Congrats to Hillary Shulman!

Hillary Shulman

Congratulations to Assistant Professor, and COPS faculty member, Hillary Shulman! 

Hillary and her colleague, Associate Professor Daniel Bergan (Michigan State University), won a $20,500 grant from the North Central Regional Center For Urban Development for their project titled "Local policymakers' perceptions of the opioid crisis and the efficacy of extension communications.” 

As noted on the OSU School of Communication website, their project “aims to identify message strategies that affect how policymakers engage with the opioid crisis in their communities.” 

Keep up the awesome work Hillary!

Welcoming Robert Bond to OSU

As most of you know, the School of Communication recently hired Robert Bond, ABD at UC-San Diego, for our position in social network analysis. Robert will be joining us this coming fall. Robert is lead author of what must be one of the (if not THE) largest random assignment experiment on humans in history -- a study conducted in conjunction with Facebook in which feeds were experimentally manipulated on election day in 2010. The study was published this last fall in the journal Nature. Robert's research thus links not only to social networks more generally, but also to the work we do in COPS. I encourage you to welcome Robert to OSU @ rbond@ucsd.edu!

Jayeon Lee and Lehigh University

Congratulations is to be offered as well to Jayeon "Janey" Lee who has accepted a tenure-track Assistant Professor position in the Department of Journalism & Communication at Lehigh University.  Jayeon's dissertation is focusing on social media and the effects of journalists presenting varied personal and professional attributes in this environment.

Congratulations to Steve and Andrea

Congratulations go out to Steve Kleinman and Andrea Quenette, both of whom have secured positions as assistant professors for next year. Steve will be joining the faculty of Indiana University of Pennsylvania in the Department of Communications Media. Andrea will be joining the faculty of the University of Kansas in the Department of Communication Studies. Steve and Andrea are both working feverishly on completing their dissertations -- Steve on factors affecting willingness to communicate about politics interpersonally, Andrea on the communication and political correlates of political cynicism -- before they move on from OSU and the COPS group. Please join me in congratulating them on their accomplishments thus far!

Recent publications by COPS members

Several COPS members have recently had manusripts accepted for publication.  Below are the citations and abstracts:

Eveland, W.P. & Kleinman, S. (in press). Comparing General and Political Discussion Networks Within Voluntary Organizations Using Social Network Analysis. Political Behavior

Abstract:
Political discussion networks are influenced by the opportunities for political interactions within our larger social environments and more general discussion networks. In this study we compare general and political discussion networks using full sociometric social network data from a probability sample of voluntary organizations –specifically, intact student activity groups from a large Midwest research university. We find that even within these “weak tie” voluntary associations, general discussion networks clearly constrain the characteristics of the political discussion networks. However, political discussion networks appear to be less dense and more likely to be broken up into disconnected components than the general discussion networks. But, general and political networks do not appear to differ in their structuring by perceptions of discussant knowledge.And, most interestingly, we find that on average neither general nor political discussionnetworks are characterized by political homogeneity.


Garrett, R. K., Carnahan, D., & Lynch, E. (In press). A turn toward avoidance?  Selective exposure to online political information, 2004-2008. Political Behavior

Abstract:Scholars warn that avoidance of attitude-discrepant political information is becoming increasingly common due in part to an ideologically fragmented online news environment that allows individuals to systematically eschew contact with ideas that differ from their own.  Data collected over a series of national RDD surveys conducted between 2004 and 2008 challenge this assertion, demonstrating that Americans’ use of attitude-consistent political sources is positively correlated with use of more attitudinally challenging sources.  This pattern holds over time and across different types of online outlets, and applies even among those most strongly committed to their political ideology, although the relationship is weaker for this group.  Implications for these findings are discussed.


Hayes, A. F., Matthes, J.,  & Eveland, W. P. (in press). Stimulating the quasi-statistical  organ: Fear of social isolation motivates the quest for knowledge of the  opinion climate. Communication Research

Abstract:
We tested an uninvestigated propositionfrom spiral of silence theory that fear of social isolation (FSI) prompts people to seek out information about the climate of public opinion. Taking atrait-based individual difference perspective, we develop and validate a measureof FSI that is less likely to produce the interpretational problems that plagueexisting measures.  Then, using data from 8 countries spread across four continents, we examine whether those who fear social isolation to a greater extent are more likely to attend to a particular source of information in the social environment about public opinion—mass media reports of public opinion polls.   Our results support spiral of silence theory’s prediction—FSI does appear to motivatepeople to ascertain what the public thinks. However, there may be some cultural boundaries to this process.  


Nisbet, E.C., Stoycheff, E., & Pearce, K. E., (in press). Demanding democracy online: a multi-level model of Internet use and citizen attitudes about democracy.  Journal of Communication.

Abstract:
A successful democracy requires citizens to prefer democratic governance over other political alternatives.  In this context, we examine role of the internet in promoting political change through socialization into pro-democracy attitudes.  Combining individual public opinion data from Africa and Asia with country-level indices, we test a multi-level model examining the relationship between internet penetration, individual internet use, and citizen demand for democracy across 28 countries.  We find internet use, but not national internet penetration, is associated with greater citizen commitment to democratic governance.  Furthermore, greater democratization and internet penetration moderates the relationship between internet use and demand for democracy.  Implications for understanding how ICT diffusion and internet use may be associated with citizen attitudes about democracy are discussed.

Highly cited works by COPS affiliates

Several COPS faculty and alumni are listed in Routledge Taylor & Francis's list of "Highly cited communication studies articles". The articles listed are among the top cited of all T&F journals, and the publisher is recognizing this accomplishment by providing free access to the works. Featured authors include Eveland, Hayes, Hoffman, and Hutchens. Congratulations!

Esralew, Weeks win conference paper awards

Please join me in congratulating COPS members Sarah Esralew and Brian Weeks for their award-winning conference papers. Sarah received the 2011 Timothy Cook Best Graduate Student Paper Award from the Political Communication Section of the American Political Science Association (APSA) for her paper, "The influence of parodies on political schemas: Exploring the Tina Fey-Sarah Palin phenomenon". Brian's recieved a top-four paper from the Political Communication section of the International Communication Association for his paper, "Assessing belief in online political rumors and its impact on vote choice." Well done!

Esralew, S.E., & Young, D.G. (2010). The influence of parodies on political schemas: Exploring the Tina Fey-Sarah Palin phenomenon. Annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Washington, D.C.: 2010.

Weeks, B.E., & Garrett, R.K. (2011, November). Assessing belief in online political rumors and its impact on vote choice. Paper to be presented at the National Communication Association Annual Conference, Political Communication Division. New Orleans, LA.

First COPS of the quarter

The first meeting of the quarter will be held on Friday, September 23 at 1:30 in JR106 (the ground floor conference room in the Journalism building). If you are interesting in political communication research (or even if you aren't sure what you're interests are), I hope that you will join us. /Kelly

Subscribing to the COPS email list

Now you can subscribe to the COPS email list on the Web. Just point your browser here: https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/osucops

Ohio State's School of Communication #1 in Research Production and #3 Overall in Field

September 28, 2010 - The National Research Council (NRC) has released results of its extensive, five-year study of 83 doctoral programs in the field of communication. The reports reveals The Ohio State University' s School of Communication to be firmly situated among the elite communication programs in the country based on several metrics. The OSU School of Communication faculty achieved an absolute rank of #1 in research activity (e.g., average number of peer-reviewed publications per faculty member). In addition, the School as a whole achieved a #3 ranking in the field based on its achievements along twenty different criteria - these criteria reflected faculty research (e.g., % of faculty with grants), quality of graduate students (e.g., GRE scores), graduate student support (e.g., % of students with full financial support), and a broad range of diversity measures (e.g., % of female faculty, % of female students).

The extensive analyses conducted on the NRC data identified only five programs which could state with 90% certainty that they rank as one of the top 10 programs in the field. Joining OSU's School of Communication on this list are Stanford University's Department of Communication, the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg School for Communication, University of Wisconsin-Madison's School of Journalism & Mass Communication, and the Speech Communication program at the University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign (now the Department of Communication). This is truly elite company and the NRC rankings are a reflection of the significant advancements made by The Ohio State's School of Communication.

It is important to place the NRC rankings in some additional context. The 2010 NRC report is based on data collected only up through the 2005-2006 academic year. OSU's School of Communication has seen its level of research productivity grow exponentially since that time. A quick review of the broad range of works generated by the School 's faculty and graduate students and placed in the field's top peer-reviewed journal outlets offers much hope that the School of Communication is maintaining its steady progress toward becoming the single best place in the country to study communication.

COPS Winter 2010 Schedule of Events

1-8 Teresa Myers Job Talk

1-22 Erik Nisbet, “Anti-Americanism as Media Effect? Media selection, exposure and public opinion about the United States in the Middle East”

2-5 Ivan Dylko, “Explicating Political User-Generated Content and Theorizing About Its Effects on Democracy Using Mix-of-Attributes Approach”

2-19 Discussion of series of Journal of Communication works on the future of political communication effects research:

• Bennett, W. L., & Iyengar, S. (2008). A new era of minimal effects? The changing foundations of political communication. Journal of Communication, 58, 707-731.
• Holbert, R. L., Garrett, R. K., & Gleason, L. S. (2010). A new era of minimal effects? A response to Bennett and Iyengar. Journal of Communication, 60, 15-34.
• Bennett, W. L., & Iyengar, S. (2010).The shifting foundations of political communication: Responding to a defense of the media effects paradigm. Journal of Communication, 60, XX-XX.

3-5 Jay Hmielowski, “Developing a Measure of Affinity for Political Humor” and Megan Hill, “Striking Similarities: Making the Match between Cable TV News Personalities and Interpersonal Communication Style”

3-12 Visitation Day for Prospective Graduate Students for Incoming 2010-2011 class

COPS members head northwest to Chicago this week to attend the Midwestern Association for Public Opinion Research meeting. Those who attend the conference will see us bring the same kind of enthusiasm and excitement to Chicago as we brought to Ohio Stadium this weekend. Pictured here are COPS members Tucker Gordner (O), Chip Eveland (H), Andrew Hayes (I), and John Tchernev (O) after OSU beats Iowa to secure an invitation to the 2010 Rose Bowl.

OSU - Iowa Bet is On

COPS members, the stakes for the OSU - Iowa game this weekend just got bigger. Not only will this game determine whether OSU or Iowa will represent the Big 10 in the Rose Bowl, but there is also public humiliation (or at least embarrassment) on the line. Please see above the wager I've made with friend Julie Andsager, Professor at the University of Iowa. In short, the loser must wear some team apparel of the winning team during a MAPOR presentation, and photos will be taken and publicly displayed. Since I have absolutely no desire to wear Iowa gear next week, please devote all your cognitive engergy to support a Buckeye win on Satursday. GO BUCKS! P.S. Here's a link to Dhavan Shah of UW-Madison wearing an OSU cap to teach his class after losing a similar bet a few years ago.

COPS email list

If you'd like to receive COPS emails, including copies of blog posts, you can now subscribe to the COPS email list. To subscribe, send an email as follows:

To: listserver@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
Subject: [anything]
Message text: "subscribe osucops Firstname Lastname"

The quotes around the text aren't required, and the name that you type in the message text will be used to identify you to other list members.

OSU COPS in Communication Research and Political Communication

The new issue of Communication Research is out, and in it 4 of the 6 articles are authored or co-authored by School of Communication faculty. Two of those four articles are particularly relevant to COPS and were written by COPS members. Lance, Heather, and Kristen co-authored the first, "Fanning the flames of a Partisan Divide: Debate Viewing, Vote Choice, and Perceptions of Vote Count Accuracy." The other is by Young Mie: "Issue Publics in the New Information Environment: Selectivity, Domain Specificity, and Extremity."

Meanwhile, over in the current issue of Political Communication -- a special issue on communication and political socialization -- we have two articles by COPS members. First, Myiah and I authored "Contextual Antecedents and Political Consequences of Adolescent Political Discussion, Discussion Elaboration, and Network Diversity." And, Carroll Glynn, Mike Huge, and Carole Lunney authored "The Influence of Perceived Social Norms on College Students' Intention to Vote."

Congrats to all the COPS members keeping our journals full of interesting and high quality research!

OSU School of Communication Ranks Highly in Current CIOS Study

I thought I'd share the current rankings through the quantitative CIOS study for areas relevant to the COPS group. We rank in the Top Five in the following research areas, based on this study using data on journal publications: Political Elections, News, Newspapers, Technology, Methodology, Theory, and Public Opinion. In fact, we're ranked #1 for Broadcasting & Media. Way to go COPS members for publishing your work and putting us up so high in the rankings! If you're interested in seeing the sorts of publications that led to this ranking, just view our list of COPS member publications.