The bells: A re‐appraisal

The Bells, although universally described by critics as melodrama, departs markedly from the traits most usually associated with the form. An investigation of this seeming contradiction leads to the testing of an alternate model for melodrama and an illumination of the play's structure by means of this model. The resulting analysis points clearly to the need for more theoretical work into the nature of melodrama.     

The persuasive effects of delaying identification of high‐and low‐credibility communicators: A meta‐analytic review

A review of extant research evidence indicates that when source identification is delayed until after the message has been presented, the differential effectiveness of high‐ and low‐credibility communicators is reduced. In particular, those combinations of credibility level and advocated position that are ordinarily (i.e., with pre‐message identification) relatively advantageous (a low‐credibility source with a proattitudinal position, or a high‐credibility source with a non‐proattitudinal position) have persuasive effectiveness reduced by delayed identification, whereas those combinations that are ordinarily relatively disadvantageous (a high‐credibility source with a proattitudinal position, or a low‐credibility source with a non‐proattitudinal position) enjoy enhanced effectiveness with delayed identification. The magnitude of the effects associated with identification‐timing variations is quite large (mean absolute value of d = .753), at least by comparison to other factors for which quantitative estimates of persuasive effect are available. The observed effects place constraints on explanations of credibility's effects; in particular, credibility's effects cannot be explained through the mere association of a given communicator with a particular position.     

The status and future of audience duplication research: An assessment of ratings‐based theories of audience behavior

Audience duplication is recognized as a major component of program choice models and a fundamental aspect in understanding television viewing patterns. This study evaluates the utility of a specific set of ratings‐based audience theories developed over the past 25 years, and critiques their future relevance in an increasingly dynamic, complex media environment. An integrated model of audience duplication is presented as a way to assess the ability of current structural theories to explain audience behavior in the future. Recommendations are given for the direction of this research.     

A Covenant‐affirming jeremiad: The post‐presidential ideological appeals of Ronald Wilson Reagan

In his post‐presidential discourse, Ronald Reagan did not assume a typical jeremiadic posture, warning that America was straying from conservative dogma. Instead, he warned of other dangers, some of which required alteration in conservatism. He combined those warnings with an optimistic celebration of American exceptionalism. In that way, they served a function similar to a traditional jeremiad, but from an optimistic perspective and without any sense that the nation was straying from its covenant. We coin the term, Covenant‐affirming Jeremiad, to describe the rhetorical characteristic of these addresses.     

The influence of power upon powerful speech: A social‐exchange perspective

Several researchers have proposed that power, rather than gender, accounts for a greater use of powerless language by females than by males. The present study considered whether the manipulation of power as grounded in the social exchange perspective would influence the use of powerful language by males and females alike. The results indicated that males in positions of higher bargaining power used more bottom‐line statements than males in positions of lower power. Yet, the level of power apparently had little impact upon the use of bottom‐line statements by female bargainers.     

The four‐day workweek and media use: A glimpse of the future

The Medium and Message of the Introductory Mass Communication Course

Introduction to Mass Communications, Jay Black and Frederick G Whitney (Dubuque, IA: William C. Brown, 1983), 473 pp., $18.50.

Mass Media in America, Don R. Pember (Chicago: Science Research Associates, 1983), 441 pp., $16.95.

Mediamerica, Edward Jay Whetmore (Belmont, CA: Wads‐worth, 1982), 365 pp., $15.95.

Free But Regulated: Conflicting Traditions in Media Law, Daniel L. Brenner and William L. Rivers (Ames, IA: Iowa State University Press, 1982), 283 pp., $24.95.

The First Amendment Reconsidered: New Perspectives on the Meaning of Freedom of Speech and Press, Bill F. Chamberlin and Charlene J. Brown (New York: Longman, Inc., 1982), 218 pp., $27.95.

Terrorism, the Media and the Law, Abraham H. Miller (Dobbs Ferry, NY: Transnational Publishers, Inc., 1982), 221 pp., $25.00.

Readings in Mass Communication: Concepts and Issues in the Mass Media, 5th ed., eds. Michael Emery and Ted Curtis Smythe (Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown, 1983), 549 pp., $17.95.

Perspectives on Mass Communications, eds. Warren K. Agee, Phillip H. Ault and Edwin Emery (New York: Harper and Row, 1982), 476 pp., $13.50.

Mass Media III: An Introduction to Modern Communication, Ray Eldon Hiebert, Donald F. Ungurait and Thomas W. Bohn (New York: Longman, 1982), 643 pp., $17.95.     

The rise of GovTech: Trojan horse or blessing in disguise? A research agenda

As GovTech solutions are steadily entering the public sector, they have yet to find their way into the mainstream literature. GovTech refers to socio-technical solutions – that are developed and operated by private organisations – intertwined with public sector components for facilitating processes in the public sector. GovTech solutions promise a superior customer journey for citizens and businesses compared to current government portals and front desks. GovTech solutions can be a blessing in disguise for governments struggling in their digital transformation journey, carrying the burden of public service innovation and replacing legacy systems with modern GovTech solutions. Yet, there are also concerns that GovTech solutions are a Trojan horse, exploiting the lack of technical knowledge at public agencies and shifting decision-making power from public agencies to market parties, thereby undermining digital sovereignty and public values. This paper develops a research agenda for GovTech based on a conceptual framework. This framework reveals four interrelated design areas for GovTech: institutional, governance, technical and human-centred design. Governments can employ the conceptual framework to further align and develop their strategies by focussing on GovTech governance, referring to the ability to manage the various interdependencies between the four design areas.     

Dictamen: The medieval rhetoric of letter‐writing

Dictamen was one of the two major directions of medieval rhetoric theory. Beginning as a series of rules for church letters based on classical antecedents, the art was spread widely through the use of formularies.     

The disguise of self‐disclosure: The relationship ruse of a Soviet Spy

The verbal disclosures of a Soviet spy masquerading as a university student are compared to those of three other group members involved in a semester‐long project. Audio‐tapes of six group meetings provide a unique opportunity to assess the relationship deception of this proficient deceiver. His communication is characterized by strategic disclosures designed to create a false impression and, thereby, to divert attention from his secret role. His conversation reveals more frequent control disclosures, attitude disclosures, personal disclosures, and dramatic disclosures than other group members. The spy also verbalized significantly more knowledge disclosures than all but one other peer. The frequency and content of his disclosures identify, in part, the communicative strategy of his disguise, whereby he drew considerable attention to himself and, thus, appeared transparent. The results underscore the importance of looking beyond the appearance of disclosures when attempting to identify relationship deception.     

How important is software to library and information science research? A content analysis of full-text publications

We investigate the contributions of scientific software to library and information science (LIS) research using a sample of 572 English language articles published in 13 journals in 2008, 2011, 2014, and 2017. In particular, we examine the use and citation of software freely available for academic use in the LIS literature; we also explore the extent to which researchers follow software citation instructions provided by software developers. Twenty-seven percent of the LIS journal articles in our sample explicitly mention and use software. Yet although LIS researchers are becoming increasingly reliant on software that is freely available for academic use, many still fail to include formal citations of such software in their publications. We also find that a substantial proportion of researchers, when documenting software use, do not cite the software in the manner recommended by its developers.     

The rhetoric of radical black nationalism: A case study in self‐conscious criticism

The rhetoric of Black nationalism is used as a case study to illustrate problems involved in the criticism of contemporary protest rhetoric. The conclusions resulting from the application of traditional theory are contrasted with those developed from Burkeian dramatism in order to outline an alternative perspective toward this rhetoric and in order to provide a technique for increasing the self‐consciousness of the critic.     

The bases of successful market entry: The liability of size and of newness in E‐commerce

Abstract

Even though e‐commerce almost disappeared from public discussion, it still assumes a vital role in the strategic management of most enterprises. New entry in e‐commerce, whether as a new business segment of an established company or as a new enterprise, is likely to deal with the liabilities of size and newness. The aim of this paper it to discuss if those factors have an impact on the implementation and success of B2C e‐commerce. We chose the online book market as our reference market and drew a random sample of retailers and publishers with an online shop. The quality of the web presence, indirect success (number of links to a particular site) and direct success (turnover of the web shop) were compared in subsamples constructed by the use of median splits according to age and size. Younger companies and larger companies were found to have a web presence of higher quality and were more successful than older or smaller companies. We conclude that the liabilities of newness do not seem to have an adverse performance impact in e‐commerce. However, when a market entry is considered, new players must ensure that they can commit enough resources to build a high quality web presence.     

Where's the value? The worth of public libraries: A systematic review of findings,methods and research gaps

Existing research argues that studies of the value of public libraries support libraries by demonstrating their worth to society. Knowledge of research methods, value and research gaps can potentially strengthen the field of value research and support policymaking and development of libraries. Among 16,683 records retrieved from a systematic literature search, 39 studies were selected for systematic review within this topic. Findings indicate that studies focus on examining libraries as valued community assets in several aspects. It is recommended that further research explore how library services enhance democracy, reading and culture. Moreover, further research is needed that systematically reviews how libraries articulate their value to stakeholders. Concluding remarks state that value can be a robust measure for emphasising and developing libraries' worth towards society. By systematically reviewing how value is emphasized in activities, libraries are provided with the means to advocate political empathy and to develop towards community needs.     

Casualties of war: The decline of foreign‐language broadcasting during WWII

The purpose of this article is to initiate an examination of foreign‐language radio and establish its place in broadcasting historiography of World War II. First, an outline will be drawn of the dangers foreign‐language radio posed to the United States, as articulated by the mainstream press, U.S. Government, and the dominant radio industry. Second, the actions of the Federal Communication Commission and Office of Censorship, and the subsequent response of the radio industry, will be analyzed in depth. Finally, the impact of wartime policies on foreign‐language programming will be considered, as well as suggestions for further research.     

The interdisciplinarity of research data: How widely is shared research data reused in the STEM fields?

The aim of this study was to examine the interdisciplinarity of research data in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The findings revealed that interdisciplinarity was not distributed evenly across journals serving the STEM fields. Based on the diversity of the references as measured by the Gini coefficient index, the mathematical sciences showed the greatest inequality, followed by astronomy/physics, the earth sciences, the biological sciences, and technology. Based on the number of Essential Science Indicator (ESI) fields, the biological sciences showed the greatest variety, followed by the earth sciences, technology, the mathematical sciences, chemistry, and computing, while engineering showed no variety. Lastly, based on the Leydesdorff interdisciplinarity formula outcomes, the earth sciences showed the greatest diversity, but earth sciences articles were cited in articles in fewer fields than biological sciences articles. This study contributes to the study of interdisciplinary data citation for data sharing and reuse in STEM fields with respect to the measurement of the balance, variety, and diversity of research data.