Park visiting professor Mary Beth Oliver to present 'Moral Beauty and Media Entertainment' as part of the Mary Junck Research Colloquium Series

The Mary Junck Research Colloquium series for the spring 2012 semester kicks off Thursday, Jan. 26 at 2 p.m. in the Freedom Forum Conference Center on Carroll Hall’s third floor.

Mary Beth Oliver, the Roy H. Park Distinguished Visiting Professor in the school, will present “Moral Beauty and Media Entertainment.”

Research in media effects has frequently focused its attention on the many harms that media entertainment can cause, such as increased aggression, heightened mistrust or the development of unhealthy habits. In contrast, the purpose of this talk is to overview recent and ongoing research on the possible positive outcomes of media entertainment. Specifically, in this presentation, Oliver will suggest that media entertainment can provide viewers the opportunity to grapple with life meanings, to seek greater insight concerning human compassions and to be inspired by portrayals of moral beauty. Implications of these effects for pro-social content will be considered.

Oliver, is a distinguished professor at Penn State University in the Department of Film/Video & Media Studies and co-director of the Media Effects Research Lab. Her research in media effects focuses on entertainment psychology and on social cognition and the media. Her recent publications on these topics have appeared such journals as the “Journal of Communication,” “Human Communication Research” and “Communication Research,”  among others. She is former editor of the journal “Media Psychology,” associate editor of the “Journal of Communication and Communication Theory,” and she currently serves on the editorial boards for numerous journals in the field. She is co-editor with Jennings Bryant on “Media Effects: Advances in Theory and Research” (3rd ed.) and with Robin Nabi on “The Sage Handbook of Media Processes and Effects.”

In 2006, she received a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct research on media and stereotyping of Maori populations in New Zealand.