Jason T Peifer | Indiana University (original) (raw)

Papers by Jason T Peifer

Journalism Studies

Warring with the press: The influence of elite anti-media rhetoric and political activity on emot... more Warring with the press: The influence of elite anti-media rhetoric and political activity on emotions, perceptions of news media importance, and support for news media. Online Supplemental Material-Part A Development of 'Support for Press' Index The Support for Press index represents a measure original to this project. Following exposure to the study stimuli, subjects read the following question stem about behavioral intentions in support of the press: "If given the opportunity, how likely would you be to take each of the following actions in the near future?" The actions probed by the question stem included, "Sign a petition in support of press freedoms and protections," "Share a social media post (for example, Facebook or Twitter) in support of press freedoms and protections," "Write or call a political leader to voice support for press freedoms and protections," and "Discuss the importance of protecting press freedoms in a conversation with a friend or family member." Response options ranged from "not at all likely" (1) to "extremely likely" (7). An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted to determine if this set of items best represented one or more factors. Using maximum likelihood extraction and a direct OBLIMIN rotation, a solution converged in 3 iterations. Results of the EFA point to a one-factor solution in the Study 1 data, accounting for 71.35% of the variance with an eigenvalue of 2.85. (The traditional cutoff of one or greater eigenvalue was used as the standard for a factor to be considered articulated.) Based on both face validity considerations and this one-factor EFA solution, a composite press support variable was used in the study analyses (Cronbach's α = .86; M = 4.07, SD = 1.76). When comparing the averages of Support for Press across the three exposure conditions of the study (M

Journalism Practice, Apr 20, 2023

This exploratory research introduces and evaluates the effectiveness of a “citizen forum” transpa... more This exploratory research introduces and evaluates the effectiveness of a “citizen forum” transparency initiative. Survey research shows that most U.S. citizens have a weak sense of connection to news organizations. Many U.S. Americans question the news media’s trustworthiness, believe that their news media sources undervalue their audience, and feel that news media do a poor job of explaining story production. Designed to address such disconnects, this research initiative involved conducting two day-long events in two different U.S. Midwestern towns. Inspired by “citizen academies” facilitated in other local civic contexts, the initiative featured in-person panels and forum discussions with journalists and journalism educators. Panel participants talked about journalism-related issues and engaged with audience- posed questions/comments. Employing survey questionnaires and focus group interviews, this study’s mixed-method research agenda was structured to examine the extent to which such citizen forum programming can serve to promote understanding of journalism, facilitate a sense of connection with local journalism, and bolster/sustain news trust more generally. Ultimately, this multi-pronged case study offers evidence of positive outcomes relative to citizen forums promoting “engaged journalism,” though not without caveats and challenges.

Supplemental material, Risky_Satire_S1,_S2_Online_supplemental_material for Risky satire: Examini... more Supplemental material, Risky_Satire_S1,_S2_Online_supplemental_material for Risky satire: Examining how a traditional news outlet's use of satire can affect audience perceptions and future engagement with the news source by Jason T Peifer and Jessica Gall Myrick in Journalism

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Communication, 2019

Satire represents a form of public discourse that invites critical judgment of some sociopolitica... more Satire represents a form of public discourse that invites critical judgment of some sociopolitical folly, absurdity, or contradiction. Through devices like exaggeration, irony, and imitation, a satirical text aspires to cut through spin, deception, and misrepresentation in order to spotlight a given state of affairs as they are or could be. That is, satire is propelled by an impulse to elucidate; to highlight some truth. In many respects, journalism’s normative aspirations are similar to that of satire. Journalism’s guiding principles are commonly discussed in light of a central mission to seek and report the best obtainable version of the truth. Though satirical and journalistic endeavors are often carried out with contrasting tones of sobriety, both forms of discourse exhibit idealism in offering unblinking assessments of social realities. Accordingly, it is hardly surprising that satire and journalism have an extensive history of interplay, dating back to some of the earliest ven...

Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 2017

This study explores how exposure to news parody commentary and perceived news media importance (P... more This study explores how exposure to news parody commentary and perceived news media importance (PNMI) can influence trust in the press. A two-wave experiment ( N = 331) exposed participants to news parody stimuli, measuring different facets of media trust and PNMI 1 week before and immediately after the parody exposure. Results demonstrate mediated processes of influence, wherein parody’s implicit commentary about the press (compared to explicit, negative criticism of the news media) promotes greater PNMI, which in turn fosters increased trust in the press. This research ultimately highlights how news parody’s flattering imitations can enhance perceptions of the news media.

Media Psychology, 2017

Agenda cues, in which individuals perceive that media has frequently covered a problem regardless... more Agenda cues, in which individuals perceive that media has frequently covered a problem regardless of actual exposure to that coverage, have initially been shown to produce powerful agenda setting effects (Pingree and Stoycheff, 2013). This study uses two experiments to test the presence and prominence cueing effects across a variety of issues and whether the cue originates from traditional news or Twitter users. Agenda cues produced significant effects on five of six issues studied for news and four of six for Twitter. For one issue (gun control/rights), both types of agenda cues produced effect sizes rivaling those of the strongest effects found in Iyengar and Kinder's (News That Matters: Television and American Opinion, University of Chicago Press, 1987) classic agenda setting experiments. On average, news agenda cues were stronger than Twitter agenda cues, and were about 78% as strong as classic news agenda setting effects, suggesting that cueing may be the dominant mechanism driving agenda setting effects. The role of gatekeeping trust as a moderator of agenda cueing was only inconsistently replicated.s Quantitative experiment Agenda setting is the media's ability to influence the public's issue priorities (McCombs & Shaw, 1972), and it has been "stunningly successful in telling its readers what to think about" (Cohen, 1963, p. 13). However, recent research has begun to show that mere agenda cues-or the perception of media coverage without any actual exposure to content-may similarly produce sizable changes in which issues the public deems important (Pingree & Stoycheff, 2013, Pingree, Quenette, Tchernev, & Dickinson, 2013). Systematic processing helps explain why agenda setting can be a positive force if citizens come to a shared understanding of truly urgent national problems through an elaboration of reasons about why an issue is important (McCombs, 2005; Takeshita, 2006). But heuristic processing, which allows individuals to rely solely on cues-like the proportion of media content about a problem-can be seen as a detriment to the democratic process. This less rational form of agenda

Mass Communication and Society, 2015

This exploratory research examines processes pertaining to how parody humor can influence percept... more This exploratory research examines processes pertaining to how parody humor can influence perceptions of political figures in terms of credibility and, more broadly, general political trust. An online experiment was conducted in which select participants were exposed to a parody of former New York governor David Paterson. The results demonstrate that, in tandem with parody-induced sympathy, humor enjoyment can influence perceptions of a parody target's credibility and general political trust. In addition, a sympathetic predisposition is shown to positively predict responses of sympathy to a parody message. Furthermore, serial mediation analyses highlight how a sympathetic predisposition can indirectly influence various perceptions of a parody target, as sequentially mediated by responses of sympathy and enjoyment. In sum, this research is valuable for illuminating how individual differences and affective responses to political parody representations can affect various political perceptions.

Argumentation and Advocacy, 2013

This essay offers a comprehensive framework for the investigation of presidential debate humor. G... more This essay offers a comprehensive framework for the investigation of presidential debate humor. Given the importance of presidential debates for educating and persuading voters and the ubiquity of humor in debate events, it stands to reason that communication research would benefit by a deepened scholarly understanding of humor in the debate context. In this essay, a typology is offered as a catalyst for systematic assessment of debate humor, undergirding an expanded conception of a debate event and its participants. Examples from the 2012 general election debates, along with pertinent humor scholarship, are highlighted within this project's effort to help advance the underdeveloped research domain of debate humor.

Journalism Studies, 2020

This experimental research effort highlights the mobilizing potential of elite hostility toward t... more This experimental research effort highlights the mobilizing potential of elite hostility toward the press, examining causal mechanisms related to public support for the news media, as conditioned by perceptions of the news media’s importance. The study used a national sample (N = 330) to probe the influence of a “mashup” of video footage featuring President Donald Trump’s hostility toward the news media and, separately, the influence of footage depicting the Trump administration’s political activity. Employing the concept of elite cues, principles of appraisal theory, and the concept of Perceived News Media Importance (PNMI), the study demonstrates that exposure to elite hostility—in the mold of Donald Trump’s anti-media rhetoric—indirectly served as a catalyst for prompting intentions to support the press, via the elicitation of anger in response to the message exposure. Moreover, the indirect influence of exposure to Trump representations on press support was most pronounced when ...

International Journal of Communication, 2020

Exploring factors that contribute to the social transmission of debate parody, this study employs... more Exploring factors that contribute to the social transmission of debate parody, this study employs the conceptual lenses of affective disposition and discrete emotions. An online experiment was conducted within days of Saturday Night Live ’s original airing of its parody of the first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Participants ( N = 472) were randomly assigned to view either the parody of the debate or a non-politics-related parody sketch. The debate parody was significantly more mirth and hope inducing when participants had an unfavorable disposition toward Trump; there was no difference in mirth and hope between the exposure conditions among those who had a more favorable disposition toward Trump. Furthermore, mirth and hope were demonstrated to predict willingness to share the humor. Both positive emotions served as significant mediating mechanisms for debate parody’s relationship with willingness to share, as amplified by one’s negative affective di...

Computers in Human Behavior

...............................................................................................ii... more ...............................................................................................ii Dedication.............................................................................................v Acknowledgments...................................................................................vi Vita...................................................................................................viii Table of

Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly

This research highlights mechanisms underlying transparency’s influence on news engagement, as co... more This research highlights mechanisms underlying transparency’s influence on news engagement, as contingent upon perceptions of the news media’s importance (PNMI). Employing an experimental design with randomized exposure to a transparency feature and contrasting source (regional vs. national newspaper) attributions, the study provides evidence of transparency fostering increased message credibility and (indirectly) news engagement. Transparency’s indirect relationship with engagement intentions was shown to be strongest when average/high in PNMI. Notably, transparency’s effect did not vary by source attribution and was demonstrated with only one of the two stories featured in the study—further highlighting limitations of transparency as a solution for declining news trust and engagement.

Computers in Human Behavior, 2022

Drawing from the Theory of Reasoned Action (as embedded within the Integrated Behavioral Model) a... more Drawing from the Theory of Reasoned Action (as embedded within the Integrated Behavioral Model) and adopting a cognitive consistency framework, this survey-based research models how satirical news-induced mirth and perceptions of a satire message’s informativeness can serve as mediating mechanisms that elucidate how psychological harmony with a satirical news message can translate into online and offline sharing behavior. This multi-study research (study 1 N = 317; study 2 N = 412) demonstrates that individuals are inclined to share/discuss satirical news when they perceive agreement with the content, experience mirth, and deem the content to have instrumental (informative) value. Study 2 further examines this project’s proposed model relative to sharing with likeminded/non-likeminded others. Largely mirroring the study 1 findings, the model of indirect effects is most clearly supported in study 2 when the sharing recipients are likeminded. By focusing on the fundamental roles of cognitive consistency and satirical news content’s experiential and instrumental value, this research contributes to strengthening an empirical basis for understanding the conditions in which this unique genre of news information holds appeal, offers utility, and is shared.

Communication Methods and Measures

Mass Communication and Society

Communication Quarterly, 2015

This study highlights the explanatory principle of cognitive consistency as a foundation for poli... more This study highlights the explanatory principle of cognitive consistency as a foundation for political entertainment research. More specifically, appreciation for pro- versus counter-attitudinal political humor is analyzed via one statewide (N=304) and two national surveys (N=1008, N=786, respectively). Analyses reveal a preference for pro-attitudinal over counter-attitudinal humor. In addition, an assessment of pro- versus counter-attitudinal political humor appreciation serving as potential mediators of one another relative to political party identification is offered. Pro-attitudinal political humor appreciation serves as the stronger mediator, but a full range of mediation-based processes are evident. Implications and potential future lines of research are detailed.