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open access

The Good and the Bad Sides of the Protest: Framing Abortion Rights Protests in Photojournalism

Description: In both Mexico and the U.S., abortion rights protests have been taking place in recent years, but while Mexico is moving forward with the legalization of abortion, the U.S. is going in the opposite direction with the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Through framing, journalists select salient information, shaping audiences' understandings of social movements. The protest paradigm suggests that due to journalistic norms and routines, journalists tend to focus on disruptive acts, which can stigmatize … more
Date: July 2023
Creator: Díaz González Vázquez, Greta

Narrative Solutions to Climate Change

Description: Climate change is one of the preeminent problems facing humanity today. It has the potential to cause incalculable damages, loss of life and property, and can create an almost unlivable habitat for humans on this planet. Governments need to act in order to stop future climate harms, but the electorate must be literate in the subject in order to do so. One of the jobs of the media is to inform the public, and so it is imperative that the media find a way to accurately inform the U.S. electorate … more
Date: December 2022
Creator: Pezzulli, Katherine Keller
open access

A Psychoanalytic Study of Occupational Stress and Burnout among Public Relations Practitioners

Description: Unfavorable opinions and images of the public relations industry have persisted for decades, and the industry still struggles to deal with them. Additionally, it is a demanding profession that is expected to grow faster than average but struggles to retain talent. Public relations research has also predominantly focused on how nonpractitioners perceive public relations. The present study psychoanalytically analyzed two movies with cinematic representations of public relations practitioners and … more
Date: August 2022
Creator: Martinez, Tiffany Adriana
open access

Structural Affordances and Framing Methods in Animal Rescue Facebook Posts

Description: The overpopulation of domestic animals has become an ongoing problem across the United States. Approximately 1.5 million animals are being euthanized in the United States every year. In fact, shelters euthanize about 23 % of the animals they take in. However, the euthanasia rate would be much greater without animal rescues, which are different than animal shelters. Animal rescues are unique from shelters because they are not government-funded, and they do not usually have a physical location. B… more
Date: August 2022
Creator: Muns, Karan Elizabeth

Not What "Almost Famous" Made It Out to Be: Gendered Harassment of Female Music Journalists

Description: As with women journalists in other male-dominated fields, female music writers have long endured gendered harassment. In the newsroom, this sexist treatment is foisted upon female music journalists by their male editors and colleagues; in the outside world, it often occurs at the hands of male sources, readers, and online trolls. Unfortunately, the victims of such abuse are frequently left to cope with it alone, and many report that their mental health suffers in the process. Some may even ulti… more
Date: May 2022
Creator: Carter, Simone

Perceptions of Purity Messaging on Women and Secular Society

Description: Purity culture was a movement created by evangelical Christian organizations in the United States and backed by marketing campaigns, media, churches, and sex education beginning in the 1990s. This movement was founded on the idea that young men and women should remain abstinent before marriage, thereby remaining in a state of "purity" for their future spouse. In purity culture messaging, women were positioned as sexual gatekeepers while men were framed as having little or no control over their … more
Date: May 2021
Creator: Hurd, Madison
open access

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: Media Coverage of Age, Gender, and Ethnicity in the 116th Congress

Description: This study focuses on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the U.S. Representative for New York's 14th Congressional District, and how news media portray her based on her gender, age, and ethnicity, which still play essential roles in the political system in the United States. The analysis of previous academic research, newspaper articles from the New York Times and the Washington Post (June 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019) and framing and feminist theories are used to evaluate coverage of Alexandria Ocasio-Cort… more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Reyes, Blanca Elena
open access

A Comparative Analysis of Saudi and U.S. Online Newspapers' Framing of Saudi Women's Issues: Content Analysis of Newspaper Coverage Before and After Saudi Vision 2030

Description: Previous research on framing has proved its strong effects on the social perception and political preferences of individuals. Therefore, the aim of this research is to explore how Saudi women's issues have been framed in a sample of United States and Saudi newspapers. Saudi Vision 2030 is the post-oil plan for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that was announced on April 25, 2016. The sample of this thesis was 300 news stories from eight newspapers. The U.S. newspapers were the New York Times, the Wa… more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Dawshi, Norah

Queer in Fandom: A Uses and Gratifications Analysis of the Katy Perry Fan Community on Twitter

Description: Online fandom communities exist as a hub of subcultural construction for people across the globe. For queer people, fandom represents a space to safely converge over mutual interests. Previous research has focused on queer fans and popular music fans independently, often taking a pathological approach. This study qualitatively examines queer participants in the Katy Perry fandom through surveys and one-on-one interviews. The theoretical backbone of the study is built around uses and gratificati… more
Date: December 2020
Creator: Poteet, Maddison Jade
open access

Transgender in India: A Semiotic and Reception Analysis of Bollywood Movies

Description: The transgender community in India, commonly known as hijras, consists of people who were born as males but address themselves as females. They have been considered as the third gender in India for millennia and have had specific religious and sociocultural values and roles, but are forced to live in shadows in this day and age. Isolation of this community is also reflected in the way transgender characters are represented in Indian entertainment media. The study analyses two transgender themed… more
Date: May 2020
Creator: Shewade, Ruchi Ravi

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
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

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
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
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
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

Transgender Representation in Mainstream Advertising

Description: This study focuses on the transgender community's presence and portrayal in advertisements that reach a broad, mainstream audience base. Through a mixed-methods use of focus groups and qualitative content analysis, the content, context, and framings of ads between the years 2015 and 2018 are explored to illustrate current portrayals of the trans community and how the industry is approaching this subcultural group. Its findings contribute to advertising research by exploring curre… more
Access: Restricted to UNT Community Members. Login required if off-campus.
Date: May 2019
Creator: Maxwell, Bailey
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
open access

Riding the Wave: How the Media Shapes South Korean Concepts of Beauty

Description: This thesis features a qualitative analysis of eight Korean media products — both fiction and nonfiction. For many years, South Korea (hereafter also called Korea) has been called the "world's plastic surgery capital" by many publications, such as Business Insider and The New Yorker. Although Business Insider considers the United States the "vainest country in the world," the numbers of cosmetic surgeries, percentage wise, per person in Korea still outnumber those in the United States, with 20 … more
Date: May 2018
Creator: Streng, Catherine Ann
open access

Who is Really in Charge Here: An Exploration of the Formation and Empowerment of Opinion Leaders in a Reddit Gaming Community

Description: In an attempt to shed light on the further sophistication of opinion leadership in online communities, this study examined the forces and structures that affect their formation in the League of Legends subreddit. By investigating what users thought about the various types of individuals with which the communicate, the researcher hoped to begin to understand and record how those forces work bother on this particular subreddit and in mass media beyond. Opinion leadership continues to be an integr… more
Date: December 2017
Creator: Carter, Clinton Chase
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)
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"
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.
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