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The purpose of this paper is to examine why a deviant news story such as "Man bites dog" is more memorable than "Dog bites man." Distinctiveness and imagery present two competing theoretical positions to explain the advantage that deviant news events have over nondeviant events. While the distinctiveness hypothesis is based on schema incongruence, the imagery hypothesis is based on Paivio's dual coding theory. Findings from two experiments support the imagery hypothesis, which suggests that imagery-evoking potential of deviant news is a better predictor of recall than schema incongruity. The advantage in recall for deviant news almost disappeared for high deviance/low imagery news events. Further, path analysis from both experiments indicates that there is no direct path between deviance and recall, but only an indirect path through imagery. In sum, this paper highlights the importance of imagery in news language and its potential impact on memory and learning.

How accurately do quantitative graphics in the news media convey data? Eight quantitative graphics that seemed to violate theoretical principles of accuracy of perception were selected as test stimuli. The same data presented in the media graphics were represented as simple bars and pies, which were used as controls. Five out of the eight test graphs were perceived less accurately than the controls. However, the surprise finding was that two of the test graphs were perceived as accurately as their controls. These findings indicate that some of the principles of graph-making that are held as conventional wisdom should be reevaluated.

Public relations decision making by U.S. Air Force public affairs personnel was evaluated by using multiattribute utility theory. Exploratory cluster analysis revealed that only 48% of the decisions adequately fit the public relations excellence criteria of accommodation and long-term relationship building. Fourteen percent of the decisions were based on asymmetrical options with a clear emphasis on leverage for the organization, and 37% of the decisions focused on communication tactics. There was a negative correlation between strength of relationship with the supervisor and preference for symmetrical solutions. Furthermore, female employees reported a weaker relationship with their supervisors than their male counterparts.

The Hypermedia Interaction Cycle (HIC) proposed in this paper is an iterative, self-regulatory model that captures the dynamics of hypermedia interaction from a user's perspective. The interaction cycle was divided into three distinct phases: preparation, exploration, and consolidation. The dynamics between two motivational components, namely self-efficacy factors and goal conditions, were examined within the HIC using a browsing task that involved searching for news-story ideas on the World Wide Web. Findings suggest that a cyclical model involving shifting states of goals and self-efficacy can capture some of the dynamics of motivation within the HIC. Furthermore, there was evidence of a self-regulatory pattern between the motivational components in the model.

Entertainment was modeled as a nested temporal process using ecological momentary assessments. In natural viewing conditions, participants watched a Super Bowl game on television and answered a brief questionnaire via the Internet at the beginning of commercial breaks. Multilevel data analytic techniques were employed to analyze the longitudinal data from these assessments. After controlling for individual differences, such as gender, fandom, and team support, affect played a critical role. Average positive affect, averaged over the course of the game, and situational positive affect during specific moments in the game had a significant impact on entertainment, suggesting a baseline level of entertainment that is associated with the ritual of watching the event and added situational entertainment that is tied to the events in the game. Interestingly, situational negative affect was also significant and seemed to work in concert with positive affect.

Differences in perceived influences of positive and negative media messages were examined in three experiments with methodological variations. In the first experiment, when the contrast between self and others was clearly highlighted within the framework of a within-subject design, both the third-person effect and the reverse third-person effect were significant. In Experiment 2, when the perceived effect on self and others was evaluated using a between-subjects design, the third-person effect continued to persist, whereas the reverse third-person effect was not evident. The results from Experiment 2 were replicated in Experiment 3 under three levels of accountability. The third-person bias continued to persist even after participants were briefed about the self-serving motivation to appear better than others. These results suggest that the third-person phenomenon is not merely a methodological artifact but a persistent social judgment bias that cannot be easily neutralized, whereas the reverse third-person effect appears to be less robust.

The perceived effects of advertising on body-image factors were tested in both Black and White college-age women. After seeing magazine ads that portrayed either Black fashion models or White fashion models, respondents rated perceived effects of these ads on body-image factors. The effects were rated on self, on other Black women on campus, and other White women on campus. When projecting perceived effects on others—of the same race or a different race—both Blacks and Whites indicated that media effects would be maximal when the race of the model matched the race of the respondent. However, when rating perceived effects on self, whereas Blacks identified strongly with Black models, there was no significant difference in the way Whites identified with fashion models of either race. The results are examined within the framework of social distance and social identification.

This article uses a limited-capacity information-processing perspective to investigate which structural features of computers elicit orienting responses in attentive computer users. The results of three experiments test the ability of plain text, boxed text, warnings, nonanimated banner advertisements, and animated banner advertisements to elicit cardiac-orienting responses in attentive computer users. A second question asks if user or computer control of stimulus presentation alters orienting behavior. A final hypothesis predicts stimuli that elicit orienting will be better recognized than those that do not. Results show that plain text, boxed text, and nonanimated banner advertisements do not elicit cardiac orienting. However, warnings and animated banner advertisements do elicit orienting. In general, stimuli that elicit orienting are recognized better than those that do not. Control over stimulus onset has little or no effect on orienting behavior.

The mobile phone is a breakthrough advance for human communication. But with the plethora of choices available via smartphone, individuals who are deficient in self-regulation or with a propensity for addiction may face challenges in managing these choices strategically. To examine this potential dysfunctional aspect, we examined the effect of multitasking when studying or doing homework and found that both frequency and attention to texting and social media were positively related to mobile phone interference in life (MPIL). However, frequency of music use during study was not associated with MPIL, although allocated attention to music while studying was positively associated with MPIL. Ownership of a smartphone and the number of Facebook friends were positively associated with MPIL and women reported more MPIL than men.

Smartphones offer multimedia convergence in a single device, ubiquitous access to media, and constant connections with others. The rapid rise of smartphone use calls for more scholarly attention paid to users' media usage and time expenditure. This study aims to (a) understand smartphone usage patterns by examining time spent using smartphones and task switching between mobile applications (apps), and (b) test the validity of self-reported measures of these behaviors by comparing self-reports with log data from the smartphone. Data were collected from 50 participants over 1 week. Results show that on average participants spent 2 hours 39 minutes on their smartphone and made 101 app switches per day. Among other findings, social networking was the most used app category, age was a significant demographic factor, and participants, especially heavy smartphone users, overestimated their mobile app usage. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.