msrg@uw

The polarizing effects of political discussion: New MSRG study

2009-05-12T13:41:00.009-05:00

The polarization of American political attitudes under George W. Bush was often cited by pundits and commentators throughout his two terms in office. But were public attitudes truly polarized during that period? And, more importantly, did everyday interactions between citizens make the problem worse? A new study by students and faculty in Life Sciences Communication suggests that the answer to both questions is yes.

The study, led by doctoral student Andrew R. Binder, demonstrates that the more often citizens discussed political matters with people who already agreed with them, the more extreme their attitudes became over the course of the 2004 presidential election. Focusing on public attitudes toward stem cell research, the study also highlights the blurring lines between scientific and political issues during Bush's tenure. Co-authored with Kajsa E. Dalrymple, Dominique Brossard, and Dietram A. Scheufele, the article has just appeared in print in the June issue of the journal Communication Research.

From the article's abstract:

This study explores the relationships between discussion networksand the development of extreme attitudes toward stem cell researchduring the 2004 presidential election. The authors test competingtheoretical models that address discrepancies in previous attitudepolarization research—whether interpersonal discussionleads to attitude extremity or extremity leads to discussion,within the deliberating American public. Using data from a nationwidemail panel survey carried out between 2002 and 2005, the authorsexplore within-wave and between-wave causal paths, revealingpatterns difficult to discern in cross-sectional survey or labexperimental designs. Our findings show that political talkplays a substantial role in shaping and polarizing attitudeson stem cell research, with discussion in networks composedof like-minded others leading directly to the development ofextreme attitudes.

Public attitudes toward nano: MSRG research in the news

2008-12-29T13:15:00.000-06:00

Earlier this month, Nature Nanotechnology published a piece on public attitudes toward nanotechnology , comparing influences on public opinion about nanotechnology in the US and over a dozen European countries. The list of authors included a number of MSRG graduate students and faculty.

The article:

Scheufele, D. A., Corley, E. A., Shih, T.-j., Dalrymple, K. E., & Ho, S. S. (forthcoming). Religious beliefs and public attitudes to nanotechnology in Europe and the US. Nature Nanotechnology (first published online on December 7, 2008 as doi:10.1038/NNANO.2008.361).

Press releases:

UW: http://www.news.wisc.edu/16033

Q&A for Wisconsin Week: http://www.news.wisc.edu/16060

ASU: http://copp.asu.edu/do/college-news/nanotechnology

Some of the first reactions in the press:

http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=112809&org=NSF&from=news

http://www.scienceprogress.org/2008/12/public-nano-tudes/

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7767192.stm

http://www.usnews.com/articles/science/technology/2008/12/09/attitudes-about-nanotechnology-vary-according-to-religious-and-cultural-differences.html

http://www.nature.com/news/2008/081209/full/news.2008.1290.html

http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2008/12/08/daily13.html

Other blogs and web sites:

http://www.nanowerk.com/spotlight/spotid=8531.php

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081207133717.htm

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081208-policing-the-intersection-of-nanotechnology-and-culture.html

http://www.nanomedicinecenter.com/article/is-nanotech-morally-acceptable/

http://davidkirkpatrick.wordpress.com/2008/12/07/the-religious-fear-nanotech/

http://sfluxe.com/2008/12/08/religious-shun-nanotechnology/

http://scienceandreligiontoday.blogspot.com/2008/12/religion-affects-reaction-to-nanotech.html

http://a-philosophical.blogspot.com/2008/12/religious-shun-nanotechnologyreligious.html

http://cientifica.eu/blog/?p=693

http://www.merid.org/NDN/more.php?id=1596

http://bhascience.blogspot.com/2008/12/god-damned-nanotechnology.html

http://newstelescope.com/nanotechnology/2008/12/08/study-religious-views-form-base-of-nanotech-opinions-bizjournalscom/

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Some-Religious-Groups-Don-039-t-See-Nanotechnology-as-Morally-Acceptable-99495.shtml

http://cseplibrary.blogspot.com/2008/12/three-new-studies-on-public-perception.html

http://dlitefuldlirium.livejournal.com/3900.html

http://futurismic.com/2008/12/09/nanotech-culture-war-in-prospect/

http://www.boingboing.net/2008/12/09/religion-and-nanotec.html

http://www.frogheart.ca/?p=97

http://www.bioresearchonline.com/article.mvc/For-Nanotechnology-Religion-In-US-Dictates-A-0001?VNETCOOKIE=NO

http://www.galileonet.it/primo-piano/10909/se-il-giudizio-e-morale

http://community.livejournal.com/atheism/1917008.html

http://www.softmachines.org/wordpress/?p=436

http://blogs.discovery.com/news_tech/

http://www.express.be/sectors/nl/chemicals/belgi-staat-tolerant-tegenover-nanotechnologie/100586.htm

http://nanotechwire.com/news.asp?nid=7029

http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=184496

http://aejmc.org/talk/?p=2057

http://www.nanotech-now.com/news.cgi?story_id=31626

http://www.scam.com/showthread.php?t=58531

http://davidkirkpatrick.wordpress.com/2008/12/11/more-on-nanotech-and-public-perception/

http://www.azonano.com/news.asp?newsID=9136

http://www.photonicsonline.com/article.mvc/For-Nano-Religion-In-US-Dictates-A-Wary-View-0001?VNETCOOKIE=NO

http://tecnologia.terra.com.br/interna/0,,OI3413597-EI4795,00-Cientistas+estudam+o+medo+da+nanotecnologia.html

New MSRG paper: Religiosity as a perceptional filter

2008-10-18T08:37:00.005-05:00

An early-access version of a forthcoming article in Public Understanding of Science by MSRG members Dominique Brossard, Eunkyung Kim and Dietram Scheufele (co-authored with Bruce Lewenstein at Cornell University) was just posted on Sage's web site. It shows how values shape the interpretation of scientific information. The study finds that the exact same information can translate into very different attitudinal conclusions for highly religious respondents than for non-religious ones. In other words, we may be wasting valuable time and resources by focusing our efforts on putting more and more information in front of an unaware public, without first developing a better understanding of how different groups will filter or reinterpret this information, given their personal value systems and beliefs.

From the abstract:

Using national survey data, we ... show that strength of religious beliefs is negatively related to support for funding of the technology. Our findings also confirm that science media use plays an important role in shaping positive attitudes toward the technology. Overall public support for funding nanotechnology is not directly related to levels of knowledge among the electorate, but on risk and benefits perceptions and the use of media frames. However, knowledge about the technology does tend to be interpreted through the lens of religious beliefs and therefore indirectly affect levels of support.

MSRG member honored by National Science Foundation

2008-04-11T18:39:00.002-05:00

Congratulations to MSRG member Andrew R. Binder for receiving an Honorable Mention in the 2008 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program! Andrew was the only student in the field of communication honored this year by NSF. His application received highly favorable reviews for its focus on incorporating communication theory into the social amplification of risk framework to understand better how mass media and interpersonal discussion can influence lay perceptions of risk. The social science scholars who reviewed his application all recognized his excellent record of research and his promise as a future communication scholar.

Opinion Expression in Fact-to-face Versus Online Environments

2008-03-09T17:07:00.004-05:00

Another publication for Shirley:

This study used an experiment embedded within a Web-based survey to examine the influence of contextual (i.e., face-to-face vs. online chat room discussion) and social-psychological factors on individuals' willingness to express opinions. In this experiment, respondents were asked whether they would be willing to express an opinion if they were placed in a face-to-face discussion group in one condition and in an online chat room discussion group in the other condition. Results indicate that print news use, fear of isolation, communication apprehension, future opinion congruency, and communication setting significantly predict willingness to speak out. In addition, not only did fear of isolation have a negative main effect on opinion expression, but this effect was significantly attenuated by computer-mediated discussion. Findings suggest that computer-mediated communication may avoid some of the dysfunctional social-psychological influences found in face-to-face interactions and create a forum conducive for public deliberation.

Ho, S. S. & McLeod, D. M. (2008). Social-psychological influences on opinion expression in face-to-face and computer-mediated communication. Communication Research, 35(2), 190-207.

Study Reveals Links Between Internet Use and Personal Religious Concerns

2008-02-14T11:12:00.004-06:00

Shirley and her Singapore colleagues' paper titled "Muslim surfers on the internet: Using the theory of planned behaviour to examine the factors influencing engagement in online religious activities" was published in the latest issue of New Media & Society.

This study seeks to describe the types of religious activities Muslim surfers in Singapore engage in on the internet, and uses the theory of planned behaviour as a theoretical framework to examine how internet perception, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, internet self-efficacy, religiosity and other key demographic variables affect the use of the internet for religious purposes among Muslim surfers in Singapore. A total of 578 Muslim internet users aged 18 and above participated in a computer-assisted telephone interviewing survey in May 2004. We found that Muslim surfers tend to engage in online activities that were more related to personal religious concerns than those activities that were related to traditional institutional religion. Findings also indicate that perceived social pressure from the Muslim community, internet self-efficacy, and religiosity were positively related to engagement in online religious activities, while age was negatively related to engagement.

Ho, S. S., Lee, W., & Hameed, S. S. (2008). Muslim surfers on the internet: Using the theory of planned behaviour to examine the factors influencing engagement in online religious activities. New Media & Society, 10(1), 93-113.

New grant to MSRG faculty and students

2008-01-31T18:38:00.000-06:00

Professor Dominique Brossard was recently awarded a one year grant from the Journal Foundation. In collaboration with students Tsun-Jen Shih, Michael Dahlstrom and Andrew Binder, Brossard will use the grant for experimental research exploring how media effects and scientific versus partisan opinion might impact public attitudes toward global warming.

Congratulations to Michael and Jeff!

2007-12-07T15:44:00.001-06:00

MSRG members Michael Dahlstrom and Jeff Niederdeppe will soon be exiting the fog of "doc" and "post-doc" status into the clear, focused future of the tenure race.

Michael has accepted an assistant professor position at Iowa State University. He will be starting the fall of 2008. For now, of course, he's busy dissertating...

And Jeff and his wife Lee have both accepted assistant professorships at Cornell University in the Department of Communication. They will also be starting there in fall 2008.

Of Polls and Health Threats

2007-11-18T23:37:00.000-06:00

Shirley, Dominique, and Dietram's new Polls-Trends piece is now available on the advance access page of the Public Opinion Quarterly website. Details below...

Shirley S. Ho, Dominique Brossard, and Dietram A. Scheufele. “The Polls-Trends: Public Reactions to Global Health Threats and Infectious Diseases.”

Over the past two decades, newly emerging infectious diseases have developed into major global health concerns, sparking intense media coverage, triggering fears of a global outbreak among public health experts and authorities. This article focuses on trends in American attitudes toward these newly emerged infectious diseases by analyzing poll data over the past 6 years about issues relating to avian flu, severe acute respiratory syndrome, West Nile virus, and anthrax. The polls show that Americans’ attention to news coverage seemed to be event driven, peaking when the diseases seemed to have been contained. Americans’ perceptions of threats were usually the highest in the early stages of major outbreaks. The public became more complacent when the outbreaks seemed to be under control. Both behavioral changes and general knowledge remained largely constant, suggesting a limited impact of the various informational and awareness campaigns by governmental agencies in the wake of these pandemics.

Seeking funding for an expensive Science Thing

2007-09-28T11:10:00.000-05:00

Or, one of the funniest Onion articles I've read in quite some time.

It reflects the type of discourse that goes on surrounding government funding of scientific research:

"Frankly, I don't understand why they don't just gather up all the leftover atoms in their test tubes and Bunsen burners. I think the scientists should have to use those up before getting new ones."

It skewers the communicative methods of politicians who support science:

"I have always said that science is more important than it is unimportant."

And best of all, it makes the long-needed case for not framing science in terms of candy.

One consisted of colored dots resembling Skittles banging into one another. ... "These scientists could trim $10 million if they would just cut out some of the purple and blue spheres," said Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD), explaining that he understood the need for an abundance of reds and greens.

Read it here.

Victory for Metric Martyrs

2007-09-11T11:06:00.000-05:00

The European Union has ended its campaign to outlaw imperial measurement in Britain. Looks like an interesting finish to a saga where both sides of the issue campaigned vigorously for their case. Read the story from the Times Online here.

Science, Risk, and Radio

2007-08-13T23:34:00.000-05:00

Consider giving these a listen.

Science Friday 08/03/07
Minneapolis Bridge Collapse: An expert speaks to the risks of bridges, engineers' rating systems, and public reactions. Notable is his estimation of getting the public's notice. Asked if they will continue to be concerned, he chides the public's short attention span, which will probably move on to tainted pet food or spinach.

But is the fault with the media or the public? The exchange reminded me of this depiction of "The Atrophy of Vigilance" in Social Theories of Risk (ch. 10):

How does the fluctuation of vigilance relating to risk incidents compare between the media and the public? And where's the trade-off between vigilance on one issue that comes to our attention compared to another?

Also in this episode: The debate over EPA regulation of nanotechnology between two stakeholders.

This American Life "The Spokesman" 08/13/07
The second story focuses on Rachel North, a London commuter riding in one of the bombed subway cars the morning of July 7, 2005. The story takes an interesting turn when she becomes the target of conspiracy theorists convinced the bombings were a hoax and actually resulted from an electrical failure. They contend the bus that blew up was carrying actors and stunt men. And they go so far as to accuse her of not existing, of being a character created by several government agents. Confronting her accusers within the blogosphere and in person, she finds their attitudes immovable.

Conspiracy theories have become a fascination of mine (just ask Dominique, she'll gladly make fun of me for it), partly stemming from the Kevin Barrett troubles here at UW and from Errol Morris's film Mr. Death. What makes people susceptible to adopting a conspiracy theorist's view? And what is the role of attitudes toward science (and "scientific evidence")?

Radio Lab "Mortality" 06/08/07
I've plugged this show to several of you already, although that may have been preemptive. The episode called "Beyond Time" is hardly worth listening to. But this one, about the process of memory, is surprisingly entertaining... just consider how the Japanese are building robot seals to care for their aging population rather than importing foreign labor. Science meets politics meets culture at its eerie best. Also good are the episodes "Memory and Forgetting" and "Morality."

AEJ in DC 2007

2007-08-12T13:28:00.000-05:00

Those representing MSRG at this year's AEJMC conference - who would be Pori, Rosalyna, Michael, Dominique, Sharon, and I - didn't disappoint with our posters and presentations. The CT&M "experiments in framing" session was dominated by Wisconsin people, and it'd be hard to overstate the significance of Eunkyung's and Dominique's award for Communication Theory & Methodology top faculty paper. It was great to see their investigation of scientific knowledge put front-and-center at a very well attended session.

The Saturday morning panel discussion on authorship (which unfortunately conflicted with several of our fellow students' presentations) featuring Sharon, Jack McLeod, and S. Shyam Sundar (Penn State) was insightful as well. If you're interested in hearing more about it, let me know.

I'd finally like to mention the new journal from the CT&M division - Communication Methods & Measures - that's just had its second issue. The editors are, of course, looking for high quality submissions. So check it out...

MSRG study on the relationship between media use and political knowledge

2007-07-02T20:50:00.000-05:00

Kajsa Dalrymple and Dietram Scheufele's paper titled "Finally Informing the Electorate? How the Internet got people thinking about presidential politics in 2004" was published in the latest issue of the Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics.

Recent research has suggested that traditional and online news sources may differ with respect to their ability to inform audiences. In particular, there is tentative evidence that the hyper-link structure of online newspapers, for example, can promote a more in-depth understanding of political issues than traditional news media. The authors analyze data from the 2004 American National Election Studies (ANES) to test some of these relationships empirically. Specifically, the influence of traditional and Internet news sources on both differentiated and integrated political knowledge structures among citizens are examined. The findings reveal that users of online newspapers have higher levels of both integrated and differentiated knowledge, even after controlling for print newspaper and television use. Print newspaper use is only related to factual political knowledge, and television news use is unrelated to any of the measures of knowledge about the presidential campaign.

The UW-Madison press release regarding this study is available here.

Listen to a clip of Kajsa Dalrymple discussing the results of their study on Wisconsin Public Radio.

UW Joins Bioenergy Elite

2007-06-27T15:13:00.000-05:00

Yesterday the Department of Energy announced that UW-Madison, represented by Professor Tim Donohue and a team of over 70 scientists, was one of three institutions to be awarded a $125 million grant to establish a bioenergy research center on campus. The center is part of President Bush's energy initiative to reduce dependence on gasoline. Officially called the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC), the facility will be shared with Michigan State University and focus mostly on ways to produce efficient biofuel from cornstalks, wood chips, and perennial grasses. You can read more in the UW's press release here.

The announcement comes on the heels of research describing another technique of producing biofuel from sugars in fruits and root vegetables. In a letter published last week in Nature by UW professor James Dumesic, a team of scientists described the technique of obtaining more efficient fuel by using fructose and glucose, overcoming some of the disadvantages of ethanol. The original research paper is available here, and a good summary from The Economist here.

It should be interesting to follow media content, as well as public opinion, about bioenergy in the near future. I know I've met people around Madison with strong opinions about ethanol, to the point that they avoid filling up at gas stations that boast a %10 sticker. But that's only from a practical standpoint (e.g. claims that ethanol is bad for existing engines) and doesn't even touch on something Hans-Peter Peters mentioned during his visit: how willing are people to use food to produce energy-efficient fuels? It's something to consider with the Dumesic technique. But if the GLBRC is successful at producing fuel from plant waste, perhaps it won't even be an issue.

Global Warming is a Bunch of Hooey

2007-06-21T17:03:00.000-05:00

On Monday this week, The Capital Times published an article in which the main source, retired professor of meteorology Reid Bryson from UW-Madison, described theories of man-made climate change as "hooey" and "religion." For the most part, the article seems disjointed. And, surprisingly, Bryson resorts to the sorts of ad hominem attacks that are usually reserved for political contexts of this and other scientific debates. Take, for example, this criticism of both graduate students and journalists:

Reporters will often call the meteorology building seeking the opinion of a scientist and some beginning graduate student will pick up the phone and say he or she is a meteorologist, Bryson said. "And that goes in the paper as 'scientists say...'"

I would question any reasonable graduate student's motivation in committing such deception - especially since it's not likely to go unnoticed. Almost as much as I question how a reporter wouldn't adequately research their source. And the absence of evidence for such a charge is conspicuous to say the least.

Near the end of the article, journalistic balance wins the day as current UW professor Galen McKinley is called upon to make her case for anthropogenic climate change. I think McKinley comes across as more credible than Bryson, even if the reporter decided not to include information on how much money she makes or how many wedding anniversaries she's celebrated.

Of course, this portrayal of credibility may be to atone for an error from the last time The Capital Times talked to McKinley. In 2005 they interviewed her for this article about climate change, entitled

Global Warming Debate Over, Prof Says
Calls New Study As Solid As Proof That Smoking Causes Cancer

Unfortunately, when the first edition went to press, there was an apparent need to save space and two words were excised. The altered headline was:

Global Warming Debate Over, Prof Says
Calls New Study Solid Proof That Smoking Causes Cancer

The Big Donor Show

2007-06-10T21:39:00.000-05:00

So it's come to this: On Friday June 1st the Dutch television network BNN aired a reality show called "The Big Donor Show." In it, three contestants who were badly in need of a kidney transplant were interviewed by a terminally ill cancer patient named Lisa. By the end of the show, Lisa would choose one of the three to receive her kidneys following her impending death.

Outrage was, in part, cataloged in this BBC article. But what's astonishing about this story is that, in the end, BNN revealed the entire show to be a hoax. It was a ploy to raise awareness about the shortage of organs in the Netherlands, and it seems to have worked. So while many communication researchers are skeptical of the idea of direct media effects (apart, of course, from "War of the Worlds"), certain discrete media events do seem to change attitudes and raise awareness.

It remains to be seen if the program will have any lasting effects on public policy in the Netherlands. But for now, it appears people there are talking about organ donation like never before, which is undoubtedly the first step in getting more people to sign on as donors.

I should also add that, as of tonight, a Google search of "the big donor show" returns the above BBC article as the top hit... so while politicians and the media were mesmerized by the moral implications of deciding life or death on live television, they seem much less entranced by the real issue at hand.

You can hear the story on this week's On The Media from NPR (click here for a direct link to the MP3 file). There's also a good article from the New York Times here.

MSRG study on media coverage of avian flu

2007-05-31T09:43:00.000-05:00

Media coverage of avian flu is characterized by episodic coverage, sensationalism, and minimal information promoting individual efficacy, this according to a new study by MSRG members Anthony Dudo, Michael Dahlstrom and Dominique Brossard forthcoming in Science Communication.

Dudo, A. D., Dahlstrom, M. F., & Brossard, D. (forthcoming). Reporting a potential pandemic: A risk-related assessment of avian influenza coverage in U.S. newspapers. Science Communication.

This study analyzed four major U.S. newspapers to assess the quality of coverage related to risks posed by the H5N1 strain of avian influenza. “Quality of coverage” was examined with a five-dimension conceptualization that included measures of risk magnitude information, self-efficacy, risk comparisons, sensationalism, and thematic and episodic framing. Findings revealed that coverage was dominated by episodic frames, exhibited high sensationalism, and contained minimal information promoting self-efficacy. Coverage, however, contained relatively high levels of risk magnitude information and risk comparison information. Future research should build on these results and examine how the identified patterns of media coverage might influence public perceptions of the risks posed by avian flu.

The Birch Aquarium on Climate Change

2007-05-30T12:12:00.000-05:00

While at AAPOR, Shirley and I and some fellow Wisconsin grad students escaped from Anaheim for a day to drive to San Diego, stopping at the Birch Aquarium. Not expecting anything other than the standard fish-tank fare, I was surprised to see a new main exhibit on global climate change and its impact on marine life. The exhibit features much of the same information as An Inconvenient Truth but without, of course, the political overtones or Al Gore's life story. We saw a busload of school kids wandering through and gaping at the chart of spiking CO2 and pictures of shrinking glaciers.

There was another link to recent media, too, and a more dramatic one. Similar to a segment of the episode of the BBC/Discovery Channel Planet Earth series entitled "Shallow Seas," the exhibit featured a tank of healthy coral reef (foreground below) next to a tank of bleached coral reef. The juxtaposition was a great illustration of the inevitable consequences of disrupting the balance of nature... and in a setting based at a research institution, where those school kids can ask experts questions.

Finally, and on a sobering but related note, the Creation Museum opened up in Kentucky on Monday. It features exhibits with children and dinosaurs playing together... and asserts that the current geography of the planet is the consequence of the only major geological event in history: the Flood. Read more here.

2007 ICA conference

2007-05-28T12:06:00.001-05:00

Another weekend in California, another mass communications conference. At the International Communication Association conference in San Francisco, MSRG members presented 5 papers for the most part on science (stem cell research, opinion formation about science) but also looking at topics like opinions about Iraq, effects of political discussion, and the interplay between cognitive and heuristic processes. In attendance were Pori, Andy, Kajsa, Michael, Shirley, Dietram, and Sharon.

When not engaging with researchers in our field from around the world, we wandered cluelessly around the Tenderloin in search of food and drink. And, of course, hit the sights of Pier 39 (with its outrageous conglomeration of sea lions), Fisherman's Wharf, Alcatraz, and North Beach.

Congratulations to everyone for an outstanding representation of the work being done at Wisconsin. Many of us found out about papers submitted for the AEJMC conference in August - not in California this time, but Washington, D. C. - so look for that information to be updated soon on the conferences page of the MSRG website.

2007 AAPOR conference

2007-05-22T14:30:00.000-05:00

MSRG made a great showing at the 2007 AAPOR conference in Anaheim, CA (in spite of the tempting distractions of nearby Disneyland). Among the people presenting papers were Amy, Kajsa, Andy, Tsung-Jen, Shirley and Pori. In several sessions, we were the only students presenting original research.

On Thursday, Andy’s and Amy & Kajsa’s papers explored how stem cell research played a role in the ’04 and ’06 elections. Shirley presented an analysis of changing trends in polls regarding global health risks like avian flu. Amy’s individual paper looked at religion and support for gay marriage.

Tsung-Jen presented research on agenda-building regarding West Nile Virus and avian flu on Friday, and on Sunday a paper about public opinion and nanotechnology. Pori’s presentation early Sunday morning looked at 2003 media coverage and public perceptions of the Iraq War.

A few of us managed to get away in the evenings to Downtown Disney and Huntington Beach as well.

For full paper titles, refer to the conferences page of our website. Congratulations to everyone for a successful conference!

More awards and publications

2007-05-18T13:29:00.000-05:00

MSRG members Tsung-jen Shih, Rosalyna Wjaya, and Dominique Brossard's analysis of "Media coverage of epidemic hazards" was just accepted for publication in Mass Communication & Society.

Shih, T., Wijaya, R. & Brossard. D. (forthcoming). Media coverage of epidemic hazards: Linking framing and issue attention cycle towards an integrated theory of print news coverage of epidemic hazards. Mass Communication and Society.

Using framing and issue attention cycle as theoretical frameworks, this study examined how print media frame hazardous epidemics, such as mad cow disease, West Nile virus, and avian flu. "Action” and “consequence” were the two frames journalists employed most frequently to construct stories about epidemic hazards in the New York Times, the newspaper used for this case study. The prominence of other frames varied with diseases. Coverage of epidemic hazards was highly event-based, with increased news coverage corresponding to important events such as newly identified cases and governmental actions. Media concerns and journalists’ narrative considerations regarding epidemic hazards did change across different phases of development. The absence of an overarching pattern that can explain the shift of frames with respect to each disease suggested that narrative considerations are dependent on each disease being covered, rather than on the overarching nature of the issue.

Also, Dominique Brossard and Eunkyung Kim's paper on "Pondering media messages" just won CTM's 2007 Top Faculty Paper Award. The paper will be presented on Friday August 10 at 5pm in the "Best of CT&M" session at this year's AEJMC conference, with Jack McLeod serving as discussant.

Brossard*, D., Kim*, E. (2007). Pondering media messages, talking to others and learning: Communication processes and the production of scientific knowledge. Paper to be presented to the Communication Theory & Methodology Division of the 2007 AEJMC Convention, Washington DC, August 8-10 2007. (* in alphabetical order; equal contribution).

This study examines how pondering media messages and talking to others during and after media exposure might impact different types of scientific knowledge. Three different types of scientific knowledge are considered: general scientific knowledge, issue-specific scientific knowledge, and policy-related scientific knowledge. Based on the analysis of national panel survey data, this study shows that communication processing variables, which refer to the level of cognitive involvement in the processing of news information during and after mass media exposure, play a significant additive role in predicting each of the three scientific knowledge measures. The communication processing variables played a mediating role in linking science news use and issue-specific scientific knowledge.

MSRG faculty on deference toward scientific authority

2007-05-02T08:28:00.000-05:00

UW Press Release:
Survey examines Americans’ trust in science
May 1, 2007

by Dennis Chaptman

When it comes to forming opinions on controversial scientific issues, Americans show a strong deference to the views of the scientific community, according to a study co-authored by a University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher.

Dominique Brossard, an assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, says a random survey of 1,500 New York state residents shows they lean heavily on scientists as they form opinions on agricultural biotechnology.

In fact, for many citizens, deference to scientific authority serves as a convenient shortcut that replaces information from mass media or a technical knowledge of issues such as genetically engineered foods.

"We trust scientists to the point that we defer to them," says Brossard, who conducted the study with Matthew C. Nisbet, an assistant professor of communication at American University. "And that raises the question: We want to trust scientists - but do we want citizens to go so far as to blindly defer to experts?"

Brossard says the American educational system is where citizens learn to lean heavily on the scientific community for answers on science policy.

"Transmitted to citizens by the educational system and popular culture, deference to scientific authority … means that when science controversies do occur, deference likely generates among Americans an almost natural pro-science or pro-technology view," according to the research, published in the spring 2007 International Journal of Public Opinion Research.

There are factors, however, that compete with Americans' trust in science, she says, including environmental orientations and religious values. For a number of issues, religious perspectives are likely to compete strongly with deference to science - as has been shown in debates over issues such as embryonic stem-cell research and evolution, she notes. But Brossard adds that a green orientation has not become part of the social fabric here as strongly as it has in western Europe.

Brossard says the study raises some concerns for citizens as they weigh scientific issues.

"Let's not forget that technical innovations have not only scientific consequences, but ethical, legal and social implications. It's not necessarily good for citizens to think that scientists should have the final say," she says. "Scientists are good at what they do. But how much trust is too much trust?"

Brossard notes that few citizens have the motivation or ability to go beyond deference toward scientific authority when judging the potential of new technologies. With this in mind, scientists need to make sure the use the trust granted them responsibly when engaging the public on controversial science.

http://www.news.wisc.edu/13734

Friedman on "Green"

2007-04-16T20:50:00.000-05:00

Just in case you missed it, check out Thomas Friedman’s article from yesterday’s NYTimes Sunday magazine entitled “The Power of Green”.

This is an interesting piece for any of you who are interested in framing, particularly as it applies to science and the environment.

-- Anthony

Global Warming vs. Réchauffement Climatique

2007-03-16T12:40:00.000-05:00

A new report, released yesterday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, reveals that the winter of 2006-2007 was the warmest ever in recorded history. And while you wouldn't miss this story if you were browsing the website of elite French newspaper Le Monde, you wouldn't even know about it if you looked at the New York Times website.

About midmorning today, Le Monde ran the story front and center on their site - despite being in the midst of a presidential campaign.

Not only did the New York Times fail to feature the story on their homepage, they also didn't even have one of their own reporters cover it. Their coverage was limited to an AP piece from last night and a Reuters piece from this morning.

The difference echoes the disparate agendas of elite newspapers in different countries, something Dominique looked at in a study called "Are Issue-Cycles Culturally Constructed? A Comparison of French and American Coverage of Global Climate Change," published in Mass Comm & Society in 2004. Dominique et al.'s article consisted of a content analysis of newspaper coverage in Le Monde and the New York Times from 1987-1997; if today's stories are any indication, it would appear the trend continues.

Global Warming and Sports Illustrated

2007-03-10T16:33:00.000-06:00

Anthony was telling me last week how he thinks we’re reaching a tipping point in media coverage of climate change. And only a few days later, Sports Illustrated – one of the least likely magazines to take on controversial science – is running a cover story on global warming. The author frames the story not only within the assumption that global warming exists, but also adopts the view advocated by the latest IPCC report, that it is almost definitely caused by humans. Ostensibly about how climate change will change sports, the article seems to function as a call to action aimed at readers; it gives examples of how major sporting events are working to reduce the effects of their “carbon footprint” and how athletes are driving hybrid vehicles.

To be sure, it is interesting to see science topics covered by non-science based news outlets. More noteworthy, in my opinion, is a paragraph emphasizing how climate change has already affected us on an everyday level. This emphasis, coupled with non-scientific informants (as Matt Nisbet points out over on Framing Science) might increase heuristic processing of such scientific information, a topic Sharon has looked at in previous research. As such, these frames could increase existence beliefs among the unpersuaded.

Scientists and the media: An international perspective

2007-03-03T09:51:00.000-06:00

A number of MSRG members -- including professors Brossard and Dunwoody -- spoke at this year's AAAS meeting in San Francisco about their comparative research on scientists and the media.

How Scientists Interact with the Media:
An International Analysis
Sunday, Feb 18, 2007, 8:30 AM -10:00 AM

Synopsis:

In an era of global exchange, the relationship between science and the media is increasingly important. Traditional boundaries between countries and media outlets are continuously crossed when scientific enterprises are conducted. In this context, it is extremely important to analyze and understand the relationship between journalists and scientists at a global scale.

This symposium presented the results of an international project that examined the relationships between scientists and the media in the United States, Germany, Japan, Britain, and France in 2005, while using stem cell research and epidemiology as a context. This study is the first attempt ever made to draw meaningful comparisons of the relationships between journalists and scientists, based on 1,350 completed questionnaires with researchers in the five biggest knowledge producing countries worldwide. Results relative to each country were presented and discussed, in light of the movements of scientists between the different continents and the recent controversies related to stem cell research in an international context.

Organized by:

Dominique Brossard, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI; Hans Peter Peters, Research Center Juelich, Juelich, Germany

Presentations:

Moderator--Dominique Brossard.
University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA.

Scientists Experiences with the Media: A Cross-Cultural Comparison--Sharon Dunwoody.
University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA.

Scientists' Representations of Media--Shoji Tsuchida.
Kansai University, Osaka, Japan.

Communication Models in a Global Perspective--Suzanne de Cheveigné.
Shadyc (EHESS-CNRS), Marseille, France.

Scientists' Communication Competence and Training--Steve Miller.
University College London, London, United Kingdom.

Discussant--Hans Peter Peters.
Research Center Juelich, Juelich, Germany.