Category Archives: SCT In the Media

Associate Professor Gluck: Social media allows people to participate in Casey Anthony verdict

When Casey Anthony was found not guilty on charges that she killed her daughter, people raced to their computers to voice their opinions on the verdict.

Associate Professor Paul Gluck, BTMM, says people tend to connect to news stories like this on an emotional level. And now, technology provides them a platform to tell the world how they feel.

“Social media in particular has provided people with a lot of impetus to participate, to observe, to connect,” he told NBC 10. “It’s a gut-level story. It doesn’t just engage you intellectually.”

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Professor Hobbs on federal efforts to cut ads targeting kids — WHYY-FM

Food marketers are under mounting pressure to either change their advertising tactics aimed at kids, or the foods they promote to young people. Professor Renee Hobbs, BTMM/MMC of Temple’s Media Education Lab said she expects the Federal Trade Commission and health advocates to pressure companies such as McDonald’s and Kellogg’s to adopt the recommendations. At this point, they are voluntary. “The government wants them to not use Toucan Sam and all the other slick and compelling cartoon images that attract kids’ attention and try to sell them things,” she said.

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Theater faculty help define dramaturgy — Philadelphia Inquirer

One of the most misunderstood roles in theater, Inquirer Theater Critic Howard Shapiro tries to get a grasp on a dramaturg’s role in a production. He asked Assistant Professors Ed Sobel and Peter Reynolds to help.

“Probably if you asked 50 different dramaturgs, you’d get 50 different answers,” Sobel says. “Because the role can be so undefined, it allows a lot of latitude for doing it well and a lot of latitude for doing it badly.”

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Assistant Professor Miller creates music magazine — WHYY Newsworks

Assistant Professor George Miller, JOUR, produces a new local music magazine, Jump, out of his own laptop and those of his network of volunteers, students and interns. With low overhead costs and no ambition to get rich, the former photojournalist is committed to creating a print magazine. “We’re a big, glossy magazine — you can rip these pages out and hang them on your walls,” said Miller. The first issue will hit the streets March 11.

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Associate Professor Erickson’s documentary featured on CNN

Associate Professor LeAnn Erickson, FMA, was in the midst of another project when she learned of a group of women who worked as military “computers” during World War II to perform ballistics research. Based at the University of Pennsylvania, dozens of women would figure out things like weapon trajectory. Some went on to help program the earliest mechanical computer. Her research became Top Secret Rosies: The Female Computers of World War II.

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New 24-hour traffic channel blazes trail like ESPN, CNN – Philadelphia Inquirer

Tango Traffic went on the air Jan. 1 to report rubbernecking and crashes, 24/7, whether at the height of rush hour or in the dead of night. “Thirty years ago, everybody laughed at CNN, and 20 years ago, a lot of people were laughing at ESPN,” said Associate Professor Chris Harper, JOUR. “Do we really need a traffic station? For a group of people, the answer is yes.”

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Does media coverage foster more violence? — Philadelphia Inquirer

In the aftermath of the shooting of Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, some are wondering if there is a possible link between this violence, a perceived toxicity in political discourse and how it’s all reported in the media.

One way to abate future violence, says Associate Professor Chris Harper, JOUR, may be to reduce the sensationalistic way many outlets report on suspects.

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Professor Sloan thinks unhappy producers sparked Spider-Man delay — Associated Press

Producers of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, a new Broadway show, have announced a fourth delay to its opening from Jan. 11 to Feb. 7 due to “unforeseeable setbacks.”

Openings will be delayed for a variety of reasons, says Professor Roberta Sloan, THEA. “The most common reason is that the producers are not happy with the shape that the show is in and do not feel that it will get positive reviews in its present state.”

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