Othering the rural: About the construction of rural masculinities and the unspoken urban hegemonic ideal in Swedish media

Studies within the field of rural geography have lately to a noticeable extent enriched the theme of the creation of masculinities and femininities focussing on social constructions of the rural, as well as social constructions of gender. In this study I aim to discuss some expressed discourses of the rural in order to illuminate the power relation between the urban and the rural and the spatial implications of the construction of masculinities and femininities.Taking three Swedish television productions as a point of departure, I will argue that an urban hegemony exists and that the programmes reveal how rural masculinities are constructed. The aim is firstly to add a spatial dimension to the constructions of masculinities, and secondly to show how media builds up and emphasises a gap between the rural and the urban in these constructions. Cutting-edge media is of interest, as it is active in reproducing certain practices and also in identifying who is following the norm and who is deviating from it. The three television productions highlight the construction of rural masculinities in terms of seeking help and being ‘backward’; that rural men are unequal and traditional as well as deviating and out of place.     

When conflict fuels negativity. A large-scale comparative investigation of the contextual drivers of negative campaigning in elections worldwide

We investigate the contextual conditions under which campaigns in elections worldwide are fought “negatively”, that is, rely on attacks against political opponents. We test the overarching intuition that societal, political, and cultural conflicts in the country are associated with greater negativity in election campaigns; conflicts, we argue, sow political discord. We test this intuition via a large-scale comparative dataset that covers 136 national elections across more than 100 countries worldwide that happened between June 2016 and March 2020, based on the expert judgments of more than 2000 scholars - to the best of our knowledge, the single largest comparative dataset about the content of elections worldwide. Our results show that countries in which elections are fought under a majoritarian or plurality rule tend to witness higher campaign negativity, and so are countries characterized by higher income inequality, deeper ethnic fragmentation, and higher individualism. Similarly, election competitiveness and ideological diversity of competing actors both tend to be associated with a greater use of negative campaigning, and so is news media preference for sensationalism.     

Social construction of work stress: Australian newsprint media portrayal of stress at work, 1997-98

Public understanding of health issues is influenced by the social and political interests of those who gather the information and by the media which disseminates it. This has implications for lay people's beliefs about work stress and has potentially serious personal implications in terms of recognizing, reacting to, and reporting stress in the workplace (Furnham, 1997). The somewhat ambiguous nature of work stress renders it vulnerable to political, social and economic manipulation. This study explores how the issue of work stress is represented in the Australian newsprint media. Fifty-one work-related articles from all major Australian newspapers from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 1997 were selected if 'stress' appeared in the headline. The articles were examined for dominant ideologies and themes. Attention was given to the language used to describe stress, the intended audience, and the voices represented in the articles. Results showed that work stress is represented in the media as an economically costly epidemic, as an outcome of unfavourable work conditions but with individual remedies, and as primarily situated within the public sector. The main voice represented in the media was that of the unions. The reproduction of work stress as a public sector phenomenon serves the interests of public sector unions, the newspapers, and the managers of private sector workers and is not consistent with available workers' compensation data (which is itself problematic).     

Risk‐Taking and the Media

In recent years, media formats with risk‐glorifying content, such as video games that simulate illegal street racing (“bang and crash” games), films about extreme sports, and risky stunts have emerged as top sellers of the media industry. A variety of recent studies conducted by several researchers revealed that exposure to risk‐glorifying media content (e.g., video games that simulate reckless driving, smoking and drinking in movies, or depictions that glorify extreme sports) increases the likelihood that recipients will show increased levels of risk‐taking inclinations and behaviors. The present article (1) reviews the latest research on the detrimental impact of risk‐glorifying media on risk‐taking inclinations (cognitions, emotions, behaviors), (2) puts these findings in the theoretical context of recent sociocognitive models on media effects, and (3) makes suggestions to science and policymakers on how to deal with these effects in the future.     

新媒体环境下英语听力教学过程性评估模式研究与实践

随着新媒体的出现,学生可以通过互联网、手机报、MP4、数字广播电视、3G网络视频等随时随地接触到生动真实的语言环境,教师已不是信息资源的唯一来源,学生也不再是被动地接受知识.文章从新媒体概念的剖析入手,讨论新媒体与英语听力教学的关系,探究如何在新媒体环境下设计有效的过程性听力教学评估模式,充分利用新媒体的资源有效监控评估学生听力学习、提高学生自主学习能力.     

结构性社会问题传播中的五大误区

由于某些制度性、政策性的因素或社会发展中的不可逾越的阶段影响所致,我国不可避免存在着结构性社会问题,本文认为,它们具有全面性、长期性、潜伏性和艰巨性等特点。在全面考察近年新闻传播的基础上,本文指出,在传播结构性社会问题中,媒体出现了结构性失衡、舆论监督力度不足、低俗化、模式化等问题,需要引起有关各方的高度重视。     

旨在提升研究生全面信息素质的文检课教学改革探索

信息素质是研究生必备的研究素质,现行的信息素质教育存在诸多的弊端亟须得到改良与纠正。本文在对比国内外信息素质教育的基础上,提出我国研究生全面信息素质的理念及相应的改革方案。     

“后工具时代”与媒介的诗性诉求——兼论媒介的文学基因与审美质素

基于科学技术的传播媒介不仅改变了文学传播与媒介的性质,还重新创造了人类感知世界的方式,并由外而内地修正了文学的谱系与生态,文学已不再是一个本质性的概念。在媒介时代,从工具理性向功能主体转换的媒介,在消解文学的同时更在建构文学,成了重构现代与后现代文学的“原点”。媒介绝非物性与技术性,它内涵诗性的基因与审美的质素。     

时间产品:传媒经济学的价值基点

当人类习惯把大众传媒当作最主要的信息交流与传播的载体时,大众传媒便成为一个产业,两大基本产品形态分别是信息和时间,后者是所有传媒信息产品统一的价值载体,并在交易过程中决定着传媒信息产品的价格,由此成为传媒经济学最基本的价值对象:时间产品。本文基于时间产品的理论性概念,对不同媒介形态的内容产品进行了有效的价值分析,以此对全球传媒产业未来的发展趋势做出战略性判断。     

20世纪90年代文学研究的新空间新方法——评《传媒语境与20世纪90年代文学转向》

面对"异彩纷呈"的20世纪90年代文学,文学研究或呈现为"简单"的现象铺陈,或在文学之外窥视、逡巡,无法突破"表象"抵达"本质",无法充分呈现20世纪90年代文学学术化的可能性。《传媒语境与20世纪90年代文学转向》选择"文学"为"体"、"文化"为"用"的研究立场和方法,使20世纪90年代文学学术化的可能性充分敞开,呈现了20世纪90年代文学研究的新空间新方法。同时,也给我们提供了在传媒语境中关于"文学"的新看法和新思维。