Chain Versus Independent Television Station Ownership: Toward an Investment Model of Commitment to Local News Quality

Using empirical measures, a pilot test of an investment model of commitment to television news quality yielded statistically significant results supporting four hypothesized relationships between types of broadcast station ownership. The findings indicate that the news department operated by a small media group produced more local news, more locally produced video, more use of on-air reporters, and fewer news promotions than the larger chain-based broadcast groups investigated, suggesting a deeper commitment to local news quality. The results support the policy position that stricter ownership limits would enhance the quality of local television news.     

Hegemonic Shorthand: Technology and Metonymy in Modern Policing

Western police forces have always been institutions powered principally by the efficient accumulation of information, from the oral histories that defined the earliest foot patrols, to the communicative velocity of modern mobile data terminals. As these technologies evolve, however, the more the police devolve to become a data mining entity in earnest. This article interrogates the genealogy of a disciplinary nomenclature the author coins hegemonic shorthand—a formulaic meta-language grounded in a culture of standardization and interpolation among the police that flourishes in paranoid times under the pretense of public protection.     

An MMB Special: Survey of Broadcasting Texts Compared

Harrison B. Summers, Robert E. Summers, and John H. Pennybacker, Broadcasting and the Public (Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth Publishing Co., 1978—$13.95)

Giraud Chester, Garnet R. Garrison, and Edgar E. Willis, Television and Radio (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, l978—price not given)

Saundra Hybels and Dana Ulloth, Broadcasting: An Introduction to Radio and Television (New York: D. Van Nostrand Co., 1978— price not given)     

Popular Culture (Frank Oglesbee)

Randall P. Harrison, The Cartoon: Communication to the Quick (Beverly Hills: SAGE Publications, SAGE ComnText series, 1982, 14.00 cloth, 6.95 pb)

John Caldwell Mug Shots (21 Central Ave., Albany, NY 12210: Fantaco enterprises, 1980, 2.95 pb, unpaginated),

Jan Harold Brunvand The Vanishing_Hitchhiker: American Urban Legends and Their Meanings (NY: W.W. Norton, 1981, 208 pp., 14.95 cloth)

Richard Lipsky How We Play the Game: Why Sports Dominate American Life (Boston: Beacon Press, 1981, 189 pp., 7.25, pb)

Alan Gowans Learning to See: Historical Perspectives on Modern Popular Commercial Arts (Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green University Popular Press, 1981, 22.95 cloth, 13.95 pb, 514 pp.)     

Take a Paws: Fostering Student Wellness with a Therapy Dog Program at Your University Library

Therapy dogs are trained and socialized to provide comfort to individuals who are ill or experiencing stress. The following article explores therapy dog outreach programs in academic libraries by describing a successful venture at McGill University Library. Background, planning advice, assessment results, and recommendations are presented with an aim to inform those who would like to implement similar programs at their libraries.     

The role of communication in managing reductions in work force

Reductions in work force (downsizing, delayering, resizing, outplacement, layoffs, demassing) are used by organizations to achieve desired economic goals and ensure survival. However, these reductions often negatively affect the work behaviors and attitudes of continuing employees and thus, may detract from the success of the reduction in work force. The purpose of this study was to increase our understanding of the effects of multiple workforce reductions on survivors by extending Brockner's (1988) model and outlining the role of communication in the process so that researchers and practitioners can better predict and control for the effects of workforce reductions. In pursuit of this goal, a causal model of effects on survivors was developed and then tested with data collected in a large, midwestern insurance company that implemented two workforce reductions.

The hypothesized model was inconsistent with the data and subsequently was rejected. A revised model was then tested and found to fit at three time periods. The revised model demonstrates survivor reactions to reductions are complex and change over time and in response to multiple reductions. The main conclusion was that managers can influence survivor information deprivation, career future uncertainty, work satisfaction, and propensity for turnover by paying attention to, and if possible controlling, organizational identification, financial rewards, work team communication support, and manager communication support. The results also suggest that survivor reactions to prior organizational interventions may influence the success of current interventions.     

Gaming motivations,avatar-self identification and symptoms of online game addiction

This study conducted a survey of 217 adult game players in Hong Kong to explore the effects of gaming motivations and avatar-self identification on symptoms of online game addiction. Results show that avatar-self identification is positively associated with the problems and salience dimension as well as the uncontrollable game-play dimension of game addiction. The motivation to relax is positively related to perceived avatar-self identification and uncontrollable play; the motivation to socialize in online games is positively linked with the avatar-self identification and both symptoms of online game addiction. The motivation to escape is positively related to the symptom of problems and salience. The drive to achieve virtual accomplishment in online games is negatively associated with the problem caused by gameplay and the salience of online games.     

THE RELIGIOUS TRAINING OF CHILDREN

Silence needs to be shown to be taught. This is because the nonverbal, which is a different way of referencing the world than symbols, cannot be translated into words. Teaching silence is of special importance today because of the connection between silence and the creation of existential meaning, as well as the functioning of the creative process itself. The loss of silence in our culture will result in the loss of religious meaning and the impairment of creativity. Without deep meaning and the creative process the human species is at risk.