Browsing by Author "Wolfgang, David, advisor"

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Black feminist technosocial roleplay: exploring visual media representations of Black women's complex relationship with authoritative power
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2025) Bollinger-Deters, Aaunterria, author; Arthur, Tori, advisor; Wolfgang, David, advisor; Famulari, Umberto, committee member; Attai, Nikoli, committee member; Snodgrass, Jeffrey, committee member
Using Black Feminist Technosocial Roleplay (BFTR) this study revealed the ways in which Black women are represented in visual narratives characterized by authoritative power as well as examining how Black women's relationship with violence can be transfigured in liberatory ways. The critical technocultural discourse analysis of 15 'viral murder videos', 2 'ebony public disgrace' films, and 2 'ebony evolved fights' as well as the examination of 121 viral murder video online surveys, 2 semi-structured interviews with Black women gamers, and a Black feminist gaming autoethnography revealed a.) rehumanized representations of Black women when they control their image, b.) extended public social scripts into technologically mediated fantasy roleplay, c.) violence as a main component of fortifying Black women in public memory, and d.) the cathartic/empowering ways in which video game roleplay can be utilized to reterritorialize Black women's public social roles, especially their proximity to and employment of authoritative power and violence. The analysis also showed how Black women's self-determined presentation and self-valuation is often imperfect, messy, and in some ways monstrous, yet these are still avenues of representation worthy of conscientious study. Additionally, data implications, future recommendations, and research limitations were also discussed in depth.
Open Access
Colorado journalists' application and understanding of guidelines for reporting on sensitive topics: suicides
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Miller, Sunday E., author; Wolfgang, David, advisor; Long, Marilee, committee member; Carcasson, Martín, committee member
Research suggests news reporting on suicides that does not follow recommended guidelines can cause vulnerable people to imitate suicidal behavior. Reporting guidelines for suicide have been created and disseminated with mixed success rates. This study used structured in-depth interviews with Colorado newspaper journalists to examine the ways local journalists report on suicides and the extent to which they follow recommended reporting guidelines, as well as explored the influences and ethical decisions journalists encounter when covering suicide. Findings indicate journalists view guidelines as suggestions not requirements and that they violate them based on their morals or personal connection to suicide. The Hierarchical Model framework suggests various influences shape media content, which can explain the guidelines journalists consider and why they create content the way they do. The results of this study echos literature showing collaborative guideline creation and implementation is key to minimizing harm, destigmatizing mental illness, and changing suicide reporting practices.
Open Access
Diffusing art therapy using the innovation of social media: experiences of four rural art therapists
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2018) Dick, Laura, author; Wolfgang, David, advisor; Long, Marilee, committee member; Knight, Andrew, committee member
As the practice of art therapy grows and evolves, the way in which healthcare providers disseminate information and connect with patients changes, especially through networks such as social media sites. Physicians and therapists must navigate how to represent their personal and professional lives in an evolving digital landscape. As digital technologies continue to expand, how might the innovation of social media be used by mental health providers, such as art therapists, to better reach rural populations? This qualitative study utilizes research within telemedicine, social media as a professional tool, and the diffusion of innovation theory as a basis to explore how art therapists leverage the use of social media to reach rural communities. This study argues that individual intricacies may influence a therapist's motivation to adopt social media. Even therapists who do not participate professionally in social media understand the benefits of having a presence on those platforms. However, there remains a complex combination of risks, as perceived by the individual therapist, that prohibit the adoption process set forth by Rogers' diffusion of innovation theory. This indicates that Rogers' theory may not be the best fit for healthcare situations such as art therapy that include high risks or a high number of complex contributing factors.
Open Access
Engaging reality: examining how mixed reality mobile apps and games facilitate sense of place development for a more engaged citizenry
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2020) Bamesberger, Carla, author; Wolfgang, David, advisor; Castillo, Daniela, committee member; Snodgrass, Jeffrey, committee member
Growing concerns regarding declining community and civic engagement as a result of increased access to new technologies calls for research on purposeful design that could have a reverse impact. Location aware mixed reality mobile apps and games may be one such technology that, with purposeful design, have such potential. It is possible that this technology could be purposefully designed to facilitate sense of place development among users, which can lead to outcomes like engagement in one's community. According to sense of place theory, sense of place is made up of place identity, place attachment, and place dependence, which relate to how a person experiences place. To assess this possibility, twelve users of either Pokémon Go, Ingress, or iNaturalist were interviewed and their experience of place was analyzed. All of the apps required users to spend time in place in order to use them, a key part of sense of place development. The game apps encouraged exploration, spending time in place, and noticing unique place features due to using unique place features as a key game mechanic. iNaturalist similarly encouraged exploration, spending time in place, and noticing unique features (nature) due to allowing users to take geotagged photos and upload them for identification. Competitive and team-work-oriented game mechanics facilitated online and in-person social encounters, and iNaturalist's commenting function encouraged online social interactions about place. Features of these apps facilitated experiences that relate to sense of place, suggesting that future studies on the impact that these apps have on sense of place development would be worthwhile.
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 member
This 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.
Open Access
Narrative listening to the narrative listeners
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2025) Mitchell, Katherine Jane, author; Wolfgang, David, advisor; Jacobsen, Jaime, committee member; Knobloch, Katie, committee member
When we engage in narrative listening, the purposeful act of attending to another's story, we are ideally a part of an agreement that a co-construction of a person's understanding of their own narrative identity is underway (Bamberg & Georgakopoulou, 2008; McAdams, 2013). However, the act of narrative listening, as it is practiced in the world, is not simply to understand someone's story. From the doctor's office to a car share with a stranger, the possible aims might be to better serve, heal, align, and even debate, the teller. My research pursues how vocational listeners have infused this skill into their lives, why, and by what effect. In developing an understanding of narrative listening, I was part of a team that created a podcast series wherein the interviewer conducts a session with a person whose vocation depends on their narrative listening skills (healers, leaders, servers, etc.). For this thesis, I collected data from the seasons we recorded and conducted a reflexive textual analysis of the interview transcripts. This analysis focused on uncovering the patterns and nuances in how narrative listeners engage with stories across two vocations: healers and leaders. Key aspects of the analysis included identifying the different intentions behind listening—such as empathy, curiosity, and goal-oriented listening. By examining the methods and effects of narrative listening, this research enhances our understanding of how stories are received and co-constructed. Ultimately, the findings from this study support the grounded development of narrative listening theory, a framework that can be applied to improve communication practices across a wide range of fields.
Open Access
"Symbol of pride": subjugation of journalism under power
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Muhammad, Huzaifa, author; Wolfgang, David, advisor; Kodrich, Kris, committee member; Stecula, Dominik, committee member
This study explores the influences journalists encountered in Bangladesh, a developing country under an "authoritarian" regime while covering the opening of 6.15 kilometers long Padma Bridge. Using Shoemaker and Reese's hierarchy of influence model, Herman and Chomsky's propaganda model, and Bourdieu's field theory, it seeks to answer the question: How does the Bangladeshi media's coverage of the Padma Bridge opening reflect forms of government influence on journalists? Drawing on 12 in-depth interviews with reporters and news managers working from four media outlets, the findings suggest that, in the case of the coverage of the Padma Bridge opening in the Bangladeshi media, the government used several tools to influence. This reflected the authoritarian nature of the government, the censorship, and the self-censorship of the media, which ultimately resulted in the media's inability to provide any critical or even objective coverage of the Padma Bridge and its inauguration.