Propaganda als ideologische Kommunikation

In view of the many military and warlike conflicts, the term »propaganda« is often used in both press coverage and in scientific analysis. It is widely ambiguous though what exactly is meant by propaganda, and to what extent it can be distinguished from similar forms of communication, such as public relations and advertising. Reviewing previous approaches concerning propaganda and using the totalitarism approach, this article argues that propaganda can only be defined as a process of communication that puts forward extensive claims which are to be enforced by the use of an ideological system. In contrast, public relations and advertising merely put forward particular resp. singular claims which are to be bolstered by the use of images and positive pictures. With regard to propaganda, the structural links between the political and the public system are so tight that the autonomy of the public system is partly or completely annihilated. As a communication process tied to the formation of power, propaganda works with the symbolically generalized communication medium of power and, owing to its ideological foundation, also with the medium of truth.     

Statistenrolle als Migrant zu vergeben

Studies regarding the media portrayal of migrants differentiate between the actor roles of active speakers and passive objects. Furthermore, the single indicators applied in many studies cannot capture the interconnectedness of public debates on migrants. By understanding the debate as a symbolic network of media-imparted interactions, this study analyses the discursively important role of the addressee. United in the concept of the active-passive-balance of public representation, the network-analytic indicators show to what extent the media are representing migrants adequately or whether they over-/underrepresent them in specific roles. The gathered relational data of a claims analysis of press articles from June 1999 and 2009 portray changes of migrants?? actor roles. A high legitimation of migrants as addressees substantiates indications of positive discrimination in the sense of ??goodwill coverage??. Structurally the media-imparted interactions, esp. the level of conflict in the debate, point towards existing partitioning tendencies in the social collectives?? discourse.     

Crossmedia-Verweise als Scharnier zwischen Werbeträgern

In times of information and advertising overload, cross-media campaigns seem to be a helpful strategy in mass-media advertising. The cross-media concept is based on three pillars: First, ads are circulated applying different media outlets (media mix). Second, all advertising material is following a integrated communication strategy. Third, ads contain references or pointers to other ads or communication channels (website, e-mail, telephone, etc.), adverting recipients to other media and motivating them to visit or use these media (so-called ‘appeal to use’). The paper reports on a content analysis of n?=?4.066 German TV commercials, newspaper, magazine and billboard ads and focuses on the amount and composition of such cross-media references. Besides a cross-section analysis of all four media channels in the year 2007, a longitudinal section analysis of TV commercials from 1997 to 2007 was conducted. The study reveals that cross-media references are broadly diffused in all media channels, especially in advertising with a rational and argumentative appeal (as opposed to mere emotional appeal and imagery) and in advertising of high-involvement products. Nonetheless more than half of all cross-media references do not communicate any appeal to use. Thus, we suppose that a large portion of cross-media references are not applied within truly integrated advertising strategies. As the paper finally discusses, real cross-media strategies are only suited to specific advertising tasks and will, therefore, remain one advertising strategy among others in the future.     

Interaktives Fernsehen als Problem in der Diffusionsforschung

The suppliers of new television services welcome the digitalization of television in Germany because it may boost the establishing of interactive television and open up new business options. So far research into the potential of such services has yielded mixed results. However, most studies so far have only investigated the general intention to adopt new services and did not regard real adoption. Moreover all German studies follow a strict cross-sectional design and are therefore unable to detect the dynamics of the process of diffusion. We combine data on the adoption of new services from a longitudinal study with data from a quasi-experimental design in order to dig deeper into the dynamics of the diffusion of innovations in the television sector. We identify key events – besides other well-known influences – as crucial factors in the process of the diffusion of media innovations. Key events alter the process by activating the communication about innovations.     

Die Absolventenbefragung als Methode der Lehrevaluation in der Kommunikationswissenschaft

Surveys among alumni are a common but hardly reflected method of evaluating teaching in communication departments. In light of the increasing significance of evaluation at the universities and the high competition on the job market, it seems advisable to look at this instrument more closely. An advantage of alumni surveys is that they allow to compare directly people’s studies and the requirements of the jobs people hold. In a meta-analysis,19 alumni surveys conducted in German-speaking countries between 1995 and 2004 were reviewed. Differences between the studies at different universities make ex post facto comparisons more difficult. Results show: Graduates from complete journalism programs find jobs especially quickly. In general, practical experience is the most important factor in finding a job. Most respondents would chose their field of studies again if they were given a chance. Future alumni surveys should be coordinated to allow for better comparison and for collecting data representative of the field.     

Visuelle Rhetorik als Schlüssel zum Weißen Haus

Albert A. Gore jr., former vice president of the Unites States and last year’s Democratic presidential candidate, has a remote history as a media theorist. In his senior thesis at Harvard (1969) he examined the impact of television on the conduct of the presidency. Gore points out that from Truman to Nixon presidential communication techniques and skills show different levels of ability in dealing with the media. The executive branch gradually is forced to keep up with the exigencies of electronic information and opinion shaping. Gore introduces the concept of »visual rhetoric« and predicts that the use of television will become one of the principal tools of presidential governance. His forecast proved true.     

Das neue Medien-Menü: Fernsehen und WWW als funktionale Alternativen?

As new media technologies develop and become established, the supply of media services expands. Along with this development, the question arises of how this affects traditional media. As other new media have, the Internet, too, has triggered debates about the future of the «old» media. This paper discusses whether the proliferation of the World Wide Web can have effects on television use. To do this, both relevant theoretical approaches and the state of empirical research are introduced and discussed. Present research results do not consider the systematic difference between cognitive schemata concerning media use as they are reproduced in face-to-face interviews on the one hand, and actual media use on the other. An innovative research concept is developed that takes this critique into account and differentiates between gratification expectations and situational gratifications sought and obtained. As regards gratification expectations, television is superior to the World Wide Web. It is more powerful on all gratification dimensions. Considering actual use, though, the World Wide Web has already outstripped television on some of the dimensions. It is used more often to satisfy specific needs. Thus, cognitive schemata of media use lag behind the actual changes in every day life.     

Das »Office for Strategic Influence« als Informationsmanager in der US-Kampagne in Afghanistan

The terror attacks on September 11, 2001, formed the starting point for the United States’ «war against terror,» which began on October 7, 2001, with the first bombardment of Afghanistan. The broad support around the world faded quickly after a few weeks without any significant success in the battle against Al Quaeda. To counter rising annoyance, the US Government created the «Office for Strategic Influence» (OSI) in November 2001. The declared purpose: to produce sympathy and support for the war. Though source material is scarce, it is possible to trace the activities of the OSI. In Afghanistan, the office coordinated «Information Operations» already under way. The OSI also tried to influence domestic and international public opinion by participating in the foundation of the «Coalition Information Center» and by consulting public affairs expert Charlotte Beers and the advertising agency «Rendom Group». After an intensive denunciation by several newspapers, especially the 〉New York Times〈, the OSI was abandoned in February 2002. The discussion about the office defined more concretely the formerly vague border between publicly7 accepted and necessary agitation on the one hand and reprehensible propaganda on the other.     

Werte und Normen als Sollensvorstellungen in der KommunikationswissenschaftValues and norms as ought-statements in communication studies

Values and norms as research topics are central theoretical and empirical constructs in communication studies and are also used to substantiate research questions or to interpret results. Despite the relevance of values and norms, a respective debate within the discipline has been neglected so far. It is a challenge to discuss the values and norms of our discipline and to initiate an exchange of the societal relevance of one’s own research. The network “Values and norms as research objects and guiding principles in communication research”, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), makes a contribution to this by systematically analyzing values and norms in communication studies and by critically reflecting them. Therefore, the paper proposes to operationalize values and norms as “ought-statements”. Ought-statements either describe a situational state that is explicitly evaluated or address a desirable state. Three elements of an ought-statement are identified, which are coded in a multistage content analysis. The operationalization of norms and values as ought-statements allows not only to examine already known values and norms, but also to assess all possible values and norms, to assess the change of values and norms more validly in long-term studies, and to assess those constructs that are labeled as norms or values by the researchers themselves.