dmmcleod

Information

First Name

Douglas M.

Last name

Mcleod

Title

Professor

Courses taught

Principles of Strategic Communication
Strategic Communication Campaigns
Communication and Public Opinion
Mass Media and the Consumer
Communication Research Methods

Biography

Douglas McLeod is a professor in the School of Journalism & Mass Communication. Before coming to the University of Wisconsin in 2000, he taught for 11 years in the Department of Communication at the University of Delaware. An alumnus of the University of Wisconsin, he majored in journalism and psychology. He earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in mass communication and sociology from the University of Minnesota.

McLeod teaches courses in strategic communication and mass communication theory and methodology, including J345: Principles of Strategic Communication, J646: Mass Media and the Consumer, J658: Communication Research Methods, J561: Mass Communication and Society, J449: Principles of Strategic Communication and J614: Communication and Public Opinion. McLeod has published 40 journal articles and book chapters, and 10 other publications. His research develops three lines of inquiry into the antecedents and consequences of mass communication:

social conflicts and the media
media content, public opinion and knowledge
advertising
The first program of research focuses on the role of the media in both domestic and international conflicts. Research on the role of mass media in social conflicts is important because of the centrality of conflict processes to social relations and welfare and because of the prominence of mass media in these processes. In addition, the performance of mass media in conflicts has major implications for the quality and diversity of our marketplace of ideas.

A major thrust of this conflict research examines the role of mass media in internal conflicts, specifically in the process of social protest. Several of his studies have focused on factors that shape media coverage of protest groups. Such factors have produced the relatively consistent finding that media coverage portrays socially critical groups as being “deviant.” This research has also helped to show how this deviance is communicated in media messages and how the framing of news stories about conflicts affects audience perceptions of the groups and issues involved.

In terms of international conflicts, his research has examined the role of the media during the Persian Gulf War. The results of this research demonstrate that the presence of this major international conflict had a substantial impact on public expectations for and evaluations of the mass media. In turn, the media were part of process that produced dramatic effects on public opinion.

McLeod’s second line of research studies several factors shaping the information content of mass media and its consequent outcomes on public opinion and knowledge. A recent series of studies has focused on the “third-person effect,” the tendency to see others as being more affected by media content than we ourselves are affected. The research seeks to demonstrate linkages between third-person perceptions and the acceptance of censorship, as well as to delineate the processes by which judgments are made.

The final context his research explores is factors shaping the content and influence of advertising as a form of media content with considerable sociopolitical consequences. His studies have looked at the cultural antecedents of product and corporate advertising. Another study examined the effects of public service advertising. McLeod is an editorial board member for six journals: Communication Research, Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, Communication Quarterly, Human Communication Research and Mass Communication and Society. He also has served as a research consultant for several advertising, public relations and nonprofit organizations.

Recent publications

Schmierbach, M. G., Boyle, M. P., & McLeod, D. M. (2008). Understanding media effects perceptions: Comparing four common analytical approaches in third-person research. Mass Communication and Society, 11, 1-21.

Paek, H. J., Lambe, J. L., & McLeod, D. M. (2008). Antecedents to support for content restrictions. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 85, 273-290

Kosicki, G. M., McLeod, D. M., & McLeod, J. M. (2008, forthcoming). The role of methods in advancing political communication research. In E. Bucy, & L. Holbert (Eds.). Sourcebook of political communication research: Methods, measures, and analyitical techniques. Routledge.

McLeod, J. M., Kosicki, G. M., & McLeod, D. M. (2008, forthcoming). Levels of analysis and communication science. In C. R. Berger, M. Roloff, & D. Roskos-Ewoldsen (Eds.). Handbook of Communication Science, 2nd ed., Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Shah, D. V., McLeod, D. M., Gotlieb, M. R., & Lee, N. J. (2008, forthcoming). New directions in framing research. In R. Nabi & M. B. Oliver (Eds.). Handbook of Communication Research.

McLeod, D. M., McLeod, J. M., & Kosicki, G. M., (2008, forthcoming). Political communication effects. In J. Bryant & M. B. Oliver (Eds.). Media effects: Advances in theory and research, 3rd ed., Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Hairgrove, F., McLeod, D., & Shah, D. V. (2008). Strategic Uses of the Internet by Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia. In J. Forest (Ed.), Information warfare 2.0: Terrorism, strategic influence and the Internet. Westport, CN: Praeger Security International.

Lee, N. J., McLeod, D. M., & Shah, D. V. (2008). Framing policy conflict: Issue dualism, journalistic frames, and opinions on controversial policy issues. Communication Research, 35, 695-718.

Ho, S., & McLeod, D. M. (2008). Social-Psychological Influences on Opinion Expression in Face-to-Face and Computer-Mediated Communication. Communication Research, 35, 190-207.

Hairgrove, F., & McLeod, D. M. (2008). Circles drawing toward high risk activism: The use of Usroh and Halaqa in Islamist Radical Movements. Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, 31, 399-411.

Boyle, M. P., Rojas, H., & McLeod, D. M. (2008). The role of ego enhancement and perceived message exposure in third-person judgments regarding violent videogames. American Behavioral Scientist, 52, 165-185.

Veenstra, A., Sayre, B., Shah, D. V., & McLeod, D. M. (2008, forthcoming). Frames and knowledge in mixed media: How activation changes information intake. CyberPsychology and Behavior.

Shah, D. V., Cho, J., Nah, S., Gotlieb, M. R., Hwang, H., Lee, N. J., Scholl, R. M., & McLeod, D. M. (2007). Campaign ads, online messaging, and participation: Extending the communication mediation model. Journal of Communication, 57, 676-703.

Shah, D. V., McLeod, D. M., Friedland, L., & Nelson, M. (2007). The politics of consumption/The consumption of politics. In Shah, D. V., McLeod, D. M., Friedland, L., & Nelson, M. (Eds.). The politics of consumption/the consumption of politics. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 611, 6-15.

Shah, D. V., McLeod, D. M., Kim, E., Lee, S. Y., Gotlieb, M., Ho, S. S., & Breivik, H. (2007). Political consumerism: How communication and consumption orientations drive “lifestyle politics.” In Shah, D. V., McLeod, D. M., Friedland, L., & Nelson, M. (Eds.). The politics of consumption/the consumption of politics. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 611, 217-235.

Shah, D. V., McLeod, D. M., Friedland, L., & Nelson, M. (Eds.). (2007). The politics of consumption/the consumption of politics. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 611.

Detenber, B. H., Gotlieb, M. R., McLeod, D. M., & Malinkina, O. (2007). Frame intensity effects of television news stories about a high visibility protest issue. Mass Communication and Society, 10, 439-460.

McLeod, D. M., (2007). News coverage and social protest: How the media’s protest paradigm exacerbates social conflict. Journal of Dispute Resolution, 2007(1), 185-194.

Boyle, M. P., Schmierbach, M. G., & McLeod, D. M. (2007). Ideology, issues, and limited information: Implications for voting behavior. The Atlantic Journal of Communication, 15, 284-302.

Hwang, H., Gotlieb, M., Nah, S., & McLeod, D. M. (2007). Applying a cognitive processing model to presidential debate effects: Post-debate news analysis and primed reflection, Journal of Communication, 57, 40-59.

Office hours

 by appt.

Education

University of Wisconsin—Madison
B.A. Journalism and Psychology, 1983

University of Minnesota
M.A. Mass Communication, 1986
Ph.D. Mass Communication, Minor: Sociology, 1989

Office

5158 Vilas

Telephone

(608) 263-4365

Email

dmmcleod@wisc.edu

Areas of research

Mass Media and Social Conflict, Mass Media and Social Movements, Mass Media and Public Opinion, Strategic Communication

History

Member for

12 weeks 6 days