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open access

Act Like a Punk, Sing Like a Feminist: A Longitudinal Content Analysis of Feminist Themes in Punk Rock Song Lyrics, 1970-2009

Description: Punk rock music has long been labeled sexist as copious media-generated accounts and reports of the genre concentrate on male artists, hyper-masculine performances, and lyrics considered to be aggressive, sexist, and misogynist. However, scholars have rarely examined punk rock music longitudinally, focusing heavily on 1980s and 1990s manifestations of the genre. Furthermore, few systematic content analyses of feminist themes in punk rock song lyrics have been conducted. The present research is … more
Date: May 2015
Creator: Levine, Lauren E.
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Amarillo Globe-News: How Did Gene Howe and the Globe-News Help Guide Amarillo, Texas through the Dust Bowl and Great Depression?

Description: For many years newspapers were locally owned by editors and publishers. However, today many are run by corporations from out of state. As a result, many communities have lost the personal relationship between the family owned publication and the community. Gene Howe, who served as editor, publisher and columnist of the Amarillo Globe-News from 1926 until his death in 1952, believed the community was where the focus should be and the newspaper should do all that it can to help their readers. Des… more
Date: May 2015
Creator: Hasman, Gregory R. C.
Partner: UNT Libraries

Analysis of Regional Magazine Content and Engagement on Twitter

Description: This two-part mixed-methods study analyzed the Twitter activity of two regional magazines – D Magazine and Texas Monthly – and how social media editors implement strategies to maintain journalistic integrity (news values, topics, and ethical standards) while increasing engagement.
Access: Restricted to UNT Community Members. Login required if off-campus.
Date: December 2019
Creator: Higgins, Claire Corinne
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

And the Stereotype Award Goes to...: A Comparative Analysis of Directors using African American Stereotypes in Film

Description: This study examines African American stereotypes in film. I studied six directors, Kathryn Bigelow, Spike Lee, the Russo Brothers, Ryan Coogler, Tate Taylor, and Dee Rees; and six films Detroit, BlacKkKlansman, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Help, and Mudbound. Using the framework of critical race theory and auteur theory, I compared the common themes between the films and directors. The main purpose of my study is to see if White or Black directors predominantly used African American… more
Date: December 2019
Creator: Young, Kelcei
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

The Castle/Nikki Heat Phenomenon: A Detailed Examination of Female Representation in Entertainment Media

Description: As entertainment reflects a culture's ideology, it is important for researchers to study its messages and subsequently its potential meanings. Entertainment has the power to inform and persuade, creating models for behavior with which the public interacts. The entertainment texts for the purpose of this study are the Castle television series and the Nikki Heat novels. Together, they create a unique multi-layer fictional world. By using postmodern, feminist, communication, and entertainment theo… more
Date: December 2016
Creator: Skinner, Katharine Virginia
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Comparing Media Usage of Binary and Non-Binary Transgender Individuals when Discovering and Describing Gender Identity

Description: This study was conducted through in-depth interviews to examine potential differences between binary-aligned transgender individuals and non-binary individuals in regards to media usage when learning about, articulating, and explaining their gender identity. Results showed numerous differences between transgender people with binary-aligned and non-binary gender identifications in regards to social media preferences and differences in perceived media importance and effects. Additional informatio… more
Date: May 2017
Creator: Laljer, David "Jessie"
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Creating Captain America: a Frame Analysis of the Pat Tillman Epic

Description: Pat Tillman—an Arizona Cardinals player who sacrificed everything to serve his country but died in Afghanistan—was initially touted as a true American hero who was killed by enemy fire. In reality, however, the Tillman narrative was based on nothing but military propaganda. This research focused on how mainstream U.S. newspapers used news frames, overall story tone, and news sources before and after the official acknowledgement of the true cause of Tillman's death as fratricide. As hypothesized… more
Date: May 2013
Creator: DeWalt, Christina A. Childs
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

A Cross-cultural Textual Analysis of Western and South Korean Newspaper Coverage of North Korean Women Defectors and Victims of Human Trafficking

Description: Trafficking women for sexual abuse has been a serious concern worldwide, particularly over the last two decades. The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimated that illicit profits of human trafficking may be as high as $32 billion. However, the international media community has scarcely focused on North Korean women defectors and victims of human trafficking, despite the severity of the issue. More than two million North Koreans, predominantly women, have crossed borders to enter China … more
Date: May 2014
Creator: Chong, Miyoung
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Discovering Solutions: How are Journalists Applying Solutions Journalism to Change the Way News is Reported and What Do They Hope to Accomplish?

Description: Solutions journalism, rigorous reporting on responses to social problems, has gained great traction in the last decade. Using positive psychology theory, also known as the theory of well-being, this qualitative study examines the impact of reporting while using solutions journalism techniques. Applying the five pillars of positive psychology theory: positive emotion, engagement, positive relationships, meaning and accomplishment (PERMA), this study used interviews and content analysis to invest… more
Date: December 2018
Creator: Porter, Ashley Elizabeth
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Down Syndrome and Self-esteem: the Media's Portrayal of Self-esteem in Characters Who Have Down Syndrome

Description: Representations of people with a developmental disability are virtually not covered in the media. Although there is little coverage of people with developmental disabilities in the media, there are a few entertainment television characters who have Down syndrome and are represented in the media. This study will take a look at the history of how people with disabilities were represented in the media and examine how two television characters with Down syndrome were portrayed on the shows by exami… more
Date: December 2012
Creator: Gee, Courtney
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Evaluating the Efficacy of Engagement Journalism in Local News: An Ethnographic Study of the Dallas Morning News

Description: The Dallas Morning News is a leader in using engagement journalism to increase and retain digital subscribers. This ethnography examined the efficacy of the engagement journalism work by the News in rebuilding trust and forming relationships with its audience. This research is exceptionally timely as more newsrooms are erecting paywalls to their content and asking their audiences to offer monetary support in exchange for greater access and engagement by journalists. This work is examined throug… more
Date: May 2019
Creator: Wise, Hannah Marie
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Hip-hop’s Tanning of a Postmodern America: a Longitudinal Content Analysis of Paradoxical Juxtapositions of Oppositional Identities Within Us Rap Song Lyrics, 1980-2013

Description: A longitudinal content analysis of top-chart hip-hop songs’ lyrics produced between 1980 and 2013 was conducted to investigate the degree and progression of the paradoxical juxtaposition, or postmodern hybridity, of oppositional modernist identities in terms of race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, sexuality, and economic lifestyle, in addition to the longitudinal diversification of artist’s race and gender demographics. Demographically, the percentage of non-African-American artists inc… more
Date: May 2014
Creator: Gadley, Shawn A.
Partner: UNT Libraries

Is it Really a Different World? Colorism Then and Now in Black Sitcoms

Description: This study focuses on dark-skinned, Black women's representation in Black sitcoms. Through a mixed-methods use of a comparative textual analysis and focus group, the content and context of episodes from A Different World and Dear White People are explored to illustrate portrayals of dark-skinned, Black women and how these portrayals affect dark-skinned, Black women's self-esteem. Its findings contribute to colorism research by exploring colorism in Black sitcoms. Because this topic is largely u… more
Access: Restricted to UNT Community Members. Login required if off-campus.
Date: December 2019
Creator: Johnson, Jasmine Cherese
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

King of the News: An Agenda-Setting Approach to the John Oliver Effect

Description: Journalists have insisted that John Oliver has inspired a new kind of journalism. They argue that Oliver's show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver has inspired real-world action, a phenomenon journalists have called the "John Oliver Effect." Oliver, a comedian, refuses these claims. This thesis is the result of in-depth research into journalists' claims through the lens of agenda-setting. By conducting a qualitative content analysis, I evaluated the message characteristics of framing devices us… more
Date: August 2017
Creator: Ryan, Kevin (Journalist)
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

En La Frontera Entre La Vida Y La Muerte: a Study of Women Reporters on the Us–mexico Border

Description: In 2008 Ciudad Juarez erupted in a violent drug war. The Sinaloa Cartel and Juarez Cartel were in a battle for the lucrative drug route used to smuggle drugs into the United States, while President Felipe Calderon was waging his own war against all the drug cartels. During the height of the violence women journalists emerged on the front lines to tell the stories of Juarez. They risked their lives and dared to tell a story that others refused to. This mixed-method study examines frames used mos… more
Date: May 2014
Creator: Guzman, Samantha
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

“Madness” in the Media: How Can Print Journalists Better Report on Mental Illnesses?

Description: Stereo types and stigmas of individuals with mental illnesses have proved to be a major roadblock preventing these individuals from seeking help. The news media, despite having a responsibility to accurately inform the public, has played a significant role in portraying individuals with mental illness as violent, unpredictable, dangerous, and unfit to live with the rest of “normal” society. This happens through the words journalists choose to use and the information they choose in included, and… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Cousineau, Anna Desiree
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

The Masculinity Masquerade: the Portrayal of Men in Modern Advertising

Description: The depiction of gender in advertising is a topic of continuous discussion and research. The present study adds to past findings with an updated look at how men are represented in U.S. advertising media and the real effects these portrayals have on the male population under the theoretical framework of hegemony and social cognitive theory. This research is triangulated with a textual analysis of the ads found in the March 2013 editions of four popular print publications and three focus group se… more
Date: August 2013
Creator: Harper, Savannah
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Media and Corporate Social Responsibility: How Leading Business Magazines Frame a Controversial Concept

Description: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is an emerging concept that continues to play a controversial role in the business world. Different CSR theories and ethical foundations inform different approaches to embedding socially responsible behavior into today's business functions. As technology, globalization, and economic challenges change the corporate world, the meaning and application of CSR also changes. While no empirical evidence of CSR's impact on performance exists, many corporations oper… more
Date: August 2013
Creator: Riddell, Brad
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

News Framing and Social Media Responses to the Release of Boko Haram Female Captives

Description: This qualitative study sheds light on the framing of the sexual abuse of the Boko Haram's female captives sent to the internally displaced persons (IDP) camps and analyzes emotional themes from tweets focusing on the release of the Boko Haram's female victims, the Chibok girls. Six articles were chosen from BBC (a British news source), Punch (a Nigerian news source), and the New York Times (an American news source) to reveal the frames. In addition, 118 tweets were examined to address emotional… more
Date: May 2019
Creator: Omokore, Joy Oluwadamilola
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

The Persuasive Power of Ridicule: A Critical Rhetorical Analysis of Gender and Humor in U.S. Sitcoms

Description: The serious investigation of humor's function in society is an emerging area of research in critical humor studies, a "negative" subsect of the extensive and "positive" research that assumes humor's goodness. Using Michael Billig's theory of ridicule as a framework, this study explored how humor operated to discipline characters who broke social norms or allowed characters to rebel against those norms. Layering this with gender performative theory, the study also investigated how different male… more
Date: May 2017
Creator: Waters, Leah E.
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Portrayal of Race by Public and Private University Newspapers

Description: This study investigated how two college newspapers cover race and how the papers employed racial stereotypes when describing sources. One of newspapers is a student-produced paper at a private university. The other is a student-produced newspaper at a public university. The study conducted content analyses of front-page news stories in both college newspapers. The sources in the story were analyzed for racial stereotypes. Stereotypes were identified based on frames used in modern racism researc… more
Date: December 2010
Creator: Hayton, Tasha
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Predicting Burnout In High-school Journalism Teachers: An Exploratory Study

Description: This research investigated high-school journalism educators’ use and teaching of convergence technology, as well as their self-efficacy, job satisfaction, job dissatisfaction, and burnout. In general, instructions and uses of multimedia tools were not as prevalent as traditional-journalism instructions and tools. One-third of the teachers expressed moderate or strong levels of burnout in terms of their emotional exhaustion. Although both job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction were strong pred… more
Date: December 2011
Creator: Sparling, Gretchen B.
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Press Freedom in Saudi Arabia War Reporting: A Case Study of the Gulf and Yemen Wars

Description: This study examined press freedom in Saudi Arabia coverage in two study periods, which are the Gulf and Yemen wars. Six Saudi newspapers, which represent Saudi regions, have been content analyzed. They are: Al Riyadh, Al Yaum, Al Nadwah, Mecca, Okaz, and Al Jazirah. The major questions are: What are the most salient issues Saudi newspapers dealt with in their editorials during the study period? What are the differences between the two periods of study? And what are the differences between the e… more
Date: December 2019
Creator: Huraysi, Mohammed
Partner: UNT Libraries
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