The ubiquitous Barbie doll was examined in the present study as a possible cause for young girls' body dissatisfaction. A total of 162 girls, from age 5 to age 8, were exposed to images of either Barbie dolls, Emme dolls (U.S. size 16), or no dolls (baseline control) and then completed assessments of body image. Girls exposed to Barbie reported…

Ten years after the groundbreaking "From Barbie to Mortal Kombat" highlighted the ways gender stereotyping and related social and economic issues permeate digital game play, the number of women and girl gamers has risen considerably. Despite this, gender disparities remain in gaming. Women may be warriors in "World of…

Reports an error in "Does Barbie make girls want to be thin? The effect of experimental exposure to images of dolls on the body image of 5- to 8-year-old girls" by Helga Dittmar, Emma Halliwell and Suzanne Ive ("Developmental Psychology," 2006 Mar, Vol 42[2], 283-292). A substantive error occurs in the Body shape dissatisfaction section on page…

While much has been done to address the digital divide, awareness concerning the importance of information literacy (IL) has taken a back seat to a world that focuses on technology. This article traces the genesis of a global effort to address information literacy education and training beyond discussions taking place within the library and…

Barbie is presented as the perfect cultural site for interrogating margins, borders, and contradictions in females' lives. This article illuminates such issues by interrogating the "cumulative cultural text of Barbie." Texts criticized are: Barbie collector cards; "Barbie" and "Barbie Fashion" comic books;…

Typically, teachers use tests to evaluate students' knowledge acquisition. In a novel experimental study, we examined whether low-stakes testing ("quizzing") can be used to foster students' learning of course content in 8th grade science classes. Students received multiple-choice quizzes (with feedback); in the quizzes, some target…

Reports a study which compared the play of nine four-year-old girls with baby dolls and with Barbie dolls. Nonfacilitative play behavior was observed much more frequently in the baby doll sessions than in the Barbie sessions. Suggests that Barbie dolls could be used as an alternative doll activity in preschool classrooms. (CB)

A self-assessment of commuter student programs and services at San Diego State University (SDSU) indicated that the university was doing well in meeting the needs of this population. For many years, most of the students at SDSU have been commuter students. Services and programs that were developed were created with the commuter student in mind.…

Introduces a symposium in this journal issue: "Technology through a Retrospective Eye: Imaging Practices between the World Wars and Beyond." Notes that each article of the symposium keys into a central moment of expansion of imaging practice and focuses on the debates that accompanied that expansion. (SR)

Examines the tensions surrounding the introduction of wirephoto into United States newspapers in the 1930s. Demonstrates that American journalists resisted the new pictorial technology by denouncing, disembodying, and deflating the technology. Suggests that journalism missed the challenge of adapting to photography by not fully considering its…

Explores journalistic quoting practices as an interface between written and oral modes of communication, or between text and talk. Examines both prescriptive and performative dimensions of journalistic quoting across the media. States that when quoting, journalists creatively mix and meld text and talk. Suggests that the cogency of news…

Discusses the establishment of collective memory studies. Addresses six premises for collective remembering that are basic to contemporary scholarship: that collective memory is processual, unpredictable, partial, useable, both particular and universal, and material. Discusses the future of collective memory studies. (SR)

Examines how journalists use three narrative strategies (synecdoche, omission, and personalization) to assert their authority in their retellings of the John F. Kennedy assassination. Finds that, by giving themselves a central position within the story, journalists make the assassination story as much about American journalists as about Kennedy's…

Proposes viewing journalists as members of an interpretive community (not a profession) united by its shared discourse and collective interpretations of key public events. Applies the frame of the interpretive community to journalistic discourse about two events central for American journalists--Watergate and McCarthyism. (SR)

Considers television viewing practices during special events. Examines how audiences organize around such programing and whether this organization changes the understanding of audience connectiveness. Considers connectiveness and privatization in conjunction with conceptions of the public sphere, reviews literature on media events, and applies…