Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2006, Film (Fine Arts)

Mainstream news media organizations have adopted classical Hollywood narrative storytelling conventions in order to convey vital news information. In doing so, these organizations tell news stories in a way that paints political realities as causal agents, delicate international crises as sensational conflicts, and factual profiles of public figures as colorful characterizations. By establishing artificial narrative lines and unnecessarily antagonistic conflict, the press has at times become an unwitting agent of government policy and, in part, altered the course of international events. The classical Hollywood narrative is the storytelling model on which the American media based its coverage of United States foreign policy after September 11, 2001. The sensationalized coverage culminated in a cinematic presentation of events that led to the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. Since September 11, a narrative plot unfolded, the characters were defined, and the tension rose. The news media primed the audience as if the American people were watching a well-executed and often predictable Hollywood narrative. And though there was no evidence that proved Iraq had played a role in the September 11 attacks, by March of 2003 the war seemed inevitable and possessing of seemingly perfect narrative logic.

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2021, Journalism (Communication)

This study evaluates the popular Nigerian-based women's magazines, Today's Woman, Genevieve, and Exquisite, to uncover how the editorial content of these publications represent Nigerian femininity and womanhood, using social representations theory, originally coined by Serge Moscovici in 1961, as a theoretical framework. This study also evaluates how the representations of women featured in the editorial content of these magazines align with the theory of africana womanism. By conducting a qualitative textual analysis of 60 articles, this study found that Nigerian women are most frequently and significantly represented by their jobs/careers, the condition of their bodies, their self-esteem/self-sufficiency, the opinions of others, and their life challenges. This construction of Nigerian femininity and womanhood supported the following tenets of africana womanism: ambition, role flexibility, recognition, strength, black female sisterhood, respect, wholeness, adaptable, self-definition, and male compatibility.

Specialist in Education (Ed.S.), University of Dayton, 2020, School Psychology

Anxiety is on the rise in the world today. The American College Health Association (2018) surveyed 31,463 college students and found that 60.9% of the respondents had experienced overwhelming anxiety at some point within the last 12 months. Social media use has become more and more rampant, with research suggesting that the majority of people in the United States use social media in some form. Media literacy, which incorporates the ability to critically assess and interpret digital content, is a topic are that is increasingly becoming of interest with the pervasiveness of technology. The present study examined the relationship between social media use, media literacy, and anxiety in first-year college students. A sample of (n = 82) first-year college students was surveyed to investigate these variables. Results indicated a significant relationship between social media use and anxiety as well as between social media use and media literacy. No significant relationship was found between media literacy and anxiety. Implications for how educational professionals can serve students based on these results are discussed in this paper.

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2022, Art History (Fine Arts)

This research follows the development of two image-based internet memes, the Spider-Man Pointing at Spider-Man meme and the Tradwife meme, to interrogate how the spread and reproduction of image-based internet memes on social media platforms affects the images' retention of meaning. In order to apply a combined historical, semiological, and media-centric approach, this thesis follows the historical evolution of each meme alongside two theories: Bradley Wiggins' genre development of memes and Jean Baudrillard's simulacra. The historical account for each meme begins with the primary image and follows its transformation into an image-based internet meme according to the genre development of memes, demonstrating its initial role as spreadable media, to emergent meme, and finally, to full-fledged internet meme. Alongside that development, the process is compared to the developmental steps of Baudrillard's simulacra to utilize Baudrillard's theory to understand how images separate from their original meanings in mass reproduction. Image-based internet memes are connected to Baudrillard's simulacra because they both feature a dissociation of meanings and mass reproduction on media platforms. However, there is a distinction between the kind of media which Baudrillard references in his theory of simulacra and the kind of media internet memes developed on. Due to the mirrored processes of internet meme development and simulacra development, but the distinction between the type of medias, I argue that image-based internet memes form a new kind of simulacra.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2020, Journalism (Communication)

In Western world, government intervention via media policy is supposed to help correct market failures such as the existence of external cost/benefit on third parties, the lack of public goods, or the abuse of monopoly power (Rolland, 2008; Hoskins et al., 2004; Picard, 1989). In communist nations, government intervention is more often viewed as to protect political ideas (Lee et al., 2006; Silverblatt & Zlobin, 2004; Siebert et al., 1978). However, in the post-communist era, communist governments were steered towards a market economy with a socialist orientation, leading to the ambiguity of their media policies' goals and subsequently, their policy outcomes. In this study, I choose to analyze media policies in Vietnam, a still communist nation, to understand its current policy goals and to evaluate the effectiveness of the policy on news quality and financial performance of Vietnamese press organizations. The study is done based on Freedman's (2008) definition of media policy, normative analyses and the public interest theory outlined by Hoskin et al. (2004), and financial commitment model developed and tested by many media economists (Lacy, 1989; Martin, 2003; Lacy & Martin, 2004). Three research questions are asked as following: (1) What changes in press laws have occurred in Vietnamese history in terms of Freedman's identified key policy tools, such as regulations regarding ownership, subsidies, taxes, advertising and content restrictions?; (2) Can the current, state-run news media policy be justified on the grounds of market failures according to the economic theory of government intervention?; and (3) How do news organizations perform under the current news media policy, assuming the positive relationship between media competition, as a result of changes in market structure, and media performance, including financial performance and news quality? A qualitative document analysis of 270 legal documents drawn from the Ministry of Information and Communication Arc (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2019, Mass Communication (Communication)

Democracy allows a plural media landscape where different types of media perform vital functions. Over the years, the public trust towards mainstream media has been eroding, limiting their ability to fulfill democratic functions within American society. Meanwhile, the Internet has led to the proliferation of alternative media outlets on digital space. These platforms allow new outreach and mobilizing opportunities to the once peripheral alternative media. So far, the literature about alternative media have been heavily focused on left-wing alternative media outlets, while the research on alternative right-wing media has remained scarce and fragmented. Only a few studies have applied a comparative analysis approach to study these outlets. Moreover, research that examines different aspects of alternative media such as content and audience reception is rarer. This study aims to demonstrate the heterogeneity of alternative media by highlighting their history and functions within American democracy. The second goal of the study is to assess the potential of such platforms to foster political participation. This research project aims to answer the following questions: What are the roles of alternative media in American democracy? What are the ways in which right-wing and left-wing alternative media foster political participation? How do they differ or resemble? To answer these questions, I adopted a two-pronged qualitative methodology. One focuses on audience reception. The other involves a critical analysis of their content. I conducted six focus groups with 24 students. The goal of this part of the study was to understand audience perceptions and experience with alternative media. I was also interested how the alternative content informs their decisions regarding political participation. In addition to the semi-structured questions, the participants read sample articles and listened to podcast segments from the right-wing media outlet, the Daily Wire and The Ben (open full item for complete abstract)

Bachelor of Science of Media Arts and Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2018, Media Arts and Studies

INFINITE JEST 2 takes a look at the world of media in 2024. Film available for academic purposes at: https://youtu.be/t1iBihSzgL4 Live show available for academic purposes at: https://youtu.be/k8PPxO_Io9c

PHD, Kent State University, 2017, College of Communication and Information / School of Communication Studies

Contemporary political discourse is rife with accusations of shadowy forces operating in secret to accomplish nefarious goals. Such discourse has been a mainstay in U.S. politics, but little quantitative research has been done on the impact of government-related conspiracy theories in media and how people differ in their use of such fare. This dissertation situates conspiracy theories in a media effects framework, applying uses and gratifications theory to examine whether specific background characteristics (i.e., media skepticism, need for cognition, locus of control, and conservatism or liberalism) work in concert with individuals' motives for and exposure to government-conspiracy-theory-oriented media fare to impact individuals' trust in government as an attitudinal outcome and political participation as a behavioral outcome. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify four motives for choosing media fare related to government conspiracy theories: (1) social utility/relaxing recreation, (2) political evaluation, (3) pass time, and (4) general information seeking. Significant correlations were found between several background characteristics and use of government-conspiracy-theory-oriented media fare. Use of such fare also correlated with trust in federal government entities and with political participation. Additionally, hierarchical regression analysis revealed the relative contribution of individual differences, motives for conspiracy-theory-oriented media use, and exposure to such fare in predicting levels of trust in four entities of the federal government. Regression analysis also showed the relative contribution of individual differences, motives for conspiracy-theory-oriented media use, exposure to conspiracy-theory-oriented media fare, and trust in government in predicting four forms of political participation. This study affirmed the value of a comprehensive uses and gratifications model for studying the political impact of government conspi (open full item for complete abstract)

Bachelor of Science of Media Arts and Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2017, Media Arts and Studies

MOLOCH is a game about internal struggles between passive content consent and critical views in systems where digging deeper can lead to darker truths. A top-down 3D game with simple directional movement puzzles, MOLOCH places us behind a desk as a shift manager in a dystopian company. Throughout the game, the player will be confronted with the binary of efficiency vs morality. The game encourages us to increasingly hurry our managed workers, but is the company's goal and corporate approval worth the amoral work we force? Are we ok with the system's tactics aimed at keeping us complacent? MOLOCH takes inspiration from Fritz Lang's 1927 film Metropolis and from the German Expressionism art movement at-large. Increasing anxiety over the networked world's discordant relationships between humanity and the physical world and the rise of social inauthenticity and near endemic individual alienation highlight the intentions of MOLOCH (Klaas, 2016). Adapting a rich history of prior art is critical to the tonal and thematic success of MOLOCH. David Freeman, designer and writer, states that one of the keys to creating a rich world is through adding history (Freeman, 2003). Adding backstory to MOLOCH through ancillary materials, and injecting the sentiments of Metropolis facilitates a rich history. The precise adaptation necessary for analytical success spans visual and audial assets as well; without proper signifiers the tone of the game will be lost due to a lack of thematic cohesion. This aspect will be accomplished through continual examination and inspiration of prior art.

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2017, Journalism (Communication)

This thesis pertains to media coverage of Israel/Palestine, with emphasis on The New York Times, Israeli publication Haaretz, and BBC Online's coverage of the conflict in Gaza during the Summer of 2014. The thesis quantitatively delves into the material being studied, utilizing measures of bias, as well as indicators of peace journalism to accomplish the objective of thoroughly analyzing the 351 news stories sampled from the three publications at hand. The study employs eleven variables, six pertaining to news bias and five operationalized indicators of peace journalism. The thesis will argue that peace journalism is a partial yet powerful remedy for biased coverage. Although it is considered to be a form of advocacy journalism, it can, when translated onto the pages of conventional news outlets, shed objective light on even the direst and most intractable shades of conflict. The study found that The New York Times and BBC Online favored Palestinians in headlines and photographs, likely due to the dramatic devastation wrought upon Gaza. Haaretz was found to be more evenhanded, likely due to its market of Israelis and Jews throughout the world. BBC Online and Haaretz both relied heavily on official (military and government) sources, while The New York Times relied on experts. Measures of peace journalism were varied among the variables being analyzed.

Master of Fine Arts, University of Akron, 2016, Theatre Arts-Arts Administration

The purpose of this project is twofold: to describe Andy Warhol's self-promotion and marketing strategies within inter/VIEW magazine and then translate them into a social media strategy for artists today. The use of inter/VIEW magazine as a marketing tool by Warhol is new research. This deduction will be gathered from accounts of persons who worked directly with Warhol, within inter/VIEW magazine and images from the magazine itself. By reviewing Warhol's methodology within his use of inter/VIEW magazine as an inherent self-promotion and marketing tool, a social media strategy can be deduced and translated for artists to use within today's technological age.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2004, Communication

The media industries play a major role in the trend of globalization today. Western transnational media corporations (TNMCs) have been actively expanding their businesses around the world for maximized profits. China's accession to WTO in 2001 demonstrated further openness of the economy to international competition. This study aimed to examine Western TNMCs' risk and strategies in the Chinese media market after WTO in an attempt to provide insights into the global media giants' perceptions, positions, and plans regarding the market. International business theories highlighted the effect of a firm's external conditions on its strategy. Examination of Western TNMCs' strategic behavior in transitional and emerging markets revealed that their equity ownership differs by location as affected by the level of risk they perceive in the market. Based on its external conditions, a firm's perception of risk in terms of uncertainties about the market affects its control strategy in terms of equity ownership. Employing this innovative theoretical model, the study aimed to determine whether China's WTO entry would lead to Western TNMCs' lowered uncertainty perceptions and higher equity ownership in China as compared to before WTO, and a. The primary research method used in this study was interviews. A total of 15 informants from Western TNMCs and 17 from Chinese media organizations and government agencies constituted the final sample. Results of the study suggested that Western TNMCs' risk perceptions showed no major discontinuity in China's post-WTO era. In addition, their perceptions were basically consistent with the actual conditions of the Chinese media market, as well as those of the Chinese media professionals and policy makers. These findings reflect the Chinese government's gradualism strategy in economic reforms and development, and in regulating the media industries. In response to the risk they perceive in a long run, Western TNMCs have plans for increasing control. (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2006, Telecommunications (Communication)

During the war against Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) over 250,000 people were killed, and countless others were injured and lost loved ones. Almost half of the B&H population was forced from their homes. The ethnic map of the country was changed drastically and overall damage was estimated at US $100 billion. Experts agree that misuse of the media was largely responsible for the events that triggered the war and kept it going despite all attempts at peace. This study examines and follows the efforts of the international community to regulate the broadcast media environment in postwar B One of the greatest challenges for the international community in B&H was the elimination of hate language in the media. There was constant resistance from the local ethnocentric political parties in the establishment of the independent media regulatory body and implementation of new standards. The lack of a democratic heritage and the complex mix of cultures compounded the challenges facing the international community. This study uses internal documents, decisions and laws imposed by the OHR, first hand reports and communication from international experts who were involved in the establishment of the IMC and CRA. Evidence suggests the IMC was successful in the establishment of the fundamental principles for media regulation where previously no consistent principles existed. The IMC was also successful in licensing media outlets and in its transition to the CRA. The CRA achieved its goals of establishing the cooperation of broadcasters and the public. The CRA made significant progress in the protection of copyrights and creating a solid base for the development of a fair and competitive media environment. As a result, hate language has nearly vanished from the B&H media, although there still remains work to be done. Several questions remain, however. There needs to be a better understanding of the failure of the OBN to involve the B&H media experts in developing solutions to the med (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2005, Graduate School

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2024, Media and Communication

This study utilizes an experimental design to explore how different frames impact individuals' perceptions of Muslim women when portrayed in news coverage of protests from the Middle East and North Africa region. Specifically, this research investigates the influence of news media frames on U.S. public perceptions of Muslim women activists, focusing on the impact of the hijab to test various perspectives related to minorities, gender, and stereotypical representations. In addition to examining the effect of text (positive and negative frames) and visuals (no visuals, visuals featuring veiled Muslim women, and visuals of unveiled Muslim women) on perceptions, this study also analyzes the influence of the interaction effect of the text and visual frames. This dissertation employed a factorial design, utilizing Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) to conduct an online experiment. Participants were exposed to different news frames describing protests to assess their perceptions of Muslim women activists. One of the key findings of this study highlights the influence of Western-centric notions on perceptions of Muslims. Results demonstrated that positive text frames accompanied by visuals featuring unveiled women facilitated more positive implicit perceptions compared to negative frames. However, exposure to visuals featuring veiled women fostered more support toward Muslim women's protests compared to those exposed to unveiled visuals, regardless of whether the text frame is positive or negative. Additionally, results exhibited that preexisting stereotypes of oppression and victimization, along with interactions with Muslims, emerged as the most influential predictors in shaping perceptions. iv Based on the results, the author urges editors and journalists to carefully consider the goal of their coverage of protest news from the Middle East to ensure accurate and balanced portrayals that contribute to greater social inclusion, diversity, and equity in media discourse. The (open full item for complete abstract)

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Curriculum and Instruction

Child media use with young children has become a more common occurrence in daily life, with parents overseeing the child's media use. During the 2020-22 COVID-19 pandemic, as parents experienced higher levels of stress, child media use increased (Hartshorne et al., 2021). To frame parents' experience of managing children's media use during the pandemic, this study interviewed eight parents of children, ages 2-5 years, during the 2020-22 COVID-19 pandemic. Data was collected using semi-structured questions, and photo submissions from participants as prompts for in-depth exploration of the topic. Findings revealed parents engaged in three major parenting practices of evaluation, management, and observation in an iterative cycle to encourage healthy media habits. Within the practice of evaluation, they decided what media to encourage, restrict, and tolerate. To manage the media use, they set expectations, controlled content, and modeled media behaviors. Parents made changes to improve their child's media experiences by observing the child's reactions to the content, amounts of media, and devices used. Through the lens of Parent Development Theory (Mowder, 2005), it was noted that child media use supported the parent role of providing child safety, behavioral regulation, bonding experiences, and educational experiences. During the pandemic, child media use increased in part as a response to the reduction in resources such as childcare, playdates, and child-centered activities outside the home. In addition, parents found creative ways to adapt child media use to support their own needs for self-care and social support during the pandemic to avoid burnout and be resilient parents to their young children.

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2024, Music History

This dissertation examines the social contexts for music livestreams, in order to lay the groundwork for future studies of both livestreaming as a whole and individual case studies. No frameworks currently exist for analyzing music livestreams. Although the technologies of livestreaming have been evolving over the past few decades, there have been no organized or successful attempts to standardize the ways we understand and study this fast-growing medium for music performance. Chapter 1 provides basic definitions of livestreaming, and then emphasizes the framework of liveness, arguing that although livestreaming technologies developed relatively recently, the practice of transmitting and receiving live music has been developing since the late-nineteenth century. I examine livestreaming as a continuation of broadcast media wrapped up with conceptions of liveness that have been constantly transforming over the long twentieth century. Chapter 2 connects livestreaming with the social media platforms that have emerged in the past two decades. I also position livestreaming within discussions and anxieties surrounding attention and distraction in the context of digital media. In Chapter 3 the discussion of attention extends into the realm of joint attention, and the ways livestreaming engages our attentive capacities in groups to facilitate specific modalities of participation—observational, reactive, and generative. Finally, the conclusion pulls these frameworks together to demonstrate their use in an analysis of music livestreaming during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the patterns of behavior and audience engagement, conceptions of liveness during the pandemic, and the effects of these factors on the social aspects of live music.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2023, Communication

Perceived character depth is a concept relevant for understanding and predicting audience responses to narrative media, yet it has been largely unexplored in the field of media psychology. Through a careful review of diverse literatures, the current work offers a formal conceptualization of character depth as the extent to which a character's textual exposition evokes a detailed and multi-faceted mental conception of a character's psyche, behavior, and experience. After devising a series of items to measure character depth, this work then presents a series of experimental studies designed to test various aspects of validity of the proposed measurement scale and to test a causal path model of the relationship between character depth and processes specified by affective disposition theory (see Zillmann, 2000). Study 1 uses a known-groups approach and confirmatory factor analysis to test the predictive validity and measurement model of a 20-item proposed perceived character depth scale. Selective item retention results in a 6-item scale with excellent model fit. Studies 2 and 3 lend additional support to the validity of this 6-item scale's measurement model through tests of the scale in two different narrative contexts, both of which result in excellent model fit. Across Studies 1-3, evidence emerges of the convergent and discriminant validity of the scale in relation to other character perception variables. Study 4 applies this new measure in a 2 X 3 between-subjects experimental design that manipulates both character depth and character moral behavior independently. Results show that character depth impacts disposition formation and anticipatory responses above and beyond audience reactions to moral behavior. This finding has important theoretical implications for affective disposition theory (Zillmann, 2000), indicating that perceived character depth may serve as an additional predictor of disposition formation not specified in the original theory. Future research d (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2022, Educational Leadership

Youth media production programs offer powerful opportunities for students and school communities. However, the benefits and outcomes of these production programs are not always clear, resulting in their possible exclusion from school curricula. This study is an opportunity to deeply examine media production programs and the benefits they produce for students and school communities. Specifically, I examine ways that student participation in a media production curriculum is emancipatory for them. I also explore the ways that student participation provides opportunities for students to produce counter-stories against dominant narratives related to young people. The main question driving this critical narrative inquiry is: How does youth media production curriculum impact participants' world view? Several sub questions frame the research. First, what benefits exist from a curriculum tied directly to media production? Second, to what extent does participation in a media production course affect students' development in areas such as critical thinking, empathy, and problem solving? Third, in what ways does participation in a media production curriculum affect identity development and sense of self? Finally, in what ways does participation in a media production course connect and/or translate to other disciplines/arenas? Narrative inquiry is utilized to explore these questions. Methods consist of interviews with former participants in a youth media production program. Three themes developed stemmed from the data analysis: visual media production as a creative release, visual media production as democratic practice, and visual media production as community builder. I conclude that youth media production programs have several benefits for students and should play a larger role in school curricula for both students and educators.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2022, English

More Than Reading: Narrative, Medial Frames, and Digital Media in the Contemporary Novel explores the narrative effects of medial experimentation in contemporary American and British novels. This project argues that the production and reception of many recent novels are influenced by a range of forms and practices common in digital media, and that these influences have a profound impact on contemporary storytelling techniques. Through analyses of novels by Kate Atkinson, Salvador Plascencia, Steve Tomasula, and Mark Z. Danielewski, I consider how (sometimes subtle) shifts in authors' use of media is changing the way that the novel form operates, reflecting audiences' familiarity with new media even as the novel remains a vital literary form in the twenty-first century. In order to study these issues, I introduce the new analytical category of the medial frame, a particular type of social frame used to identify and describe the conventionalized rules and expectations that readers apply to specific uses of media. Medial frames, developed from a diverse set of linguistic and phenomenological approaches, are defined as social contexts that pair technological materials with the wealth of conventions that govern how those materials are used as part of communicative acts. Medial frames can be employed as interpretive tools to analyze how a text's use of medial technologies (e.g., printed text, images and color, page layout, paratextual materials) prompts audiences to apply certain reception practices over others. I show how medial frames are particularly suited to examining the complex medial environment of twenty-first-century storytelling, in which creators often use a diversity of technologies to communicate with audiences. The print novels of this era ask readers to adopt surprising medial frames, such that persuasive interpretations of these texts are only available to those who are prepared (whether implicitly or self-consciously) to adopt and adapt digital and (open full item for complete abstract)