphic and multimedia design, purpose and audience, reviews, workability, and cost are discussed; criteria used by Internet evaluation sites are listed; and an annotated list of 10 evaluation sites on the Web is appended. (LRW)

Describes organizing a poetry "slam" (a contest in which people read their original poems and listeners cast votes for their favorites) involving 200 eighth graders from two different schools. Discusses how this experience made vivid for students the need to write for an audience and to revise. (SR)

Provides extensive reviews of two CD-ROM titles related to Native Americans: (1) Microsoft's "500 Nations: Stories of the North American Indian Experience" and (2) "The American Indian: A Multimedia Encyclopedia: by Facts on File." Evaluation criteria include content; authority; search engine; audience appropriateness; price;…

Explains certain writing projects oriented toward real life situations (in this case a proposal to establish a museum display) can help college students bridge the perceived gap between academic writing and the kind of writing that will be asked of them in the professional world. Suggests that students' attitudes and writing improved as a result…

Discusses how presenters must act as guides to their audiences. As an example, the paper describes a trip through the Serengeti in which the guide was powerful and effective in teaching his audience. Notes goals that all presenters must strive for (activities, engagement, content, dispositions, capacities, and ideals). (SM)

Contends that theatre has the power to induce oppressors to change their attitudes permanently towards the groups they oppress. Describes theatrical performances by women in Mundemba Sub-Division, Cameroon, which created lasting changes in men's attitudes. Concludes that theatre calls for sociocultural and economic changes and it has the power to…

Contends that the value of writing as a powerful tool for teaching reading is often underestimated. Explains that when students write and revise their writing, they are reading to make sure what they have written is clearly understood by themselves and their audience. Notes that for many students, reading what someone else thinks stimulates their…

Explains that the maestro concept is an approach to integrating writing, editing, and visual communication. Notes that the goal of the maestro concept is to find agreement on the best way to package a story, photos, art, and graphics for the reader. Concludes that the maestro team helps beginning journalism students become better verbal and visual…

Compares two advertising assignments to demonstrate how different approaches to audience radically affect students' critical understanding of popular media texts. Argues that "audience" needs to be present in writing assignments as a cultural experience rather than a merely static rhetorical category. (TB)

Presents a framework--grounded in the classic rhetorical concept of "ethos"--for technical communicators to examine the unique characteristics of the World Wide Web and the audiences it serves. Suggests that technical and marketing communicators can use the idea of online "ethos" to evaluate existing Web sites and design new…

Considers how when two-year college students take time to write at length, paying more attention to their own feelings and those of their readers through regular response and revision, they write better. Presents four assignments that all students would attempt, then share with classmates, and with partners at the other grade level via a Web site.…

Discussion of how multimedia productions are perceived by others focuses on a study of an undergraduate course at the University of Lethbridge (Canada) that investigated whether peer and target population evaluations influenced the production of student-generated multimedia projects. Results suggest that formative evaluation activities encouraged…

Examines the effects of using organizational spokespersons of ethnic backgrounds similar to or different from possible stakeholders of a multinational organization. Finds that the degree to which undergraduate students identified with his or her own ethnic group affected spokesperson similarity ratings. Discusses implications for multinational…

Explores audience awareness of writing instructors as they compose for incoming freshmen and for a faculty committee. Finds that writers analyze the faculty audience less frequently than the freshmen audience, but they evaluate their text and writing goals more frequently when addressing the faculty. (MG)