Citation bias in otolaryngology systematic reviews

Objective:Reproducibility of systemic reviews (SRs) can be hindered by the presence of citation bias. Citation bias may occur when authors of SRs conduct hand-searches of included study reference lists to identify additional studies. Such a practice may lead to exaggerated SR summary effects. The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of hand-searching reference lists in otolaryngology SRs.Methods:The authors searched for systematic reviews published in eight clinical otolaryngology journals using the Cochrane Library and PubMed, with the date parameter of January 1, 2008, to December 31, 2017. Two independent authors worked separately to extract data from each SR for the following elements: whether reference lists were hand-searched, other kinds of supplemental searching, PRISMA adherence, and funding source. Following extraction, the investigators met to review discrepancies and achieve consensus.Results:A total of 539 systemic reviews, 502 from clinical journals and 37 from the Cochrane library, were identified. Of those SRs, 72.4% (390/539) hand-searched reference lists, including 97.3% (36/37) of Cochrane reviews. For 228 (58.5%) of the SRs that hand-searched reference lists, no other supplemental search (e.g., search of trial registries) was conducted.Conclusions:These findings indicate that hand-searching reference lists is a common practice in otolaryngology SRs. Moreover, a majority of studies at risk of citation bias did not attempt to mitigate the bias by conducting additional supplemental searches. The implication is that summary effects in otolaryngology systematic reviews may be biased toward statistically significant findings.     

University Presses in the Digital Age: How Pace University Press and Other University Presses Can Survive and Thrive

The age of information has made university presses more important than ever before. The Internet has placed knowledge at our fingertips, but limited budgets and reluctance to embrace digital technologies have left many university publishers struggling to prove their worth rather than gathering and disseminating that knowledge. To demonstrate how a university publishing house can make it in this changing climate, this report will analyze the industry by using a specific publisher as an example, however this analysis can be applied to any small press. Pace University Press, an extremely small press, but one with the potential to survive and grow, can do so by implementing new practices in marketing, distribution, and digital content that will not only bring it into the twenty-first century, but ensure its continued role in the communication of scholars for years to come. These strategies can be beneficial to any university press.     

Ethnic Print Media in Australia

This paper investigates the content of the editorial commentary in the Melbourne-based commercial Italian-language newspaper Il Globo from 1979 to 1989 and argues that throughout the period under examination it consistently maintained a proactive role for, and on behalf of, the Italo-Australian community. A longitudinal study on selected editorials written by then editor-in-chief Nino Randazzo shows that the newspaper lobbied relevant authorities and Australian governments alike on issues that mattered most to the Italian community, especially those related to domestic politics, migrant settlement and immigration. Using a content analysis methodology, the editorials were categorised into commonly emerging themes, highlighting the extent to which the newspaper commented on issues that affected the rapidly changing Italo-Australian community which experienced an important demographic shift from being predominantly Italian-born to increasingly Australian-born.     

The Application of Learning Theory to Information Literacy

ABSTRACT

Many colleges and universities are advocating information literacy within their mission statements. To this end, many librarians are offering for-credit courses that incorporate the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Information Literacy Competency Standards in their instructional programs. In their role as instructors, librarians should be familiar with learning theory, in particular behaviorism and constructivism. The application of a particular learning theory dictates the structure of the course and reinforces the role of librarian as educator.     

Exploring library service models at Fudan University and Appalachian State University: Experiences from an International Librarian Exchange program

In 2008, Fudan University Library (FDUL) in Shanghai and Belk Library and Information Commons at Appalachian State University (ASU) in Boone, North Carolina created a three-year librarian exchange program. The first pair of librarian exchanges occurred during the 2009–2010 academic year, with the Appalachian State librarian traveling to Fudan for five weeks during the Fall of 2009, and the first librarian from Fudan traveling to Appalachian State for five months in the spring and summer of 2010. This paper documents how the first exchanges revealed interesting similarities and differences in the academic library service models between the two universities which are illustrative of general similarities and differences between Chinese and American academic library services. The paper also discusses how any academic library can benefit from the experience of a librarian exchange program with a partner library in another country.

The experience gained from these first exchanges confirms on an international level the basic assertion that a major role of an academic library is to support the university’s curriculum.

Moreover it can be extrapolated from discussions held between librarians of the two institutions that in both the United States and China the curriculum evolves in response to reforms on campus and to changing trends within the country’s education system. It was also determined that the modes of library services in both cultures change as new technologies arise and that the pace of technological change within academic libraries is rapid and ongoing. Participants in the exchange discovered that there are strengths and weaknesses in both the ASU and FDUL service models and that the librarians from both systems can learn from one another and absorb best practices from their exchange partners. This paper reflects the views and experiences of the exchange librarians (Shi and Johnson) and also author Shao, who is a Chinese national working as a faculty fellow librarian at Appalachian State University.     

CBQ Currents Topical Essays About Contemporary Issues

COMPATIBILITY STANDARDS, COMPETITION, AND INNOVATION IN THE BROADCASTING INDUSTRY by Stanley Besen and Leland Johnson (Santa Monica, CA: Rand, 1986—$7.50, paper)

Museum of Broadcasting, a guide to their published program catalogs

1986 TELEVISION FINANCIAL REPORT, and 1986 RADIO FINANCIAL REPORT by Cynthia Stanley (Washington, DC: National Association of Broadcasters, 1986—price not given, but about $100 each, spiral bound)     

Broadcasting in General

Erik Barnouw's The Image Empires A History of Broadcasting in the United States From 1953 (Oxford University Press, $9.75)

Howard Koch's The Panic Broadcast (Little, Brown & Co., $4.95)

Howard W. Coleman's Caso Studios in Broadcast Management (Hastings House, $4.95)

Joe McGinniss' The Soiling of the President 1963 (Pocket Books, $1.25)

Alexander Kendrick's Prime Time: The Life of Edward R. Murrow (Avon, $1.65)

Nicholas Johnson's How To Talk Back to Your Television Set (Bantam, $1.25)

Herbert C. Kelman and Raphael S. Ezekiel's Cross-National Encounters (Jossoy-Bass (San Fransisco), $10.50)

Victor Gold's The Enemies He Has Made (Arlington House)

Bon Bagdikian's The Information Machine (Harper & Row)

Chester, Garrison, and Willis' Television and Radio (Appleton-Century-Crofts)     

Bibliographies of Interest

C. David Mortensen's Communication: The Study of Human Interaction (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1972—$7.95)

Alex Groner and the editors of American Heritage and Business Week's The American Heritage History of American Business &; Industry (New York: American Heritage with distribution by McGraw-Hill, 1972—$17.95 to January 1st, then $20.00)

Herb Sanford's Tom and Jimmy: The Dorsey Years (New Rochelle, N.Y.: Arlington House, 1972—$8.95)

Nicholas Johnson's Test Pattern For Living (New York: Bantam Books, 1972—$1.25, paper)     

Business of Broadcasting

Joseph S. Johnson and Kenneth K. Jones' Modern Radio Station Practices (Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth, 1972—$7.95)

Edd Routt (double letters in each name correct) The Business of Radio Broadcasting (Blue Ridge Summit, Pa.: Tab Books, 1972— $12.95)

Giraud Chester, Garnet Garrison, and Edgar Willis' Television and Radio (New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1971—$11.95)

Evelyn Sarson (ed.). Action for Children's Television (New York: Avon Discus Books, 1971— $1.25, paper)

The Fourth Network (New York: The Network Project, 102 Earl Hall, Columbia University, 1971—$3.00, paper)

William Kuhns' Exploring Television (Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1971—$3.20, paper; with a Teacher's Guide available for $1.00, paper)

Wayne Green's (ed.), The Fascinating World of Radio Communications (Blue Ridge Summit, Pa.: Tab Books, 1971—$6.95/3.95)

The Wit and Wisdom of Archie Bunker (New York: Popular Library, 1971—.95, paper)     

Law and Policy

NEW YORK TIMES v. SULLIVAN: THE NEXT TWENTY YEARS (March 1984, Handbook 250, 760 pp.)

CAMPAIGN '84: ADVERTISING AND PROGRAMMING OBLIGATIONS OF THE ELECTRONIC MEDIA (September 1983, Handbook 165, 512 pp.)

COMMUNICATIONS LAW 1983 (November 1983, Handbook 169, 1008 and 880 pp. in two volumes)

MEDIA ABUSES: RIGHTS AND REMEDIES—A GUIDE TO LEGAL REMEDIES edited by Timothy Brown. al. (The Media Institute, 3017 M St., N.W., Washir DC 20007---$25.00)

CHRONOLOGY OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND CABLE TELEVISION REGULATION IN THE UNITED STATES (Harvard Program on Information Resources Policy, 200 Aiken, Harvard University; Cambridge, MA 02138---apply for price, paper)

AN ANALYSIS OF THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION'S GROUP OWNERSHIP RULES by Stanley M. Besen and Leland L. Johnson (Santa Monica, Calif.: Rand Note N-2097-MF, January 1984---price not given, paper)

JOURNAL OF PUBLIC POLICY AND MARKETING, edited by Thomas C. Kinnear (Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan, 1983---price not given, paper)

BROADCASTING AND GOVERNMENT (National Association of Broadcasters, 1771 N St., N.W., Washington, DC 20036---$49.95-make checks payable to TARPEC)