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This study uses systems theory to explore relationships between individual, micro, meso, and macro factors and expected future religious practices of students studying at a Seventh-day Adventist university. The study operationalizes system theory in context of both public relations and spirituality. The primary purpose is to understand relationship between each level of systems theory and students' expectations about future religious practices. Key recommendations include the need to increase use of digital communication tools, the value of distinguishing between understanding and belief/action at the micro level, and the importance of supporting spiritual development outside the context of organized religion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How has scholarly research shaped the Internet advertising field since the mid 1990s? This study addresses that broad question with a bibliometric analysis of academic literature on Internet advertising. By examining most-cited authors and papers, as well as co-citation patterns, a general picture of the field can be drawn. This analysis sets a baseline that will enable future scholars to see where the field of Internet advertising research began and trace its shift over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interactivity is an often mentioned but seldom operationalized concept associated with the World Wide Web. Interactivity has been positioned conceptually as a process, a function, and a perception, but most operational definitions have focused on the process or function. This study develops scales to operationalize the perception-based approach to interactivity, because consumer perceptions are central to advertising research. Three overlapping constructs that are central to interactivity are explored: direction of communication, user control, and time. A multistage method is used to identify and refine measures of perceived interactivity (MPI). The 18 items included in the MPI offer researchers a tool for measuring a consumer perception central to advertising on the Web. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To gain a better understanding of online brand communities, this study has examined why people joined in online brand communities and whether there were some differences in the motivations of Internet users based on different cultures. Open-ended questions were asked to the community members from both South Korean Automobile Online Brand Communities (KAOBC) and American Automobile Online Brand Communities (AAOBC) in the first stage and then generated and utilized an online survey for the study. The study found that KAOBC members tended to have a stronger social network, business, and communication motivations than AAOBC members. As a primary motivation, information seeking is the strongest motivation for members of both KAOBC and AAOBC. They had a similar level of information motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study uses Harold Innis's concepts of space- and time-biased media to examine digital media for 10 years beginning in 2005. Both syndicated spending data and industry trade press were used to assess trends and changes. After the recession of 2008, spending for online media surpassed spending on print for the first time. Digital was the dominant medium covered in most years of trade articles; however, the coverage of the rise (and fall) of media types was not as linear as was the actual change in spending. Additional analysis showed that trade press coverage focused mostly on the advertising agency business and that digital media were more central to core topics than were other media types. Concepts of time and space (Innis 1951, 2007) were also explored as overarching themes within the sample. Implications for theory, practice, and pedagogy are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mass media in the USA have hosted news content and delivered audiences to advertisers. While advertiser support for traditional news media has been dropping, activities of online 'citizen journalists' have been on the rise. A key question for both traditional news organizations and citizen journalists is who will pay for online news. In-depth interviews were used to gain insight into consumer understanding of changes in the relationship between news and advertising as both adapt to the online environment. Three types of news and advertising users emerged: engagers, receivers, and avoiders. The research also identified three approaches to user-generated content: broad participation, participation primarily in interpersonal exchanges, and avoidance. Implications are discussed for how these consumer perceptions and activities might shape future funding of online news. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Senior citizens are often positioned as 'have nots' in the digital age, but internet use among older Americans ranges from 68 per cent among those just entering their senior years to 17 per cent of those age 75+. About 70 per cent of online seniors report using the internet for health information. This study uses grounded theory to explore online health communication among older Americans. Open-ended survey responses from 357 internet users age 55+ were analyzed. Selective coding categories were: empowerment, personal and professional communities, and watchdogs and peer assumptions. These themes are discussed in the context of health communication literature with suggestions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advertisers spend millions of dollars on Super Bowl advertising. Are those ads part of larger campaigns? Specifically is the Web integrated with Super Bowl advertising? This study examined overall strategy (transformational vs. informational), message strategy (what to say), and creative strategy (how to say it) of the 2003 Super Bowl ads and related Web sites. Television commercials used transformational strategies more than did Web sites. Message strategies were more consistent across media than were creative strategies. Thus, campaigns may be integrated in "what to say" even when the "how to say it" seems different. Some unexpected relationships were found between message and creative strategies but these findings highlight the need to tailor messages to technological capabilities of media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a content analysis of Chinese and U.S. newspaper coverage of the Internet in China. Coverage of business and economic concerns, culture and social issues and law and policy directions; Trends in the growth of Internet use in the country.

Examines the level of interactivity at health-related sites on the Internet. Web sites of nonprofit organizations which utilize interactive capacity; Web sites of for-profit organizations which do not use interactive capacity; Health communication; Uses of computer-mediated communication; Interactivity and content classifications of site creators.

The article presents a survey of executive directors of associations on public relations in trade and professional associations. Respondents of the survey include directors from medical, health, education, technical, engineering, scientific, legal and trade associations and shows whether the respondent was from an association in Washington, D.C. Centralization was discovered to have an important negative correlation using the two-way symmetric model, but no-other important hypothesized relationships were attained.

Introduces a series of article about the concept of interactivity in relation to computer-mediated communication.