Young Children’s Positive and Negative Parasocial Relationships with Media Characters

There is a scarcity of research on how young children form short- and long-term emotional connections with popular media characters. Preexisting research on young children’s parasocial relationships (PSR) with media personae has traditionally operationally defined PSR exclusively in terms of friendship and focused on television characters. However, a growing body of research suggests the need for a wider survey of children’s media platforms. Scholarship also actually points to two distinct constructs of PSR: positive PSR (friendly feelings or amicability) and negative PSR (unfriendly feelings or antipathy). This study engaged 88 children ages 5–7 in open- and closed-ended questions designed to measure both positive and negative PSR. Our research reveals a more nuanced understanding of young children’s PSR.     

Conversing Ethics in India’s News Media

This paper identifies the significant ethical challenges expressed by journalists and editors working in media companies in the city of Hyderabad, India. Keeping those dilemmas and challenges in mind, the authors propose economist and Noble laureate Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach as a theoretical outline for the development of future journalism ethics curricula. The major challenges described by the journalists and editors were cross-media ownership, which fosters a political economy focused on revenue generation rather than journalism for public good; problems with the publication of inaccurate information, which are now precipitated by the omnipresence of social media; and a culture of “democratic deficit” where journalists find it increasingly difficult to practice journalism safely and to report about poverty, corruption, crime, environment, caste, and gender. The specific knowledge systems from Sen’s capabilities approach suggested for integration are the study and coverage of injustices in a democratic society; the focus on whether people have flourishing lives that give them the opportunities, freedoms, and choices they need; and economic and political freedoms that give journalists an understanding and appreciation for reporting on inequality and strengthening democratic institutions.     

Exploring the Influence of Parasocial Relationships and Experiences on Radio Listeners’ Consumer Behaviors

The purpose of the present study was to explore the influence of radio listener experiences on radio listening behaviors, consumer perceptions and behaviors, and social media involvement. A national sample of listeners (N = 2,700) from a variety of small, medium, and large designated market areas (N = 9) throughout the United States revealed the presence of parasocial relationships (PSRs) and experiences of parasocial interaction (EPSI) with local and nationally syndicated radio personalities. Both PSRs and EPSI predicted radio listening, positive perceptions about, recall of, and purchasing of the brands, products, and services recommended by listeners’ favorite radio personalities. Results also show that PSRs and EPSI predicted listeners’ involvement with social media platforms.     

Sex in College Relationships: The Role Television Plays in Emerging Adults’ Sexual Expectations in Relationships

The purpose of this study was to determine whether emerging adults use relationship television to form their expectations for sexual interaction in romantic relationships. Considering emerging adulthood is a unique period of development providing opportunities to experiment with adult identities, and relationship television contains multiple consistent messages about gender roles in sexual relationships, we questioned whether emerging adults’ relationship television viewing may be related to their sexual expectations in relationships. Our findings indicated women's relationship television viewing was associated with expecting more sexual interaction in their relationship. Men's sexual expectations were moderated by perceived realism. Men who watched more relationship television, and perceived that television to be less realistic, reported expecting less frequent sexual interaction.     

What’s in a Word: Coming to Terms With Reference

Information literacy has gained ascendency in the reference world to the detriment of the practice of reference librarianship itself. Libraries seem more interested in having librarians teach with technology than in having them engage in thoughtful reference work. Major library associations seem more interested in touting the benefits of information literacy than in supporting traditional reference work, and they define reference in overly simplistic, tautological terms as the practice of answering reference questions rather than attributing to it the subtlety and expertise that make it so valuable. These associations need to rethink the hierarchy and give reference its due.     

Media Management Tools: UK Broadcast Media Executives’ Perspective

The UK broadcast media landscape provides an interesting context to understand and explore the competitive dynamics of media organizations. As an industry characterized by uncertainty and turbulence, this article considers the process by which broadcast media organizations develop their strategies and the type of analytical tools that they use to underpin this process. This article presents the findings of a survey of UK broadcast media executives and their views on the outlook for the UK media industry; the influence that the competitive environment has on developing media strategy; and the management tools that they use and their levels of satisfaction with these tools. It concludes that UK broadcast media is a competitive and turbulent environment, and that media strategy is developed using a number of media management tools that have varying degrees of success in terms of helping broadcast media executives to manage their media organizations in uncertain and complex conditions.     

Navigating OER: The Library’s Role in Bringing OER to Campus

In 2014, three librarians at the University of San Diego came together to explore open educational resources (OER). Coming from both technical services and digital collections, we were well-versed in the economic challenges facing today’s libraries. In order to formulate the approach that would work best for our campus, we first had to educate ourselves on the past, present, and possible future of the Open Access movement. While traditionally Open Access has focused on serials, OER offer the opportunity to expand its benefits to other formats. This article examines opportunities and tensions surrounding OER, as well as highlighting major players on the OER landscape. Our efforts began with a focus group for faculty to assess their own knowledge of and opinions on OER. After establishing a stipend budget, we sent out a call for proposals to faculty who were interested in participating in the Copley OER Initiative.     

Connecting Past to Future Needs: Nursing Faculty and Librarian Collaboration to Support Students’ Academic Success

The article illustrates the evolution of a research assignment in an undergraduate nursing course and the development of the information literacy session. The authors show how, through a variety of strategies, they were able to retain research and writing rigor and at the same time, decrease research stress in the students. Through feedback from students, observations, and analysis of the research articles, the authors were able to think critically on how and what to teach the students. The article supports the existing literature on research stress in nursing students and offers a model on how nursing faculty and librarians can collaborate to support students’ academic success.     

Measuring Issue-specific and Generic Frames in the Media’s Coverage of the Steroids Issue in Baseball

This study explored frames in the coverage of the steroids issue in baseball through a content analysis of traditional and new media. Using issue-specific and generic frames, it proposed a hybrid measurement tool that combines both approaches. Findings of the principal component analysis indicate the media framed the steroids issue primarily in terms of conflict and policy. Significant differences emerged between traditional and new media, on the one hand, and between the news and sports media, on the other. Besides these frames, the media also presented the steroids story as a public opinion and morality issue, using organizational officials, the public, and the media to convey these frames.     

Amazon’s Day One in China: The Role of Amazon’s Kindle in China

After the long-standing effort and negotiations, Amazon finally released its two Kindle products in China since it entered China 9 years ago. Some say Kindle as it plays as a Catfish would stir up China’s e-book reading market, while the others say Kindle has missed the best timing to enter the market. The article describes the Kindle’s current status in China digital publishing arena, exploring the consistent Amazon strategies in China e-commerce market, and analyzing its threats and opportunities coming from four aspects in the long run, policy, content, willingness-to-pay and competition.     

Muslim Women’s Use of Internet Media in the Process of Acculturation in the United States

This study examines how Muslim women use Internet-based media in the process of acculturation in the United States. Grounded theory methodology (Glaser, 1992) and Sam and Berry’s (2006) model of acculturation were used as theoretical and analytical frameworks. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 Muslim women to learn about their media use and experiences in forming and maintaining relationships in the United States. Educational opportunities were an emerging theme in the determining factors of immigrating to the United States. The data indicated that Muslim women use a variety of Internet-based media such as Facebook, Skype, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Viber for communicating with family and friends locally and abroad. A majority of the participants reported that social media allowed them to express a part of their identities. The data suggests that the participants attained the level of acculturation defined as integration. The participants use these media to build and create relationships in their new communities. The combined relationships the participants maintain both locally and abroad seem to play a role in the creation of balance in their lives, which allows them to thrive in their new communities, at school, and at work.     

Transnational Media Management: Western News Organizations’ Web Operations in China

In 2008, China surpassed the United States as the largest Internet market in the world. This study examines how four prominent Western news organizations respond to this new era of Internet publishing. A series of in-depth interviews with senior managers at The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Reuters, and The New York Times revealed how these news organizations serve Internet users in China through their Chinese-language Web editions—how they overcome geographic, language, cultural, and political barriers to explore this remote market. These cases demonstrate the viability of different operating models and the challenges and opportunities facing these media organizations as they manage transnational news operations in this seemingly lucrative market.     

What’s in a Word: Coming to Terms with Reference,Part Two

The reference librarian aims to know the reference collection like the back of his or her hand. This knowledge of knowledge can be characterized as encyclopedic, in that it enables the reference librarian to comprehend the unity that exists within the branches of knowledge—the subject categories as outlined in the Library of Congress (LC) classification and represented in the reference collection. Comprehending this unity further enables the reference librarian to make those intelligent leaps, uncanny connections, and creative combinations between subject categories, whether closely or distantly related or even entirely unrelated. This metaknowledge and the fluency with the collection it supports define at its most fundamental level what reference is and what reference does. Despite its ease, speed, and convenience, the algorithm is no replacement for the mind of the reference librarian. Critical acceptance of this fact is in evidence when the simple, spontaneous one-on-one encounter at the reference desk rather than the preplanned, required session in information literacy is understood as the primary locus of learning in the library. Reference librarianship with its modest accoutrements—the reference desk, the reference interview, the reference collection—is still most suitable to provide the kind of guidance every thinking student needs to rightly read and engage the authoritative works that make up the main collection.