Do the media tell us what to think about? The psychology of agenda setting.

Maxwell McCombs, Professor and Jesse H. Jones Chair in Communications School of Journalism in College of Communication, University of Texas at Austin

April 5, 330 PM

Colloquium Room

Photonics Building

The contemporary communication landscape confronts us with a vast deluge of information. To cope with this situation, individuals ignore or quickly forget most of these messages. One of the principal attributes identified by agenda-setting theory for those bits of information that do have lasting impact is their relevance. A major trend in current research is the further explication of what makes an issue or other topic in the news relevant to an individual. Personal values

and beliefs, emotional responses to the news, civic duty, and self-interest are all part of the emerging theoretical gestalt that explains agenda-setting effects in greater detail.

Previous colloquia

Roy Grundmann

Steve Lacy

Bill McKeen

Don Wright

Denis Wu

James Katz

Barton Carter