Mass Communication Handouts
Declaring behavior This is a way to communicate you might not have considered. It is a win-win situation in which each person gets what he/she wants and no one is canceled.
Nonverbal examples and Enrichment Assignment No. 1
Four freedoms media should enjoy Ever wonder what freedoms the media are supposed to have? Check these out.
Ethics issues In a time when media ethics is considered an oxymoron by critics, check out ethical dilemmas and make up your own mind about how ethical media are. This study includes newspapers, magazines, radio, television and the Internet.
Kid on a fence This disturbing photograph was dispatched over the AP wire. Some newspapers published it and some did not. What would you have done and why?
Broken leg This photo is not quite so gruesome, but is it really necessary? Does this serve the public somehow or is it just pandering to morbid curiosity?
Media law Since media in the United States operate under the Social Responsiblity rationale, media ethics and media law represent an unwritten contract between media and the government in a democracy. Media laws step in when media ethics fail to operate properly. Media laws are part of tort law, which involve individual (or corporation) vs. individual (or corporation). Civil law and criminal law are adjudicated at the base level in the same courts.
News analysis How do media determine the newsworthiness of an event or happening:? Why do stories appear in the newspaper or on television? The determining factors are traditional news values, and these decisions are made daily in newsrooms around the world. Much depends on the community in which the events occur. For example, San Antonio's demographics dictate that certain events and happenings are more important than others.
News Items of Interest Newspapers, the earliest of media in the United States, have come through a long history of authoritarian rule, libertarian excess and service as a "watchdog" of democracy. Read about the people who made a difference in the way our newspapers are today. Ideally, newspapers represent one of the best outlets for ordinary citizens to express their freedom of speech and share their ideas with their peers.
Letter to the editor Ever thought, "I'd like to let that person know how I feel." Or did you get upset when some jerk wrote a letter to the editor with which you did not agree? Now is your chance to let 'em have it with a letter of your own. Learn how by clicking on this link.
Reporting styles So, now that editors have determined what will be presented to the public through the media, in what form will it be presented?
Query letter Magazines came along after newspapers to provide a different form of information. General interest magazines gave readers more background and often more thoughtful explanations of what the newspapers had provided. But magazines changed with the introduction of new technology. Magazine pioneers would not recognize today's special interest publications.
Photo Tips What makes a good photograph? Find out from the experts at Kodak. What makes a good news photograph? Find out from the National Press Photographers Association.
Radio Radio's introduction came at a time when Americans needed it - during the Great Depression, people needed a laugh and a bit of escape from the troubles they faced. Radio provided that. During the Golden Age of Radio, we followed the escapades of super heroes, rogues and funny folks. We became enamoured with Young Widder Brown and Stella Dallas, and millions of listeners laughed nightly at Amos and Andy, Fibber McGee and Molly and Burns and Allen. Radio was a "theater of the mind," as Orson Welles discovered after his "War of the Worlds" forced him into seclusion because of the national uproar it caused.
TV As television hit the scene in the 1950s, radio and magazines were forced to change to meet the challenge of a medium that could provide sight, sound and motion. Advertisers rushed to get their messages on the new medium and other media suffered for it and were forced to change to meet the competition. Work on television began many years before it became a reality, and World War II prevented its earlier burst upon the scene.
Subliminals in advertising -- are they for real? Advertising has "come a long way, baby," since the days of patent medicine and flimflam quackery. The advertising industry is probably the most regulated industry in America. But some critics claim it needs additional regulation because it appeals to people's emotions.
PR history From P.T. Barnum's bizarre claims to today's modern public relations machinery, PR has had great impact on society. Public relations activities are neutral, neither good nor bad. Saddam Hussein has used the techniques as did Hitler's propaganda machine. But the techniques can be used for good as well. Some claim PR is made up of puffery and obfucation, while others say it provides needed information for a variety of publics. You be the judge.
Public Relations, what is it? The planned effort to influence public opinion through good character and responsible performance, based upon mutually satisfactory two-way communications is a definition, but what are the things one does as a PR practitioner? Find that here.
Media Organizations Networking offers students an inside glimpse at a career, and here are the organizations which can provide that. Most of these organizations provide student memberships.
Salaries in media jobs Here's the bad news, however, for those who want to be in media work. If you're going into the media field for money, get out now.
Interviewing.html What kind of things should you look for in conducting an interview? You will need to get basic information, anecdotes, detailed observations and direct quotes, and here's how to do it.
This site offers suggestions from "read the question carefully" to "keep an eye on the clock" and "conclude but don't repeat."
This site from the University of North Carolina explains what an essay exam is and why instructors give essay exams.
This site deals with preparing, approaching and writing the essay exam. It emphasizes the importance of lecture notes. The section on writing the essay exam is extremely important.
This site is from an English instructor at Southeastern Louisiana State University. She emphasizes "Go to class and be on time. Pay attention and take notes."
This site is a simple site.
This site is from the University of Texas at Austin, and it contains a number of links to other instructive pages.
This site is an excellent review of how to respond on an essay exam. It contains a PDF version which can be printed out and studied.