This book situates binge watching as one of several new television viewing behaviors which collectively contribute to a fundamental change in the way we view television today. Simply put, binge watching changes, or has the potential to change, everything: Engagement, immersion, attention to content and other devices, identification with characters and social engagement with fellow viewers, as well as content choices, and cable and over-the-top (OTT) subscription rates. Binge watching has quickly become a new norm in television viewing across audiences. Binge Watching reviews historically significant advancements in the television industry and in technology that better enable binge watching, such as timeshifting, increasing quantity and (sometimes) quality of content, as well as distribution strategies and suggestions algorithms employed by OTT providers. We situate binge watching as human-centered, that is, driven by innate human needs and wants, such as a desire to consume well-constructed stories and to connect with others. We also review the current state of academic binge watching research-from motives and habituation to the (over-pathologizing) addiction-based studies. This text concludes with a synopsis of the central arguments made and identifies several areas for future research.

This book situates binge watching as one of several new television viewing behaviors which collectively contribute to a fundamental change in the way we view television today. Simply put, binge watching changes, or has the potential to change, everything: Engagement, immersion, attention to content and other devices, identification with characters and social engagement with fellow viewers, as well as content choices, and cable and over-the-top (OTT) subscription rates. Binge watching has quickly become a new norm in television viewing across audiences. Binge Watching reviews historically significant advancements in the television industry and in technology that better enable binge watching, such as timeshifting, increasing quantity and (sometimes) quality of content, as well as distribution strategies and suggestions algorithms employed by OTT providers. We situate binge watching as human-centered, that is, driven by innate human needs and wants, such as a desire to consume well-constructed stories and to connect with others. We also review the current state of academic binge watching research-from motives and habituation to the (over-pathologizing) addiction-based studies. This text concludes with a synopsis of the central arguments made and identifies several areas for future research.

"Over the next few decades, immersive media could fundamentally change the ways humans engage in entertainment, communication, and social interaction. The current volume takes a step towards understanding this potential paradigm shift, combining insights from pioneers of the field of 'presence' with bright young scholars who bring a new perspective." -Jeremy Bailenson, Stanford University, USA

"This book provides an indispensable contribution to scholars in communication studies, computer science and psychology interested in the modes of being present in different media, and offers a careful historical and theoretical framework to the state-of-the-art research."-Anna Spagnolli, University of Padova, Italy

"Bracken and Skalski have assembled a collection of works from the world's foremost authorities on telepresence, a topic that has gone understudied for years. Someone has finally assembled a comprehensive volume on the subject. This book is a must not only for those interested in telepresence, but for mass communication scholars of all kinds."-Kenneth A. Lachan, University of Massachusetts, Boston, USA

Immersed in Media highlights the increasing significance of telepresence in the media field. With contributions representing diverse disciplines, this volume delves into the topic through considerations of popular media types and their effects on users. Chapters in the work explain how the experience of presence can be affected by media technologies, including television, video games, film, and the Internet. They also discuss how presence experience mediates or moderates commonly studied media effects, such as enjoyment, persuasion, and aggression. These discussions are accompanied by overviews of the current state of presence research and its future. Ultimately, this work establishes the crucial role of telepresence in gaining a complete understanding of the uses and effects of popular media technologies.

This anthology examines the constructions of intelligence and intellectuality in popular television and the socio-cultural implications of those constructions. It considers the complexity of popular television images, the influences of these images as they both verify and vilify intelligence, and explores a range of representations of intelligence on television by looking at a variety of TV genres and through a variety of theoretical perspectives and methods. Topics range from broad explorations of patterned representations on television to examinations of particular genres, including science-fiction and reality programming, to in-depth analyses of specific programs such as The Simpsons, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Six Feet Under. This book is grounded in the assumption that knowledge and intelligence are currency in the economics of power and that, given that the proliferation of certain images and the relative absence of others in fictional, reality, and fact-based media play an important role in social-order maintenance, a critical examination of how intelligence is demonstrated, portrayed, and evaluated in the public sphere is crucial.

This anthology examines the constructions of intelligence and intellectuality in popular television and the socio-cultural implications of those constructions. It considers the complexity of popular television images, the influences of these images as they both verify and vilify intelligence, and explores a range of representations of intelligence on television by looking at a variety of TV genres and through a variety of theoretical perspectives and methods. Topics range from broad explorations of patterned representations on television to examinations of particular genres, including science-fiction and reality programming, to in-depth analyses of specific programs such as The Simpsons, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Six Feet Under. This book is grounded in the assumption that knowledge and intelligence are currency in the economics of power and that, given that the proliferation of certain images and the relative absence of others in fictional, reality, and fact-based media play an important role in social-order maintenance, a critical examination of how intelligence is demonstrated, portrayed, and evaluated in the public sphere is crucial.

This introduction to communication research methods takes the student from the conceptual beginnings of a research project through the design and analysis. Emphasizing the correct questions to ask and how to approach the answers, authors Gary Petty, Cheryl Campanella Bracken, and Elizabeth Babin approach social science methods as a language to be learned, requiring multiple sessions and reinforcement through practice. They explain the basics of conducting communication research, facilitating students' understanding of the operation and roles of research so that they can better critique and consume the materials in their classes and in the media. The book takes an applied methods approach, introducing students to the conceptual elements of communication science and then presenting these elements in a single study throughout the text, articulating the similarities and differences of individual methods along the way. The study is presented as a communication campaign, involving multiple methodologies. The approach highlights how one method can build upon another and emphasizes the fact that, given the nature of methodology, no single study can give complete answers to our research questions. Unique features of the text: It introduces students to research methods through a conceptual approach, and the authors demonstrate that the statistics are a tool of the concepts. It employs an accessible approach and casual voice to personalize the experience for the readers, leading them through the various stages and steps. The presentation of a communication campaign demonstrates each method discussed in the text. This campaign includes goals and objectives that will accompany the chapters, demonstrates each individual methodology, and includes research questions related to the communication campaign. The tools gained herein will enable students to review, use, understand, and critique research, including the various aspects of appropriateness, sophistication and utility of research they encounter.

"Over the next few decades, immersive media could fundamentally change the ways humans engage in entertainment, communication, and social interaction. The current volume takes a step towards understanding this potential paradigm shift, combining insights from pioneers of the field of presence with bright young scholars who bring a new perspective." Jeremy Bailenson, Stanford University, USA

"This book provides an indispensable contribution to scholars in communication studies, computer science and psychology interested in the modes of being present in different media, and offers a careful historical and theoretical framework to the state-of-the-art research." Anna Spagnolli, University of Padova, Italy

"Bracken and Skalski have assembled a collection of works from the world s foremost authorities on telepresence, a topic that has gone understudied for years. Someone has finally assembled a comprehensive volume on the subject. This book is a must not only for those interested in telepresence, but for mass communication scholars of all kinds." Kenneth A. Lachan, University of Massachusetts, Boston, USA

Immersed in Media highlights the increasing significance of telepresence in the media field. With contributions representing diverse disciplines, this volume delves into the topic through considerations of popular media types and their effects on users. Chapters in the work explain how the experience of presence can be affected by media technologies, including television, video games, film, and the Internet. They also discuss how presence experience mediates or moderates commonly studied media effects, such as enjoyment, persuasion, and aggression. These discussions are accompanied by overviews of the current state of presence research and its future. Ultimately, this work establishes the crucial role of telepresence in gaining a complete understanding of the uses and effects of popular media technologies.

This introduction to communication research methods takes the student from the conceptual beginnings of a research project through the design and analysis. Emphasizing the correct questions to ask and how to approach the answers, authors Gary Petty, Cheryl Campanella Bracken, and Elizabeth Babin approach social science methods as a language to be learned, requiring multiple sessions and reinforcement through practice. They explain the basics of conducting communication research, facilitating students' understanding of the operation and roles of research so that they can better critique and consume the materials in their classes and in the media. The book takes an applied methods approach, introducing students to the conceptual elements of communication science and then presenting these elements in a single study throughout the text, articulating the similarities and differences of individual methods along the way. The study is presented as a communication campaign, involving multiple methodologies. The approach highlights how one method can build upon another and emphasizes the fact that, given the nature of methodology, no single study can give complete answers to our research questions. Unique features of the text: It introduces students to research methods through a conceptual approach, and the authors demonstrate that the statistics are a tool of the concepts. It employs an accessible approach and casual voice to personalize the experience for the readers, leading them through the various stages and steps. The presentation of a communication campaign demonstrates each method discussed in the text. This campaign includes goals and objectives that will accompany the chapters, demonstrates each individual methodology, and includes research questions related to the communication campaign. The tools gained herein will enable students to review, use, understand, and critique research, including the various aspects of appropriateness, sophistication and utility of research they encounter.