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For years, researchers have grappled with understanding the relationship between technology and political behavior. A team of researchers has developed a novel approach to examine how AI-related news consumption, discussions and literacy influence citizens’ support for AI policies.
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While gender-based representation of Olympic athletes has been equal in terms of screen time for years and at times even underrepresent men, women’s sports are still framed in such a way as to promote hegemonic masculinity.
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In an era where more than half of American adults regularly get their news from social media sites, a recent study reveals fundamental changes in how news is consumed, shared and valued. The findings are particularly relevant to ongoing debates about the quality of news on web platforms and its impact on public discourse.
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Social media influencers have become economic and social capital powerhouses. But now virtual influencers, computer-generated characters, who, despite not actually being alive, are also engaging with audiences using persona-focused personal brands. But how effective are they?
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The majority of people in the U.S. get their online news from individual news organizations, which publish proprietary stories written by their own reporters. In South Korea, most people access news portals, which aggregate stories from multiple sources. This study explores how perceived news portal credibility influences the connection between online engagement and civic participation.
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As the 2024 election season ramps up, voters are looking for reliable information about candidates to help them decide who to support on election day. Unfortunately, that reliability is threatened by a wave of disinformation that is bolstered by increasingly sophisticated artificial intelligence tools.
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AI-powered digital promotions have the potential to revolutionize business marketing by providing customers with a more personalized and engaging experience. But how human-like should chatbots be when promoting products and services to consumers?
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Researchers embarked on a study to understand how viewers engage with media portrayals of transracial adoptions and the lasting impressions they leave behind.
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As the nation faces another contentious election cycle, the spread of misinformation continues to be rampant. Scholars wanted to explore the predictability of whether or not people would seek and share misinformation without first fact-checking it.
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This research explores the potential link between the perceived behavioral norm of following influencers on Instagram and the effectiveness of influencer marketing on the platform.
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New research delves into the web of political communication to unravel hidden threads of moral intuitions woven throughout Biden and Trump campaigns’ strategies in 2020.
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News publishers must stick to the core values that are the foundation of journalistic work. Competing on the social platforms’ terms – with eyeball-chasing clickbait – won’t solve the attention deficit and will likely only exacerbate the misinformation problem.
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Consortium on Trust in Media and Technology Managing Director Janet Coats discusses the advantages and challenges of using generative AI in the reporting process. This video was produced for the University of Florida’s AI Days in October 2023.
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Professionalism, public trust and ethics have always been integral to public relations education. This book chapter summary discusses how public relations can also play a role in promoting social change and giving voice to historically underrepresented groups.
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Researchers recently studied the top 10 comments posted on the “Like a Girl” YouTube video, a promotion from Always feminine products, to better understand consumer sentiment about “femvertising,” as well as the relationships between the commenters.
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New research is identifying patterns of common language usage in coverage of potentially divisive subjects that could further damage trust. Recoding words away from inherent biases and towards authentic language may be a pathway that engenders trust.
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In this legal essay, Jasmine McNealy proposes that internet platforms have become so ubiquitous and indispensable for communication that they can easily place organizational benefits above the needs of society.
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Chatbots are here to stay. But are they effective communicators, particularly when it comes to dispensing scientific advice? New research explores how persuasive chatbots can be in engaging audiences when discussing important scientific topics.
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Financial independence was a challenge for some, but the pandemic forced many student newspapers to transition to a more diverse revenue model and to continue some pandemic-specific practices they embraced.
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As the capabilities of artificial intelligence continue to increase, how are companies using AI to make decisions and drive business? As AI evolves, how can communicators continue its use in an ethical manner?
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There’s a mountain of political research on voters’ media engagement immediately prior to an election, but far less is known about their news consumption right afterward. This study sheds light on voters’ media use in the wake of their candidate’s win or loss in an election.
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What happens when an AI platform gives out incorrect information that then causes harm to those that use it? This article examines the potential for AI liability through the lens of “duty” – whether responses from an AI platform would have a legal obligation to adhere to standards of reasonable care toward users.
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Organizational leadership requires much more than a good head for business, knowledge of market trends or analyzing accounting spreadsheets. Important as those things may be to understanding your business, understanding employees, and how to get them to understand your business, is critical for success.
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Years of research show that people are swayed more by emotion than by reason when it comes to participating in the democratic process. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing, because emotion, particularly anxiety, can motivate us to action.
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Rural communities need to be invited into conversations about the potential positive and negative impacts of artificial intelligence.
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Proposed bipartisan legislation seeks to address a shared sense that consumers and the country are being harmed by the power that technology companies have to “gatekeep” and curate the content their users see or the apps they’re able to use. But is this legislation the right approach?
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The problem of misinformation or disinformation being disseminated on social media has been well established and documented. But a new study suggests that users actually find factual posts more engaging than posts with misinformation.
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The National Justice Project is a public interest campaign focused on challenging stereotypes and biases in popular media representations. This community-based initiative trains people of color to tell stories about marginalized people that counter mainstream, stereotypical stories.
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Robot narratives have been with us for a long time and humans have fantasized, advised and prophesized about robots existing among us. But would people actually trust these fictional robots if they were real?
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Fact-checking that was presented as being generated by AI or through crowdsourcing resulted in significantly reduced levels of “motivated reasoning” compared to using human experts.
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Researchers conducted a study asking participants to assess their preferred level of AI integration in the discovery and information-gathering phase and the writing and editing phase of news production.
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The emerging discipline of public interest communications offers solutions for a deeply polarized and divided world.
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Media trust is critical for democracies because they rely on informed participation and you don’t use what you don’t trust. Understanding what contributes to mistrust can help news organizations combat it—and understanding the impact of content created by readers rather than reporters could be key.
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Many companies have made commitments toward diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in recent years. Recent research has shown that diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives improve creativity, innovation, productivity and organizational performance.
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As screenwriters strike to ensure job security in the face of generative AI, researchers set out to gauge audience reactions to works of short fiction written by ChatGPT and a version of the ChatGPT story edited by the researchers themselves.
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In Real Life (IRL) streaming, in which streamers broadcast their daily activities to viewers, has become very popular. This study explored how IRL stream-based community identification is affected by the social presence afforded by streaming platforms.
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There are many reasons why all trials aren’t televised, spanning the history of case law, congressional legislation, empirical research, high-profile “circus” trials and, in some cases, fear.
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Scholars who study ecocriticism and environmental communication are realizing how important it is to get the messaging about the climate crisis right. This research discovered that hopeful videos were overall the most compelling and the ones that the participants are most likely to share with family and friends.
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There’s no doubt that social media platform Snapchat is popular, but are marketers leveraging its advertising power? This study finds that Snapchat users, which tend to skew younger, interact with and perceive ads differently than on other social media platforms.
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Organizations are increasingly embracing the differences between employees and actively promoting diversity in the workplace. Researchers wanted to see if there was a possible link between organizational diversity communication efforts and levels of employee engagement.
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“Reboots are a part of our nostalgia culture; they allow us to reimagine that time period we loved, but with more complete or complex content. And representation really does matter in mainstream media, especially for children at early ages.”
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Family dynamic plays an important role in discussions about vaccination and the level of trust in sources of information about the COVID-19 vaccine.
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This research looks at how perceptions of candidates are affected when they appear on or are parodied in comedy shows vs. traditional news.
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As live streaming platforms have grown as a source of content and community, researchers wanted to explore how one’s sense of loneliness affects how they interact with the streamers and the community, and especially how one responds to social cues on Twitch, the most popular live-streaming platform.
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Love might seem more art than science, but there is data behind matters of the heart. Researchers at the University of Florida found that affectionate communication plays a pivotal role in relationship satisfaction.
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Racial and ethnic minorities are underrepresented in the advertising industry. Research shows that diversity in the workplace can enhance learning, stimulate creativity, and improve outcomes. This research sought to examine how people of color communicate in their co-cultural work environment.
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Brands are increasingly using virtual influencers for promotion, which results in multilayered ads. The virtual influencer, the company behind the influencer, and the brand could all be seen as responsible for the success or failure of an endorsement by the consumer. So, what does this mean for consumers and brand advertisers?
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Brands increasingly use social media platforms to engage with their consumers, promote their products, and improve brand attitudes. This research is intended to fill in the gaps about the impact social media posts like these have on brand attitudes and consumer behaviors.
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Today’s abundant content from linear media, tech companies, influencers and others presents a growing challenge in measuring the trust consumers place on these different media platforms/outlets. Researchers sought to define a media brand and its trust elements.
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Current efforts to increase trust by fact-checking and increased transparency are respectable but minimally effective. They largely offer tactic over strategy, disregarding a major player in perspective-building: where people live.
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Research Fridays features faculty and graduate students from the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications presenting current research to their colleagues. On April 14, 2023, Public Relations Department Associate Professor and Chair Myiah Hutchens presented “Understanding Communication and Polarization.”
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Research Fridays features faculty and graduate students from CJC presenting current research to their colleagues. On April 7, 2023, Advertising Assistant Professor Won-Ki Moon presented “Rise of Non-Human Agents in (Strategic) Communication.”
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When the pandemic led to global lockdowns in early 2020, the U.S. government quickly reacted with health-related communications that were not accepted universally across the country. But this divide in compliance was not seen everywhere across the globe. Why?
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The news that Taylor Swift had broken up with her boyfriend after six years caused a such a volcanic public response, replete with viral rumors and conspiracy theories. The response is rooted in the ever-growing parasocial relationships phenomenon—one-sided celebrity fascinations that lead fans to vicariously invest in stars’ lives.
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With limited human interaction during COVID, many people turned to voice assistants for connection. But what exactly led people to anthropomorphize nonhuman agents like voice assistants during COVID-19? This study explores that question.
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Research Fridays features faculty and graduate students from the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications presenting current research to their colleagues. On March...
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On March 10, 2023, Advertising Associate Professor Kasey Windels and doctoral student Sophia Mueller discussed their research on “How Professionals’ Identities Shape Their Experiences in The Advertising Industry: Examining Gender And Sexual Orientation.”
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On Feb. 24, 2023, Journalism Assistant Professor Rachel Grant discussed the exploration of identity and culture within media platforms, and her work as research director for the Narrative Justice Project.
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The proliferation of unchecked journalism and false reporting has led to adopting AI tools to wade through the mess. This begs the question, do online users trust AI to weed out fake news?
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A team of UF scholars sought to examine what makes disinformation ads on social media appealing to users. The study looked at Facebook ads created by Russia’s Internet Research Agency in its Active Measures disinformation campaign targeting the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
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In 2022, the influencer market was estimated at $16.5 billion and content creators are under growing pressure to disclose partnerships with brands to build trust with consumers. Whether influencers engage in transparent disclosure is a key factor in understanding their formidable role on social media.
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Organizations are adopting live-chat systems that employ either human agents or AI-driven conversational agents. How consumers perceive these live-chat conversations is important in understanding how organizations build strong relationships with them.
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Using social media influencers to help promote a brand has become an increasingly important marketing strategy. But questions remain about selecting an influencer to represent a brand online.
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With high viewership and interactivity, live streaming is ripe for building social capital, a network of trust and shared values that can be mobilized for collective actions. But how do different ways of engaging in live streaming affect one’s social capital?
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The hesitancy to vaccinate children against COVID-19 has become a global public health threat. Research shows that people who are unvaccinated primarily get vaccine information from the internet, friends, and family, while those who are fully vaccinated primarily get information from their own physicians and from national health experts.
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Social media users envying others on the platform is mostly associated with causing negative self-images. But more recent research shows that, in some instances, comparing oneself to others on social media can positively influence their well-being.
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Past research has suggested that the way conservative media frames and communicates messages is distinct from both liberal partisan outlets and mainstream, non-partisan media. But current research suggests that conservative and liberal messaging approaches are not that different.
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A recent study concluded that there was an insufficient number of media covering immigrants in the state, coverage of certain immigrant groups was limited, and stories that are not just about immigrants work best.
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Many brands are launching formal partnerships with social media influencers to drive online engagement and higher sales. Researchers explored how influencer community and influencer–follower relationships might facilitate consumers’ usage intent toward social commerce.
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Many brands incorporate social issues into their social media campaigns and use AI to analyze consumer responses. This research looks at which type of algorithms are most effective in analyzing consumer sentiment.
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Recent decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court such as the overturning of Roe. vs Wade have raised questions about the institution’s legitimacy in the eyes of the American public. A new study looks at whether the Roe decision has affected trust in the Supreme Court.
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Why are so many women exiting the industry as a whole, even as a greater number of women are earning advertising-oriented degrees? New research attempts to address that by focusing more specifically on gender identity in the workplace and how it shapes women’s experiences across advertising agency departments.
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Contemporary Disney movies act as a primary source of family role portrayals. By watching Disney movies like “Encanto” together, families can observationally learn how to navigate roles within their own families.
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Artificial intelligence is projected to reshape the global economy. Automation technology is already permeating a broad spectrum of industries worldwide. One area of inquiry that has been given less attention is assessing how the presentation of AI in the workforce affects people’s perceptions about the technology.
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Most consumers today are confronted with algorithmic-based recommendations based on their past usage or buying history. But how do consumers actually feel about machines recommending media or goods they might like?
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Social issue advertising campaigns are proliferating, particularly on social media and with, in many cases, a polarizing effect. Researchers wanted to explore ways to monitor online public opinion of social issue campaigns.
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Algorithms suffer from inherent bias due to human imagination, or lack thereof. Associate Professor Jasmine McNealy explains that it’s critical to mitigate the potential harm human intervention can have on developing algorithms by asking essential questions.
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Interacting with members of other groups can promote understanding and reduce prejudice under the right conditions, but intergroup contact with refugees can be difficult to foster and maintain. Researchers wanted to investigate whether intergroup contact with a “virtual refugee” can effectively reduce this divide and foster closeness and empathy toward refugees.
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New research concludes that mainstream media outlets praised magazines featuring Breonna Taylor’s death on their cover, while Twitter users criticized using her likeness to sell magazines.
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The researchers sought to better understand the role purpose-driven organizations play in cultivating employee trust based on how an employee identifies with an organization, primarily on a cognitive level.
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In response to the extensive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, collaborative efforts from multi-sector organizations emerged to help communities cope during these challenging times. Researchers s wanted to better understand how organizations from both the public and private sectors communicated these social partnerships on social media.
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Janet Coats, Consortium on Trust in Media and Technology managing director, discusses the importance of media literacy and its impact on free expression and civil discourse.
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Clay Calvert, Brechner Eminent Scholar in Mass Communication and Director of the Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project, discusses key issues and common misperceptions about the First Amendment, the impact of a more conservative Supreme Court, and student free speech protections.
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Artificial Intelligence is now being used to help tutor students at all educational levels. This research explores whether or not AI tutors are as effective as human tutors, specifically in language and writing education.
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New research explores how social presence and conversational human voice can affect public perception of an organization using chatbots, AI-based automated virtual assistants.
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Young voters are arguably the most flexible and fluctuating age groups when it comes to sharing political opinions. The two most recent generations – Millennials and Generation Z – share a healthy willingness to speak out about a variety of topics on social media.
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The field of human-machine communication has grown exponentially over the past 10 years with the advancement of new artificial intelligence technology. Research on HMC has also exploded focusing on both the technology itself and the implications for users and society.
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Why did Trump supporters and others buy into the “Big Lie” about the 2020 election results? New research shows that election fraud fact-checking may correct viewers beliefs but does not necessarily change partisan attitudes toward the Capitol Hill attack.
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While most Russians approve of the country’s invasion of Ukraine, an examination showed that people who had access to media sources other than those run by the Russian government were more likely to oppose the war in Ukraine.
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Social media capital – the resources that content producers and organizations build based on their social media efforts — often translates to increased credibility and more economic value. Researchers wanted to explore how news sites’ reputation and content quality translated into social media capital.
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To manage the adverse effects of unemployment and maintain one’s well-being, unemployed workers often develop coping strategies, such as playing video games. Researchers wanted to better understand how unemployed workers used video games to cope with the stress from unemployment specifically during COVID-19.
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As more uses for technology emerge, researchers are interested in studying which mechanism of technology, such as chatbots, voice assistants, and social robots, are most effective in explaining social presence and perceived trustworthiness for users. In other words, how do people tend to interact with different forms of interactive technology?
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A new study concludes that how refugees are portrayed by the media, particularly for individuals who don’t have direct exposure to the population, influences public opinion and forms stereotypes.
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Data collection is a known inevitability when it comes to using the internet. While data tracking is common knowledge, how the data is collected and used is not widely known or understood.
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In this study, scholars used Twitter data to examine how political elites from both political parties communicated norms to their constituents about mask-wearing during the pandemic.
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During the early stages of the pandemic, secure messaging became a critical mode of communication for healthcare providers and their patients, addressing, in particular, misinformation about COVID-19.
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Stay-at-home dads are more common than ever before. Because of fathers’ changing roles in the household, advertisers are shifting how they market their products to this target audience.
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Marketers are increasingly taking advantage of AI strategies when interacting with prospective customers, particularly in data collection and message targeting. But how consumers perceive or understand the use of AI in marketing has been unclear.
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Ads claiming products are environmentally friendly often include complex claims that are confusing to even knowledgeable consumers, resulting in “greenwashing” — misleading information about the environmental practices of a company or the environmental attributes and benefits of a product or service.
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This new study explores the power of words as they are used with and for technology, attempting to define frames of ethics and the complexity involved when it comes to describing and communicating ethical uses of technology.
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As artificial intelligence technology has advanced, its use has expanded to a range of industries, including broadcast news. AI could be used in place of a human weather newscaster, for example, if a human is not available during a weather emergency. Yet little research exists that looks at how people perceive AI newscasters.
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In our polarized political environment, scientific knowledge alone is not always enough to inspire change or action. When it comes to environmental topics in particular, imparting such information without a careful strategy can often have the opposite effect of the desired behavior.
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A new University of Florida study has found that “doomscrolling” — a term used to describe the concept of binging on negative news — is a new and unique behavior, and not just another trendy, clickbaity phrase.
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Sports journalism has evolved from simply including play-by-play and color commentary during a live game to incorporating more audio and visual storytelling elements. As a result, the education provided to sports journalism students should reflect these changes.
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The recent failure of workplace vaccine mandates in the Supreme Court means we have to look for fresh ideas to get the last third of Americans vaccinated. Here’s a tool no one has tried: activating the millions of Americans who are vaccinated to influence the choices of those who aren’t.
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The use of smart speakers, such as Alexa and Google Assistant, has become ubiquitous in American society. UFCJC researchers wanted to better understand the different ways people use the devices, as well as identify the main strategies they use to protect their privacy during that use.
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Companies are increasingly sponsoring social media influencers to promote their brand. While the effects of sponsorship disclosures on social media have been tested in advertising research, the effects of disclosures about integrity and impartiality are relatively unknown.
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Commenting on social media posts is an increasingly popular way to participate in social media news. But Individuals with strong preexisting attitudes about an issue tend to perceive media coverage as biased against their point of view, and this “hostile media effect” is believed to be driven in part by social identity.
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One of the very few unifying propositions across all U.S. ideologies is that young people need more effective civics education. Given that widespread consensus, it might be expected that educators and policymakers would be tightly embracing the curative of scholastic journalism. But that is rarely the case.
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Social media is an empowering leveler for millions of young users. But for some teens, social media will also prove to be the difference maker in losing access to a college education because an admissions officer deemed their speech to be offensive or indicative of bad character.
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Recruiting participants for health-related research is always a challenge for researchers and often they turn to social media to help. But more regulatory guidance regarding what is acceptable practice is needed. Researchers have developed policies and procedures that can be easily replicated and allow research teams to effectively use social media as a recruitment tool.
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The demand for sustainable products and services is growing steadily. New research explores the topic of sustainability in media and communications from the perspective of the top three areas of concern according to the United Nations: ecological sustainability, economic sustainability, and social sustainability.
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Journalism Assistant Professor Rachel Grant is Research Director for the Narrative Justice Project, a tactical response to popular media conversations around stereotypes and conversations around racism. We interviewed Dr. Grant on Nov. 3, 2021 about the project and findings from the research so far.
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Virtual reality and 360-degree video have come to be known as “empathy machines,” due to their ability to afford the viewer the perspective of another. A team of CJC researchers wanted to understand better the tie between immersive storytelling and psychological responses.
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The primary function of “social robots” is to facilitate communication with humans, and is being applied in a variety of industries, including education and physical and mental health. Dr. Kun Xu is studying how to enhance that communication through voice, gestures and other social cues.
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Women shopping for plus-size clothing face many challenges, and are often isolated through marketing, language and website navigation. Researchers found that clothing retailers have a long way to go to incorporate inclusiveness into their women’s plus-size shopping experience, especially online.
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A timely response during a crisis is critical because the speed of crisis response can influence the success rate of crisis management efforts, teams, and strategies. This study further explores the impact of timing and message appeal on social media during a health crisis.
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Are workplace vaccine mandates prompting some employees to quit rather than get a shot? Based on a sample of companies that already have vaccine mandates in place, the actual number who resign rather than get the vaccine is much smaller than some surveys suggest.
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Social media has become a lucrative business tool for companies to engage the public. But brands using social media aren’t always met with open arms. New research looks at the impact of negative peer communication on an organization’s relationship with its audience.
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University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications Advertising Visiting Lecturer Santiago Kember shares insights on how the Hispanic and Latino markets have changed over the past decade and what advertisers need to do to reach this market going forward.
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Doctoral student Fanjue Liu is exploring how AI-enabled virtual assistants, like Alexa or Siri, can mitigate feelings of loneliness and isolation, particularly during the pandemic.
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A woman’s willingness to initiate sexual health conversations with their doctors can make a difference in the quality of care she receives. This research explores whether a woman’s age had any effect on her willingness to take the lead for her own sexual health care.
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Doctoral student Yoo Jin Chung discusses her research on AI-enabled virtual influencers on social media, and how social media users react to virtual vs. human influencers.
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Sports networks have adopted the “Madden” camera to provide a more dynamic view of the football field of play. But do these new angles make it more difficult for viewers to estimate yardage than traditional play-by-play cameras?
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Levels of political polarization continue to escalate in the U.S., causing an increasingly wide chasm between liberals and conservatives. New research explores whether liberal and conservative news outlets contributed to this political divide and increased polarization.
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Research has found that behavioral lifestyle interventions for adolescent obesity treatment is critical to the success of any program hoping to make a difference in the lives of obese or overweight teens. A new study shows that adolescents affected by obesity believe interventions should avoid focusing on weight loss and instead promote a healthy lifestyle.
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Communicating effectively with vaccine-hesitant patients is critically important to increase the number of vaccinated individuals in all countries. Research on communicating with vaccine-hesitant patients has demonstrated that good communication can make a difference in patients’ vaccine choices.
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Dark patterns are design elements that deliberately obscure, mislead, coerce and/or deceive website visitors into making unintended and possibly harmful choices. They take the form of deceptively labeled buttons, choices that are difficult to undo and graphical elements like color and shading that direct users’ attention to or away from certain options.
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One third of the most popular cancer treatment articles on social media contain misinformation. Further, the vast majority of that misinformation has the potential to harm cancer patients by supporting approaches that could negatively impact the quality of their treatment and chances for survival.
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YouTube has become a major platform for video content marketing. Researchers wanted to understand how some brands have used YouTube in their content marketing campaign, including engagement formats and content appeals.
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Female empowerment advertising, or femvertising, has been a popular trend for brands advertising to women since Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty in 2004. But new research considers ways that these seemingly positive advertisements can be harmful to feminist agendas.
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A time comes for many journalists when they think about teaching. This article will cover salary, education requirements, and workload. At the end, you’ll find a list of common terms used in academic job ads and a few links to academic job listings in journalism and communication.
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Donald Trump knows his First Amendment lawsuits against the social media companies can’t win in court. Here’s why – and why even his most ardent supporters don’t really want him to.
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As the emergence of digital technologies has transformed the news industry, the way that journalism is taught has changed as well. Researchers wanted to explore what legal and ethical principles and issues affect educators, and which most commonly arise when educators serve as de facto publishers.
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Why do we focus more on the bad than the good? Why do we seek out the more traumatic vs. feel good news stories? Researchers wanted to learn more about the factors that could affect one’s inclination to veer toward negative or positive information, including age, political uses and approaches, and the type of exposure to news.
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The assistant professor in emerging media discusses how users interact with robots, what types of cues and gestures are most effective in human-machine communication, and the convergence of various communication technologies.
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When a fictional female journalist appears on screen, chances are she’s about to sleep with one of her sources. It’s a trope that infuriates actual women in news media — and it can have real-life consequences, says University of Florida researcher Frank Waddell, Ph.D.
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As brands increasingly acknowledge social issues in their advertising, researchers wanted to know how use of social media affects consumers’ responses to a social media-based advertising campaign designed to incorporate the concept of a woke mindset.
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Society needs to be very careful about the deployment of artificial intelligence systems and needs to answer who is the solution best for, who is affected and what are the potential impacts.
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Vaping has skyrocketed over the past several years, particularly among 18–24-year-olds, and the effects can be negative. Social media has become a major channel for promoting vaping, and new research examines the characteristics of these promotional social media posts.
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Does social media use lead to greater life satisfaction or self-esteem? Does it lead to better moods? When does social media use lead to positive or negative emotional responses? This research explores the specific motives behind social media use in order to determine its actual effects.
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Health care issues in the U.S. continue to increase, while trust in journalism continues to decrease. Despite these challenges, there is a unique opportunity for journalists to not only take back credibility and audience trust, but to impact overall public understanding of health policy and issues.
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The growing technological sophistication of smartphones has transformed them from merely communication devices to essential companions that we interact with throughout the day. This research examines the effects of two social dimensions of smartphones — language and modality — on social responses to these devices.
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Fake news is on the rise. And it can be profitable. More than 100 fake news websites existed during the 2016 U.S. presidential election, with many sites making $2,500 or more a day from advertising sponsorship. But what is the risk for brands who, intentionally or unknowingly, sponsor content on those sites?
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Despite the urgency to modernize the nation’s power grid, there has been some public resistance to installing smart meters on people’s homes. Like any topic, misinformation has spread through the public resulting in false perceptions about health, privacy and costs.
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Controversy over legislative bill names is hardly new. Politicians have long used bill titles as a marketing vehicles to get media attention, drum up support and frame the conversation around the bill before their opponents do.
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On March 30, 2021, Telecommunication Professor and Director of Media Consumer Research Sylvia Chan-Olmsted discussed new research from her and Advertising Associate Professor Huan Chen, “Fairness in Information Access Through Culturally Competent AI Systems,” at the spring 2021 University of Florida HiPerGator Symposium.
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While social media influencers tend to be related more to brand evangelism or financial exchange, Kamala Harris’ use of Twitter throughout the 2020 presidential campaign led to her current position as a social, cultural, and political influencer.
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President Joe Biden is considering a variety of tax options to pay for his $3 trillion infrastructure and jobs package. How will he sell a new tax? Reframing taxes as an investment in public services that we all use or benefit from—such as roads and bridges, water and sewer systems—would be one approach.
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To understand the emergence of podcasts as an information and entertainment medium, UFCJC researchers completed the nation’s first comprehensive study on motivations and consumption of podcasts, as well as the interaction between podcasts and other audio media.
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In the fight against vaccine skepticism, employers can play a key role, not only because it’s an important precaution for the health and safety of their employees, but also because a recent survey shows people around the world tend to trust their employers more than governments or the media.
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Video: CJC Telecommunication Lecturer Iman Zawahry was interviewed on March 3, 2021 about being a Muslim filmmaker in the U.S., the challenges of affecting social change with comedy, and mentoring aspiring artists. The story also includes an edited transcript of the full video.
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UF researchers and colleagues, led by the UF STEM Translational Communication Center, are exploring new approaches to communicating health interventions to patients, including use of an internet-based virtual humans that patients can access through an app.
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Dr. Carla Fisher discusses her research on effective mother-daughter and family communication about breast cancer and other chronic diseases, and how clinicians can play a role in fostering that communication.
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Secure messaging, online communication between patients and clinicians within the electronic health record, soared almost 50% from pre-COVID-19 to the present. This research explored how to communicate effectively as telemedicine becomes standard.
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Effective communication between healthcare workers and patients is critical to shaping risk-reducing practices and coping with rigorous treatment for life-threatening diseases. But communication between family members can be as important in dealing with medical issues.
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CJC scholars and Centers explore misinformation and vaccine hesitancy, how AI-base recommendation engines can reinforce vaccine misinformation, and strategies to increase the publics’ confidence in COVID-19 vaccines.
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Are media choices based on political ideology? Do such choices for news media align to the user’s political leanings, or does news consumption overlap in a bipartisan fashion? Most importantly, is there a significant difference between liberals and conservatives in their tendency to be selective with regards to news media consumption?
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Is the new audio-based, invitation-only Clubhouse social app a return to the past? Telecommunication Assistant Professor Kun Xu looks at how Clubhouse departs from current social media platforms.
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CJC researchers address AI’s negative impact on communities of color and how AI can be used to more effectively disseminate culturally relevant information to different audiences.
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Undocumented immigrants that are part of the LGBTQ community, also known as Undocuqueer, historically has been underrepresented in positive text and visualizations: narratives that aid social and political opinion, help to reduce negative stereotypes and provide awareness and movement toward equal rights, respect and love.
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America has a rich history of peaceful protests and demonstrations on public property to exercise their First Amendment right of freedom of speech, regardless of how vitriolic or partisan that rhetoric may be. But the Supreme Court will soon have to weigh in on the constitutionality of the issue because of more advanced communication tools.
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The destructive spread of misinformation and continued attacks on news media credibility has fostered a crisis in trust. To address this, the University in 2019 committed $1.25 million to launch the Consortium on Trust in Media and Technology as one of its eight “moonshot” initiatives.
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With breast cancer as the most commonly diagnosed cancer for women in the U.S. and the leading cause of death for women in the world, it is critical for mothers and daughters to discuss the disease, potential causes and how to reduce risks of developing breast cancer.
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Dr. Jieun Shin discusses her research on algorithms, AI and the spread of misinformation.
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As partisan news networks like Fox News and MSNBC have risen in popularity, so has the polarization of many Americans’ political views. New research finds that while both liberal and conservative media contribute to polarization, conservatives are more likely to be part of a media echo chamber, trusting fewer sources and seeking information from a narrower range of news outlets.
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The global COVID-19 pandemic has caused anxiety and stress in most people, but college students specifically have had to learn to cope with uncertainty and upheaval from their normal routine. Researchers found that the more anxiety a student experiences, generally, the more media they consume to combat their weariness.
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Claims of fake news has infiltrated the national consciousness and rhetoric. The widespread use of the term have caused a distrust with American media. This study explored how an individual’s news sources and consumption may affect their perceived ability to differentiate what news is real and what news is fake.
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Dr. Juliana Fernandes discusses the impact of negative and other persuasive communication has on voters’ perspectives.
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Social media influencers are driving engagement with the promise of an intimate look inside their lives and relationships all while pushing varying goods and services. Advertising Associate Professor Huan Chen and colleagues wanted to explore what strategies and tactics by social media influencers were most effective.
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Despite the promise of new COVID-19 vaccines on the horizon, no vaccine will be effective if people refuse to take it. A team of scholars, strategists and storytellers from organizations around the world were asked to identify research-based messages that might overcome vaccine hesitancy.
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CJC researchers identified three types of sexual and reproductive health communication barriers reported by parents and/or children internationally: personal, communal, and cultural.
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CJC doctoral candidate Amanda Bradshaw was interviewed on Oct. 20, 2020 about her research on vaccination hesitancy and misinformation.
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Dr. Clay Calvert discusses First Amendment issues, including protections for hate speech, misinformation, judicial activism, and a more conservative Supreme Court.
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Traditional TV and on-demand viewing are often seen as either lean back or lean forward media with different advertising implications. Recent research suggests that rather than treating these two video platforms as either passive or active, marketers should focus on why and how consumers use TV versus online videos through the lens of immersion and engagement.
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Researchers examine three groups — creatives, noncreatives and the general population — to determine if there are significant differences in creativity between creative and non-creative individuals.
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Change, particularly organizational change, can be difficult for many people. By supporting change through positive leadership communication practices, employees are more apt to be open to supporting that change. This brings with it a wealth of potential for positive and productive business practices.
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Can star ratings for political content on platforms like Amazon alter our feelings towards others with similar or opposing political preferences? When we see ratings that disagree with our own, are we more likely to believe the ratings are manipulated? New research indicates that exposure to counter-attitudinal ratings contribute to polarization.
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Myiah Hutchens, Public Relations Department assistant professor, was interviewed on Sept. 22, 2020 about her research on political communication and trust in news.
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Despite efforts to improve colorectal cancer (CRC) screening with a goal of reducing mortality and health outcome disparities, CRC is the third-leading cause of cancer deaths among Black women in the U.S. Researchers explored the use of a virtual health assistant to promote CRC screening among Black women.
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Corporate executives have increasingly been engaging in CEO activism since Donald Trump was elected. A recent study explored who is more likely to influence the media’s agenda, the president or the CEOs, when both throw their weight behind a position on the issues of social and political importance?
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Wearable devices such as smartwatches could play an increasingly important role in healthcare. But providers have given wearable devices mixed reviews: while some laud their contribution to patient care, others are more skeptical of their accuracy and efficacy.
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In the U.S., people have become polarized around a number of issues based on a variety of potential dividing lines including where they live, their age, their political beliefs, and their race/ethnicity. One pressing issue where different ideological groups believe in different things is climate change.
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Have you recently had a conversation with someone about wearing a mask to stop the spread of COVID-19? New research suggests that this discussion may have driven your conversation partners into a media echo chamber in which they seek out news that confirms their beliefs.
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There has never been a time when America more urgently needed to hear the voices of college athletes. Yet for athletes at many of the nation’s top athletic programs, talking to the news media is regarded as a punishable offense.
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In this video interview, Telecommunication Associate Professor Jasmine McNealy discusses her research on data trusts, equitable AI, communicating AI and how technology is amplifying “otherness.”
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The global pandemic has disrupted all facets of society, with one of the most notable being professional and collegiate sports. While some live sports broadcast productions had slowly been moving toward a more remote model to cut costs for years before the pandemic, University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications researchers suggest COVID-19 will speed up this trend.
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In this video, Journalism Assistant Professor and Trust Scholar Frank Waddell discusses his research on technology’s effect on trust in news and increasing bias against and harassment of female journalists.
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Minority populations, particularly Black men, have a greater incidence, prevalence, and mortality rate from prostate cancer than other groups. Because of this, communicating pertinent medical information and disseminating materials specific to Black men is critical to combat this trend.
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Social media has played an important role in mobilizing collective social actions around the world. Does the size of the organizing group online affect individual’s decision to participate or their sense of effectiveness in causing change?
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Young adults are navigating physical, cognitive, and psychological changes, and transitioning into a more independent time of their life including social life and making more decisions on their own. They often grapple with unique issues when faced with a cancer diagnosis.
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Does a CEO’s personal disclosure via social media heighten the CEO’s attributes and perceived relationship investment more or less than if the CEO focused on posting only about the company?
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Advertisers are increasingly turning to video ad customization to engage consumers in their products. However, beyond simple recall, do customized embedded video ads really enhance advertising effectiveness while also minimizing the potentially negative effects caused by perceptions of intrusiveness?
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Social media has become an increasingly critical component of luxury brand’s marketing strategy. Using social media platforms can establish a brand’s social presence, enhance its brand personality, and enable interaction with current and prospective customers. This research explored what aspects of social media advertising has the most significant influence on luxury brand consumers.
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In this video interview, Dr. Rachel Grant discusses the new Narrative Justice Project and media’s coverage of racial injustice and its role in driving social change.
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Many technology companies use algorithms to determine what content should be presented to users based on their previous behavior and preferences. But the technology can create a dangerous feedback loop of reinforcing misinformation: the more you click on a subject, the more recommendations for that subject occur, thus creating the illusion that the more you see something, the more it must be true.
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This essay from Dr. Ron Rodgers provides a historical context for “social awakening” in journalism and the implications for the news profession during a time of “inflection, infection and insurrection.”
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Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States. It’s also the leading cause of death for women globally. But educational information that doesn’t take into account cultural differences among women may not be as effective as communication embracing those differences.
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Organizational culture is a social glue that holds organizational members together and prescribes how things are understood, judged, and valued in an organization. What can leaders do to promote the positive emotional culture of the workplace? How can internal communications cultivate a positive emotional culture and facilitate employees’ sense of belonging in their organizations?
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Emerging information technology is amplifying otherness through neglect, exclusion, and disinformation, all of which have significant consequences. Neglect, while perhaps the most recognized problem with emerging technology, is persistent.
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Instagram continues to be one of the fastest growing social networks and currently has more than one billion users. While Instagram has not been a focus of investigations into misinformation, it has not been immune to bad actors. And the nature of the Instagram platform, for example the inability to link to credible sources, makes establishing authenticity problematic.
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The news media often frames information using words that can elicit emotions to attract audience attention and promote certain actions. Emotional frames are especially prevalent on issues that involve morality, such as news regarding sexual harassment and sexual assault.
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As election season continues, scholars want to know what communication behaviors look like during a campaign cycle. Do communication behaviors increase? Do events like debates and polls affect an individual’s quest for information? Does it matter where voters live, for example in a battleground state?
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A 2018 Chinese policy bans most U.S. imported solid waste. As a result, what was once recyclable may no longer be. How does a local government effectively communicate these process changes when recycling habits are ingrained in daily routines?
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Pro-female advertisements, or femvertisements, receive praise for empowering women. But is that the message that’s actually received?
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Brands often use social issue advertising to evoke emotion in their media campaigns. This type of advertising, however, could elicit emotional responses beyond what the advertiser intended.
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The global pandemic has forced colleges and universities online. This article describes strategies necessary for success.
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The use of data has become a vital investigative tool for journalists. But many journalism programs and courses worldwide are insufficient or unable to provide students with the essential skills needed to gather, analyze and present data.
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Spending time watching TV, hanging out with friends or scrolling through social media can be viewed as a waste of time and energy. But what if the use of this leisure time actually helps improve self-control (e.g. capacity to self-regulate behavior) and can satisfy intrinsic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness)?
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Researchers studied whether psychological proximity and social media influencers on Facebook made environmental issues feel more relevant to young people’s everyday lives, thus making them emotionally invested in the issue resulting in more steps taken in real life.
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America’s CEOs have important leadership roles to play as the crisis poses a test of their ability to help their workers not only endure and stay healthy but keep them motivated and engaged as well.
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The practice of journalism faces a myriad of challenges, including a continual stream of complaints about the credibility of today’s news. The advent of “fake news” has tarnished the longstanding trust and transparency considered the foundation of journalism.
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Research has shown that primary care providers (PCPs) play a critical role in influencing whether cancer patients choose to participate in cancer clinical trials. Yet only a small number of surveyed PCPs reported discussing the possibility of participation in clinical trials with their patients.
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A team of researchers at the University of Florida studies the content, sources and messaging around the 2017 documentary series, Vaccines Revealed.
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Corporate leaders who want a social media presence but often don’t have the time to manage it themselves frequently assign someone within the company to serve as their online voice or persona, a practiced called “ghost posting.”
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In this podcast, you’ll hear how health communication researchers are improving information and messages about breast cancer online. Plus, you’ll learn how they are teaming with social media influencers to help people understand and reduce their risk.
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Native advertising online – advertisements that look like editorial content – has grown dramatically as a source of revenue for media companies. This study evaluated whether consumers recognize native ads on digital news website home pages at the same speed and as effectively as they do banner advertising.
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Social media has become an increasingly relevant and cost-effective way for organizations to build their brand and their business. But Fortune 200 CEOs and startup CEOs are taking different approaches.
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While media is often blamed for exacerbating the ideological and political gap between political parties, discussing politics among friends and family also has a significant impact on increasing polarization, particularly when individuals of opposing political affiliations are not participating in open dialogue.
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People use cues every day to communicate. But how are these cues — relative to Siri, Alexa, social robots, or the myriad hybrid computer and artificial intelligence technologies — being developed?
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As private universities expand their policing jurisdiction into surrounding residential areas, questions arise over how non-governmental actors can be given the authority to exercise the power to use deadly force and to take away freedom without governmental accountability.
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CJC researchers created a cancer clinical trial information website and conducted a study to determine if the site would increase trial comprehension and, ultimately, participation in cancer trials.
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Black spending power is increasing rapidly. This study examines how mainstream brands are creating products, messaging, and distinctive campaigns for targeted ethnic audiences.
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Research shows that people tend to choose media outlets that validate their perspective on climate change. But does viewing climate change content on liberal, non-partisan or conservative media outlets change their behavior?
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AI is increasingly being used by media companies to drive engagement and improve operations. But the complexity of producing appealing content based on both creativity and data, and integrating AI into the existing media ecosystems, might be challenging.
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It is critical for a company to be recognized by their brand as well as to be known for supporting positive corporate responsibility through community initiatives. But will attaching themselves to one side of the debate on a controversial issue impact that brand image?
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Family medicine physicians have begun to integrate acupuncture into their conventional treatments. One way to help physicians communicate information and understanding about acupuncture and its benefits is through the use of metaphor.
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Although gagging public employees from giving unapproved interviews is pervasive across all levels of government, blanket restrictions on speaking to the media are legally unenforceable.
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Research has shown that political satire could play a role in informing people about political issues and lead to people increasing their use of hard news. But is that really the case?
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Existing research indicates that professional law enforcement officers are generally no better than untrained novices at detecting deception. But digital games could help improve officers’ ability to detect deception.
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As ever-advancing digital technology spews more and more data about consumers, some industries are struggling with how to effectively collect, sort, interpret, and use big data. The advertising industry, in particular, recognizes the data gold mine, but faces challenges in how to effectively use that data to benefit clients and consumers.
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There are now more than 450 electronic cigarette (e-cig) brands on the market and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has declared that the use of e-cigs – or vaping – among young adults has reached “an epidemic proportion.” Recently, there have been several deaths associated with vaping.
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Broadcast radio continues to come under increasing pressure with the emergence of new platforms for audio media discovery and listening. Many have launched their own digital apps. But is that enough?
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News organizations that publicly investigate their reportage may face unintended consequences if the they’re taken to court.
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In a day and age where robots and artificial intelligence are a reality, the question of how different humans interact with these machines is key to improving the experience and outcomes.
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The impact of stress on medical residents continues to be a major concern in the medical community, given that the well-being of practitioners is critical for the quality and safety of patient care. A new study suggests that stress management training could help.
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It has become increasingly difficult to decipher fact from fiction on social media sites. As a result, warning labels are appearing online in the hopes of curbing the dissemination of less-than-credible news reports.
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Popular opinion in some academic circles has been that “big ownership” is bad for diversity. But does ownership structure or type really play a role in the diversity levels of on-air talent in local markets?
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Digital gaming by older adults could lead to more social connectdness, social capital and civic participation, according to a recent study.
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Academic research on virtual reality is also common, but what insights can be gleaned from this large body of work? A new study identifies issues with previous research on VR.
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Research explores how to better recruit COPD patients, particularly from marginalized populations, for research studies.
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The continued shift from traditional media to digital promotion has forced advertising agencies to rethink how they best capitalize on technology platforms and the organizational structure to support it.
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Advocacy campaigns aimed at thwarting teen dating violence are often focused on how females can avoid becoming a victim. But ads targeting teen boys that mirror appropriate behavior can also be beneficial.
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Mobile health technology affords patients the opportunity to get the medical expertise they need without a physical visit to a practitioner’s office or a run to the emergency room. But, for it to be truly worthwhile, the technology must be accessible to patients and simple enough to navigate.
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Advocacy organizations and activists seeking to build more inclusive movements, need to create stories that can engage both familiar and new communities.
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As with any private organization, institutions of higher education are susceptible to controversial scenarios requiring evolving crisis communications plans and strategies. One increasingly critical element in crisis communications is the optimization of multi-platform communication channels, particularly social media.
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The study explores the influencers of sports consumption on smartphones from the perspectives of motivations, fandom, and media types.
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The way employees feel in the organization affects their attitudes toward/relationship with the organization. Does emotional culture affect employee behaviors in the same manner? If so, what should communication leaders do?
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The popularity and availability of VR videos is rapidly increasing, with more than one million subscribers to YouTube’s VR channels. While marketers have experimented with product placement in VR videos, little is known empirically if it is an effective strategy for brands.
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By some estimates, fantasy sports is a $7 billion business in North America alone, with nearly 60 million adults participating in one or more fantasy sports. But are marketers optimizing their ability to reach this lucrative market at the right time and in the right place?
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Instagram users prefer sponsored ads that mimic posts from their friends over traditional advertising, although this type of advertising may seem sneaky or deceptive, new research shows.
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Breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting women and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths for women. Understandably, women often look for ways to decrease their chances of having breast cancer, not only for themselves, but also for their daughters. Unfortunately, that isn’t always a simple task.
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Dr. Jeremy Yip, assistant professor of management at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, won the 2019 Prize for Research in Public Interest Communications for his paper, “Losing Your Temper and Your Perspective: Anger Reduces Perspective-Taking.”
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For years, spoilers have been the bane of entertainment media audiences everywhere. The word itself has become almost synonymous with ruined enjoyment. But, are spoilers really that bad?
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Kendrick Lamar won a Pulitzer Prize last year and Eminem set a record in 2019 for streams on Spotify. But the acceptance and embrace of rap music in mainstream culture isn’t shared by everyone – and that sometimes includes the police.
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In today’s fragmented media marketplace, branded content becomes a good approach for companies to engage with their audiences. Yet there appears to be little consensus on the concepts behind branded content or the practice and process of branded content itself. A team of UFCJC researchers decided to see if they could find some common ground among world experts.
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Seven senior public relations executives visited CJC during the 2017-18 school year. We asked them about industry trends and preparing for a public relations career. Here’s what they told Us.
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Family stories about mental illness shared from one generation to another can both reinforce stereotypes and yet still teach children important lessons and expectations about the management of such illnesses, according to a new pilot study.
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Social change communicators running social media campaigns should ensure people feel they are able to help resolve the issue and tout the benefits of participating in the campaign to increase engagement, a new study finds.
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News organizations are starting to experiment with automated content. Research suggests readers perceive news written by algorithms as less credible than if it’s written by a human. However, this perception can be reduced by exposure to robots in popular culture.
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Many political researchers and commentators have presented different theories that attempt to explain Donald Trump’s appeal to the American voters who elected him president. A new analysis suggests that Trump supporters’ motivations included negative opinions about the economy in general and about the Black Lives Matter movement.
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It’s increasingly challenging to combat fake news and to help people distinguish it from real news. CJC researchers examine fake news through the lens of the U.S. Supreme Court. They suggest that part of the answer to fake news lies in finding ways to make real news more appealing to general audiences and to earn readers’ trust in the stories.
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Many health campaigns have sought to change drinking habits and prevent alcohol abuse. These campaigns often rely on fear-based or humor messages to convey the dangers of alcohol abuse. Researchers are now testing whether these emotions change people’s perceived risk or intent to drink, especially among college students.
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People frequently make decisions based on irrelevant information due to unconscious cognitive biases. How can people avoid relying on cognitive shortcuts that leave them vulnerable to making poor choices? New research suggests they might want to play a game coupled with an informative slideshow.
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When students walked out of school to protest what they see as lax gun laws, some risked punishment from their schools. But it may be worth it to send a First Amendment message.
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Attitudes of primary care physicians play a key role in a recently diagnosed cancer patient’s access to and beliefs about clinical trial treatments. Acting as opinion ambassadors, they have the power to influence their patients’ attitudes and behaviors.
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Faced with dwindling resources, and a news cycle that never sleeps, today’s health journalists must meet a new challenge: provide complete, trustworthy content on health care issues with precision at the same breakneck speed with which the medical field innovates.
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Companies can have a variety of reasons for engaging in what the public considers socially responsible (CSR) practices. How do they maintain their reputation and sense of alturisim in a crisis? Research suggests they should have a proactive strategy.
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Social media can serve as a powerful tool for people and movements to share their stories, reaching new audiences across the globe. Social media campaigns, however, need to have specific calls to action,
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More and more companies today are striving to develop an emotional culture which emphasizes how employees feel. Does emotional culture truly matter for an organization’s success?
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Instagram “should make consumers feel good about themselves,” says Huan Chen, assistant professor of Advertising, in a new study on how young consumers experience Instagram and their perceptions of marketing on the platform.
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Seeing violence in media that sanitize, justify or trivialize violent acts may normalize it and make it more enjoyable. Frank Waddell, assistant professor of Journalism, worked with a team of researchers to examine techniques for reducing the effects of viewing violence in media.
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News organizations, in pursuing their role as watchdogs, have at times revealed an individual’s personal information in their stories, known as “doxxing.” Jasmine McNealy, assistant professor of Telecommunication, examines the reaction of the online users to doxxing by media organizations in this case study.
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The result of good doctor-patient communication is clear – patients make more informed decisions, have better quality of life, and have lower incidences of anxiety.
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Advertising Assistant Professor Carla Fisher is on a quest to help mothers and daughters better communicate about breast cancer and its risks, as well as integrate communication science into clinical practice.
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STEM Translational Communication Center researchers examine the most effective ways to communicate about colorectal cancer risks.
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To win the fight against cancer, UF STEM Translational Communication Center researchers are exploring how we communicate about cancer—both with each other and with the wider community.
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It’s no revelation that social media have changed the way we learn and communicate new information. But is it an effective way to communicate health risks associated with cancer? STEM Translational Communication Center researchers investigate.
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Communications strategy should be flexible, scrappy, and accessible to everyone on your team. This four-question framework, rooted in social science, can help organizations craft an effective strategy that drives real social change.
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When the government attempts to restrict journalists, there are superheroes behind the scenes protecting journalists’ right to access information and share it with the public. Charles Tobin, B.S. Journalism 1984, is one of them.
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In an age when smartphones and social media networks are ubiquitous, where some commercial enterprises abuse their access with potential consumers, is spam protected as free speech?
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What happens when a controversial person requests to speak on the University of Florida campus? The First Amendment takes center stage, balanced against public safety concerns.
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To be competitive in today’s information environment, companies must learn to not only trust audience data, but leverage it to better serve audiences and bottom lines.
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Audience analytics is about knowing how to interpret, and even ignore, the data at hand and instead understand how the audience and your goals can converge.
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In North Florida, few local media outlets ask their audience: What do you wonder? What should we investigate? We are. Our Innovation News Center is experimenting with audience-powered journalism.
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To understand why fake news stories are successful, we must understand our human tendency to believe what we read, but that doesn’t mean our natural instincts can’t be reversed.
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Why do people fall for fake news and share false contents? There is no single answer. But, Paul Mena, former BBC reporter and CJC graduate student, is currently looking for answers.
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What should strategic communication in the public and social change sectors look like in a time marked by extreme political polarization and false information? Science suggests the key may be playing offense, rather than defense.
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President Trump often objects to what people say about him on Twitter. As a result, he sometimes blocks their access to his account. The novel question arises: Is that unconstitutional?
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Fake news is nothing new. Rich Shumate, media historian and CJC Ph.D. candidate, takes us through a piece of its history.
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The federal government recently established a department tasked with identifying truth. Do the American people really need the government to establish truth from untruth?
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People can’t differentiate between paid advertising and editorial content. Here are five ways to increase media literacy.
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The Frank Karel Endowed Chair in Public Interest Communications Ann Christiano, the Frank Karel Chair in Public Interest Communications sat down with Kristen Grimm, president of Spitfire Strategy, to discuss the role of raising awareness in driving long-lasting social change.
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Funny health campaign videos are only as effective as their social media platform and associated comments.
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For health organizations seeking to reach audiences through Facebook, how posts are worded has an impact on who engages with them.
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To protect the integrity of the news as a source of information for the public, editors should adopt a “balance of interest” policy.
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An interview with Public Relations Assistant Professor Rita Men on the benefits of CEOs using social media to connect with employees.
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Showing empathy is critical for medical practitioners who often have to discuss sensitive medical information with patients. How providers talk to patients – demonstrating empathy– can lead to better health outcomes.
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As the world becomes more divided, many are searching for ways to build understanding and cultural sensitivity. Virtual reality is a promising way to help people understand one another better.
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It’s time for activists and organizations to adopt a more strategic approach to public interest communications.
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Key questions about First Amendment speech rights senators should ask during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings for United States Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch.
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Many believe that they can spot fake news, while others out there surely will be duped. This is consistent with what research refers to as the third-person effect.
If someone sees or hears something they don’t want to believe…they probably won’t believe it.
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An interview with Dr. Rita men on her new book, the power of using smart communication to reach internal stakeholders and why it is good for business.
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How sports marketers should engage with today’s media consumers amid a multiplatform, fragmented environment.
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Dr. Tom Kelleher, professor and chair of the Department of Advertising, talks with us about his new published textbook, the future of public relations and what he is working on next.
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Government agencies charged with regulating digital technologies should do so under a standard that assumes most people don’t fully understand the technology.
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Breast cancer patients who know what information to share and how or when to share it have better health outcomes than patients who hold back.
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There’s growing evidence that preserving precious areas not only stops overfishing, it can lessen the impacts of climate change.
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We talk with Journalism Professor Kim Walsh-Childers about her new book Mass Media and Health: Examining Media Impact on Individuals and the Health Environment.
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As we look back at an historic election season, digging into the data to examine the public relations strategies of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton leads to some surprising conclusions.
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Understanding how audiences react to emotional messaging is critical, as it is a better predictor for understanding how people will behave and is a key factor in marketing.
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Metaphors can help researchers communicate with patients about clinical trials. A patient’s ability to understand medical information, however, may influence which metaphor works best.
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To grow and succeed in the dynamic and competitive global market, organizations must scan and monitor the environment constantly, make necessary adjustments and embrace change.
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Nonprofits seeking to drive social change must consider local contexts and the sustainability of their efforts. Tom Kelleher, Advertising chair and professor, examines the non-profit One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) organization.
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What drives people to take selfies? Advertising Professor Eunice Kim and her colleagues at Korea University conducted a series studies to better understand our selfie-taking tendencies.
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People who obsessively play Facebook games like Farmville are often mocked for being anti-social. But, new research suggests that they play to connect with others.
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Research shows how candidates and issues are having an impact on appeal, empowerment and engagement of voters.
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Social scientists investigate when and why liberals and conservatives mistrust science. The apparent split may be more about cultural and personal beliefs than feelings about science itself.
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Researchers have identified various variables to segment external audiences for better targeted communication. The discussion, however, is limited when it comes to internal audience.
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The first national monument in the Atlantic will protect deep canyons along the continental shelf and a chain of extinct undersea volcanoes.
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Everything you need to know if your are considering using live-streaming.
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According to the science of selfies, they seem to tap into some deep psychological desires.
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A new segment of people engage with the world wide web differently than others. Interactive audiences not only engage more with websites, but they are also more likely to share what they’ve done online with their friends.
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When teachers in drug prevention programs tell better stories, students are more attentive to the lesson.
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People engage with their favorite TV shows on social media if they feel a connection to the show and its characters and if they are technologically savvy.
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To attract the attention of 20-somethings, customized, fun and interesting Twitter ads are the way to go.
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Advertisers are branding consoles, accessories, in-game avatars and other aspects of the virtual world to reach new consumers, taking advantage of the growing popularity of video games.
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To increase customer trust of your brand, use the right tone and language in your company blog posts.
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The revelation that PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel financed the Hulk's lawsuit against Gawker raises important questions in the battle between privacy and a free press.
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If you are fortunate enough to be able to hire data analysts, what does today’s ideal candidate look like? We asked some of the top consumer/audience research executives those questions.
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ACLS Public Fellow at the Center for Public Integrity talked with UF CJC students about building digital communities and the growing field of engagement analysis.
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There is a segment of the American population who believes passionately that guns are critical for personal protection. There is a larger group of Americans who believes it far too easy for those who intend to kill to have access to all the firepower they want. How could groups who hold these disparate views ever agree?
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To increase brand recognition it’s important for gamers to see the same brand on the accessory in their hand as they do in the virtual world.
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The perceived authority of physicians can lead people to be more susceptible to illness, as it leaves many patients reluctant to confront doctors on matters of hygiene.
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CEOs who use social media to communicate with their employees are seen as better communicators, which leads to stronger relationships between companies and their employees.
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Understanding the relationship between smartphone dependency and a consumer’s media consumption patterns and perceptions.
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The U.S. Supreme Court has never answered this question. Here’s what the lower courts have said.
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Understanding the battle between Amazon.com and The New York Times. Was it simply bad press?
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The NBA saw benefits of connecting with young fans on Snapchat in its early days.
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The Supreme Court will soon decide if it will hear a case involving the off-campus speech rights of students.
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How activists in the Million Hoodies Movement used social media to frame injustice and racism toward African-Americans and mobilized supporters.
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