Seriously social : crafting opinion leaders to spur a two-step flow of news

I have been inspired by countless people in this ambitious pursuit but before I mention any other names I have to sing the praises of the most important one -Nuri Vallbona.My wife's role in this cannot be overstated.Many years ago I had migrated into a promising career in television production -Nuri inspired me to take another look at news which led to a more successful and more meaningful 20-year career.I have long said she's a better journalist than me and she is.She won a Nieman Fellowship in 2000the only way I was ever going to get to Harvard was to ride on her coattails.That reawakened a dormant love for learning which singularly launched me on a 10-year quest toward becoming a professor.She restored my confidence when I found myself surrounded by classmates half my age.She has been my support through the hardest courses and most demanding papers, my cheerleader for conference presentations and job interviews, and my source for truly inspiring and meaningful research ideas when I thought none were left.My 20 years with Nuri have truly changed my life.I have been influenced by a number of scholars and really blessed by a few.The idea for this project came to me in a sudden and fully formed epiphany thanks to the vision of Dr. Sharon Jarvis.A simple exercise she devised for her class suddenly inspired me and I furiously mapped out my entire plan in minutes on a single sheet of paper.The plan never varied from that initial, scribbled path and I honestly worried a little less every day after that.A related inspiration was the ambitious dissertation I presented in that very class, authored by a former classmate, Dr. Amy Zerba.Amy's work became my v guidebook and informed much of this work.I will always cherish my dog-eared copy of Amy's study and her endless inspiration and advice, despite her allegiance to the Florida Gators.Farther south at the University of Miami, I offer my great thanks to two people.Dr. Paul Driscoll became my thesis chairman when we talked about the role of age and media in his classa concept now central to my work.His critical thinking and wry humor combined to make the business of media an irresistible research topic for me, and it still influences my work years later.Dr. Jonathan West, in political science, somehow found a way to simultaneously make his courses the most difficult and the most fun of any I've taken.He more than anyone else informed my teaching style ("It's about knowledge!") and lessons from Dr. West helped win me a teaching award.Dr. Paula Poindexter accomplished the impossibletwice: She taught me how to conduct social science research then made me fearless about publishing it.Through her relentless high expectations and personal dynamism, she has single-handedly made the University of Texas School of Journalism one of the best in the country.My thanks to Dr. Hsiang Iris Chyi for playing three important roles: Offering a lonely capitalistic voice which validated my own; teaching me the art, science and language of media economics; and treating me not as a student but as a colleague and friend.The industry stands to profit handsomely from her research…I already have.I commend my heartfelt thanks to Dr. Gene Burd for countless things: Inspiration, validation, amusementand for somehow making me feel as though I was helping him when it was entirely the other way around.He is a living, breathing textbook of the history of journalism education and among his many collections, those I most admire are vi the skeletons he keeps in his closet.Dr. Gene Burd is my answer to the question: Who is John Galt?Like so many graduate students, Dr. Max McCombs inspired me some years before we ever met.Because of agenda setting, his name is essentially a "brand" in mass communication research, along with that of his best friend Dr. Donald Shaw.Dr. McCombs' legacy includes the most-cited communication theory in the literature (more than 400 studies) and a robust 40-year record of scholarly success including the presidency of the World Association for Public Opinion Research and an endowed chair at UT.One might expect that to go to his head…until one meets Dr. McCombs.This legend is the most unassuming, kind man you could ever hope to meet.He supports graduate students in countless ways; academic, emotional, and financial.He is an endless source of opportunities to contribute, co-author and travel, and you couldn't ask for a better roommate on the road.Dr. McCombs, thank you for sharing with me the running of the horses, the content analyses, the stories and the adventures.I am truly grateful.My chairman, Dr. Dominic Lasorsa, has been a special inspiration from the day we met.We crossed paths over a research idea, which spawned another, then another.Before I'd ever taken a class from him I found myself asking him for advice, brainstorming on research and building on our previous work.When I finally did take his course (theory building) it became my favorite one.He was also responsible for my first publication.It didn't take long for me to realize he was the obvious choice to guide me on this path and I cannot thank him enough for his insightful advice, editor's eye and hours of friendly conversation.Thank you so muchand cheers for now! vii Much of my education has come at the hands of future professorsmy classmates in the graduate program.While thoughtful discussion and collaboration are central to the grad school experience, I feel compelled to single out two classmates: Sebastian Valenzuela and Ingrid Bachmann.Each patiently taught me more statistics than I was able to grasp in class, introduced me to important literature and blessed me with the opportunity to share important publications.Mis gracias a "los Chilenos."I've saved special thanks for one classmate, in particular.I wouldn't be in this program, wouldn't have done nearly as well and wouldn't be blessed with the opportunities I have without the constant vigilance of one person -Seth C. Lewis, Ph.D. Seth blazed my trail, leaving Miami one year before me to follow the same path.It never occurred to him that he was adopting me for the next four years but that's essentially what he did, subsequently answering all my questions, guiding my decisions, sending me reminders and inviting me into his home.He has been my teacher, co-author and colleague.But the most important thing he has been is my best friend.May God bless Seth and his family as much as Seth has blessed me.Finally, I would be terribly remiss in not thanking my amazing kids, Vicente and Kachelle.People say tweens and teens are trouble but mine have been superhuman.Writing a dissertation can be all-consuming but somebody still has to cook, clean and do laundry.People often asked me, "What's your secret?How can you take courses, publish and teach, all with a family?"I laugh and tell them my secret IS my family.Thank you so much, to Nuri, Vicente and Kachelle for doing all the things I didn't have time to do while you all stared at the back of my head at my desk.I owe you…big time.