Kentucky
Journal
of Communication
VOLUME 24
Spring 2005
Number 1
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Kentucky Journal of Communication
VOLUME 24 SPRING 2005 NUMBER 1
ARTICLES
Doonesbury, April 2004: A Serious Look at Comedy, Tragedy, and War
Christine A. Marley-Frederick
In April 2004 Garry Trudeau, in his comic strip Doonesbury, tackled the issue of serious battlefield injuries in Iraq. Through his comic strip, Trudeau stretches the boundaries of what is acceptable in both content and form concerning the funny pages. In this particular storyline his language usage, graphic depictions of an amputation, and blatantly addressing a serious issue all broke the norms of comic strips in mainstream newspapers. As boackground information, the historical and current controversies within the various comic mediums, historical controversy within Doonesbury, and controversy within this particular storyline of Doonesbury are all explored. A comic typology is then offered with explores the characteristics of Trudeau's strip. The implications and reader expectations of Doonesbury as a sophisticated, socially conscious complex narrative humorous comic strip are examined, particularly addressing strong adult language and adult content on the funny pages. Finally, the April 2004 amputation storyline is explored in light of desensitization research and teh newspapers' totality as a context in the spring of 2004, particularly focusing on the struggles of defining appropriate boundaries for modern media addressing modern wars.
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Nabisco and the Crown Pilot Cracker--Revival and Renewal: An Analysis of Image Repair Strategies
Joy L. Hart, Stuart L. Esrock, Margaret D'Silva, and Kathy J. Werking
Nabisco's cancellation of the Crown Pilot cracker in 1996 resulted in a citizen lobbying effort to revive production of the product and considerable media attention regionally and nationally. The media coverage portrayed the company negatively and prompted Nabisco to publicly explain its actions. Employing Benoit's theory of image repair strategies, Nabisco's rhetoric on the Crown Pilot is analyzed. This critical analysis proceeds chronologically from initial justification of intent, to reducing offensiveness, to corrective action, and ultimately to mortification. Also, the effectiveness of Nabisco's image renewal discourse strategies is addressed.
A Communication Satisfaction Study of A Major State Government Change Initiative
Patricia Parrish and Timothy S. Todd
The purpose of this research was to evaluate employee communication satisfaction regarding the Vision 2000 change initiative in the KEntucky cabinet for Families and Children. Survey methodology was used to conduct this study. The survey was distributed to 180 participants at a statewide Vision 2000 meeting in Hardin County, Kentucky on January 20, 1999. These individuals represented te entire state of Kentucky. Independent variables included: professional classification of respondents, gender, ethnicity, number of years of employment, section of employment, number of months the employee had been involved in Vision 2000, type of employee involvement in Vision 2000, age, educational background, geographical location and location within the state. The dependent variables included: perceptions of organizational effectiveness by respondents, perceptions of job satisfaction by respondents, and perceptions of organizational communication by respondents. Differences between the independ and dependent variables were determined by analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests, with significance reported at the p<0.05 level.
Several statstically significant results emerged regarding overall communication about organizational change efforts including an improvement in communication between divisions, an implementation of a "virtual office" environment where communication is actually enhanced, and an improvement on downward communication within this cabinet of state government. Generalized findings could translate into other government cabinets/offices in this particular state as well as posssibly to cabinets/offices in other states.
Team-Based learning as an Innovative Instructional Strategy for Teaching Communication Courses: Harnessing the Power of Communication to Transform Learning in the College Classroom
Derek R. Lane
The role of communication is central to the learning process. Previous instructional research, however, has tended to conceptualize learning as an outcome. This article, however, provides an argument for reconceptualizing learning from a communication perspective as a process, presents an overview of the Team-Based Learning (TBL) instructional strategy as it applies to introductory communication courses, and concludes with a call for renewed empirical research conducted by communication scholars to test teh impact of communication--as facilitated by TBL--on the learning process. The basic components of TBL are provided so that educators can apply it in their introductory communication courses to enhance student interaction and advance active learning. Because TBL makes students accountable and responsible for their learning, it allows them to construct knowledge through active communication as they apply knowledge and make connections. If the difference between knowing and teaching is communication and the difference between passive reception and genuine learning is active communication, this article provides details for harnessing the power of active communication to transform learning in college communication classrooms using TBL.
Your Oral Resume: Building Bridges Between The Basic Course Content and an Employment Opportunity
John A. Jones, Richard Besel, and Virginia H. Jones
A familiar student refrain to all who teach the basic communication cours is, "How does this textbook material relate to the 'real' world? What are teh best approaches for explaining to a job recruiter (a) how this course can help an organization accomplish its objectives and (b) that I am the best person to hire?" This experiential activity addresses this challenge, helps students learn interpretive skills, translate theory into action, and become credible and comfortable discussing personal successes.
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