David Ryfe | University of Nevada, Reno (original) (raw)
Papers by David Ryfe
Oxford University Press eBooks, Nov 1, 2012
Journal of Communication, Sep 1, 2004
Journalism: Theory, Practice & Criticism, Jan 27, 2022
Practice scholars of news production generally imagine news practices as symbolic resources that ... more Practice scholars of news production generally imagine news practices as symbolic resources that exist external to reporters and prior to reporters’ actions. This understanding has been incredibly productive for scholars, but it elides an important question. How do news practices actually get into reporters’ heads? The lack of answers to this question has created a persistent gap between the study of news practices and examination of reporters’ actions. In this essay, I build on recent advances in cognitive cultural sociology, especially the dual-process theory of social cognition, to offer an account of how reporters internalize culture. I argue that this account is especially helpful for analysis of situations in which what journalists can say about what they do is only loosely associated with what they do, or know how to do. In my estimation, such situations are increasingly common in journalism. A clearer understanding of processes of internalization will lead to more accurate assessments of reporters’ actions, especially in situations in which their words and their deeds are not aligned.
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, May 24, 2016
Routledge eBooks, Sep 30, 2021
Routledge eBooks, Jun 20, 2019
Communication and Community. Gregory J. Shepherd and Eric W. Rothenbuhler, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawre... more Communication and Community. Gregory J. Shepherd and Eric W. Rothenbuhler, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers, 2001. 289 pp. 59.95hbk.59.95 hbk. 59.95hbk.32.50 pbk. Though its editors note that current public debates on the state of the American community inspired this volume, its theoretical essays assume too much prior knowledge, and its case studies are too narrowly focused, to make it useful as a general introduction or textbook. Instead, researchers will find it of greatest value. They may not agree with particular details, or even with the volume's larger message. But they will appreciate the critical summary of various perspectives offered by contributors. And they will learn much simply by struggling with the alternative approaches they outline. The volume is organized into three sections: an introduction in which David Depew and John D. Peters present an intellectual history of Western thought on community and communication; a section of six essays devoted to inter...
Journal of Deliberative Democracy, 2010
Journalism, 2009
This essay offers an ethnographic analysis of The Daily Times,1 a mid-sized American corporately ... more This essay offers an ethnographic analysis of The Daily Times,1 a mid-sized American corporately owned newsroom. During the period under study, a new editor changed the way that reporters produced the news. In particular, he asked his reporters to attend less closely to the public agencies that composed their beats. Over time, his reporters alternately expressed confusion and indignation about the new rules. I explain their reaction in terms of conclusions drawn from the original ethnographic studies of newsrooms conducted in the 1970s. These studies showed that journalistic practices like routine visits to public agencies serve important functional and symbolic needs for journalists. The changes introduced by this editor threatened several of these needs, and this ultimately led the reporters to reject the new rules. This case study shows that journalists rely on a deeply embedded culture of professionalism to respond to the experiments taking place in their newsrooms.
Journal of Applied Communication Research, 2006
In a videotape analysis of five National Issues Forums, I investigate the nature of deliberative ... more In a videotape analysis of five National Issues Forums, I investigate the nature of deliberative talk in small group deliberative settings. I show that deliberative talk in these forums mostly takes the form of storytelling. I argue that storytelling helps participants overcome barriers to deliberation, such as lack of knowledge and the need to manage one's public face in a context that privileges open conflict. Moreover, I show that storytelling also plays an important collective function for groups, allowing them to build a sense of moral community around issues without much explicit conflict or argument. I conclude that greater understanding of storytelling's role in small group deliberation is of benefit both to practitioners who initiate such forums and to the growing number of researchers who study the practice of deliberative democracy.
European Journal of Communication, 2006
... Ryfe, David. ... Ryfe, D. and Mensing, D. , 2008-08-06 "Participatory Journalism and the... more ... Ryfe, David. ... Ryfe, D. and Mensing, D. , 2008-08-06 "Participatory Journalism and the Transformation of News" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Marriott Downtown, Chicago, IL Online <PDF>. ...
Annual Review of Political Science, 2005
▪ The growing literature on deliberative democratic practice finds that deliberation is a diffi... more ▪ The growing literature on deliberative democratic practice finds that deliberation is a difficult and relatively rare form of communication. Each moment of a deliberative encounter raises significant obstacles in the path to stimulating greater intentional reflection on public issues. I explore these obstacles in the context of other empirical work in political and social psychology, small group communication, and public opinion. Taken together, these literatures explain why deliberation is difficult to achieve and sustain over time. They also suggest several rules that might assist practitioners in making deliberative democracy work better. Many of the obstacles to deliberative democracy raise questions about key theoretical constructs closely associated with deliberative democratic theory, including equality, legitimacy, autonomy, and reason. I conclude by suggesting that deliberative practitioners, empirical scholars, and theorists might gain from greater interaction.
Oxford University Press eBooks, Nov 1, 2012
Journal of Communication, Sep 1, 2004
Journalism: Theory, Practice & Criticism, Jan 27, 2022
Practice scholars of news production generally imagine news practices as symbolic resources that ... more Practice scholars of news production generally imagine news practices as symbolic resources that exist external to reporters and prior to reporters’ actions. This understanding has been incredibly productive for scholars, but it elides an important question. How do news practices actually get into reporters’ heads? The lack of answers to this question has created a persistent gap between the study of news practices and examination of reporters’ actions. In this essay, I build on recent advances in cognitive cultural sociology, especially the dual-process theory of social cognition, to offer an account of how reporters internalize culture. I argue that this account is especially helpful for analysis of situations in which what journalists can say about what they do is only loosely associated with what they do, or know how to do. In my estimation, such situations are increasingly common in journalism. A clearer understanding of processes of internalization will lead to more accurate assessments of reporters’ actions, especially in situations in which their words and their deeds are not aligned.
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, May 24, 2016
Routledge eBooks, Sep 30, 2021
Routledge eBooks, Jun 20, 2019
Communication and Community. Gregory J. Shepherd and Eric W. Rothenbuhler, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawre... more Communication and Community. Gregory J. Shepherd and Eric W. Rothenbuhler, eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers, 2001. 289 pp. 59.95hbk.59.95 hbk. 59.95hbk.32.50 pbk. Though its editors note that current public debates on the state of the American community inspired this volume, its theoretical essays assume too much prior knowledge, and its case studies are too narrowly focused, to make it useful as a general introduction or textbook. Instead, researchers will find it of greatest value. They may not agree with particular details, or even with the volume's larger message. But they will appreciate the critical summary of various perspectives offered by contributors. And they will learn much simply by struggling with the alternative approaches they outline. The volume is organized into three sections: an introduction in which David Depew and John D. Peters present an intellectual history of Western thought on community and communication; a section of six essays devoted to inter...
Journal of Deliberative Democracy, 2010
Journalism, 2009
This essay offers an ethnographic analysis of The Daily Times,1 a mid-sized American corporately ... more This essay offers an ethnographic analysis of The Daily Times,1 a mid-sized American corporately owned newsroom. During the period under study, a new editor changed the way that reporters produced the news. In particular, he asked his reporters to attend less closely to the public agencies that composed their beats. Over time, his reporters alternately expressed confusion and indignation about the new rules. I explain their reaction in terms of conclusions drawn from the original ethnographic studies of newsrooms conducted in the 1970s. These studies showed that journalistic practices like routine visits to public agencies serve important functional and symbolic needs for journalists. The changes introduced by this editor threatened several of these needs, and this ultimately led the reporters to reject the new rules. This case study shows that journalists rely on a deeply embedded culture of professionalism to respond to the experiments taking place in their newsrooms.
Journal of Applied Communication Research, 2006
In a videotape analysis of five National Issues Forums, I investigate the nature of deliberative ... more In a videotape analysis of five National Issues Forums, I investigate the nature of deliberative talk in small group deliberative settings. I show that deliberative talk in these forums mostly takes the form of storytelling. I argue that storytelling helps participants overcome barriers to deliberation, such as lack of knowledge and the need to manage one's public face in a context that privileges open conflict. Moreover, I show that storytelling also plays an important collective function for groups, allowing them to build a sense of moral community around issues without much explicit conflict or argument. I conclude that greater understanding of storytelling's role in small group deliberation is of benefit both to practitioners who initiate such forums and to the growing number of researchers who study the practice of deliberative democracy.
European Journal of Communication, 2006
... Ryfe, David. ... Ryfe, D. and Mensing, D. , 2008-08-06 "Participatory Journalism and the... more ... Ryfe, David. ... Ryfe, D. and Mensing, D. , 2008-08-06 "Participatory Journalism and the Transformation of News" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Marriott Downtown, Chicago, IL Online <PDF>. ...
Annual Review of Political Science, 2005
▪ The growing literature on deliberative democratic practice finds that deliberation is a diffi... more ▪ The growing literature on deliberative democratic practice finds that deliberation is a difficult and relatively rare form of communication. Each moment of a deliberative encounter raises significant obstacles in the path to stimulating greater intentional reflection on public issues. I explore these obstacles in the context of other empirical work in political and social psychology, small group communication, and public opinion. Taken together, these literatures explain why deliberation is difficult to achieve and sustain over time. They also suggest several rules that might assist practitioners in making deliberative democracy work better. Many of the obstacles to deliberative democracy raise questions about key theoretical constructs closely associated with deliberative democratic theory, including equality, legitimacy, autonomy, and reason. I conclude by suggesting that deliberative practitioners, empirical scholars, and theorists might gain from greater interaction.