Affordances Of Media Research Articles

Affordances of Media as Learning and Play: Children’s and Mothers’ Conceptions

Affordances of Media as Learning and Play: Children’s and Mothers’ Conceptions

TV news on Instagram: Affordances, genres, journalistic cultures

TV news programmes use social media intensively to promote and distribute their content. Instagram has become integral in this field, as all major players have their own account and Instagram has become a widely used news source. This article analyzes the news coverage of TV news shows on Instagram as a designed space, asking which genres are used, how they are positioned in regard to the technical and social affordances of the platform, and what implications their form and style have for journalism culture(s). Underpinned by the concepts of platformization, digital mediality, and media affordances, the analysis will focus on the characteristic stylistic forms of Instagram news coverage, comparing the Instagram accounts of six German speaking private and public TV news stations from Switzerland, Germany, and Austria. The corpus includes 100 posts and reels from each account collected in September 2023. The analysis identifies different genre profiles of the accounts and then focuses on the question of how different common genres (like headlines, newsbites, news briefs, and reports) as well as reels are designed multimodally, including different structural parts and their patterned style.

Factors influencing online health information credibility: a meta-analysis

PurposeThis study aims to address the growing importance of online health information (OHI) and the associated uncertainty. Although previous research has explored factors influencing the credibility of OHI, results have been inconsistent. Therefore, this study aims to identify the essential factors that influence the perceived credibility of OHI by conducting a meta-analysis of articles published from 2010 to 2022. The study also aims to examine the moderating effects of demographic characteristics, study design and the platforms where health information is located.Design/methodology/approachBased on the Prominence-Interpretation Theory (PIT), a meta-analysis of 25 empirical studies was conducted to explore 12 factors related to information content and source, social interaction, individual and media affordance. Moderators such as age, education level, gender of participants, sample size, platforms and research design were also examined.FindingsResults suggest that all factors, except social support, have significant effects on the credibility of OHI. Among them, argument quality had the strongest correlation with credibility and individual factors were also found to be relevant. Moderating effects indicate that social support was significantly moderated by age and education level. Different sample sizes may lead to variations in the role of social endorsement, while personal involvement was moderated by sample size, platform and study design.Originality/valueThis study enriches the application of PIT in the health domain and provides guidance for scholars to expand the scope of research on factors influencing OHI credibility.

Contextures of hate: Towards a systems theory of hate communication on social media platforms

ABSTRACT We inquire into different perspectives and patterns of problematizing online hate speech within the social sciences from a systems-theoretical perspective. Our results identify five different research perspectives adopted by studies on the issue: (1) systematic perspectives on problems of operationalizing (online) hate speech; (2) intentionalist perspectives on actors and their motives; (3) consequentialist perspectives on victims of online hate speech; (4) perspectives on media affordances, infrastructures, and strategies of online hate speech; and finally, (5) normative perspectives on the consequences of online hate speech. Additionally, we want to propose a functionalist perspective on hate communication and, for this purpose, develop a systems-theoretical and media-sociological framework for analyzing online hate speech. A systems-theoretical perspective connects to a process-oriented paradigm of doing hate speech. Instead of asking what hate speech is, a systems-theoretical framework focuses on how different communicative contextures empirically produce different understandings of hate communication. We will make four research proposals: We will (1) conceptualize hate as hate communication, then proceed to (2) analyze different communicative contextures, (3) develop media archeology of negation and conflict communication, and finally (4) focus on the function of conflict and hate communication for the emergence of (counter-)publics.

What influence virtual workers’ communication?: Exploring network inertia and media affordance theories

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic has made virtual work more prevalent than ever. Building on the theoretical frameworks of network inertia and media affordances, this paper examines how network characteristics (tie strengths and heterogeneity), and media affordances (persistence and social presence) jointly influence virtual workers’ intention to communicate with colleagues. Data from a U.S. nationally representative sample (N = 389) provided partial support for both theories. Tie strength and social presence had a significant impact on virtual workers’ communication intention. Psychological heterogeneity influenced people’s intention to approach colleagues, but demographic heterogeneity did not. Theoretical and practical contributions were discussed.

Does News Platform Matter? Comparing Online Journalistic Role Performance to Newspaper, Radio, and Television

The shifting role of journalism in a digital age has affected long-standing journalistic norms across media platforms. This has reinvigorated discussion on how work in online newsrooms compares to other platforms that differ in media affordances and forms. Still, more studies are needed on whether those differences translate into distinct practices, especially when examining cross-national studies. Based on the second wave of the Journalistic Role Performance (JRP) project, this article reports the findings of a content analysis of 148,474 stories produced by 365 media organizations from 37 countries, comparing the performance of journalistic roles in online newsrooms to three other types of media—TV, radio, and print. The paper analyzes if journalistic roles present themselves differently across platforms, and if these differences are constant or they vary across countries. Results show that there are measurable differences in role performance in online journalism compared to other platforms. Platform had a significant impact, particularly in terms of service and infotainment orientation, while the implementation of roles oriented toward public service was more similar. Additionally, country differences in the relationship between role performance and platforms mainly emerged for roles that enable political influence on news coverage, with differences in the relationship between online vs. traditional platforms appearing to be distinct features of the specific political system.

Democratic responsibility in the digital public sphere

Democratic responsibility in the digital public sphere

Covidly humorous memes

The analysis of memes posted on Moroccan Facebook pages during the first wave of Covid-19 pandemic shows that the use of humour by Moroccans is not only motivated by achieving mirth but it also vehicles critical views about issues of common concern debated in the digital public sphere. Some of these memes were used to cope with fear and uncertainty. However, most memes harboured mixed feelings about the situation and were used for social control and the expression of conflict and resistance, addressing issues of behaviour, governance and communication. This article uses a social semiotic approach to analyse the collected memes (460 from personal and communal pages) as a multimodal discourse in terms of context, culture, and media affordances. This article contends that the study of these memes can be a key to understanding how Moroccans used humour to cope with danger and radical uncertainty, build identification and strengthen social cohesion. It also highlights the polyvocality of humour in times of the pandemic and the gradual shift from inclusive, conformist and sympathetic humour to disparaging, exclusive and challenging humour as the pandemic lingered, consensus began to crack, social control was challenged and injunctive norms were replaced by survival values. The results show how these memes are indicative of the way humour changes mechanisms and functions in terms of contingent motivations.

Online construction of romantic relationships on social media

This study draws on Knapp’s offline relationship development model to examine how people construct romantic relationships on social media, with particular attention to the role of affordances in this process. Based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 30 relational partners, we show that Knapp’s five traditional stages of relationship construction merge online into three because of social media affordances, including searchability, visibility, anonymity, persistence, storage, and editability. These affordances allow users to search and obtain information about potential partners quickly, conveniently, and anonymously before, during, and after the first interaction. They also enable users to initiate or avoid romantic interactions relatively easily, present shared memories, build a sense of togetherness, and edit or erase online content about previous partners. The findings suggest that most participants perceived Facebook, more than Instagram, as a platform of choice for relationship construction. Addressing the interplay between social media affordances, online relational practices, and offline relationship dynamics, the study shows that offline and online spaces are highly interrelated in terms of interinfluence. Therefore, we argue that the merger of stages is not merely a technical rearrangement but an indication of the fundamental role that online practices play in people’s offline realities, including romantic relationships.

Gendered power relations in the digital age: an analysis of Japanese women’s media choice and use within a global context

ABSTRACT This study investigates the persistence of gendered choice and use of media, particularly in Japanese domestic settings. It shows how women’s significant presence in the digital media environment does not necessarily translate into substantial changes in gendered power dynamics in choosing and using particular media for certain purposes at home. This project’s authors, researchers from Argentina, Finland, Israel, Japan, and the US, analyzed interview data from Japan by drawing on the Foucauldian concept of micro-level power, which is categorized into three main types: personal authority, media affordances, and space-time constellations. Through this process, we interviewed 77 individuals, revealing that persistent gendered media choices and use exist in Japan. The project team also looked for similar cases in other countries for further theoretical implications. As a result of this investigation, we argue that the patriarchy continues to influence women’s choice and use of media at home even in this media-saturated digital age. Our interview data show that “old media” such as radio, television, newspaper, and magazines not only mediate information and entertainment contents at home, but also structure people’s quotidian use of media, both old and new, and sustains existing gendered assumptions and values.

Should I Click the “Like” Button For My Colleague? Domesticating Social Media Affordance in the Workplace

ABSTRACT Guided by domestication theory, this article examines the contextualized and grounded process of how people understand and practice using social media “Likes” in the workplace. Taking the Likes of WeChat Moments in the Chinese workplace as a case, we interviewed 52 people from different professions and identified a multilayered liking practice by focusing on the ambiguity, negotiations, and contradictions caused by using WeChat Likes in social interactions. We contribute to the domestication research literature by showing the importance of being sensitive to culture context and need for multiple dimensions of social analysis.

Television vs Social Media: Examining the Effects of Media Platforms on Audience’s Emotion and Sense of Social Solidarity during a Media Event

This study examines audience’s emotional and social experiences when consuming Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration through television and/or social media. A national survey (N = 420) was conducted immediately after the inauguration ceremony. Drawing on the theories of media events, emotional appraisal, and identity self-categorization, the study found that television was socially integrative while social media was socially disruptive. The media event’s relationship with the audience’s social and emotional experiences depended on both the audience’s identities and media affordances. The findings paint a nuanced picture of media events as a ritualistic genre in the fragmented media and social environment.

MATCHING DIGITAL INTERVENTION AFFORDANCES WITH TASKS: THE CASE OF ZOOM AND WHATSAPP MENTAL HEALTH INTERVENTION FOR SENIORS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

During the first COVID-19 wave, we conducted a Zoom and WhatsApp digital group intervention that promoted community-dwelling older individuals’ mental health. Based on the media richness theory (MRT) and affordances approach, in this study we used netnography to explore how Zoom and WhatsApp technological affordances/constraints matched intervention tasks and increased intervention performance. We identified four Zoom and WhatsApp affordances: temporality, interactivity, multimediality, and portability. Empirically, our findings indicate how an information-rich media (i.e., high levels of multimediality) can be helpful in conducting complicated intervention tasks, whereas information-lean media (i.e., ongoing communication through text messages) can support simple tasks such as remote intervention management. Theoretically, our study expands on previous MRT media characteristics with the affordances approach and examines how the match between media affordances and task characteristics contributes to intervention performance. We offer recommendations for the research and design of future digital interventions.

Social Media Affordances and Transactive Memory Systems in Virtual Teams

Recent advances in social media technologies offer a variety of tools for virtual teams to share knowledge among their team members and develop transactive memory systems (TMS). Adopting the media affordances lens, the current study investigates how social media affordances affect individual evaluations of TMS development and perceived team effectiveness in virtual teams. Survey data from 339 virtual team members across 92 hackathon events reveal that types of affordances have differing impacts on each of the three dimensions of TMS (perceptions of accuracy, sharedness, and validation). Furthermore, each dimension of perceived TMS mediates the relationship between its related social media affordance types and perceived team effectiveness. These findings suggest that virtual teams may need to adopt different social media technologies depending on which aspect of TMS development is prioritized.

German Political Journalists and the Normalization of Twitter

ABSTRACT Since its introduction in 2006, journalists found ways to incorporate the microblogging platform Twitter into their daily work routines. Communication scholars quickly viewed the journalistic adoption of Twitter as a normalization process where journalists adapt a new media affordance in line with their professional role conceptions, norms, and work practices. Rather recently, concerns regarding the applicability of the normalization concept were expressed. In hindsight, the literature on normalization must be updated to draw on results from international contexts. The normalization hypothesis also benefits from theoretical and operational additions to highlight its continued usefulness in times when journalists have come to be acquainted with Twitter. The present study does so by providing a comprehensive analysis of how political journalists from Germany tweet while also reframing the operationalization of the concept by comparing journalists’ tweets with temporally corresponding articles published in their respective media outlets. Quantitative data from a week-long sampling period in late June and early July 2018, as well as semi-structured interviews, reveal that the tweets of German political journalists and the articles published across the media outlets they work for correspond in the choice of content and are largely consistent with regard to the interpretive standpoints chosen.

Immersive and Interactive Awe: Evoking Awe via Presence in Virtual Reality and Online Videos to Prompt Prosocial Behavior

AbstractAwe is a widely researched, self-transcendent emotion with a robust ability to prompt prosocial behavior. Within the communication and media disciplines, however, the effects of awe have received only limited empirical attention. Moreover, extant research has ignored the role that media affordances may play in engendering awe and prosocial outcomes. This article presents two studies that explore the prosocial consequences of awe, as mediated by presence and when engendered by immersive features of various media, including virtual reality (VR). Study 1 (N = 154) found that awe content presented in highly immersive VR induced awe via an effect entirely mediated by presence, though impacts on subsequent prosocial outcomes were inconsistent. Study 2 (N = 188) attempted to replicate and clarify the prosociality results from Study 1, as well as contextualize them with respect to eudaimonic appreciation and hedonic enjoyment. Results demonstrated awe effects across all three measures of prosociality.

CHARITY ORGANIZATIONS ADOPTING VIRTUAL REALITY MODALITY: THEORIZATION AND VALIDATION

ABSTRACT Communicators of charity organizations have begun to adopt virtual reality modality to draw in more donors in recent years. However, there is still a lack of comprehensive theoretical exploration and empirical verification on the avenues that may optimize the function of virtual reality modality for communication conducted by charity organizations. To fill this gap, the current study proposes and validates a framework based on integrative extension of theories pertaining to enactive cognition, media affordances, and personal norm. As the research result suggests, the five immersive affordance attributes of vividness, authenticity, coherence, interactivity, and controllability are primary facilitators of empathy and personal norm activation in the virtual reality context. The type of virtual reality modality, which provides immersive affordance attributes to exercise the transformative change effect, serves to elicit charitable donation intention through evocation of empathy and personal norm activation as the two key mediators. More noteworthy, the positive impact of empathy on charitable donation intention significantly increases due to the partial mediating effect of personal norm activation. Overall, the research result contributes to enhancing the effectiveness of communication conducted by charity organizations.

Showing They Care (Or Don’t): Affective Publics and Ambivalent Climate Activism on TikTok

The microvideo platform TikTok has emerged as a popular hub for self-expression and social activism, particularly for youth, but use of the platform’s affective affordances to spread awareness of important issues has not been adequately studied. Through an exploratory multimodal discourse analysis of a sample of popular climate change-hashtagged TikTok videos, we examine how affordances of visibility, editability, and association facilitate the formation of affective publics on TikTok. We describe how TikTok’s features allow creators to construct and propagate multi-layered, affect-laden messages with varying degrees of earnestness, humor, and ambiguity. Finally, we identify recurring affective themes in popular climate change messages by studying not just in-frame content but also the discursive, intertextual, and memetic linkages that propagate affective publics. Collectively, these audiovisual expressions of personal engagement and awareness demonstrate how media affordances can abet, amplify, and confuse discussions of global issues online. These affordances facilitate a unique kind of activism by helping non-expert users intervene in a discussion that generally takes place among scientists and journalists: the question of how serious a problem climate change is and what to do about it.

Travel live streaming: an affordance perspective

This study draws on tourism literature and current examples to propose that the emergence of Travel Live Streaming (TLS) provides new affordances for live streamers, viewers, and sponsors. Despite its increasing popularity and the new opportunities for communication and marketing in tourism, TLS has received limited attention in the academic literature. The aim of this paper is to use affordances theory to understand some of the key features and benefits of TLS. It is argued that TLS affordances include temporal, spatial, interactive, and media affordances. These affordances support new opportunities and actions for travel live streamers, viewers, and sponsors. The paper proposes an affordance-based TLS framework and concludes with three propositions to guide future research directions.

Producing Journalistic Authority in the Age of Digital Media: Temporality, Media Affordance, and Ethical Reflexivity in Turkey’s Media Sphere

AbstractThis article examines how journalists in Turkey form their authority and strengthen control over their news craft in the digital age through processing (işlemek) the news. Processing combines two crucial components: ethical engagement with news stories and a flexible time frame. Drawing on ethnographic and visual analysis of televisual, newspaper, and internet production at Turkey’s socialist Yüzyıl newspaper, I argue that journalists invest more heavily in non‐digital mediums like television and print because they provide a more flexible temporality to process information through investigation and ethical deliberation.