Abstract Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing the global agricultural food system at the current moment. While scientists agree that anthropogenic climate change is a critical issue, many United States residents remain skeptical, presenting a significant communication challenge. Understanding the factors influencing public perceptions of climate change are essential to informing agricultural and environmental communication efforts if they are to be effective at mitigating its effects. Previous studies have identified political affiliation and ideology as key predictors for climate change perceptions; however, understanding more detailed components of political ideology and affiliation could strengthen the predictive capacity of these variables. The current study explored the predictive capacity of perceptions of government control on environmental behavior related to political affiliation and ideology to inform effective communication based on climate change knowledge. Using an online survey of U.S. residents, political ideology and affiliation were found to be important predictors of climate change knowledge but including perceptions of government control on environmental behavior expanded their predictive capacity. Agricultural and environmental communicators are encouraged to integrate more nuanced components of political affiliation and ideology, such as perceptions of government control, into their messaging strategies to increase potential message uptake in the midst of a politically polarized media environment. Future research should identify and explore other aspects of political affiliation and ideology, such as economic and social factors, that may influence the public’s perception of climate change and its related policy implications.
{"title":"Perceived Government Control and its Influence on Climate Change Knowledge and Perceptions: Applications for Effective Communication","authors":"Catherine E. Sanders, Kristina E. Gibson, A. Lamm","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2441","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2441","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing the global agricultural food system at the current moment. While scientists agree that anthropogenic climate change is a critical issue, many United States residents remain skeptical, presenting a significant communication challenge. Understanding the factors influencing public perceptions of climate change are essential to informing agricultural and environmental communication efforts if they are to be effective at mitigating its effects. Previous studies have identified political affiliation and ideology as key predictors for climate change perceptions; however, understanding more detailed components of political ideology and affiliation could strengthen the predictive capacity of these variables. The current study explored the predictive capacity of perceptions of government control on environmental behavior related to political affiliation and ideology to inform effective communication based on climate change knowledge. Using an online survey of U.S. residents, political ideology and affiliation were found to be important predictors of climate change knowledge but including perceptions of government control on environmental behavior expanded their predictive capacity. Agricultural and environmental communicators are encouraged to integrate more nuanced components of political affiliation and ideology, such as perceptions of government control, into their messaging strategies to increase potential message uptake in the midst of a politically polarized media environment. Future research should identify and explore other aspects of political affiliation and ideology, such as economic and social factors, that may influence the public’s perception of climate change and its related policy implications.","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-11-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45713643","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Fortner, A. Lamm, Abigail Borron, Jessica Holt, Allen J Moore
Abstract Universities must strategically communicate agricultural science to effectively reach millennials skeptical of agricultural innovations and constantly assessing the credibility of online information. Universities are trusted information sources and must maintain credibility on social media platforms such as Twitter, used by millennials to receive and share information. Source credibility seeks to understand message source and recipient characteristics that influence recipients’ perceptions of a source’s expertise and trustworthiness. The purpose of this study was to explore differences in engagement when specific factors affecting source credibility were emphasized when communicating with millennials about agricultural science on Twitter. The purpose was accomplished by describing the level of engagement and the differences in engagement observed between perceived gender, race, and age of university scientists. Over seven months, researchers wrote press releases about published journal articles authored by two or more diverse, university-affiliated scientists. They published multiple tweets about each release, with the only difference being the scientists’ headshots. Scientists were categorized as perceived male versus female, White versus Non-White, and older versus younger. Descriptive analysis of engagement metrics from 32 tweets found those with females performed better than those with males. Non-White scientist tweets performed better with the exception of engagement rate. Tweets featuring younger scientists received more engagement than older. The exploratory results implied tweets featuring young, Non-White females may elicit higher engagement. Future studies should examine if engagement metrics are correlated with source credibility dimensions. Strategically featuring diverse scientists in research communication may be utilized to build engagement in universities’ social media.
{"title":"Exploring Source Credibility when Communicating about Agricultural Science on Twitter","authors":"A. Fortner, A. Lamm, Abigail Borron, Jessica Holt, Allen J Moore","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2436","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2436","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Universities must strategically communicate agricultural science to effectively reach millennials skeptical of agricultural innovations and constantly assessing the credibility of online information. Universities are trusted information sources and must maintain credibility on social media platforms such as Twitter, used by millennials to receive and share information. Source credibility seeks to understand message source and recipient characteristics that influence recipients’ perceptions of a source’s expertise and trustworthiness. The purpose of this study was to explore differences in engagement when specific factors affecting source credibility were emphasized when communicating with millennials about agricultural science on Twitter. The purpose was accomplished by describing the level of engagement and the differences in engagement observed between perceived gender, race, and age of university scientists. Over seven months, researchers wrote press releases about published journal articles authored by two or more diverse, university-affiliated scientists. They published multiple tweets about each release, with the only difference being the scientists’ headshots. Scientists were categorized as perceived male versus female, White versus Non-White, and older versus younger. Descriptive analysis of engagement metrics from 32 tweets found those with females performed better than those with males. Non-White scientist tweets performed better with the exception of engagement rate. Tweets featuring younger scientists received more engagement than older. The exploratory results implied tweets featuring young, Non-White females may elicit higher engagement. Future studies should examine if engagement metrics are correlated with source credibility dimensions. Strategically featuring diverse scientists in research communication may be utilized to build engagement in universities’ social media.","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-11-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42544730","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Book review of Sound: Dialogue, Music, and Effects, edited by
《声音:对话、音乐与效果》书评,主编
{"title":"Sound: Dialogue, Music, and Effects","authors":"Hannah M. Chambers","doi":"10.5860/choice.192357","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5860/choice.192357","url":null,"abstract":"Book review of Sound: Dialogue, Music, and Effects, edited by","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-11-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47146403","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Extension faculty are tasked with developing and communicating educational programs to local clientele, and communication skills are a considerable piece of the Extension faculty job. Thus, UF/IFAS Extension included a communication portion to the on-board training for newly hired Extension faculty to develop their design skills so they can more effectively communicate through their educational and marketing materials. We used Rogers’ (2003) innovation-decision process to assess Florida early career Extension faculty’s adoption of design principles after completion of the 2019 UF/IFAS Extension Faculty Development Academy. Thirty-two Extension faculty completed the spring and fall sessions of the Academy. A mixed methods approach was utilized to gather survey data at the immediate completion of the Academy and qualitative, telephone interview data four to five months after completing the Academy. The faculty retrospectively perceived they increased their knowledge about design principles. They had an overwhelmingly positive attitude about learning design principles to better their communication efforts, but they decided not to fully adopt design principles in their work as other information and elements of learning their job took precedent.
{"title":"Assessing Florida Early Career Extension Faculty's Adoption of Design Principles to Communicate Messages","authors":"Peyton Beattie, Matt Benge, R. Telg, Lisa Lundy","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2425","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2425","url":null,"abstract":"Extension faculty are tasked with developing and communicating educational programs to local clientele, and communication skills are a considerable piece of the Extension faculty job. Thus, UF/IFAS Extension included a communication portion to the on-board training for newly hired Extension faculty to develop their design skills so they can more effectively communicate through their educational and marketing materials. We used Rogers’ (2003) innovation-decision process to assess Florida early career Extension faculty’s adoption of design principles after completion of the 2019 UF/IFAS Extension Faculty Development Academy. Thirty-two Extension faculty completed the spring and fall sessions of the Academy. A mixed methods approach was utilized to gather survey data at the immediate completion of the Academy and qualitative, telephone interview data four to five months after completing the Academy. The faculty retrospectively perceived they increased their knowledge about design principles. They had an overwhelmingly positive attitude about learning design principles to better their communication efforts, but they decided not to fully adopt design principles in their work as other information and elements of learning their job took precedent.","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-11-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43414771","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Reporting on Vital Agricultural News in Ireland – a Comparison between Mainstream Print Media and the Farming Press","authors":"Claire Mc Cormack, Pádraig Wims","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2422","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2422","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46440218","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cara R. Lawson, C. Meyers, Amy E. Boren, E. Irlbeck, Amber McCord
{"title":"Reporting a Rural Reality: A Case Study of an Agricultural Newspaper’s Series on the Rural Opioid Epidemic","authors":"Cara R. Lawson, C. Meyers, Amy E. Boren, E. Irlbeck, Amber McCord","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2421","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2421","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44947734","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Conservation in the News: Comparing News Coverage of Nutrient Reduction in Agricultural and Non-agricultural News Outlets in Iowa","authors":"L. Witzling, D. Wald, E. Williams","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2426","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2426","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43558388","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abstract The values invoked by journalists in the reporting of water issues influence public support for water policy and the assessment of water tradeoffs. This qualitative framing analysis of water coverage from six newspapers in the Floridan aquifer region from 2010 to 2018 reveals the values used to stimulate reader engagement on a range of water challenges including weather, residential behavior, agriculture, algae, industry, springs, energy, municipalities, and fecal matter. Results reveal a hierarchy of value frames that prioritizes economics and human health, thereby attending primarily to the motivations of egoistic and social-altruistic individuals. The ecosystem implications of deteriorated water conditions, which are of particular interest to biospherically-oriented individuals, received relatively little journalistic attention. This finding suggests that the framing of regional water issues could unintentionally affect reader interest, public prioritization of social goods, and policy interventions.
{"title":"A Scarcity of Biospheric Values in Local and Regional Reporting of Water Issues: Media Coverage in the Floridan Aquifer Region","authors":"Sadie Hundemer, D. Treise, M. Monroe","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2424","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2424","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The values invoked by journalists in the reporting of water issues influence public support for water policy and the assessment of water tradeoffs. This qualitative framing analysis of water coverage from six newspapers in the Floridan aquifer region from 2010 to 2018 reveals the values used to stimulate reader engagement on a range of water challenges including weather, residential behavior, agriculture, algae, industry, springs, energy, municipalities, and fecal matter. Results reveal a hierarchy of value frames that prioritizes economics and human health, thereby attending primarily to the motivations of egoistic and social-altruistic individuals. The ecosystem implications of deteriorated water conditions, which are of particular interest to biospherically-oriented individuals, received relatively little journalistic attention. This finding suggests that the framing of regional water issues could unintentionally affect reader interest, public prioritization of social goods, and policy interventions.","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45155463","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
TaylorAnn Washburn, Ch'Ree Essary, E. Irlbeck, C. Gibson, C. Akers
{"title":"Foreseen Demands for Up-and-coming Science Communicators and Recommendations for Science Communication Training Programs","authors":"TaylorAnn Washburn, Ch'Ree Essary, E. Irlbeck, C. Gibson, C. Akers","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2410","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2410","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49040267","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Michaela Kandzer, Valentina Castano, L. Baker, Ashley McLeod-Morin
The novel coronavirus was first discovered in Wuhan, China in December 2019. This zoonotic disease quickly spread through over 100 countries, including the U.S. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency by the end of January 2020. Soon after, many U.S. states issued mandatory stay-at-home orders, which caused adverse effects for agricultural businesses and food supply chains. During this crisis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shared information through social media platforms such as Facebook. This study sought to understand how the CDC framed direct communication to the public about issues related to COVID-19 using Facebook videos. Five videos directly related to COVID-19 were selected from the CDC’s Facebook page for analysis. A content and framing analysis was used to determine emergent frames and the use of organization-public relationship (OPR) indicators to better understand how a public entity communicates with the public during a pandemic. Emergent frames were community, protecting yourself, encouragement to take action, understanding, and fear. A conversational tone of voice was used in four out of the five videos, and each video demonstrated the use of at least one OPR indicator. Implications from this work reinforce that Facebook videos can be used to communicate the importance of scientific information using conversational voice and OPR indicators. It is recommended that agricultural communicators include OPR indicators in social media videos during other similar zoonotic disease crises. Future research should seek to understand the public’s response to this type of scientific communication.
{"title":"Framing Friction: A Content Analysis Investigating How the CDC Framed Social Media Communication with the Public During the COVID-19 Pandemic","authors":"Michaela Kandzer, Valentina Castano, L. Baker, Ashley McLeod-Morin","doi":"10.4148/1051-0834.2406","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4148/1051-0834.2406","url":null,"abstract":"The novel coronavirus was first discovered in Wuhan, China in December 2019. This zoonotic disease quickly spread through over 100 countries, including the U.S. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency by the end of January 2020. Soon after, many U.S. states issued mandatory stay-at-home orders, which caused adverse effects for agricultural businesses and food supply chains. During this crisis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shared information through social media platforms such as Facebook. This study sought to understand how the CDC framed direct communication to the public about issues related to COVID-19 using Facebook videos. Five videos directly related to COVID-19 were selected from the CDC’s Facebook page for analysis. A content and framing analysis was used to determine emergent frames and the use of organization-public relationship (OPR) indicators to better understand how a public entity communicates with the public during a pandemic. Emergent frames were community, protecting yourself, encouragement to take action, understanding, and fear. A conversational tone of voice was used in four out of the five videos, and each video demonstrated the use of at least one OPR indicator. Implications from this work reinforce that Facebook videos can be used to communicate the importance of scientific information using conversational voice and OPR indicators. It is recommended that agricultural communicators include OPR indicators in social media videos during other similar zoonotic disease crises. Future research should seek to understand the public’s response to this type of scientific communication.","PeriodicalId":33763,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Communications","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42660237","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}