Published by De Gruyter Mouton

Volume 37 Issue 4 - Volume 37, Issue 4 (2012) Communications

Issue of Communications

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Contents
Journal Overview

Publicly Available August 30, 2012

Article

August 30, 2012

How much sex is there in soap operas on British TV?

Page range: 329-344

Abstract

Sexual depictions were analyzed in 139 episodes of seven drama serials on British mainstream television over a four-week period in November–December 2006. Scenes that depicted sexual behavior and talk about sexual matters were counted separately. Further distinctions were made on the basis of the levels of intimacy and the graphic nature of portrayals. A total of 506 sexual scenes were found that occurred at the rate of 6.5 per hour across the seven soaps, but this figure was inflated by one late-night serial that averaged 16.0 scenes per hourly episode. Nearly two-thirds of these scenes were restricted to talk about sexual matters, while the others contained overt depictions of sexual behavior. Sexual intercourse was relatively rare and restricted in terms of overt depictions to the late-night serial. Passionate kissing was far more prevalent throughout these programs regardless of the time of day the program was transmitted. When sexual intercourse was featured, this was generally in the context of loss of virginity or of infidelity.

August 30, 2012

A question of morality? The influence of moral salience and nationality on media preferences

Page range: 345-369

Abstract

This study examines the potential role of morality subcultures in mediating the relationship between one’s nationality and the preferences for three movie (drama, action, horror) and three TV (comedy, news, sports) genres in a sample of US and German students ( N = 453). Morality subcultures were derived from research on Moral Foundation Theory (MFT), which conceptualizes morality as being shaped by first intuitive processes and later moral reasoning. We proposed a dual mediation model with two latent domains of morality: individualizing foundations indicative of a more liberal perspective and binding foundations indicative of a more conservative outlook. Although direct effects of one’s nationality on media genre preference were found, moral salience of these two moral foundations partially mediated this relationship for the genres action, drama, news, and sports. These data support emerging research on the importance of using morality subcultures to understand the appeal of various forms of media entertainment.

August 30, 2012

Endorsing children’s appetite for healthy foods: Celebrity versus non-celebrity spokes-characters

Page range: 371-391

Abstract

This paper tests the comparative effectiveness of spokes-characters, both ‘celebrity’ and ‘non-celebrity’, in promoting healthy versus non-healthy foods. An experimental study among 6- to 7-year-old children in Belgium demonstrates that adding a spokes-character (i.e., a gnome) to a food product increases the appetite, the wished-for frequency of consumption and the expected number of purchase requests for that product. This finding holds true for healthy foods (apples and grapes) as well as for unhealthy foods (cookies and chocolate). The effect of the celebrity spokes-character exceeds that of a similar (but unknown) gnome. Nevertheless, the latter is also capable of promoting the healthy and unhealthy products. These findings suggest that using ‘celebrity’ spokes-characters to promote healthy foods to children might indeed be an effective strategy to change children’s diets. Even the use of similar, non-celebrity (and thus cheaper) spokes-characters could be quite fruitful.

August 30, 2012

Between independence and autonomous adaptation: The Europeanization of television regulation in non-EU member states

Page range: 393-416

Abstract

Television regulation is increasingly Europeanized. While the transposition of community law into national legislation in EU member states has been widely discussed, scholarly attention is less frequently devoted to the Europeanization of non-member states. This paper investigates how television regulation in non-EU members has been influenced by European audiovisual policy since the liberalization of broadcasting. Focusing on the case of Switzerland and putting it into a wider context, changes in television regulation and their connection to the European level were analyzed by performing a qualitative document analysis. Results indicate that the degree of Europeanization in Switzerland differs remarkably from other non-member states like Norway. While advertising regulation was brought in line with less-strict EU directives, a public value test or compliance with state aid rules were not even discussed. Yet similar to other non-members, rules were adopted without having a say in their development.

August 30, 2012

Book reviews

Page range: 417-427

About this journal

Objective
Communications: The European Journal of Communication Research is an established forum for scholarship and academic debate in the field of communication science and research from a European perspective. Communication science is concerned with the investigation of the structure and function of communication processes and their impact on society, social groups and individuals. Communications highlights the concerns of this discipline through the publication of articles, research reports, review essays and book reviews on theoretical and methodological developments considered from a European perspective. The journal encompasses the entire field of communication science as its domain of interest. The contributions published in the journal cover a wide range of subfields in communication science.

Topics

Communication reseach
Structure and function of communication
Impact on society, social groups and individuals
Interpersonal communication
Intercultural communication
Mass communication
Communication theory
Philosophy of communication
Media history
Media development and communication technology

Article formats
Original articles, research reports, review essays, and book reviews

Volume 37 Issue 4 - Volume 37, Issue 4 (2012) Communications

Issue of Communications

Masthead

Editor’s note

How much sex is there in soap operas on British TV?

Abstract

A question of morality? The influence of moral salience and nationality on media preferences

Abstract

Endorsing children’s appetite for healthy foods: Celebrity versus non-celebrity spokes-characters

Abstract

Between independence and autonomous adaptation: The Europeanization of television regulation in non-EU member states

Abstract

Book reviews