Browsing by Author "Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee member"
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Item Open Access Conflicting health-related scientific evidence in news reports: effects of presentation format and hedging on perceived issue uncertainty and source credibility(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2016) Zhang, Hui, author; Long, Marilee, advisor; Anderson, Ashley, committee member; Gloeckner, Gene, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee member; Stallones, Lorann, committee memberThis study examined the effects of two journalistic practices in reporting conflicting health-related scientific evidence on journalists’ and scientists’ credibility and whether the effects were mediated by perceived issue uncertainty. The two practices examined were presentation format and hedging. When conflicting findings are reported, journalists can use either a one-article format, using one story to report the conflict, or a two-article format, using two stories with each story representing one side of the conflict. When conflicting findings are reported, journalists can use hedging (e.g., reporting the limitations of scientific studies) to present the conflicting information. An online experiment was conducted to examine the two journalistic practices’ effects. Results include the following: 1) the one-article format was beneficial to journalists’ competence, but detrimental to scientists’ competence, as compared with the two-article format; 2) journalists’ and scientists’ credibility in the hedged news conditions did not differ from those in the non-hedged news conditions; and 3) perceived issue uncertainty did not mediate presentation format’s or hedging’s effects on journalists’ or scientists’ credibility. An exploratory follow-up mediation analysis found that perceived message believability mediated presentation format’s effects on journalists’ and scientists’ credibility. Theoretical, practical, and methodological implications are discussed.Item Open Access El voseo in los medios de comunicacion, el cine y la literatura de Guatemala(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2011) Tricola, J. Makenzie, author; Velázquez-Castillo, Maura, advisor; Correa, Maite, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberThe voseo, that is, the use of the pronoun vos and its corresponding verb forms for the second person singular in Spanish, has been the subject of a large number of studies. Its use varies according to the region or country studied. In Guatemala, there appears to exist a special situation where the decision of which pronoun to use (usted, tĂş or vos) depends, in part, on the gender of the speaker and the interlocutor. In spite of this interesting situation, the voseo in Guatemala has not received sufficient attention. In fact, only two previous studies on the current situation of the voseo in Guatemala exist. These two studies are based on surveys with small numbers of participants. These surveys do not necessarily reveal the everyday uses of address forms and furthermore, the numbers of participants are too small to be able to generalize the results of these studies. Therefore, in the present study, I analyze the uses of the voseo in communication media (written and oral) cinema and literature in Guatemala with the objective of establishing the contexts in which the voseo appears and how it is represented, and with a focus on the factors of gender and linguistic register, and the two scales closeness/distance and hierarchy/equality. The four main conclusions of the present study are: (1) There exists a diglossia in which the voseo is part of the system of address in everyday speech but not in the formal register. For this reason, the voseo appears most in contexts which represent everyday interactions. (2) The voseo has masculine connotations. (3) The voseo is used in various types of relationships determined by the factors of closeness/distance and hierarchy/equality, but in all of the contexts in which it appears, it serves to reduce the social distance between the interlocutors.Item Open Access Inky economy: cultural production and consumption in North American letterboxing communities(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2011) Vyvial-Larson, Jessica Leigh, author; Snodgrass, Jeffrey G., advisor; Sherman, Kathleen A., committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberLetterboxing is a 150 year old hobby that involves treasure hunting, clues, hiking and orienteering. From its roots in the Dartmoor region of England, this practice migrated to the United States in the 1990s and burst into popularity through the use of online resources to connect, educate, and inspire letterboxers. North American letterboxing is a modern incarnation of this old practice that combines the connective power of digital media with the traditional artistry and creativity of this hobby. By providing opportunities for both production and consumption, letterboxing creates its own system of value that can mediate, resist and reinforce capitalistic structures. Using engaged ethnography, interviews, and a broad-scale survey, this thesis draws on theories from political economy, art, and community-building to discuss the ways in which these hobbyists use virtual and traditional letterboxes to creates value. Examining both the production and consumption of letterboxing practices provides insight into how this hobby is both reflective of and distinct from broader American systems of value creation.Item Open Access La sexualidad femenina en tĂ©rminos de oppressiĂłn y liberaciĂłn por medio del sexo(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2010) Rodriguez, Nereida Perdigon, author; Leal, Francisco, advisor; PedrĂłs-GascĂłn, Antonio, committee member; LĂłpez-Cabrales, MarĂa del Mar, 1967-, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberThis work studies femenine sexuality in terms of oppression and the liberation of female characters from three novels: Las edades de LulĂş, (1989) de Almudena Grandes, La nada cotidiana, (1995) de ZoĂ© ValdĂ©s y La casa de los espĂritu, de Isabel Allende, (1982). This investigation wants to state women's sexual evolution, as well as the responsibility that they have to build the change from an object to an active sexual subject. This thesis is not meant to show that the feminine characters in these novels have been free of masculine oppression, but it is very important to emphasize that these women have been making progress and winning battles in the context of their own lives, becoming the heroines in their societies. I want to show through this research that women have been victims in society, but also, throughout their stories have destroyed the victim's dress to become the leaders of their own lives.Item Open Access Leaking the secret: women's attitudes toward menstruation and menstrual-tracker mobile apps(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2016) Thompson, Sydney Elizabeth, author; Sivakumar, Gayathri, advisor; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee member; Griffin, Cindy, committee memberThis study explored how menstrual-tracker mobile apps have characteristics that reflect menstruation as a taboo in the U.S. culture. Objectification theory and gender schema theory provided a conceptual and overarching framework to explore how the U.S. sociocultural context may play a role in the development of norms and assumptions surrounding menstruation, and in turn, menstrual-tracker mobile apps reflecting society’s norms and assumptions about menstruation as a taboo. Feminist theory is discussed as well, as it shed light on the development of the androcentric view toward menstruation in the United States, and it kindled the researcher’s interest in conducting this study. A dearth of literature exists about menstrual-tracker mobile apps as cultural products, and an online survey was conducted among a convenience sample of female undergraduate millennials (n = 258) to investigate if a correlation exists between their attitudes toward menstruation as a taboo and menstrual-tracker mobile apps’ security features, body control features, and discussion features. The analysis of the data revealed that female undergraduate millennials’ attitudes toward menstruation as a taboo in this study correlated to their attitudes toward security features and discussion features but not body control features on menstrual-tracker mobile apps.Item Open Access Listening to difference: the construction of intersectional identity in VALORANT's sound design(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Adams, Tate, author; Parks, Elizabeth S., advisor; Johnson Schroeder, Morgan K., committee member; Elkins, Evan, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberAs sound studies begins to interface more prominently with communication studies, the majority of research concerns rhetorical implications of vocality and sound's potential for argumentation and advocacy. This thesis contributes towards a growing body of research that identifies sound's influence in shaping our understandings of intersectional identity by providing several examples of how analyzing mediated sound design can uncover latent discourses of cultural difference. By combining communication studies, game studies, and sound studies it begins to establish a lexicon for discussing otherwise ineffable forms of representation in immersive and interactive media. This thesis sets out to answer two main research questions (RQs). RQ1 questions "How is player identity constructed in VALORANT through its voice communication affordances?" while RQ2 interrogates "How is intersectional identity communicated through VALORANT's sound design?" The three content chapters work in tandem to answer these research questions, and then reflect on what those answers mean for VALORANT players and audiences, scholars of games and sound, and the field of communication. This research is useful to VALORANT's player base and the widespread audience it commands insofar as it calls to the forefront the discourses of cultural difference which undergird the game's virtual acoustic design and sound affordances. Understanding that scholars of media, cultural studies, and communication overlap with gaming audiences, I am also optimistic that this thesis will inspire further work around sound design's potential for communicating discourses of cultural difference. For game studies scholars, this work encourages a dedicated practice of listening to and for discourse of cultural difference in games. Sound is an often-underserved element of games in critical scholarship, and (responding to RQ2) this thesis demonstrates how much hidden meaning is embedded in the subtle details of developer's sound design choices. This study contributes to game studies scholarship by excavating the potential of virtual acoustic to represent cultural difference. Specifically, Chapters 2 and 3 demonstrate how virtual acoustic design is used to immerse players and characters within a particular diegetic context (space, place, time) in digital environments. Further, Chapter 3 also brings into focus the politics and economics of representation entailed in cosmetic accessorizing in online gaming. For scholars of sound, this thesis exemplifies the importance of developing critical tools for understanding how audio cues are used in mediated sound design to communicate notions of intersectional identity. As a rapidly growing interdisciplinary field, sound studies scholars could contribute a great deal of knowledge towards the different ways in which representations are codified in industrial practices. When communication studies turns its attention toward mediated sound design it is especially well-oriented to understand and critique the influence of virtual acoustic design on our conception of social reality. This study emphasizes the possibilities for rhetorical scholarship to critically assess forms of representation that are otherwise quite difficult to put words to. This thesis also exemplifies the potential of adopting vibration as a central organizing metaphor for communication theory. An acoustic approach to orientation in Chapter 2 conceptualizes sound design as innately rhetorical, and often strategic. A vibrational reading of stereotype in Chapter 3 which emphasizes the ephemeral, dynamic, and immersive nature of representation. A resonant approach to access and advocacy in Chapter 1 uses the metaphor of apprehending vibration to highlight the importance of feeling heard in relation to representation, safety, and community.Item Open Access Media portrayal of AI-generated art as possessing or lacking cultural capital(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2024) Samsonov, Anatoly, author; Wolfgang, David, advisor; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee member; Dunn, Thomas R., committee memberThis study explores the media portrayal of AI-generated art through the conceptual frameworks of Pierre Bourdieu's cultural capital and framing theory within communication studies. By conducting a qualitative textual analysis of media articles, the thesis seeks to understand the discourse surrounding AI-generated art and its perceived cultural value. Focusing on significant media reactions to pivotal AI-generated artworks sold at high-profile auctions and awarded in competitions, the research investigates how these artworks are framed in terms of possessing or lacking cultural capital. The study shows that in the media texts, art created by generative AI is presented as possessing aspects of each of Bourdieu's forms of cultural capital – institutionalized, objectified, and embodied – as well as economic capital. However, the possession of each form of capital is contested, which provides an equal representation of the opinions of supporters and opponents of AI-generated art, alongside the absence of the dominant perspective in the texts studied. The study aims to contribute to broader discussions on the integration of technology into societal frameworks, addressing the implications on legal, ethical, and cultural perceptions and the development of AI technologies in the art world.Item Open Access Networking narrative: a rhetorical analysis of the Lizzie Bennet Diaries(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2014) Page, Lydia, author; Langstraat, Lisa, advisor; Thompson, Debby, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberTransmedia storyscapes, nonlinear narratives told across many different media platforms, have emerged as important sites of non-traditional reading and writing practices. These narratives enable a type of reading and writing that is subversive to exclusionary Western rhetorics. This study applies a Bitzerian rhetorical analysis to The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, a successful transmedia storyscape. Bitzer's definitions of exigence, audience, and constraints are challenged when applied to a transmedia text. This thesis will explore how meaningful redefinitions of key elements within Bitzer's rhetorical situation can further an understanding of transmedia. This rhetorical analysis will highlight the ways in which Rhetoric and Composition can use transmedia narratives to make space for important matters of identity and feminist forms of writing as identified by Cixous and Rich. Transmedia storyscapes are an important, though as of yet largely unconsidered, form of digital rhetorics. This thesis seeks to establish transmedia storyscapes as a viable genre of writing that successfully embodies feminist principles through the subversion of traditional writing practices.Item Open Access Pinning for leisure or labor?: unveiling constructions of wedding planning via Pinterest(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2017) Johnson, Emily, author; Champ, Joseph, advisor; Knight Steele, Catherine, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee member; O’Donnell-Allen, Cindy, committee member; Thompson, Deborah, committee memberPinterest, a digital bulletin board website where users can create digital visual collections of meaningful content (i.e., pins), has been criticized for "killing feminism" (Odell, 2012), promoting "tight gender boundaries" (Pynchon, 2012), and encouraging "female cyber-exhibitionism" (e.g., promotion of images that perpetuate female domesticity) (Sandler, 2012). Further, the site has been critiqued as being a place for "wedding-obsessed" women who passively consume content and fantasize about a dream life (Tekobbe, 2013, p. 384). In an effort to investigate such criticisms more fully, this study examined an alternative understanding of Pinterest—one that describes the site as a digital structure that enables women to construct versions of the current and/or aspired self. The purpose of this study was to explore why and how the women interviewed use Pinterest as a tool for wedding planning. Specifically, this research examined how the site may contribute to identity construction, with focus devoted to how women construct a current and/or aspired self (with attention to an aspired bride identity). Using theoretical and conceptual frameworks of third-wave feminism, creativity, and structuration theory, it also explored how using Pinterest as a wedding planning tool connects to broader ideological discourses about feminism, cultural hegemony, and cultural consumption. The overarching question this study sought to address is whether using Pinterest as a wedding planning tool extends the traditional feminine role of wedding preparation (i.e., contribute to specific behavior determined by a patriarchal society) or provides an opportunity for women to engage in user-controlled behavior (i.e., offer an avenue to find voice and agency)? To investigate this complex digital phenomenon, 20 semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with white, heteronormative, cis-gender, predominately middle to upper-middle class women who used Pinterest as their primary wedding planning tool (with the exception of one participant who was interviewed because she purposely chose not to use Pinterest as a planning tool). Analysis of interview transcripts and select pin boards was completed using constant comparison (Glaser, 1965). From this analysis, four key themes emerged: (1) The Labor of Wedding Planning and Pinterest; (2) Pinterest as a Place for Digital Collecting; (3) The Power of Pinterest: Escaping, Dreaming, and Visualizing; (4) Pinterest as an "Ideology of Personal Confidence." Within each of these themes, notions of user control and determinism were examined using Giddens' (1984) structuration theory. Further, repowered feminism and cyberfeminism (third-wave feminist theories) were used to analyze if and how user control can be experienced within the wedding planning experience both on and off Pinterest. Additionally, the concept of "little c" creativity (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996) was found to be present in how many of participants used Pinterest to find, appropriate, and actualize ideas in a physical sense (i.e., engage in meaning-making, which is argued to be user [or consumer]-controlled behavior). Drawing from the interpretations formed through interviews and analyses of exemplar pin boards, it was found that using Pinterest as a wedding planning tool facilitates both user-controlled and deterministic behavior. Although structural constraints such as patriarchy, hegemony, and economic factors play a role in how women experience determinism in using this platform, this study also found that user control occurs through meaning-making in the online and offline sense, as well as through wedding planning itself. For example, all 20 interview participants reported that they were the primary wedding planner within their relationship. Though it can be considered stereotypical in nature, holding this role allowed participants to experience control in making decisions that helped them to enact their wedding day vision (which oftentimes was formed through using Pinterest). Thus, in response to the overarching questions, it appears that Pinterest, as a form of "feminized popular culture" (Levine, 2015, p. 7), is perhaps best located somewhere in between—the experience is neither entirely deterministic nor is it entirely controlled by the user. Importantly, Pinterest also affords its users the opportunity to blend the offline and online wedding planning experience. The 'labors' associated with wedding planning are integrated as aspiring brides engage in planning via offline and online contexts and create meaning through the act of constructing wedding-oriented Pinterest boards. Ultimately, it seems that building one's wedding identity is dependent on processes in both spheres (online and offline). Further, findings from this study point to the need to re-address the definition of feminism in today's digitally-driven world. Although Pinterest has been criticized for its ability to contribute to the perpetuation of stereotypical gender roles (i.e., determinism), participants interviewed for this study reported feeling in control of and empowered by how they use the platform (i.e., agency). As a relatively new form of social media, Pinterest is unique in that it, at least to an extent, places power in the hands of the user. Rather than 'framing' an aspiring bride to think about weddings in a particular way, Pinterest enables users to create their own 'frame.' In other words, users exercise control by pinning content that resonates with the type of bride they want to be and the type of wedding they want to have (influenced by various identity factors).Item Unknown PretĂ©rito y el imperfecto en los libros de texto, El: más allá de una lista de usos(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2014) VĂ©lez, Elizabeth Dávila, author; Correa, Maite, advisor; Purdy, Andrea, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberHow and when to use the preterite or the imperfect is one of the most common issues that Spanish language learners face in the foreign language classroom. Most of the times, textbooks present students charts in which the use of each tense is listed. Nonetheless, this generalization doesn't take into account one of the most important aspects necessary to determine when to use the imperfect or the preterite: The speaker's intention. This thesis purports to show that more than memorizing a list of common uses, it is very important that students analyze the perfective or imperfective aspect of the action presented. Additionally, some examples were taken from two textbooks (Aventuras (2010) y Experience Spanish (2012)), and they were studied in order to prove that the lack of context produces ambiguous sentences that generate confusion among the students.Item Unknown Supernatural friendships: parasocial relationships and the provisions of social support(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2021) Thomas, Kayla L., author; Faw, Meara, advisor; Marx, Nick, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberParasocial relationships and social support both have independently rich literatures within the field of communication. However, until this study, parasocial relationship partners had not been considered as social support providers. This study furthers scholarly understandings of both parasocial relationships and social support by considering the two relational phenomena in tandem. Fans of the American television show Supernatural with a strong parasocial relationship with a character from the series were interviewed regarding their feelings towards their parasocial relationship partner and how they feel supported by their parasocial relationship partner. Analysis of the interviews revealed participants received esteem support, informational support, emotional support, and social network support from their parasocial relationship partners. The finding that parasocial relationship partners can and do provide social support challenges current understandings of social support as reciprocal and intentional. Two methods by which participants received support without reciprocity and intentionality are proposed: imagined support and constructed support. Additionally, this study investigated the characteristics of supportive messages. Participants watched scenes from Supernatural and identified qualities that made messages supportive or unsupportive. The data from this study corroborated existing methods of categorizing supportive messages such as verbal person centeredness and nonverbal immediacy. Lastly, this study compared support received while watching troubles talk scenes (scenes in which a problem is discussed) and ordinary conversation scenes (scenes in which anything but a problem is discussed) to compare Goldsmith's Normative Approach to social support and Lakey and Orehek's Relational Regulation Theory. This study offers a new approach to describing parasocial relationships through the lens of social support and extends the relational contexts in which social support can be given and received.Item Open Access "The end of Roe means the end of bodily autonomy": reproductive technologies and temporal framing of women's agency post-Dobbs(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Hasberger, Hayley, author; Dunn, Tom, advisor; Gibson, Katie, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberOn June 24th, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization and overturned Roe v. Wade, an almost half century old landmark decision in support of women's reproductive rights. My analysis responds to the exigence of the current technological and post-Dobbs moment, to highlight the discursive implications of a nationwide reproductive technology decision. This thesis examines Jezebel's media framing of reproductive technologies, arguing that women-centric discourses of reproductive technologies post-Dobbs center temporality as a major theme in two distinct ways: 1) by demonstrating the realness of the present moment and 2) pointing to dystopic visions of America's coming future. I contend that these two parallel themes in the discourse frame differing paths towards women's agency, which can have a meaningful impact on the material actions women take in reality. As the overturning of Roe v. Wade continues to unfold, it will be paramount to continue to research and explore communication outcomes associated with the relationship between reproductive technologies and women's bodily autonomy.Item Open Access Understanding Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs and their adoption of social media: a study of gender, diffusion, and culture in the Middle East(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2016) Alghaith, Shaikhah, author; Kodrich, Kris, advisor; Champ, Joseph, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee member; Anderson, Karrin Vasby, committee member; Hirchi, Mohammed, committee memberThe growing number of small businesses owned by Kuwaiti women in recent years is an indication of a new progress that Kuwaiti women are achieving. This study through the lens of Diffusion of Innovations theory examined why and how Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs adopt social media. It investigated the attributes of social media that made social media appealing to be adopted by Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs. It also investigated the pros and cons associated with social media when used as a marketing tool. This study specifically looked at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram comparing these three types of social media. This study integrated concepts such as gender, entrepreneurship, social media, Diffusion of Innovations theory, and culture. The snowball sample of this qualitative study included in-depth interviews with owners of 20 businesses which revealed detailed data examining women’s entrepreneurship and their adoption and use of social media as a marketing tool. Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs were asked in 2014 to answer 18 questions that included inquiries regarding Rogers’ (2003) five attributes of innovation: relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability and observability. The results showed that most Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs in this study prefer using Instagram, the photo and video sharing social networking platform, over Facebook and Twitter when marketing to their customers. Findings also revealed Rogers’ attributes associated with adopting an innovation, such as relative advantage, complexity, and observability, apply to adopting Instagram as a marketing tool by Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs. Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs adopt and incorporate Instagram in their marketing strategy because of Instagram’s photo-sharing nature (relative advantage), ease of use (complexity), and popularity (observability). This study’s findings also unveiled the perceived pros of using Instagram as a marketing tool – Instagram is like a photo album, it enlarges the circle of customers, it is widely used, and it is suitable for smaller businesses. However, the study also showed several cons to Instagram – including that products may not be what they seem and that the business owners have to deal with rude and discouraging comments. The women entrepreneurs also worry about providing unique content. They worry that their accounts will be stolen or lost and their products’ photos may be copied. They also wonder how long Instagram will be the preferred social media.Item Open Access Understanding multiracial college student virtual community(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Luna, Rachel H., author; Anderson, Sharon K., advisor; McKenna, Kelly, advisor; John, Elizabeth, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberThe purpose of this study was to understand the role of social media in the lives of Multiracial college students as they build and maintain community. A phenomenological approach enabled answering the research question: How do Multiracial students use social media to build and maintain community? Informed by critical multiracial theory and virtual kinship frameworks, the study included elicitation interviews with 10 Multiracial students as they shared self-selected examples from their social media. Three themes emerged from the data: seeking similarities with Multiracial people, cultivating an online persona, and engaging in Multiracial discourse. Based on this study's findings, practitioners and scholars are encouraged to adopt a critical approach to Multiracial policy and practice and facilitate the development of virtual Multiracial affinity spaces.Item Open Access Wonder women in the virtual world: how female Shepard redefined the female hero archetype in video games(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2021) McHenry, Chelsea, author; Diffrient, David Scott, advisor; Marx, Nick, committee member; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee memberAAA video game protagonists typically represent the white, heterosexual male. While standards are changing, there remains a considerable discrepancy between the number of male and female protagonists available. This study intends to examine how video game producers can move forward with creating resonant AAA protagonists by examining one of the first protagonists who presented unforeseen equality. This thesis explores the character of female Shepard from BioWare's video game series Mass Effect (2007-2012) and what elements made her a fan favorite and marketable. Using Jim Bizzochi's video game narrative framework and Shunsuke Nozawa's concept of ensoulment related to voice work, this thesis argues that FemShep redefined the video game landscape. She served to create her own space as a character and not merely a gender-flipped construct of her male counterpart. By examining how she is constructed and handled in-game, the conclusion suggests that when the developmental focus is on creating the character, there is a market for strong heroes who are also female.Item Open Access Working on my hair: a visual analysis of natural hair and Black women professionals in popular television programming(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2017) Blackburn, Hayley Eve, author; Sivakumar, Gayathri, advisor; Martey, Rosa Mikeal, committee member; Gibson, Katie, committee memberI examine the representations of Black women characters in professional settings on seven television drama texts. Black features are subjected to Eurocentering—the reduction of racial heritage markers to align with Eurocentric values—to protect hegemonic traditions under the guise of racial neoliberalism. This study focuses on hairstyles for Black women because hair functions as a racial signifier to the audience and is thus a key component of the visual rhetoric under observation. I answer the research question: how does the visibility and representation of natural hair invite the audience to discipline Blackness in professional spaces. The findings reflect that natural hair does lack visibility, with less than 25% of the sample representing significant moments for the main characters to interact with natural hair, and when visible the representation tends towards a disciplinary frame. Natural hair is a symbol of the Black savage framing that reinforces the superiority of Whiteness in the professional world. The Black woman with altered hair becomes a symbol for a civilized, thus successful, Black body able to participate in a professional society while natural hair remains the symbol for the opposite. Overall, audiences are invited to view natural hair in a very limited capacity for professional characters, and the framing reinforces negative perceptions of natural hair for Black women in a work-based Western society.