Examines the process of media supplementation in the Stanford Five-City Multifactor Risk Reduction Project, a long-term trial of communitywide cardiovascular disease risk reduction. Indicates that accessible awareness media disseminated early in the education campaign promoted use of information-rich depth media later. Suggests that information…

Looks at how the theories of William Perry and Jean Piaget explain choices students made in writing persuasive essays. Examines the implications of their theories for teaching persuasion to eighteen-year olds. (SR)

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)

An informal survey of ghostwriters confirmed that communication is vital to success, with strategies including careful listening, getting to know the speaker well, understanding the audience, accurately reflecting the speaker's viewpoint, and fine tuning the mechanics and tone of the speech. (MSE)

Discusses developments in the field of mass communications over the last 10 years. Suggests that old polarities have been finally transcended or deconstructed and that a new set of questions is emerging which concern a range of particular issues and processes rather than generalities expressed in terms of the now untenable categories of viewer,…

Offers four brief descriptions from composition/writing teachers of class activities that work well for them, addressing using a grocery list to help students understand why audience awareness is important; using group work to help students analyze literature; having students define and describe good writing; and helping students with specified…

Considers two very different fictional high school newspaper editorships to see how the "maestro" process works. Notes that the process is a management technique similar to brainstorming but in which one person keeps the planning meeting focused. Suggests that the effective maestro asks writers, photographers, and designers to trade places with…

Presents a colloqium in which five business communication scholars examined some of the dilemmas of business communication research. Discusses identifying research audiences; new knowledge versus practical problem solving; differences within the discipline; publishing research; and being hired, tenured, and promoted. (SR)

Describes how an eighth-grade language-arts teacher teaches poetry via performance. Describes how she introduces poetry, performance, and audience. Shows how students (even non-readers and non-achievers) quickly show great eagerness to do poetry with enthusiasm, excitement, and energy; and now perform locally. Includes a poetry portfolio outline…

Examines first graders' demonstrations of audience awareness in the context of Family Message Journal writing (in which children write a message to their families and receive written replies). Finds that the first graders demonstrated a sense of audience when writing for family readers, to get something they want, when prompted by their teacher to…

Describes two projects undertaken with the author's high school English classes in which students chose writing they wished to share with their own community, and then published it, in one case selling their class anthology to selected businesses around town. Describes the increase in enthusiasm for writing and care and professionalism caused by…

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)

Focuses on "emphasis and interest" as elements of power in writing that moves the reader along "roads of news." Suggests revisions in selected sentences from student publications, revisions which improve the sentences to give more information in opening sentences and nonrepetitive amplification in following sentences. Cites…

Supports Classroom Publishing (a bookmaking project) as a useful literacy tool which (1) encourages children to develop creative and expressive skills; (2) allows students to write for an audience outside the classroom; (3) makes the sometime tedious writing process more meaningful; and (4) produces a product to be admired by family, teachers and…