Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes both ASU Theses and Dissertations, submitted by graduate students, and the Barrett, Honors College theses submitted by undergraduate students.
Displaying 31 - 40 of 78
Description
When President Andrés Manuel López Obrador was elected in 2018, I read news stories that claimed he was “Mexico’s Trump” for his anti-establishment rhetoric—and his attacks on the press. My goal with this project was to gain a better understanding of attacks on the press in Mexico and their impact.
For this thesis project, I went back to Mexico to speak with journalists and academics about the country’s political history, the history of its press, and what it is like to work as a reporter under the López Obrador administration.
This project uses qualitative interviews with Mexican and American reporters and academics in Mexico and the United States with firsthand experience reporting on Trump and AMLO and thorough knowledge on Mexican culture and history. It will attempt to explain how, even though attacks on the press are similar on both sides of the border, López Obrador’s attacks on the press in Mexico have a larger impact because of the Mexican press’ relatively young independence, influenced by a system of government censure and control over the media, as well as the lasting effects of the Mexican political system in the 20th century.
For this thesis project, I went back to Mexico to speak with journalists and academics about the country’s political history, the history of its press, and what it is like to work as a reporter under the López Obrador administration.
This project uses qualitative interviews with Mexican and American reporters and academics in Mexico and the United States with firsthand experience reporting on Trump and AMLO and thorough knowledge on Mexican culture and history. It will attempt to explain how, even though attacks on the press are similar on both sides of the border, López Obrador’s attacks on the press in Mexico have a larger impact because of the Mexican press’ relatively young independence, influenced by a system of government censure and control over the media, as well as the lasting effects of the Mexican political system in the 20th century.
ContributorsPietsch, Bryan (Author) / Crane, Steve (Thesis director) / Martinez, Andres (Committee member) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-12
Description
In this work, I will explain how objectivity in relation to news has changed over the years and why “traditional” objectivity should no longer be a core journalistic standard. I will explore objectivity in the Information Age compared to its formation. I will address the prevalent issues of white privilege and implicit bias issues within the media. Objectivity has been the unrealistic standard for journalism in the United States for over 100 years, and the American public deserves accurate information. A new form of objectivity needs to be established that is more transparent of biases and affiliations, while pushing for inclusive and diverse reporting. As journalists, we need to be thinking of what the future of journalism should be and how we can better serve fellow citizens.
ContributorsMcAllister, Caleb (Author) / Mark, Hass (Thesis director) / P. Richard, Hahn (Committee member) / Dean, Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Transit ridership is declining in most cities throughout America. Public transportation needs to be improved in order for cities to handle urban growth, reduce carbon footprint, and increase mobility across income groups. In order to determine what causes changes in transit ridership, I performed a descriptive analysis of five metro areas in the United States. I studied changes in transit ridership in Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis, Phoenix, and Seattle from 2013 through 2017 to determine where public transportation works and where it does not work. I used employment, commute, and demographic data to determine what affects transit ridership. Each metro area was studied as a separate case because the selected cities are difficult to compare directly. The Seattle metro area was the only metro to increase transit ridership throughout the period of the study. The Minneapolis metro area experienced a slight decline in transit ridership, while Phoenix and Denver declined significantly. The Dallas metro area declined most of the five cities studied. The denser metro areas fared much better than the less dense areas. In order to increase transit ridership cities should increase the density of their city and avoid sprawl. Certain factors led to declines in ridership in certain metro areas but not all. For example, gentrification contributed to ridership decline in Denver and Minneapolis, but Seattle gentrified and increased ridership. Dallas and Phoenix experienced low-levels of gentrification but experienced declining ridership. Therefore, organizations such as the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) who attempt to find the single factor causing the decline in transit ridership, or the one factor that will increase ridership are misguided. Above all, this thesis shows that there is no single factor causing the ridership decline in each metro area, and it is wise to study each metro area as a separate case.
ContributorsBarro, Joshua Andrew (Co-author) / Barro, Joshua (Co-author) / King, David (Thesis director) / Salon, Deborah (Committee member) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Arizona is a unique state in that rain is not a normal occurrence throughout most of the year (NWS). Arizona averages from less than three months to half a month of measurable precipitation days per year (WRCC). With that, it is important to know the public’s understanding as well as their general trend of likeness towards the weather forecasts they receive. A questionnaire was distributed to 426 people in the state of Arizona to review what they understand from the forecasts and what they would like to see on social media and television.
ContributorsHermansen, Alexis Nicole (Author) / Alvarez, Melanie (Thesis director) / Cerveny, Randall (Committee member) / Hondula, David M. (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
This thesis will take a look into the perspective of graphic designers and the important factors that they feel make a good sports logo. The relationship between sporting logos, their respective fan bases and human society will also be addressed. On the surface, logos may seem like an unimportant aspect of sports and of a team. They have always been a part of the sporting world and can often be an afterthought. Interviews with two graphic designers were conducted for this paper, one who has worked in the sports logos industry for over 25 years creating the identities for close to 100 different teams and the other being the Director of Clubhouse Creative, the design team within the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. Through those two interviews, I have discovered that there is much more to logos than sitting in front of a computer trying to be artistic. Each logo has a story and reason for being designed the way that it is, and I hope to convey that to the reader. In addition to the interviews, I have presented various examples of controversy in sports logos. My research of these controversies will display a wide range of examples from issues involving racism in logos to fan base disapproval. The information presented in this thesis is designed to show the reader why sports logos are important and why they shouldn’t be an afterthought.
ContributorsWelter, Nicholas E (Author) / Rawitch, Josh (Thesis director) / Hass, Mark (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
The European Migration crisis saw the deadliest mass exodus of people in the 21st century. The crisis impacted and is still impacting Morocco politically, socially, and its economic landscape. American media focused heavily on the Syrian refugee migration from the Middle East through the Balkans to European countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and France but failed to show the complex migration issues in North Africa, specifically Morocco. In continuum with the refugee crisis in Syria, push factors like economic disparity, human rights violations and civil unrest has forced thousands of Sub Saharan Africans to search for a new life somewhere else. This multimedia project serves to highlight the experiences of transit migrants in Morocco as they wait to make the journey across the Mediterranean Sea. This creative project utilized photojournalism to tell four distinct stories: Immigration Policies between Morocco and Spain, Migrants and the church, a profile on a migrant, and a photo collection of unaccompanied migrant youth. The purpose of this creative project was to show a different perspective of migrants and their experiences.
ContributorsMontoya, Lerman (Author) / Rodriguez, Rick (Thesis director) / Fernandez, Valeria (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / School of Social Transformation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Social media has changed the way communities consume their news and while much research has been done on how news organizations have adapted to this phenomenon, not all aspects of social media use for news have been studied. This study analyzes the use of Facebook Live videos in four local Phoenix news stations for the purpose of providing news to the audiences. This thesis is an analysis of 56 videos, 14 videos from each of the four news stations that specifically examined how local newsrooms use Facebook Lives to engage audiences when they are off the air and how they inform the community. Findings provide insight on views, shares, and reactions from each newsroom as well as common themes seen throughout the content.
Key words: Social media, Facebook Live, audience engagement, critical information needs, local news
Key words: Social media, Facebook Live, audience engagement, critical information needs, local news
ContributorsMorehead, Mikayla Jordan (Author) / Chadha, Monica (Thesis director) / Kwon, Hazel (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor, Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
For over ninety years, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recognized award-winning films for their technical capabilities, acting and storytelling. And for decades, many parties involved have campaigned for Oscar glory. This thesis generates a deeper understanding into the process by which the motion picture ecosystem works - and explains why being nominated and/or winning an Academy Award generates added value for all parties involved ranging from agencies to studios, streamers, talent and even legitimate awards campaign strategists. This thesis analyzes the various methods and price tags different entities put on awards campaigns and explores the various creative and traditional methods in which people vie for nominations and wins. Our title, “For Your Consideration,” is a term widely used in the entertainment industry when courting Academy members to vote for eligible projects in traditional advertising - which can be seen littered about Hollywood in the months leading up to Oscar Sunday.
ContributorsGruca, Benjamin Roman (Co-author) / Kichler, Amanda (Co-author) / Mokwa, Michael (Thesis director) / Giles, Charles Bret (Committee member) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / Department of Management and Entrepreneurship (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
America has been widely considered a great democratic experiment, which is a characterization attributed to Thomas Jefferson. An experiment can be designed to use trial-and-error methods to find a certain outcome. While not a conscious effort, the United States has experienced a trial-and-error experimental process in developing legislation that will restrict dangerous misinformation without violating the speech and press clauses of the First Amendment. In several of his personal writings and official speeches, Jefferson advised against additional government intervention with regard to filtering true and false information published by the press or distributed by citizens. His argument is a guiding theme throughout this thesis, which explores that experimental process and its relation to contemporary efforts to address and prevent future phenomena like the fake news outbreak of 2016.
This thesis utilizes an examination of examples of laws designed to control misinformation, past and present, then using those examples to provide context to both arguments in favor of and opposing new misinformation laws. Extensive archival research was conducted to ensure that accurate historical reflection could be included in offering information about historical examples, as well as through application of relevant literature. The possible effects on the electorate and the practices of the press by those laws of the past and potential proposals for new legislation are also discussed in an effort to provide further context to, and support for, the conclusions reached. Those conclusions include that additional regulation is necessary to discourage the creation and distribution of fake news and misinformation in order to protect the public from the violence or imminent unlawful action they may cause.
This thesis utilizes an examination of examples of laws designed to control misinformation, past and present, then using those examples to provide context to both arguments in favor of and opposing new misinformation laws. Extensive archival research was conducted to ensure that accurate historical reflection could be included in offering information about historical examples, as well as through application of relevant literature. The possible effects on the electorate and the practices of the press by those laws of the past and potential proposals for new legislation are also discussed in an effort to provide further context to, and support for, the conclusions reached. Those conclusions include that additional regulation is necessary to discourage the creation and distribution of fake news and misinformation in order to protect the public from the violence or imminent unlawful action they may cause.
ContributorsBundy, Austen (Author) / Russomanno, Joseph (Thesis director) / Russell, Dennis (Committee member) / Historical, Philosophical & Religious Studies (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
As the United States’ media aims to mollify an unprecedentedly disenchanted audience as the result of a partisan political climate, border and immigration reporters are tasked with presenting objective and extensive coverage of the highly politicized and polarized phenomenon. The events occurring at the southwest border and the experience of immigration are complex, and the challenges border and immigration reporters face are an extension of that complexity. Reporters attempt to navigate through an array of difficulties in their aim for excellent journalism. This dissertation identifies the 5 greatest challenges border and immigration reporters face and asks how these challenges influence coverage. These are: 1) From the mid-90s to present day, there’s been a surge in border and immigration reporting. How has history influenced this increase in coverage, and what challenges arose from this shift? 2) All people have biases, whether conscious or unconscious. How does that potentially affect border reporting, both from the journalist's and audience’s perspective? 3) Politicians have exploited the phenomenon of immigration to incite fear and have played to the public’s distrust of media. In turn, how do reporters try to avoid exploiting immigrants and consumers in their coverage? 4) There are gaps in government data, resulting in punctured coverage. How do journalists acquire the information necessary to tell the story? 5) Border and immigration reporters experience emotional trauma from exposure to hypersensitive situations. How do reporters cope and continue to search for stories that must be told? This thesis puts most stock in the first-hand accounts of the anecdotes and understandings shared in the 11 border and immigration reporters interviewed in an effort to personalize the discourse. This thesis examines both qualitative and quantitative research to broaden readers’ understanding of the current quality of coverage and the extent of challenges faced by reporters.
ContributorsMuldrew, Jaime Audrey (Author) / Andres, Martinez (Thesis director) / Vanessa, Ruiz (Committee member) / Valeria, Fernandez (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05