For as long as people have been able to draw and write, they have created pornography. Greek vases and Roman brothels contain ancient, sexually explicit images. Modern technologies for delivering sexually explicit images, such as the Internet, have made pornography ubiquitous. The affordability, accessibility, and anonymity of Internet pornography have also proved a boon to
When assessing the potential of an eyewitness, among the first things an investigator has to decide is whether or not the witness had an opportunity to observe what took place for a sufficient time. The decision is likely to be influenced by a witness’s assessment of the length and quality of exposure to a perpetrator’s
We live in an increasingly diverse world, not only in terms of ethnic heritage, but also in the forms of communication available. With so many information resources to choose from, how do we make sure that communication campaigns reach target audiences? Ethnicity is often implicated in the formation of knowledge gaps, in which certain portions
The study of selective exposure seeks to understand how and why people consume particular communication content when faced with a constellation of choices. Broadly defined, selective exposure refers to behaviors that are deliberately performed in an effort to bring communication content within reach of one’s sensory apparatus (Zillmann & Bryant 1985). In the modern, media-saturated
Variations in preferences for media content highlight the importance of how the diversity of the viewing audience affects exposure and responses to media content. Among the limitless ways in which audience members may differ, the personality characteristics of the viewer provide a vast and diverse means of predicting individuals’ uses of, preferences for, and reactions
We live in an increasingly diverse world, not only in terms of ethnic heritage, but also in the forms of communication available. With so many information resources to choose from, how do we make sure that communication campaigns reach target audiences? Ethnicity is often implicated in the formation of knowledge gaps, in which certain portions
One of the most challenging tasks in research on media exposure is quantifying the amount of film viewing. Currently, people watch films via a variety of media, such as television, VCR, DVD player, computer and Internet, and cinema. For some of these media, it is difficult, if not impossible, to track the number of viewings.
How has the spread of the Internet been studied and explained? Numerous studies have established that the spread of Internet access follows an S-shaped curve. What is not well understood is the factors responsible for different levels of Internet access among different countries. Many theories of the diffusion of innovations, such as the Bass model
In democratic societies “being informed” is regarded as part of the citizen’s duty in order to form a political opinion and to participate in political life. The media, on the one hand, play a major role in the transmission of information about current events, and they are thought to be very influential. To fulfill its
Research on exposure to television builds a large and heterogeneous field with one common denominator. Studies of television viewing try to provide evidence on the question: What do people do with television? Exposure to television has developed as a major research field since we cannot understand television as a medium of public communication without considering