Jeremy Harris Lipschultz

Elderly Americans and the Internet: E-Mail, TV News, Information and Entertainment Websites.

Older Americans, like other groups, vary in their use of the Internet. The participants for this study—elderly computer users from a Midwestern mid-size sample—used e-mail and considered it the most important Internet function. It was common for them to use e-mail with family and friends on a regular, if not daily, basis. When this group of older people did surf the Web, they were more likely to seek information about their special interests rather than visiting mass media sites. They were most likely to use Google.com or Yahoo.com to find sites dealing with weather, health, games, jokes, and entertainment. Additionally, some were interested in online shopping and auctions. The results of this exploratory study suggest the need for radio and television stationss websites to serve as a portal through which elderly users may access information they want and need.

Mass media and the death penalty: Social construction of three Nebraska executions

This research analyzes local TV news coverage of three Nebraska executions in the 1990s, the first in the state since 1959. The three Nebraska executions allow us to see mass media coverage of the death penalty from four perspectives: 1) media organization routines, journalistic beliefs, and how source selection affected the content; 2) justice was portrayed through a consonant set of social symbols; 3) the public support for the death penalty in this country may have led journalists to avoid tough questioning of public officials; 4) the resulting coverage was a social construction of reality that might influence future public opinion. TV news reports emphasized the carnival‐like atmosphere at the state penitentiary during two of the three executions.

Mass Media, An Aging Population, and the Baby Boomers

Contents: E. Palmore, Foreword. Preface. Introduction to Mass Media, Aging Americans, and Baby Boomers. Theory and Research on Communication and Gerontology. Radio-Television News and the Elderly. Print Media and the Elderly. Entertainment Media. Advertising, Public Relations, and Advocacy. Internet and New Media. Health and Sexual Media Content. Political Issues of Media and Gerontology. Aging Americans, Mass Media, and the Future.

Free expression in the age of the internet : social and legal boundaries

* List of Illustrations * Preface * List of Acronyms * 1. Social Communication Theory of Free Expression: Politics and the Internet * The Internet as a Vehicle for Understanding Free Expression * The Boundaries of Free Expression * The Internet as Print and Broadcast * Political Considerations of Internet Regulation * Political Considerations in Understanding Free Expression * The Trouble with Traditional Legal Thinking * The Role of Social Theories in Understanding Free Expression * The Challenge to the Communications Decency Act: Reno v. ACLU * The Implications for Free Expression * Focusing Social Understanding of Free Expression * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 2. A Historical Look at Traditional Legal Thought on Free Expression * Common-Law Approaches * Prior Restraint * Colonial Influences * Conduct and Other Forms of Free Expression * Constitutional Impact * Twentieth-Century Approaches * Emergence of the Marketplace of Ideas * Criticisms of the Marketplace of Ideas * Calls for Social Responsibility * Other Approaches * First Amendment Implications * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 3. Broadcast Versus Print Models of Free Expression * Public Interest, Convenience, and Necessity * Spectrum Scarcity * Fiduciary Responsibilities and Licensing * Zoning Content * The Politics of Regulation * Regulation of Fairness * Electoral Considerations * Pornography, Obscenity, and Indecency * TRAC and the Criticisms of the Distinctions * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 4. Normative Legal Versus Social Theory Approaches to Free Expression * Normative Versus Social Thought * Libel Laws * Free Expression as the Product of Human Behavior * Social Constraints * Persuasion, Propaganda, and Public Opinion * Research Limitations * Political and Economic Considerations * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 5. Reno v. ACLU: A Legal Test in the Age of the Internet * The Facts of the Case * The Legal Issues * The Reasoning of the Court * The Decision of the Court * Implications for the Future of Internet Regulation * Postscript * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 6. The Drudge Report and the Clinton Scandal: A Case Study in Internet Content * Political Considerations * The Nature of the Report * Into the Public Limelight * The Impact of Free Expression in a Mediated World * Epilogue to the Drudge Story * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 7. A Survey of the Range of Internet Content * Corporate Media Sites * Educational Sites * Government Sites * Private and Other Sites * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 8. E-mail, Listservs, and Other Personal Forms of Free Expression * What Is Known About E-mail as Communication * Interest Groups in Communication * Personal Forms of Free Expression * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 9. The Special Case of Invasion of Privacy * The Law of Privacy * Access to Information * Privacy as a Social Value * Privacy in an Electronic Age * Ethical and Social Constraints * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 10. Property and Commercial Rights in a Digital Age * Copyright Considerations * Trademark Issues * Patents * Fair Use * Commercial Speech * The Microsoft Case * Other Business Issues * Ethical and Social Constraints * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 11. Comparative International Issues * National Limitations of Law * International Legal Concerns * Cross-Cultural Considerations of Social Constraints * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * 12. Toward Thinking About Free Expression in a Digital Age * Social Communication Theory Revisited * Social, Political, and Economic Boundaries * Beyond the Internet * The Future of Digital Communication * Chapter Summary * Discussion Questions * Glossary * Appendices * References * Author Index * Subject Index

Organizing the Baby Boomer Construct: An Exploration of Marketing, Social Systems, and Culture.

Baby boomer trends are applied in the development of a conceptual framework that offers a social systems and cultural model for future studies. While there has been considerable recent attention paid to baby boomers, the studies lack a coherent theoretical base that would allow for more advanced and continuing research. Aging baby boomers heading into retirement present excellent research opportunities for scholars.

Framing Terror: Violence, Social Conflict, and the “War on Terror”

This qualitative study explores the use of the term “war on terror” by the Bush administration, the framing of news stories about terror and terrorism, and the social construction of reality about the war. News transcripts from the ABC, CBS, and NBC network evening newscasts were content analyzed to identify dominant themes from a total of 966 stories in the first 3 years following the 9/11 attack. The findings suggested that terrorism dominated news coverage during the period under study. George W. Bush presumably adopted the phrase “war on terror” as a mechanism to build support for administration policies, and television news coverage of the war appeared to utilize myth-making through acceptance of this political rhetoric. The phrasing was sometimes used as a shorthand device to summarize a wide range of complex issues and events. The three television networks studied here made associations and accepted those of political elites.

Local Television Coverage of a Mall Shooting: Separating Facts From Fiction in Breaking News

Local TV news emphasizes the earliest stage of crimes because “breaking news” is fresh, dramatic and visual. A qualitative analysis was conducted using a comprehensive set of recordings of the first three-and-a-half hours of local television news coverage in Omaha, Nebraska. This study identified a series of ongoing issues that have important implications for newsroom decision-makers. Local television news used charged and dramatic language, such as that shooting victims were “fighting for their lives.” Reporters and news managers find themselves in the middle of a struggle between two options: remaining a distant and objective observer of events, or connecting with the emotion felt by viewers.

Media Storytelling, Curriculum, and the Next 100 Years

Journalism as an academic field in the United States has frequently changed and grown through new professions and new industries coming under its umbrella (sometimes but not always driven by technological and/or economic changes) and academic developments such as cultural studies and media studies. But journalism is still rooted in good storytelling, and social scientific and other academic approaches are, and should be, oriented toward developing, testing, and refining theory. Educators, researchers, and practitioners must collaborate more.

Radio general managers and news directors in the United States: A descriptive analysis

A national survey of radio station general managers and news directors explored their demographic characteristics and stands on social issues. News directors’ support for a national health care program, their lack of support for unregulated business, their lack of trust in private enterprise to look out for the workers’ welfare, and their less negative view of labor unions may be explained through their own experience, as well as those of their newsroom employees.

A Comparison of Trial Lawyer and News Reporter Attitudes about Courthouse Communication

Courthouse reporters and trial lawyers share views of the importance of cooperation to promote solid coverage of the courts. Q-method reveals that news reporters who cover courts do not hold attitude patterns different from their lawyer sources about their relationships in the news-gathering process. Reporters can predict the perceptions of lawyers, and vice versa. The relationship is symbiotic.