Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: In the 1990s, the "new media" emerged as a major political factor in the United States. As the decade wore on, more and more Americans made use of new news sources, such as cable news, political talk programs, and Internet news. While several studies have discussed how new media coverage of politics differs from traditional news, very little systematic analysis has been conducted. Furthermore, very little has been done to empirically examine the effect of the new media on public opinion. I argue that new political news differs from traditional news by dramatizing American politics and the political process. I contend that the new media's coverage of conflict, scandal, sensationalism, and other aspects of political drama is more extensive than today's traditional media. The content analysis findings indicate such a difference does exist, and the experimental analysis illustrates that dramatically framed news adversely influences public support for political leaders and erodes public trust in the news media.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Much of the work on nongovernmental organizations' (NGOs) in international politics focuses on their ability to influence states. In diplomatic studies literature, there has been a growing interest in understanding challenges facing modern diplomacy, including the roles of NGOs and communications technology, among other issues. Communications literature has noted the importance of some NGOs in public diplomacy. However, feminist scholars Locher and Prugl argue that IR scholars' approach to NGOs generally fails to "endow" NGOs with a "subject quality" and as a result, they miss out (Locher and Prugl 2001: 111-29). This paper starts by engaging Locher and Prugl's suggestion that NGOs are worthwhile 'subjects', not just 'objects' in international politics. Therefore, NGOs must be actively negotiating their roles in international politics. I use the political interaction between human rights NGO Amnesty International and the U.S. government in the specific case of Amnesty International's (AI) 2005 Annual Report forward. The forward included the claim that the U.S.-run Guantanamo Bay detention facility "has become the gulag of our times", a statement that elicited sustained attention in the U.S. media. The paper concludes that some NGOs can successfully influence state behavior in their roles as norms entrepreneurs and norms enforcers, but those NGOs that develop lasting roles in international politics must also be influenced and constrained by state society.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: What role does feminist theory play in contemporary sociology? In ethnography? What issues are feminist researchers confronting in the 21st Century? By outlining specific precepts underlining feminist methodology, and proposing performance as an alternative form of representation that effectively integrates and addresses the reflexive, political and social complexities inherent in feminist work, this paper hopes to re-ignite feminist discourse and further its plight in today’s sociological landscape. The ethnodrama, Come on Children, Let’s Sing, an experimental piece that takes theory into practice, is looked at in detail as the aforementioned issues are brought to life through the character of “The Sociologist.”

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This study sought to explore the relationship between science, performance, and audience in a theatrical production of RE:Design, A Dramatisation of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin and Asa Gray by Craig Baxter. A focus group and supplementary survey were conducted to learn what audience members thought they had received from attending the performance. Results suggest that they gained a greater understanding of both the historical and philosophical context of these scientists and their work, they felt they benefited from the narrative format of the performance, and they gained insight into the characters as humans, not just scientists. When asked to speculate on the point of the performance, answers varied. In addition, they disagreed on the value and/or success of some of the theatrical choices. This research suggests that the primary gain for the audience was an understanding of the cultural context within which the science was carried out. This suggestion opens up opportunities for future research on science performances, and also has implications for the practice of science education and public communication of science.

Publication Type: Abstract Proposal
Abstract: This paper explores the specific role of ancient Egyptian funeral and interment rites as mechanisms of transformation that facilitated eternal life after death, in accordance with the ancient Egyptian belief in immortal existence. The dramatic, ritual, and magically efficacious aspects of the funeral procession will be examined, drawing on Old Kingdom tomb reliefs depicting the funeral, relevant Pyramid Text spells, and the one known text thought to be a funeral liturgy (Papyrus E of the cache known as the Ramesseum papyri).

Closer examination of the funeral reliefs will suggest that the funeral procession was a physical and metaphysical journey during which the body was transformed into an ‘effective akh’ as it moved from the corporeal home of the deceased to the mouth of his or her ‘house of eternity’, a transformational journey that occurred in a series of discrete dramatic rituals incorporating inter-related actual and symbolic/magical activities, enacted by participants charged with specific roles. The funeral liturgy, directed to the deceased, will be seen to elucidate and expand our understanding of some of these dramatic rituals, such as ‘mourning’ and ‘offering’, while bringing to light others not depicted in the reliefs, specifically the act of ‘encircling’. Further, the point in time during the funeral/interment at which the liturgy might have been enacted will be suggested and correlated with relevant funeral reliefs.