Category Archives: Research

Knight Center director, colleague present study on environmental journalism in Kyrgyzstan

The study examined Kyrgyzstan’s most popular Russian-language online news site is 24.kg.

By Eric Freedman
There’s a dramatic disconnect between the environmental topics covered by two major news organizations and Kyrgyzstan and the issues that environmental nongovernmental organizations- – eco-NGOs – in the country feel are most important.
In addition, those eco-NGOs do a poor job reaching out to the media for coverage of their activities and those underreported environmental issues, meaning they have little influence on building the public policy agenda for the media, the public or government.
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Knight Center researcher examines cognitive impacts of screen size

Carie Cunningham does research with an eye-tracking machine.

Doctoral candidate Carie Cunningham, who is part of the Knight Center’s research collaborative, will discuss the impact of viewing screen size on cognition at the National Communication Association Nov. 20-23 in Chicago.
Here is an abstract of her presentation:
As technology evolves, television consumers are acquiring many more viewing options. Gone are the days of a single, stationary television set with limited programming. Today, consumers have many more options in the programming, as well as, how and where those programs can be delivered. Those options include, but are not limited to, a wide variety of viewing devices such as smart phones, laptops, and a host of other electronic devices that heretofore served primarily as game or music players. A common practice in television news is having the exact same video that is seen on television to also be displayed on other media devices like computers or cell phones. This practice assumes a ‘one-size-fits-all’ effect, where all video players play the same visuals regardless of screen size or viewing distance. This practice of using the same video is assumed to capture attention in the same way despite the different devices.
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Research director on radio panel examining environmental journalism

Bruno Takahashi

Bruno Takahashi discussed the future of environmental journalism recently as part of the Terre Verde program produced by KPFA in Berkeley, Calif.
Takahashi, the research director at Michigan State University’s Knight Center for Environmental Journalism, was part of a panel asked to address: “What place is there for environmental stories in the new, networked, multiplatform, and interactive world of media? How are environmental journalists engaging with the tools of this digital revolution?”
Other panelists included Jason Jaacks of University of California-Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism and Jeff Burnside, president of the board of directors of the Society of Environmental Journalists and an investigative reporter at KOMO 4 (ABC), Seattle.
You can hear the broadcast here.

Knight Center faculty, students to present ethanol headline research

Research Director Bruno Takahashi and Knight Center graduate students, Carol Terracina-Hartman and Katie Amann, are presenting research at the upcoming AEJMC Conference in Montreal, August 6-9, 2014.

The poster presentation, “Headlining energy issues: A content analysis of ethanol headlines in the U.S. elite press,” examines issue attributes, themes, tone, and sources in headlines between 1987 and 2011.

This study is a collaboration with Mark Meisner, executive director of the International Environmental Communication Association.

Knight Center faculty affiliate, John Besley (ADV/PR) is also presenting research at AEJMC. His presentations are: “Predictors of Perceptions of Scientists: Comparing 2001 and 2012,” and “Scientists’ prioritization of goals for online public communication.” The second study is a collaboration with Anthony Dudo, University of Texas at Austin