{"data":[{"id":8,"title":"Communication for Business Success","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2015,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":"9781946135056","license":"Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"Business Communication for Success (BCS) provides a comprehensive, integrated approach to the study and application of written and oral business communication to serve both student and professor. This series features chapters with the following elements: Learning Objectives Introductory Exercises Clear expectations, relevant background, and important theories Practical, real-world examples Key Takeaways or quick internal summaries Key terms that are easily identified In-chapter assignments Postchapter assessments linked to objectives and skills acquisition Each chapter is self-contained, allowing for mix-and-match flexibility and custom or course-specific design. Each chapter focuses on clear objectives and skill demonstrations that can be easily linked to your syllabus and state or federal requirements. Supported by internal and external assessments, each chapter features time-saving and learning-enhancement support for instructors and students. BCS is designed to help students identify important information, reinforce for retention, and demonstrate mastery with a clear outcome product. The text has three content categories: Foundations Process and products Contexts The first three chapters form the core foundation for the study of oral and written business communication. The next sequence of chapters focus on the process of writing, then oral performance with an emphasis on results. The final sequence focuses on contexts where business communication occurs, from interpersonal to intercultural, from groups to leadership. In each of the process and product chapter sequences, the chapters follow a natural flow, from prewriting to revision, from preparation for a presentation to performance. Each sequence comes together in a concluding chapter that focuses on action—where we apply the skills and techniques of written or oral communication in business, from writing a letter to presenting a sales speech. These performances not only serve to reinforce real-world applications but also may serve as course assessments. This text has been used in classes at: Ohio University, Miami University – Oxford, Kent State University – Salem Campus, Cuyahoga Community College – West, University of Toledo, Cuyahoga Community College – District, Northern Arizona University, Gateway Community College, University of Arizona, Arizona Western College, Boise State University,Western Governors University, Doane College, Mcpherson College, University of Nebraska Med Center, Suny Fredonia, State University of New York Institute of Technology at Utica/Rome, Trinidad State Junior College, University of Delaware, Brenau University, Brewton-Parker College, Loras College, Kapiolani Community College, Muscatine Community College, Greenville College, University of Illinois – Chicago, Millikin University, Rockland Community College, Cornell University, National-Louis University – Lisle, St. Gregory's University, University of Southern Indiana, Missouri State University – W Plains, Bucks County Community College – Newton, Clarion University of Pennsylvania, Pulaski Technical College, Temple University, Dixie State College of Utah, Averett University, Virginia Polytech Institute, Fond Du Lac Tribal Community College, Lipscomb University, Edgewood College, University of Wisconsin – Stout, Wisconsin Lutheran College, Virginia State University, North Georgia Technical College – Blairsville, Paradise Valley Community College, Fordham University – Lincoln Center, New England College of Business/Finance, Eastern New Mexico University, University of Alabama, Albertus Magnus College, Pepperdine University, Fullerton College, Santa Ana College, Miracosta College – Oceanside, San Jose State University, De Anza College, University of The Southwest, Florida Institute of Technology, Forida State University, Dean College, California State University, University of Massachusetts, Suffolk University, Stevenson University, Worcester State College, University of Maryland, Clover Park Technical College, Minnesota State University – Moorhead, College of St. Scholastica, Ferris State University, Concordia University, Southern New Hampshire University, Lower Columbia College, University of North Carolina – Greensboro, Rockingham Community College, Stanly Community College, Wayland Baptist University, Bunker Hill Community College, Salve Regina University, University of The Incarnate Word, St. Mary's University, University of Rhode Island, Texarkana College, Renton Technical College, Tarleton State University, Wayland Baptist University – Plainview, University of Houston, Stephen F. Austin State University, Bates Technical College, Chabot College, Bakersfield College, Azusa Pacific University, University of Houston – Downtown, California Southern University, Miracosta College, American Public University, American Public University System, Huntington Junior College, Flat World Knowledge University, Jackson Senior High School, Holmes High School, Dlielc, Clintondale High School, American University in Kosovo in Conjunction with Rochester Institute of Technology, Southeast Lauderdale High School, Benedict Business Hotel Management School, University of the People, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, New Brunswick College of Craft and Design, New England School of English, Comsats Institute of Information Technology, Wayland Baptist University – Anchorage, Volcano Vista High School, Wayland Baptist University – San Antonio, Morrill High School, North Island College – B Campus, Seneca College, APOU, University of North Carolina – Greensboro, Southern New Hampshire University, University of Maryland University College, Harrisburg High School","contributors":[],"subjects":[{"id":2,"name":"Business","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"HF5001","visible_textbooks_count":144,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/business"},{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":184,"url":"https://www.lib.umn.edu/publishing","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:37.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:37.000-05:00","name":"University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing"}],"formats":[{"id":2240,"type":"Online","url":"https://biz.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Business/Business_English_and_Communication/Communication_for_Business_Success_(LibreTexts)","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":192,"type":"PDF","url":"https://biz.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Business/Business_English_and_Communication/Communication_for_Business_Success_(LibreTexts)","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1614,"type":"eBook","url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/businesscommunication/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2241,"type":"XML","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/businesscommunication/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2242,"type":"ODF","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/businesscommunication/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4","textbook_reviews_count":40,"reviews":[{"id":152,"first_name":"Daniel","last_name":"Emery","position":"Associate Professor of Business Communication","institution_name":"University of Oklahoma","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is exceptionally comprehensive, comparable to other large omnibus collections for business communication. The book would be suitable for business communication courses or business and professional speaking.  It's arrangement and scope of coverage are comparable to the largest for profit books used in the field.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I would describe the content as accurate and a good portion of the material presented had a clear basis in writing research.  I find the author's sender/message/receiver model for communication somewhat dated theoretically, but that is also my critique of most textbooks in the area.  In later chapters, the book could stand more examples from professional contexts and would benefit from thorough research in the business communication literature.  I wouldn't call it inaccurate, but I find it underdeveloped. ","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Several of the examples and allusions are recent and relevant, but the development of the content is not what I would hope for developing a state of the art introduction to the field.  It's no worse than the majority of books in the area, but I wish it were better.  Specifically, I think the communication generalist approach of the text makes it somewhat accessible for a wide variety of instructors, but I'd like to see a deeper grounding in persuasion, organizational communication, and business discourse.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Very clear and often clever.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"I would describe the book as somewhat over broad in its lexicon.  Part of the issue may be with arrangement, but the opening chapters were rife with lists and redefinition of common terms. One of the challenges of working in Communication as a field is that much of our content is taken for granted or treated as common sense.  A narrower focus and an emphasis on key ideas would be very helpful. An adopter of the book might do well to adopt the elements on communication or language, but probably not both to keep the content clear.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"It looks very good to me.  One of the things I appreciated most was that the elements of the book I think were strongest could be realigned and revised with relative ease. The volume tries to be an \"everything book\" in many ways, so the opportunity to cut and remix is its most useful property.  Facutly who use the giant comprehensive industry standard books end up excising a ton of content anyway.  \r\n\r\nThe weakest chapters of the book were those that discussed research in business writing. I'd recommend that the aothor consult with a buisiness librarian who migh offer a more comprehensive and effective review of sources of business information. Those modules should be much stronger. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organizational strategy makes sense, but it isn't how I might prefer the book to be laid out.  The opportunity to cut material would be an advantage here.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Textually, the book is solid.  I appreciate the typographic choices and the chapter outlines are very clear and straightforward.  The visuals are less effective, as the are occasionally too small and somewhat unfocused.  The choice to use gray text boxes or filters over sample documents was a poor one.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Unsurprisingly, it's very good.  I appreciated the converstional tone.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book makes frequent mention of inrercultural issues in business communication, which is absolutely relevant to the globalized marketplace of today's graduates.  Additional examples of itnernational correspondence would be potentially invaluable, even amid the chapters on genres.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I deeply appreciate McLean's Business Communication for Success as the first truly effective and customizable open source text in our area. The coverage of the book equals or exceeds that of the majority of the books available from publishers, and the exercises and activities are appropriate to a wide variety of teaching circumstances and environments. For an instructor or program looking for a low cost option for students, the content and customizability of this book is a welcome starting point regardless of the disciplinary or curricular home of a business communication course.","created_at":"2015-01-12T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2015-01-12T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":229,"first_name":"Brandy A.","last_name":"Brown","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"University of Arizona","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I integrated this book as a supplement in a Psychology of Leadership course. Communication is such an essential leadership skill and myself and a fellow Associate Professor teaching this course found that student's skills in that area were deficient.\n\nOne of my criticisms of the majority of open texts is that they do tend to fall out of date. This text uses a very simple communication model and doesn't provide additional information or models which would apply better to virtual teams and their communication. \n\nThis text is comprehensive enough to actually be used for a full business or professional communication course - several of my students chose to explore the entire book despite only being assigned specific chapters because they found it relevant and helpful to their lives, not just to their coursework.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"For the majority of my students this was appropriate for their current level of knowledge. Nothing struck me as inaccurate, there were research bases for the material, however, my criticism of a lack of additional models and examples which would better apply to current prevalent business communications is appropriate for this as well (e.g. virtual distributed teams). Those would be expected in a publisher supported text.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"At the risk of sounding like a broken record, this text does feel slightly limited (only one model of communication) and behind the current communication trends (virtual teams). Previous reviewer, Dr. Emery, said it perfectly, '....I'd like to see a deeper grounding in persausion, organizational communication, and business discourse.\"","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Students found the text very clear, including my Japanese native student who struggles with English quite a bit. Another student remarked that it was an enjoyable read and that they at times found it funny.  Those are quite the complement for a textbook.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book felt like it was almost two separate books put together - which is part of why it can be considered so comprehensive.  There were chapters focused on descriptions and definitions and lists, but then some which were very applied and focused on specific communications.  I was able to assign these together (something I will address under modularity), but the book could have a better flow and be more narrow, given the focus of the title.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"As noted under consistency the text can easily be mixed together, which is very important given the differences in certain types of chapters (list/definition chapters vs. actual applied writing chapters). I chose to assign only the chapters I felt were most relevant to the topics of leadership communication, but allowed students to do the others and provided quizzes they could complete for bonus points. They loved that approach, and how well it worked speaks to the appeal and flexibility of the text.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I did not follow the organization or structure of the text as it was in any way, that was the only challenge I found with using this text. While it was 'modular' based on the definition provided here and I did like the structure and flow of individual chapters, remixing the text was difficult and required students to find their own places in a Word document or PDF version which displayed differently than mine usually. If it were to be posted on a platform that made that easier to do that would be a large improvement.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Students registered no complaints, and overall I have no major issues with it. Nothing is distracting or confusing, but I also wouldn't rate it high on engagement (visuals are different in different formats and sometimes have issues with clarity). Students (and I) appreciated the chapter structure and outlines, but again the format to interact with the text (Word or PDF unless I find my own method to host or remix it) was limiting and not necessarily ADA compliant in the current formats.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Students commented on the accessibility of the tone, and I have found no errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Students in my program are often multicultural, they and I had no issues with the text. However, I am always looking for more examples to help them see the differences in cultures and how to handle communication in those instances. ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This textbook saved my students and I from two large issues: 1) needing to deal with a difficult enrollment and grading interface process on another website, and 2) paying for the additional materials needed in this course on top of our current required items (which I am not able to break free from currently).  It reduced both friction with our course materials and my need to be technical support, while increasing engagement through allowing students choices and the ability to pursue additional knowledge on their own. That is why texts like this one matter so very much. Many of my students struggle financially, and the option to enable them to learn more without adding any financial burden is invaluable.","created_at":"2015-06-10T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2015-06-10T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":241,"first_name":"Gail Emily","last_name":"Fey","position":"Ph.D., Lecturer","institution_name":"Eller College of Management, University of Arizona","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"At nearly 800 pages, the text is immensely comprehensive.  It includes both pre- and post-lesson exercises.  Some of the exercises seem a bit “silly”; and the author seems to prefer “fives and sixes” for just about every exercise.  Still, because many options are offered, the instructor or learner would be free to find something appropropriate.\r\n\r\nOne especially interesting section was LANGUAGE.  It was thorough enough to get the main points across but not SO deep as to be offputting to those not into linguistics.  Language seems to be a topic  that is often eliminated or minimized in other business communication texts.\r\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The author includes references at the end of each chapter.  Moreover, the author’s brief bio makes it clear that he has expertise in the subject of Speech and Communication.  That ethos lends credibility to the text.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The overarching principles of business writing (clarity, knowing audience, understanding context, bottom line on top, concision) are not likely to change any time soon. \r\n \r\nThe last 2 chapters (intercultural and teamwork) are especially relevant for the near future.  According to the SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) “Changing demographics, relocation patterns and the globalization of business will be among the key trends influencing the workplace in the next five to 10 years.”\r\n","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Fine job of clear writing.  \r\nThe author does a good job of modeling clear writing... necessary for business writers.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Since one individual authored the entire text, it has a consistent voice and tone.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Yes, the chapters can be individual modules for study.  \r\n\r\nHowever, as indicated below under my structural comments, really the modules are “Writing”, “Presentations”, and “Context”.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The structure can be thought of as comprising 3 parts: Background, Writing, Context. \r\nThe author might consider 3 overarching headers under which to place the current chapter titles (e.g., “Writing” is the high-level category; then “Revising your Writing” would go under it.  Similarly, “Context” would be the high-level category with “Intercultural and International” under it.).\r\n\r\nThe inclusion of “key takeaway” would be re-enforcing to students… especially those who read words but are not so good at making meaning of those words.\r\n\r\nAs much as I appreciated the Language section, its title of “Delivering your message” seems misleading.  That title implies presentation/writing techniques.  Why not entitle it simply “Using Language”? \r\n","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"N/A","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors that this reviewer noticed.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Yes, absolutely.  For the 21st century worker (in ANY discipline, but especially in business), communication is crucial.  \r\n\r\nWarren Buffet stated that he thinks “The most valuable investment that you can make in yourself is to improve your ability to communicate. ‘Communication is enormously important; oral and written,’ said Buffett.” (Lukas Partners, posting on 3-2014, http://www.lukaspartners.com/communication-important-says-warren-buffett/).","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"One area that could be improved is that of visual design.  The version I reviewed had next-to-no graphics.  Quite possibly the no-graphics approach was an effort to prevent the book from becoming even longer.  \r\n\r\nAnother formatting item that this reviewer found annoying was the omission of extra line space between paragraphs.  I would vote for single line spacing within paragraphs and double line spacing between para’s to signal the reader a new paragraph was beginning.\r\n","created_at":"2015-06-10T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2015-06-10T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":353,"first_name":"Carolina","last_name":"Selva","position":"Adjunct Faculty, BA and MSD","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Extremely comprehensive.  Covers all critical areas of business communication including electronic messages, team communication, presentation skills, and even \"language.\"  Learning resources such as exercises and activities are included - many of them quite useful and very relevant to the material.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Accurate and timely as of the date of publishing (2010).  Good blend of theoretical and practical applications bolsters credibility.  I found no errors or hints of bias.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Relevant in today's dynamic business environment.  Many of the principles are (almost) timeless, but the book also includes chapters on newer dynamics of communication in the current climate.  These chapters (specifically the last two - on intercultural communication and teamwork) may require more review/updating in coming years than much of the other material.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clear and to the point - as business writing should be.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Very consistent tone and voice throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Absolutely divisable into specific modules in order to assign at different points.  I envisioned using this text in my current Business Communication course and thus assigning chapters out of order and it would work with no problems whatsoever.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Organization/structure is logical.  If I were to assign chapters in sequential order, flow would be no problem here.  As mentioned in the section on modularity, however, the chapters could stand on their own provided context was present.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Good interface and easy navigation.  Some of the graphical elements were not as sharp as others, and some were a bit small.  Overall, the book seemed text-heavy and could use visual elements (such as white space and/or more graphics/images) throughout.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors - good modeling of grammar usage. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"No cultural insensitivities were perceived.  I was impressed with the section on intercultural communication.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":365,"first_name":"Judy","last_name":"Boozer","position":"Business Faculty/AOP Program Lead","institution_name":"Lane Communicty College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is comprehensive in regards to business communication, but it lacks a table of contents, index, or glossary for ease in finding the concepts presented in it.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"This book has a few errors throughout--spaces missing between words, inconsistent formatting, lack of first line indents for paragraphs, etc. The content does appear for the most part to be unbiased and often gives both sides of concepts/views of proper communication.\n\nBecause paragraphs are not indented, it makes it extremely hard to see where paragraphs begin and end.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Content is relevant to today's world, but it lacks some of the more current digital communication options available to us. This would be easy to add.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The clarity of the book is quite good. The author has done a good job of explaining all content, especially if new or unusual terminology is used.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"Each chapter in this text has been organized the same way. Although it is nice to be consistent, it almost makes it boring. A list of terms used in each chapter would be helpful.\n\nAs mentioned before, there is also inconcistency with the formatting of the contents of this book.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"The book is clearly organized by chapter content and then by objectives within each chapter's topic(s). There are times, however, when few side headings are used, which makes it difficult to comprehend the material presented.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The topics are presented in a logical manner, and they often refer to previous topics as the reader progresses through the book.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"There are no interface issues, except that there is not much to excite the reader into reading. There are very few graphics, tables, charts, used. A text only book is difficult to read and comprehend.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I find almost no grammatical errors. (necessary for a book on business communication)","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The book is not insensitive or offense to any cultures, but it does lack too many references to various races, cultures, etc.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"This book has a wealth of information with resources provided, but it lacks those elements that appeal to those learners that require more than just reading text in order to learn a topic. There are a wealth of exercises at the end of each lesson that students can complete to gain competency in the chapter's concept(s). ","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":413,"first_name":"Eric","last_name":"Dodson","position":"Instructor of ESOL","institution_name":"Portland State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book includes a review of sentence grammar, paragraph structure, process writing, rhetorical styles, principles of judging sources, and business genre forms. The grammar sections provide a backbone; generally good examples provided. The individual grammar points require supplementary material for review of more examples and grammar-focused exercises. However, there are some exercises that marry both grammar and business writing functions. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The grammar points and exercises that I browsed were accurate. Rare typos. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Business norms may change, but the main focus is on underlying writing and rhetorical competency, and any updates will be relatively easy and straightforward to implement.","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"Some of the grammar for native speakers seems to be targeted for students who know some grammar terms, but do not know others. For example, the term “clause” is given a rough definition, but later the term “phrase” is used without a clear definition, in the context of “prepositional phrase.” ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"When discussing the specific genre of business writing (Ch. 10), the text often focuses on academic writing demands. Some sections are really focused on overall rhetorical styles and classical rhetoric, with a bit of business window dressing. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"\\The text is organized and composed in a perfect way for picking-and-choosing chapters or sections. Important concepts that are shared by several chapters (sentence fragments, for example) are generally introduced and explained in each chapter they appear in (though with different levels of detail, depending on the chapter). ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"No table of contents in the document, and correspondingly, no hyperlinks between sections. The first chapter’s grammar review and the second, punctuation, offer the chance to review a wide range of sentence grammar topics, but the topics are not ordered in a sequentially logical way. For example, adjectives and adverbs are tackled after sentence fragments and other sentence-level errors (which are unanalyzable if readers do not understand basic word-level grammar).  The third chapter on word choices has a similar issue. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Some editing exercises are single-spaced, which makes them very difficult to correct via pen-and-paper. Example writing often is not clearly labeled or differentiated from the main text. ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"Rare omitted words or punctuation (e.g., p. 141). Otherwise clear and accurate. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Occasional glimpses of a multi-cultural reality via examples or use of names from different backgrounds. However, the focus is on (presumably) North American business English demands. The only issue with this is that this is not explicitly explained, and learners would need supplemental materials in order to raise awareness of the existence of different genre expectations internationally. ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This work would offer a good set of resources for introductory university student writing courses or business English for speakers of other languages. For example, Chapter 3 has a welcome list of commonly confused words. However, this work would likely be most useful as a teacher planning supplement or to provide readings/exercises on specific topics. Much of the grammatical information, including the chapter for ESL students, does not offer much application to business contexts. For example, there is a review of the concept of idioms, and some example idioms, but not commentary on how students should use them in writing, or if they should use them at all. For the presentation of grammar and mechanics, I would supplement with more genre-specific projects, but the succinct and broad overview of grammar makes a good basic resource. ","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":437,"first_name":"Sally","last_name":"Stanton","position":"Senior Lecturer","institution_name":"UW-Milwaukee","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Comparable to most business communication texts available commercially. \n\nCoverage seems to be missing of social media as business communication (mentioned as a communication channel but not otherwise addressed specifically) and of how to cite/attribute sources in writing and speaking (styles and methods)\n\nNo index or glossary that I could locate in the e-pub version reviewed.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Appears to be accurate, error-free, and unbiased.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Some of the communication theories seem rather outdated, given the undeniable role of social media in the digital marketplace and the instant, global nature of communication in 2016. Thus, the text does not seem to reflect the significant need for theories and approaches that address the ability of today's customers, shareholders, competitors, etc. to immediately influence businesses through immediate and very public forms of communication. A bad review on Yelp! or Trip Advisor requires thoughtful handling; organizational communications strategies for dealing with such scenarios should be presented, along with relevant theory or/or research from the professional literature on online business communication. It's no longer enough to just \"understand\" your audience - business communicators now have a very much two-way, real-time relationship with them.\n\nThe topics of social media and managing interactive stakeholder communication could perhaps be added in Chapter 3 or Chapter 16. \n\nCoverage of organizational communications theory and strategies is woven into much of the text but not in an explicit way - the focus is more on developing the individual's own strategy. When that conflicts with organizational strategy, what then?\n\nDetailed coverage of ethics/ethical communication is limited and somewhat difficult to locate (especially since there is no index or glossary) - the chapter devoted to it is very short and lacks sufficient grounding in the professional literature.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clear and conversational, easy to read.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"It is definitely a broad, general overview of the subject matter. In the first three chapters it covers terms and theories common to both writing and speaking, and then devotes six chapters specifically to each. I would prefer to have chapters 16-19 at the beginning of the text along with chapters 1-3, as these topics equally relate to both writing and speaking, and are very timely - specifically intercultural communication and crisis communication. (Unfortunately topics presented at the end of the text/semester often get short shrift from students, or are cut because they don't fit easily in a 15-week semester. The framework would then proceed more logically from the general to the specific.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Modularity is very good; subheadings are used frequently to break up text, especially for online readers. I was surprised not to find hypertext links other than those in the citations - but I suppose that would make it difficult to publish in multiple formats, and managing broken links would be a nightmare.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"An index/glossary would be a very strong addition.\n\nAs mentioned previously, I would prefer to have chapters 16-19 at the beginning of the text along with chapters 1-3, as these topics equally relate to both writing and speaking, and are very timely - specifically intercultural communication and crisis communication.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Serviceable interface, but it didn't particularly wow me. Use of grayed lines on charts makes it hard to see, especially on a smaller digital device (let's face it, students read books on their phones and iPads). Still it seems like it would be easily customized, which is a plus. \n\nI understand that copyright issues prevent the use of the many photographic images found in commercial texts, but I find the lack of images is one downfall of using this kind of digital text. Students seem to read increasingly less, or if they do, don't comprehend well information presented only in lengthy textual form. Meaningful images can enhance understanding.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No problems found. Conversational tone makes it accessible.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Good specific coverage of intercultural communication, although as I mentioned before, this should come earlier in the text given how critical this topic has become in a globalized economy. Examples used seem to be quite diverse and appear throughout the text, not just in the specific chapter on intercultural communication. More examples of intercultural business writing would be helpful, though.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Overall, it seems to be a useful secondary text, or one used to provide additional coverage of specific topics, rather than as a primary text. However, it is difficult to find a textbook that provides both sufficient breadth and depth of coverage whether open-source or not. So, if you are interested in \"slicing and dicing\" content to fit your curriculum, this text would be a good place to start.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":551,"first_name":"Joy","last_name":"Koesten","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"University of Kansas","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook is very comprehensive, both in breath and depth.  I would have like more information regarding how to facilitate a meeting, ethical communication, and organizational culture. The topics were well selected, though formal speaking always seems out of place in a business communication text. While some may need to make formal presentations, the majority of workers do not. It's more likely they will need to hone their interpersonal skills and how to speak up in a group. \n\n I did not find an index or glossary, which would have been nice.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I think some might find the use of an egalitarian approach to be biased, but not me. Otherwise, I thought the book was well written, error free and unbiased.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I think the content is relevant and up to date. I'm seems updates would be easy and straightforward.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Very clearly written. I liked that key terms were highlighted. I thought the highlighted terms were linked to a glossary, but that wasn't the case. I downloaded it in KIndle, so maybe that was the problem.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I didn't find any inconsistencies in the text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"It seems this text could easily be divided into units or sections as needed. That is what I plan to do, so I hope that this is the case.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The presentations n section seemed out of place to me. But, otherwise the organization worked fine.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"the only navigation issue I ran into was when I went back and forth to the table of contents. I always had to start at the top of the table for f contents and scroll all the way to the most recent chapter. Otherwise, I was not distracted by anything else.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Well written. No grammatical errors were found.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I didn't encounter anything in the text offensive, though I don't recall an emphasis on multiculturalism or a variety of races dipicted in the visuals. There weren't a lot of photos in the book.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I am very likely to use a good portion of this text in an upcoming course.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":795,"first_name":"Bonnie","last_name":"Yarbrough","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"University of North Carolina at Greensboro","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text covers all areas of the subject appropriately and provides a good Table of Contents. At roughly 600 pages, coverage of the subject matter is extensive. There is no glossary, however, and the index is less comprehensive than I would have liked. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text has been updated (2015) from the first edition. In subject matter, the text is accurate, although there are occasional mechanical errors and typos that should have been caught.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is up to date, but will need to keep pace with evolving technology over each year. For example, the chapter containing a long discussion of mobile communication messages will need revision next year to accommodate changes in the marketplace and in the workplace. Some of the information here is basic, almost elementary, when measured against other more specialized texts. Still, it should be easy to update; discussions could be accommodated for individual audiences.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is extremely clear and compelling in its discussions of the material. Each area of the field is covered substantively and with effective examples. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Consistent in its terminology and organization. Concepts introduced early in the text and followed up in later sections of the book and built upon.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This text is already divided into small reading sections and each is numbered in a clear way, manageable online. The headings are descriptive and each section has numerous graphics, video links, and \"key takeaways\" that provide an ongoing summary of the material covered.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"The organization raised some questions. There are several chapters that could be re-arranged or collapsed and presented in a different order. \"Organization and Outlines,\" for example, is presented long after \"Revising\" and \"Presenting\" writing.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I ran across a couple of problems with connectivity or dead links. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"This is a text about business communication; the grammar is accurate and contains no errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text makes a point of being culturally inclusive, particularly since that is so important in business today. The examples are relevant and illustrative--compelling.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I would recommend this text for a course particularly in oral business communication--although it also covers writing. It has numerous helpful exercises in each chapter and ideas for further exploration of the subject matter. I didn't see any options for text banks, however; I would have liked to have additional resources for quizzes.","created_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":901,"first_name":"Carrie","last_name":"Gay","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, Richmond, VA","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is very comprehensive. Contains an vast array of business communication principles applicable to today's business environment.  However, there is no index or glossary which makes the book somewhat ineffective for quick reference points.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I found the content of the chapters accurate and up-to-date.  No grammatical errors were found.  Material appears unbiased with prejudice.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Once again, the material is up-to-date.  I enjoyed the introductory exercises and the learning objectives presented in each section.  Students know exactly what to expect in each chapter.  Easy to read and comprehend.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is well written, easy to understand.  Technical terminology was comprehendable and use of jargon was acceptable.  No errors detected.","consistency_rating":2,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent in its chapter presentations.  I appreciated the resources presented after each chapter.  Great sources of additional information if the student is interested in searching for it.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The sections were easy to read and were divided adequately.  Subunits could be reorganized and realigned if need be without too much effort.  Readers should still be able to follow printed material even if it has been rearranged.   ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"This appeared to be the weakest part of the book...the chapter arrangements.  I believed the last chapter of the book, Chapter 19, could have appeared somewhat earlier in the book.  I compared this book to a couple of others I have seen in recent years  and the flow was \"off.\"  I still say good material presented throughout, however.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Very few graphics presented in the book overall.  I clicked on several Web sites and had no interface/nor navigation issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no grammatical errors during my first reading of the material which speaks well of the book and the authors/proofreaders.  Well written sentences and paragraph structure.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I did not find the book culturally insensitive in any way.  I asked three students of Asian, Hispanic, and African-American descent to read Chapter 18, Intercultural Communication--none were offended.  ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Again, I believe the book requires an index or glossary.  These would make word or phrase searches less time-consuming.  Perhaps review the table of contents for chapter rearrangements too.","created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":951,"first_name":"Rathin","last_name":"Basu","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Ferrum College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text is quite comprehensive in its coverage of the key (and standard) topics and compares favorably with the very well known and widely used conventional text that I have been using in my Business Communications class, as well as others that I have used or reviewed  in instructing the subject over the past 20 years. The sequence of the topics is somewhat different from some of the conventional texts but, over all, the content covers all aspects expected in this subject area. However, some of the  important and fast developing and changing areas of communication which have developed in recent times (e.g. social media) and their models, challenges and impacts might have been included. They would also need to be discussed in the context of ethical communication as well. Another topic of importance that needed discussion is communication relating to applying for a job and preparing for interviews. A third aspect that I cover in my Business Communication class is formal business report writing, and this would need more coverage and even a chapter devoted to it. Despite these gaps, which are common to most current texts though, it generally covers the standard and essential areas of the subject well.  It would have been useful, especially in an introductory text such as this, to have had a comprehensive index.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content, in terms of the concepts and theories of communication, and the explanations and examples presented, is accurate and supported by citation of relevant and relatively recent sources. In addition, some of the seminal publications which may not be as recent but are essential sources are also referenced. There is no suggestion of any bias in the discussion and presentation of ideas and perspectives. It would have been helpful to have used colors or fonts in such a way that embedded active links could be clearly distinguished from  highlighted terms. Also, if what might be more completely addressed is considered under this item, then inclusion of some of the most current, dynamic and important aspects of developments in communication especially relating to  technology and society might be included.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Since the concepts and theories discussed are, in general fundamental ones, these aspects are not likely to require short-term changes. The examples used are also ones that are not  limited in time or  context and hence less susceptible to change. However, this does mean that some of the more dynamic areas of communication such as technology, social media, virtual teams might have been covered in greater depth given their increasingly important roles in communication. This is possibly the most important area that has been most dynamic in recent years and would need updating, when included. In addition, recent case studies of specific firms and incidents are one aspect that would be found in publisher based texts that open texts, by their nature, must sacrifice.  ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I found the very accessible prose and the personal and informal tone to be a particular strength of the book. Terms and jargon are explained with appropriate examples which students are generally likely to be able to relate to. In addition, not making this a reference text and overwhelming the undergraduate student with too many examples and too much detail has added to the clarity and relevance for the intended audience. The inclusion of pithy quotes, short exercises after each section, and sections and chapters which are not too long have also enhanced clarity and readability. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is internally consistent in terms of its tone, explanations, audience, and structure. In addition, the exercises have a consistency in framework and resulting time required to do them. The approach of starting sections with some questions which are then addressed with examples and explanations makes for an engaging, more Socratic and less pedantic method.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I found the breakdown of the topics into chapters and the chapters into  sections, both of which are in sizes manageable for students, to be a strength of the text. This is contrast to many available texts which  have long chapters which are dense with content, much of which is too much detail for an undergraduate  course. The relatively short modules also suggested several possible ways in which I could smoothly reorganize them and use them in a class without making the sequence seem disjointed. The text draws in outside sources rather than being self-referential. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization of the text is something that I usually find to be one that I do not stick to, even with private market texts. The organization of the current text is also one that I  would change to suit the particular circumstances of my students and institutional facilities (such as availability of the career center for mock interviews as part of course). However, with digital texts, I have had no difficulty in making the changes and even rearranging the chapters as needed. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"In general, the book  has no interface issues that I encountered, except the one that I found the use of the brown font for both terms (which were not live links) as well as live links was confusing. It would  be helpful to have the standard blue font for the live links to distinguish them. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book shows an appreciation of diversity and inclusion of various perspectives. Given the nature of the subject  matter, which calls for discussion of various cultural perspectives, this is done in an interesting way that encourages exploration. It is particularly interesting that the cultural aspects are not confined to the standard understanding of the scope of such differences (such as races, ethnicities and nationalities) but also includes artifacts and examples which students can relate to and demonstrate that cultural differences can also be local, inter-generational, etc.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I found the text to be very readable, engaging and interesting and one that I am considering adopting. I would need to draw in some current case studies that involve relevant aspects of communication as well as introduce the topics of career related planning and communication (resume, cover-letter, job-related interviews and interviewing, follow-up), as well as formal business report writing. ","created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1265,"first_name":"Catherine","last_name":"Wright","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"George Mason University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"It covers too many areas, would need to be \"chunked\" into smaller clusters.  It tries to do too much for one text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I found it to be accurate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I found it to be relevant.  Since the format of Open Textbooks allows for things to be quickly updated, anything the authors found in need could be easily changed.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The overall writing in the text is great.  Easy to read, easy to digest, easy to follow.  It’s not taxing and presents information in a way that will engage the reader.  The style is casual and informative.  I found it inviting and I believe that students will want to read the chapters assigned.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I found it to be consistent with current literature and other texts.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"It tries to cover too much in one text and would absolutely need to be made into modules.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Overall the organization is fine.  The structure of the book in its entirety is too grand.  It could/should be no less than three books.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I was easily able to gather information. I found no issues with this book.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"so far, so good ;o)","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This appeared to be fine too.  I had no complaints.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"The scope of the book, however is too broad.  I would not use it for any Business Communication class that I personally taught.  \n\nThe reason for this is that it focuses on several areas, which could not be adequately covered, or covered well, in one semester.  I believe you would be able to do all of it at a very cursory level and none of it well in order to produce informed and prepared students.  It really doesn’t cover “business.” \n\nMy recommendations for application follow:  Chapters 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 could easily be one full semester, as they focus on writing.  Chapters 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15 are another semester, as they focus on public speaking.  Chapters 16, 17, 18, and 19 are individually entire courses and almost seem extraneous here.\n\nPart of what appeals to me about Open Textbook Library is the opportunity to take a text offered and to adjust it to make it something you could use in you class.  This book has the potential to do so if the teacher reduces the number of chapters assigned during a semester.  Rather than trying to do everything adequately, teachers would need to focus on only a few chapters to use this book well.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1470,"first_name":"Brandi","last_name":"Quesenberry","position":"Advanced Instructor","institution_name":"Virginia Tech","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"Solid overview of foundations of business communication. I would prefer a more advanced textbook but this text works well for a lower level or introductory course. Broad overview of both written and oral communication considerations and best practices.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is correct and consistent with other texts.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Due to nature of subject matter, some references will become outdated. Overall examples are current and helpful.  Technology references can be easily updated due to formatting and section headings.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clear language, easy to read, relevant examples.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Accurate use of terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Divided well. Only complaint is the redundancy of information across multiple chapters.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I would prefer oral communication chapters to come before written communication. Overall, flowed well.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Well written.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Relevant and diverse examples. Good discussion of cultural differences in business setting.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Good choice for an introductory business communication class.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1478,"first_name":"Alicia","last_name":"Edwards","position":"Adjunct Professor, Business Management, Marketing and Communications","institution_name":"Northern Virginia Community College, Annadale Campus","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I was definitely impressed with the comprehensiveness Business Communication for Success.  For every concept of the author introduced, he gave context, the why and if needed consequences if the conventions are not heeded. While there is not a glossary or an index, he does provide additional resources after each chapter. \n\nEach chapter is effectively mapped out with subheadings so you could easily find the topic that you need.  Because of this attention to detail, I can envision this book being an excellent resource for an entry level junior manager or a refresher for a seasoned professional as their communication needs evolve throughout their career.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"In general, I felt that the author did pretty balanced job of avoiding stereotypes and clichés. He used a variety of quotes from people with origins in all parts of the world and historical periods. \n\nI was disappointed with the slang used in Chapter 2's introductory exercises. The words used were outdated at the least and mildly offensive. All 10 examples of page 35, appeared to be derived from African American slang...certainly not inclusive. The population that attends NOVACC are very diverse culturally and linguistically so this would not go over well.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"This book was written in 2010 and focused more on written and verbal communication.  Social media is not addressed but text, email, and netiquette were briefly touched upon. The information is still current and accurate but clearly lends itself to frequent updates. Since the bulk of business communication is online now, I would like to see at least full chapter dedicated to texting, email and internet communication. The way the book is laid out, this could be can easy addition. \n\n\nSocial Media is now an integral part of business communication internally and externally but it is STILL treated as an afterthought or footnote in academia. While not every platform is mainstream, the ones that are increasingly used in professional settings certainly need to be taught at the collegiate level in a comprehensive manner. LinkedIN, Twitter, Instagram and to some extent Pinterest have proven their marketing prowess and are structured enough to teach the business applications.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The concepts that text introduces are consistent within each chapter and throughout the book as a whole. Other than expanding on email/text and internet communications and including social media, I did not see any gaps in knowledge.\n\nSince I did read the book on Apple device, Apple has built in technology that is helpful. For example, the book reference Aristotle and his concept of \"ethos\".  While I knew he was from ancient Greece, I used the lookup feature on his name to fill in the historical timeframe that helped me fully understand what may have shaped his views.  The look-up feature took me to several books, wesbites and a Wikipedia page.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The concepts that text introduces are consistent within each chapter and throughout the book as a whole. Other than expanding on email/text and internet communications and including social media, I did not see any gaps in knowledge.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Each chapter is effectively mapped out with subheadings so you could easily find the topic that you need.  Because of this attention to detail, I can envision this book being an excellent resource for an entry level junior manager or a refresher for a seasoned professional as their communications needs evolve throughout their career. \n\nWhile the book flows well from start to finish, the chapters and subheading are very specific and are quickly referencable. I read the book on my Ipad and I easily bookmarked pages when and highlight notes as needed. \nEach section can be understood independently, I didn't find myself having to reference previous chapters to make sense to the  current one. \n\nI downloaded the entire book as a PDF. It would be nice to have the option to download sections as needed.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Each chapter is effectively mapped out with subheadings so you could easily find the topic that you need.  Because of this attention to detail, I can envision this book being an excellent resource for an entry level junior manager or a refresher for a seasoned professional as their communications needs evolve throughout their career. \n\nWhile the book flows well from start to finish, the chapters and subheading are very specific and are quickly referencable. I read the book on my Ipad and I easily bookmarked pages when and highlight notes as needed. \nEach section can be understood independently, I didn't find myself having to reference previous chapters to make sense to the current one. \n\nI downloaded the entire book as a PDF. It would be nice to have the option to download sections as needed.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The interface is very basic but effective. I read the book on my Ipad within the iBooks platform.  I quickly find the section I wanted and go straight to whatever page I wanted.  There are a lot of links to internet sites, I referenced quite a few and they seemed to load up quickly.\n\nThe charts and pictures that are included are without distortions.  However, I would like to see more videos and visuals.  Since readers will most likely reference this book from a laptop/phone or tablet, the assumption is that they would be able to seamlessly go from reading the material to answering the discussions via BlackBoard or whatever learning software their school adopts.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The author took the time to edit very well.  I didn't see any glaring errors of any kind.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"In general, I felt that the author did pretty balanced job of avoiding stereotypes and clichés. He used a variety of quotes from people with origins in all parts of the world and historical periods. \n\nI was disappointed with the slang used in Chapter 2's introductory exercises. The words used were outdated at the least and mildly offensive. All 10 examples of page 35, appeared to be derived from African American slang...certainly not inclusive. The population that attends NOVACC are very diverse culturally and linguistically so this would not go over well. \n\nSince slang and pop culture are moving targets, I would have eliminated that exercise completely and let the students self-direct this exercise by sharing slang words in their own language with the class.  I would further reinforce the exercise by letting students that speak the same language but are from different countries share words that differ within their culture.  I would also have them give examples of how they would speak around their peers, parents, and elders to drill down appropriateness and context.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Each chapter is effectively mapped out with subheadings so you could easily find the topic that you need.  Because of this attention to detail, I can envision this book being an excellent resource for an entry level junior manager or a refresher for a seasoned professional as their communications needs evolve throughout their career. \n\nThe concepts that text introduces are consistent within each chapter and throughout the book as a whole. Other than expanding on email/text and internet communications and including social media, I did not see any gaps in knowledge. This book was written in 2010 and focused more on written and verbal communication.  Social media is not addressed but text, email, and netiquette were briefly touched upon. The information is still current and accurate but clearly lends itself to frequent updates. Since the bulk of business communication is online now, I would like to see at least full chapter dedicated to texting, email and internet communication. The way the book is laid out, this could be can easy addition. \n\nSocial Media is now an integral part of business communication internally and externally but it is STILL treated as an afterthought or footnote in academia. While not every platform is mainstream, the ones that are increasingly used in professional settings certainly need to be taught at the collegiate level in a comprehensive manner. LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and to some extent Pinterest have proven their marketing prowess and are structured enough to teach the basic business applications. \n\nSince readers will most likely reference this book from a laptop/phone or tablet, the assumption is that they would be able to seamlessly go from reading the material to answering the discussions via BlackBoard or whatever learning software their school adopts. \n\nIn general, I felt that the author did a pretty balanced job of avoiding stereotypes and clichés. He used a variety of quotes from people with origins in all parts of the world and historical periods. \n\nI was disappointed with the slang used in Chapter 2's introductory exercises. The words used were outdated at the least and mildly offensive. All 10 examples of page 35, appeared to be derived from African American slang...certainly not inclusive. The population that attends NOVACC are very diverse culturally and linguistically so this would not go over well. Since slang and pop culture are moving targets, I would have eliminated that exercise completely and let the students self-direct this exercise by sharing slang words in their own language with the class.  I would further reinforce the exercise by letting students that speak the same language but are from different countries share words that differ within their culture.  I would also have them give examples of how they would speak around their peers, parents, and elders to drill down appropriateness and context.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2158,"first_name":"Shannon","last_name":"Breske","position":"Assistant Teaching Professor","institution_name":"University of Missouri","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Business Communication for Success provides an overview of the main areas of communication and highlights additional resources at the end of each chapter. When reviewing other texts, this text is consistent with topic areas covered. The text is organized well and can be navigated seamlessly with how each section is labeled. Students found this text easy to use, comprehend, and then able to apply knowledge to their assignments and in-class work.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate. Consistent topics covered in Business Communication in Success text compared to other Business Communication texts. Some references, activities, and examples could be updated to provide a more inclusive tone.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The text is up to date but could include more details on how to communicate using social media platforms as well as customer relationship management (CRM) software. Could add the importance of how to successfully develop a communication plan using CRM.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Easy to read, understand, and apply. Students found it easy to read the chapters and comprehend.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent with other texts and current literature. Liked how the earlier concepts are built upon in later chapters.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text covers a lot of information however it is easily divided into subsections and does a nice job highlighting the important pieces in each area. Organized extremely well and easy to navigate through the online text.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Great job on the organization of the text. Found it clear and logical.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is basic but functional and meets the needs of the user.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Well written. I did not find any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Some references, activities, and examples could be updated to provide a more inclusive tone.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Great text! I use for 400+ students in an introductory course, and it is a great option. I supplemented additional information for class materials but overall extremely satisfied with text.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2222,"first_name":"Margarette","last_name":"Connor","position":"Adjunct Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Lehman College/CUNY","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text covers all the areas I would want to cover in my 300-level business writing class, including non-verbal communications and international communications, two topics I find are often underrepresented in many texts. Very clear and comprehensive table of contents facilitates use.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I've read a good portion of the book and find it accurate and error-free. Excellent quality.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"I have been teaching business writing for over 20 years, and while the methods of communication have changed, how we write hasn't really. This book is certainly up to date, but not so much so that it will be obsolete within the next few years. \n\nI would have liked to have seen a little more on online writing--blogs, websites, digital white papers--because while we can always upload a PDF of a traditional report to a website, many Millenials read differently and have different expectations of what they will read on the internet. This might be my personal soapbox, though, and the materials here can be easily adapted.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I very much like the writing in this book as I find it clear and to the point, much more so than the text I had been previously using. I think my students will find this more accessible. My students are mostly junior or senior business majors, and while there is jargon in the text, by this point, this is part of my students' professional vocabulary, so nothing that I find alienating for students. \n\nMany of my students like pared down yet comprehensive texts, and I think they'd like this. They don't like to \"waste\" time with \"unnecessary\" material.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Very good job with consistency.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of the text is very well done. As I was reading it, I had the feeling that my students would find this easier to access than our current text. I can already see the course syllabus falling into place. Although I see myself changing the order of the text, I think jumping through the book will be quite easy.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The flow of the chapters is clear and logical, and while I'd change things, isn't that what we do as professors? I've never used a text book as if it were a novel.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Clear, easy to use. I've used other online texts, and I found this one to be very user friendly.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I am a stickler for grammar, and I found no errors in my reading. That's sadly rare!","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"There was nothing culturally insensitive or offensive in the parts of the text I read, which was much.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I am definitely adopting this book for my business writing course next term. It has everything my students need from a text at a price they can afford. That has been a problem for many. I actually like this text better as I think it's clearer and easier to follow. Excellent choice for an upper level business writing course.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2376,"first_name":"Jason","last_name":"Harper","position":"Senior Lecturer and International Coordinator","institution_name":"Fort Hays State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The contents do offer instructors a comprehensive list of key writing areas that should be covered in a college writing class. For example, it includes\r\ntopics like writing styles, active reading, writing a summary, and assessing writing situations to more practical areas like conventions, revision, and checklists. It also includes discussions on common challenges for multilingual and ESL writers from diverse backgrounds. Perhaps an instructor might see these as good guideposts, yet this reviewer believes that supplemental materials will be needed for a more in-depth and detailed coverage of these areas. Overall, the text is useful as a starting point for teaching to her/his strengths and contexts.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"One of the outstanding strengths that this textbook offers is its lack of bias. The coverage given to the writing process and its practices is also particularly good -- something not often included in business communication-related texts. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Coverage of text messages, E-mail, and how social customs influence the ways we interact with each other in the online environment will not be difficult to update, as these norms and mores are changing by the minute. As these change, this textbook can still apply as strong beginning points for discussion in class.\r\n","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Overall, a detailed process of business communication is shown in readable and clear style. Vocabulary and terminology is covered and there are avenues for instructors to add on.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Business Communication for Success is a consistent collection of significant skill sets accented by \"Key Takeaways\" that correlate well with the topic at hand. The book’s use of multiple sub-chapters helps to make the textbook much more detailed. While at times the bland blocks of content may render the page a bore, the instructor can breathe life into what is considered by many to be a dull subject. The creators' knowledge of the topic is obvious throughout the book. The credibility of the content is strengthened by the consistency.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The orderliness of the book conforms to an academic curriculum. While the chapters create neat packages, some skills to be taught can be better covered by the instructor creating additions to the chapter or by adding additional sections. Overall, the textbook provides well-organized material and content, which is held well by clear chapter numbers. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization of the book lends itself well to the study of business communication. Each chapter is broken down into sections, which typically fit logically into the topic of the chapter. All chapters are composed of several defining parts that maintain a sense of continuity throughout the volume. The Key Takeaways\" sections leads refers well back to the introduction and the chapter goals. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"With so few graphics in the book overall, display features are subsequently not so much of an issue. Within the text of the chapter, there are at times photo boxes that assist the learner in understanding particular points. Unfortunately, the open-sourced photos may also confuse readers when they are not as well-paired as a paid photo might have been. Navigation is not at all difficult, as the chapters are clearly segmented and there is a drop-down \"Contents\" bar for finding other sections fast. However, the textbook's overall appearance is quite bland.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"It's refreshing to see a textbook so carefully edited. Once a textbook is provided to students, a certain expectation of correctness and clarity is expected, and cleanly\r\nedited chapters must be in place when teaching the units and individual lessons. This does not mean that the opportunity for learning about errors is lost -- even\r\nthe cleanest of texts might still contain a hiccup here or there. Yet, with the goal being teaching toward the learning needs of the students in our classrooms, we\r\neducators need to set good examples for those educational needs and show, not tell, good grammar, without losing sight of the end goal.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Chapter 18 is pretty in-depth about the intercultural/international aspect. While certainly not comprehensive, variety of races, ethnicity, and backgrounds is addressed in general terms in Chapter 18 as strong beginning points for discussion in class. As stated as a Key Takeaway in 18.3, \"All cultures have characteristics such as initiations, traditions, history, values and principles, purpose, symbols, and boundaries,\" and the instructor could certainly work with the class to develop how this applies or cold apply in different contexts.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-11-12T16:03:29.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-11-12T16:03:29.000-06:00"},{"id":2380,"first_name":"George","last_name":"Boone","position":"Visiting Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Augustana College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Overall, the book covers a wide range of topics. However, it offers breadth over depth, which is fine for an introductory business communication course. It lacks an index section, however, so unless your students know how to search a PDF for information, they might run into trouble searching for specific information.\r\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book provided very accurate overviews of different theories and positions on communication.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The book had multiple examples, although some of the references might feel a bit dated for our students (ie. the Bush examples, for instance). However, the author could easily update the examples with more recent events.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book was very clear and easy to understand.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book has the strong ability to present multiple ideas relevant to business communication (and its underlying communication research) without getting lost in the theoretical differences that might go along with these different perspectives. Ultimately, those looking for a deeper theoretical look at the book will need to look elsewhere. More pragmatically oriented classes, however, will benefit from this instructional approach.\r\n","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book has nice chapter and section breakdowns with clear headings and effective demarcations.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book needs a bit more explicit logic to chapter order. As a reader, I do not have a clear sense as to why chapters appear in a particular order. Perhaps overall chapter groups or headings might help resolve this issue.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface for the book has no issues that I noticed.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammar issues.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not notice any particularly offensive texts or ideas.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Overall, the book provides a strong and pragmatic approach to communication in business and workplace contexts. I would gladly adopt it as a general text for a low-level 100 or 200 level course. Teachers looking for more in depth analysis of studies or more theory-driven analysis, however, might find the book lacking.","created_at":"2018-11-13T14:35:30.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-11-13T14:35:30.000-06:00"},{"id":2381,"first_name":"Kara","last_name":"Wicklund","position":"Instructor, Lead Instructional Designer","institution_name":"Bethel University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book covers almost of all the topics I need to cover in my Business Communication course. The index is clear and easy to navigate, and the chapters are clearly labeled. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This textbook is error-free and accurate. It handles informative text with clarity and analyzes communication problems by applying concepts, without leaning too much on a specific bias.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content in this text is specific and clear, and it it up-to-date. It is general enough, however, that it should remain generally relevant for several years. Some sections discuss the use of written and/or electronic communication, noting the prevalence (in percentages) of these communication forms in certain settings. These details may change or become outdated over time, but the general topic will likely remain relevant.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The clarity of this text is one of its strongest features. New vocabulary works are typed in bold and defined as well as supported with examples and/or cases to illustrate their context. Paragraphs are well-structured and easy to read, and sentence flow is easy for readers.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text adheres to the same structure throughout each chapter. Concepts are referred to and applied in consistent ways throughout the text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Modularity is another great strength of this text. It is easy to assign chapters and sections out of order, avoid a section, or substitute a section for another resource due to the self-sufficiency of the sections. Sections generally begin, develop, and wrap up concepts clearly within each section so students don't need to rely on other chapters/sections in the text to further explain the topic.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"While I did not utilize the sections in this book the way the chapters are organized, they do seem organized overall in a logical fashion. Within the chapters, the information is laid out in a clear manner. Typically the chapters begin with basic concepts and vocabulary and then proceed to application. In some chapters, there are cases for students to read about, as well. This progression seems very effective for readers.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"This book is very easy to navigate. The chapters are easy to locate and the images and text display well on screens.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There were no grammatical errors in this text.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This text has a strong focus toward the end of the book on culture and communication. In addition to handing interpersonal communication dynamics, the book includes a chapter regarding Intercultural and International Business Communication. This chapter explores cultural characteristics of communication and how these characteristics impact communication, both personally and in the workplace.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-11-13T16:03:05.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-11-13T16:03:05.000-06:00"},{"id":2562,"first_name":"Cara","last_name":"Chang","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Leeward Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook was comprehensive in the sense that it covers broad concepts in communication and then narrows down specifically to business writing and oral communication.  This semester, when I used part of this textbook for my business writing class, I had to find and create more examples for my students to view and analyze.  Though the content in this text is good, I wish more examples were given in this textbook.  \r\n\r\nFurthermore, though this textbook does explain how to write a resume, memo, letter, business proposal, and report, it does not include any information on how to improve writing style or mechanics.  If my students needed help with grammar, they would need to consult other resources for this.\r\n\r\nThere wasn’t an index or glossary, but there was a Table of Contents, which made it easy to navigate.\r\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This text was unbiased and free from error.  It covered a range of topics in a consistent manner.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"I do think the information in this text is relevant.  However, I did wish there were sections on other types of business writing.  In my classes, I had my students create a website and blog, which to me, are important parts of business writing.  Chapter 9, which shows Business Writing in Action covers other parts of business writing, which I taught and assigned to my students, but I also told students that blogging and creating a website are also important parts of maintaining a business.  In this digital age, more topics related to online writing is necessary.  It would be an easy addition.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written in lucid, accessible prose.  It would be appropriate for many different audiences: a business writing class, an oral communication class, etc.  ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This text was consistent in terminology and framework.  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"When teaching with this text, I had an easy time breaking up information and chunking it into sections that made it easy for my students to digest.  I was also able to breakup information and organize in a way that best fit the flow and schedule of my teaching. The Table of Contents/headings made it easy to see how the text is organized, so anyone who wants to jump around and customize their teaching is able to.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The structure of the text is presented in a logical and clear fashion.  It begins by explaining what effective business communication is and then moves to identifying what effective business writing looks like.  Next, the text explains how to write different forms of business writing, clarifies different presentation strategies, and explores group communication.  ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"This book is easy to navigate with clear headings.  There was no problems accessing the text and viewing the images.  ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The book is not insensitive or offensive to any cultures, but it does not have many references to various races, cultures, etc.  Incorporating different examples could be especially important in the International and Intercultural Business Communication chapter.  ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The main page states that the textbook is available in multiple formats, but I was only able to access it as a Pressbook and as a PDF.  I do feel that more images and media can be added.  ","created_at":"2019-02-10T19:05:19.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-02-10T19:05:19.000-06:00"},{"id":2703,"first_name":"Bonnie","last_name":"Buchanan","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"OhioLink","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"From A to Z, the main communication topics and concepts are covered in this text. From the basics of the communications model to group work effectiveness, this book has the components to teach students important skills they will need in the business environment.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I was not able to find inaccurate information, based upon my background and ares of expertise. Information was accurate, supported and relevant to the subject.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Business communications, different speeches with different areas of focus and team work skills will always be relevant. Didn't see enough information on distance/telecommuting and communicating via video.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text was written in a very straight-forward fashion and should be easily understood by most college students.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The activities and assignments found in each chapter are great and easy for students to quickly find. They are consistent among each chapter and offer relevant activities to reinforce learning.\r\nThe text chapters were consistent in their layout, form and function.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Well-organized, easy to navigate and aligned with chapter objectives in a consistent fashion.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Topics are well-presented and done so in a logical format/layout. The topics/chapters flow nicely from one to the next.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I found all links working properly and all images used supported the subject and topics in the text.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Well-written, concise and succinct text. Free of major grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not find the text offensive or insensitive and found it to include a variety of examples so that no one group might feel excluded or offended.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I really enjoyed reviewing this text and think that countless students can benefit from the information and concepts it contains. From the basics, to targeted speech formats, all areas vital to good business communication skills are covered.\r\nI would have liked to have seen a formal proposal chapter, but overall, I would recommend this book for business programs and courses that want to engage students and teach them important skills vital to their success.","created_at":"2019-03-28T13:33:33.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-03-28T13:33:33.000-05:00"},{"id":2904,"first_name":"Shawn","last_name":"Gilmore","position":"Senior Lecturer","institution_name":"University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text descriptively covers nearly all the requisite topics and subtopics under the banner \"business communication,\" as well as a number of related rhetorical and conceptual approaches that are fairly typical in the field. The text is divided into fairly compartmentalized chapters, which could be selectively assigned, but this leads to some issues of repetition across the full book, as well as some difficulty finding specific material. The text does not contain an index, though the table of contents is good, and the full text is searchable.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Most of the descriptive material is quite good, succinct, and explanatory, making it pretty easy to follow. The prose is fairly conversational, which makes some of it dated (slang from the mid-2000s, for example), but allows for the conceptual and practical material to shine. Most of the content appears clear and accurate, if sometimes selective.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Some aspects of the text are dated by their cultural and technological references--this is a perennial issue for texts that describe how to use specific software, document types and methods, etc. None of these passages seemed debilitating, and could likely be avoided by assigning chapters or sections selectively across the text.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is clearly written throughout, relying on a few pages of prose per section, which are well-segmented, and followed by \"key takeaway\" boxes and exercises. Jargon is used selectively and well-explained.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The text is presented in a consistent fashion, but varies in terms of depth and type. The sections on business communication and approaches are clearest and most consistent. Those on rhetorical approaches and issues vary from rhetorical theory to interpersonal analysis and considerations, which makes them feel a bit more scattered.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is quite modular, and selections or chapters could easily be grouped for different teaching purposes/approaches.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The text takes nearly a hundred pages to really get to writing and communication specifics, and it is not entirely clear why some (of the 19) chapters appear where they do. This might be to allow individual instructors a good deal of flexibility, but it also might leave some a bit at sea.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"This might be the text's weakest point. The text is well-formatted and presented, but it is a lot of repetitive-looking material, with little breaking up the few formatting and interface choices that have been made. This is alleviated in other texts by the inclusion of example documents--which are very rare here--or by varying page layouts. Students and instructors alike might find it hard to parse some of the more visually-similar passages, though there are some tables and images periodically that help.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There were no significant or glaring grammatical issues.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Efforts seem to have been made to include a variety of cultural inclusion as appropriate. However, this text might need more framing for students for whom English is not their primary language, or who have been educated in other systems/backgrounds.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is an easy text to recommend for more experienced instructors, as they may have assignments, exercises, and example documents already at hand. However, glaringly, this textbook doesn't quite have enough material to be as comprehensive as I would have liked, though it does include exercises after each section. This may depend on the other course materials already in play, and the text would serve very well in most business writing courses, given the right conditions.","created_at":"2019-05-14T13:04:32.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-05-14T13:04:32.000-05:00"},{"id":2976,"first_name":"Miriam","last_name":"Gershow","position":"Senior Instructor II","institution_name":"University of Oregon","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Covers a broad array of business communication topics, from foundations of language, audience and rhetoric to common types of written and verbal business communications.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Does an accurate job describing norms and responsibilities for different types of business communication tasks.  ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The real challenge is to stay up to date with technology. References to MySpace and parenthetical explanations of terms such as LOL date the information.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The prose is accessible and clear.  Many of the Learning Objectives and Key Takeaways suggest an introductory-level rather than upper-level course.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The framework is clear and consistent throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"In considering this text for a Business Writing course, there are clearly chapters and sections that can be parted out for that purpose alone.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"As with the consistency, the organization of material is intuitive, clear, and a strength of this text.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I read this book on two different devices, and the interface was clear on both.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No notable errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I was glad to see that inter- and intra-cultural communication was addressed throughout the book, not relegated only to the second-to-last chapter.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2019-06-06T10:47:02.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-06-06T10:47:02.000-05:00"},{"id":3697,"first_name":"Amanda","last_name":"Carpenter","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"John Tyler Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text was exceptionally well written and very comprehensive. The author was very eloquent in the way that they explained the content. The text covered critical topics for business communication. The book includes learning resources and activities included. An index or glossary would have been beneficial to the reader.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The text was timely and accurately overviewed of jobs in communication as well as an overview of business norms.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content of the text is still relevant today. The text could benefit from a section related to social media usage for businesses. The digital age requires this for those in business communications.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book was well-written and concise. I was unable to get the search option to work on my Kindle.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I found no inconsistencies in the textbook.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This text is easy to sort into modules for course instruction. I could use the groupings of this text in my course.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Overall, the text was well organized and flowed well.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I had issues using the search option within Kindle with this text. It would be great if that function could be enabled.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The text was well written, and I found no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text is culturally relevant and would be very useful in business communication courses.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This text is an excellent resource for communications instructors.","created_at":"2020-03-30T15:33:54.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-03-30T15:33:54.000-05:00"},{"id":3748,"first_name":"Megan","last_name":"Fitzmaurice","position":"Adjunct Assistant Professor","institution_name":"University of Texas at Arlington","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook address written, oral, nonverbal and interpersonal communication at large. Many business communication textbooks focus solely on written and oral communication, so including these other dimensions brings an important nuance to this subject. It also includes the foundational chapters for some of the most common business communication assignments: writing preparation, composition, and revision, business, delivering negative news, team communication, business presentations, etc.  \r\n\r\nNote: no index or glossary is provided.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Overall, I found no major inaccuracies in the book’s content. Chapter 2’s discussion about the parts of a message though is quite confusing – it is hard to discern what type of messages it is referring to. At some points in the section it seems like they are discussing formal written communication and speeches, while at other times any general kind of message. It isn’t well connected to the rest of the chapter and the explanation is not thorough enough. In general, I think this chapter could better connect fundamental theories about language to the business sphere specifically.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Like any textbook, incorporating technological advancements is a double-edged sword.  Ignoring it is foolish, but discussion surrounding specific technologies is often obsolete by the time the book is published. I thought they did a great job not making and part of the text centered on specific technologies, but focused on timeless business communication principles. This should keep the book up to date for sometime.  \r\n\r\nSome of the included discussion questions are a little outdated. While the content in this textbook is really strong, the included learning exercises and discussion prompts are less helpful. For example, chapter 2 begins with a vocab-matching exercise that includes words such as “phat,” “ player,” “hooptie,” etc.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The language used in this textbook is very accessible for undergraduate students from a wide range of academic backgrounds. It does not assume a student has taken a communication course before, so I think it would work for a general education course. It also ties in theories and vocabulary from many subsets of communication (rhetoric, organizational communication, interpersonal communication, etc.) so it could also be a good choice for classes directed at communication majors.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The chapters are all organized in parallel structure and engage the same terminology. Specifically, chapters 4-7 build on each other and provide a consistent vocabulary and framework through which to teach writing as a process, not a product.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Chapters 1-15 could easily be grouped into three modules: Introduction to Communication, Writing in Business Settings, and Speaking in Business Settings. Chapters 16-19 are a little bit of a grab-bag with regard to their topics. I would think Chapter 17: Negative News and Crisis Communication would be better placed after Chapter 14: Presentations to Persuade. I think having overarching modules would help learners better understand the skills and objectives to be learned through the textbook.  Within each chapter though are very distinct sub-sections that do help with modularity, allowing you to easily break up a chapter's reading over the course of a week.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Chapters are well structured. Each one begins with a brief introduction, and then is followed by several subsections. Each subsection starts with clear learning objectives, followed by the main content, key takeaways, and then learning exercises.  While acquiring images is a challenge for all open-source textbooks, this one seems particularly text heavy. More charts and diagrams would help with readability.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I read through the book using both a PDF on a computer screen. The text was clear and easy to read. One thing that would be helpful would be including page numbers with the internal hyperlinks – the PDF did not allow me to just click on the blue links that would take the reader to other parts of the textbook (i.e., “Note 2.1 “Introductory Exercises”).  \r\n\r\nSome charts and graphs are fuzzy, while others could be adjusted for better formatting. For example, the chart on pg. 60 has the last 1-2 letters of the word listed on the subsequent line for several entries. This same issue was not apparent when I looked through the chapter on UMN’s website, so it may be an issue limited to the PDF version of the book.  \r\n\r\nI was impressed that the hyperlinks to additional resources at the end of each chapter were still active. The book does provide a good number of articles and websites at the end of each chapter for review.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Very small issue, but the references at the end of the chapters need to be reformatted with a hanging indent and consistent margins. Otherwise, I found no glaring grammatical errors or typos.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book does do a really good job of incorporating a diverse range of experiences and perspectives. The authors have successfully worked to provide a global perspective on business communication. Rather than just incorporating snippets or vignettes in a couple chapters, they actually have a whole chapter dedicated to intercultural and international communication. Moreover, diversity is not just conceived of in racial or ethnic terms, but the authors make sure to incorporate identity topics related to gender, sexuality, age, and disability as well.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, I would definitely consider using this textbook in my Professional and Technical Communication course. The textbook covers all major aspects of business communication – writing, speaking, and team communication, in addition to other important elements like interpersonal communication and nonverbal communication. The book is accessible for an undergraduate audience and uses engaging and relatable examples throughout the text. Each chapter is well organized with distinct subsections which would give the instructor flexibility in how they wanted to assign the text. The drawbacks to using this text include a lack of supplemental teaching resources, minimal graphics in the text, and lackluster chapter exercises. Given students’ preference to learn through group interaction and discussion anyways, these are drawbacks easily made up for in the classroom.","created_at":"2020-04-22T09:30:33.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-04-22T09:30:33.000-05:00"},{"id":3764,"first_name":"Adam","last_name":"Falik","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"SUNO","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The greatest asset of this book (and occasionally its weakness) is its attempt to be all encompassing.  It definitely seeks comprehensiveness, to introduce a complete spectrum of business communication methodology.  This is often effective.  The book begins linguistically, introducing concepts of language and communication, shifts to audience and tone before touching upon actual writing.  The move to presentation and group dynamics is in keeping with the wide-spectrum the book covers.  Sometimes, though, this attempt at comprehensiveness results in the book being dilettantish.  I am interested in this book as a textbook for a class in Professional and Technical Writing.  My review should be seen through that lens.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate enough, though sometimes thin.  In Chapter 9: Business Writing in Action, for instance: What is provided is accurate, just somewhat inadequate.  9.2 covers Memos and Letters, but there are many types of business memos/letters.  A more thorough exploration per section (instead of, for example, Section 6.3 Making an Argument then much later Section 17.2 Delivering a Negative News Message) would have been welcome.  Again, the content is accurate, but it is necessary to hop, skip and jump around to make use of this book.  Also, there is a serious lack of examples in this book.  Show us some actual business letters, reports, etc.  This is a serious deficiency.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This book needs updating to more thoroughly address evolutions in technologies.  Business communications are (obviously) more digital than ever.  It would be a service for this book to reflect more current communications, including how social media plays in the contemporary cultural and business landscape.  As I write this review from the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, Zoom and Skype meetings reign.  Let’s see an exploration of these types of presentation environments.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing of this book is clear and accessible.  There are, in fact, gems of writing to be found throughout.  Section 4.4 Style in Written Communication, for instance.  Here concepts of communication are clearly articulated enough to additionally demonstrate how writing inaccuracies leads to business miscommunications.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent in its style, framework, and the rhythms of its language.  It does, occasionally, repeat itself.  Section 6.3 Making an Argument repeats itself (not just in ideas, but in complete pages) in Chapter 14.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"There is a dependable structural modularity.  A student can expect not only a clear, steady framework of Objectives, Takeaways and Exercises, but, most valuably, thorough chapter Reference sections.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"This is one of my chief issues with this book (besides the lack of practical workplace examples).  The book is big and exploratory, but will require (for my purposes) a great deal of jumping around to make use of.   I do not love its organization.  Though it does build logically, many of its integral concepts are scattered throughout the book’s many chapters.  The lack of index also weighs heavily.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Because this book requires a great deal of jumping around, I wish the interface was a little friendlier, more convenient.  Internal, conceptual links would have been welcome.  As certain ideas are linked (to inform, to persuade), internal links would have been appreciated.  I often find myself having to scroll back to Contents.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"This is a well-written and clear book without major grammatical issues.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Much like its technological relevancy, our culture shifts too quickly to give this book the highest marks.  Though Chapter 18: Intercultural and International Business Communications is welcome, it does not address the truly identity-charged workplace atmosphere.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I will give this book a try for a Professional Writing class.  I am curious to see what students make of it.  I find it too expansive, its attempt to be all-encompassing creating qualitative and theoretical deficiencies, and its lack of actual workplace examples a serious deficit, but it does make easy access to core principles in accessible language.  A final (negative) comment: The Exercises are often laughable.  Their vagueness is connected to the book’s overall lack of practical workplace examples.  If the student cannot see an example of how an actual business letter (for instance) is written, how can the book offer practical exercises that can be visualized?  Though the book covers a great deal, an instructor had better be prepared to provide their own examples.","created_at":"2020-04-27T10:53:47.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-04-27T10:53:47.000-05:00"},{"id":3917,"first_name":"Alison","last_name":"Schirone","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Roxbury Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I used this book for a recently business communications course.  Generally speaking, the book had all the requisite basics of business communications.  I added a few modules to address today's social mediums in more detail.  A great free text, would have loved to have some supporting materials; test modules, ppt slides.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Highly accurate, may be due for an update soon, just to bring things more current to how today's business communicators operate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I studied business communications many moons ago.  Some aspects of it have not changed since then; but we do have more social business communications mediums.  The book can easily adapt to incorporation of more social communications mediums.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Appropriate for first year and beyond college students and community college students and/or management trainees.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Loved the questions prior to the start of the chapters; I often used them for class discussions and prompts.  Good review of important aspects of each chapter.  Good homework assignment ideas.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"I mostly covered the chapters in order.  Some I put more emphasis on; others I slid through speedily.  For example, I did not spend as much time on International Business Communications.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Foundation chapters first; easy to apply those concepts to all other chapters that follow.  I integrated some of the more current business communications tools like Linked In, resume building, and more in the writing sections.  I had students who were preparing for the workplace so it was a practical diversion from the text.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"There were some useful bits that I wanted to use as handouts but the copying of those items were a bit fussy.  Perhaps consider a collection of handouts/electronic worksheets?","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Ethnicity/race neutral.  We had a great collection of people from diverse backgrounds in my course when I used this book, so we were able to apply some of the cultural communications ideas into discussion and assignment.  I do think that perhaps some of the aspects of diversity could be updated to better reflect today's issues and people.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I did enjoy using it.  I would have liked to see more updated business communications methods in use today, especially social mediums.   I would have liked to see a workbook or case to be worked throughout the term.  Slides would have been a plus!  Overall, I enjoyed using it and it was my first OER text.","created_at":"2020-06-04T19:19:23.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-04T19:19:23.000-05:00"},{"id":4059,"first_name":"Kathleen","last_name":"Berry","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Massasoit Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all areas of the subject appropriately.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I found very few typos.  The information was clearly unbiased.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Although the book was updated last year, I think it could use a little updating in both photos and information.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Any jargon that may have been used was explained thoroughly.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The information is consistent.  However, it is duplicated in many chapters.","modularity_rating":2,"modularity_review":"Most of the book is strictly text with limited images.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The book is organized in a clear fashion. However, when I used it, I did teach out of order.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text does not indicate any interface issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not find any culturally offensive material.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I would have liked to see more information about diversity and inclusion in the textbook. \r\nThe pre- and post- exercises in each chapter were beneficial.\r\nStudents would have preferred a way to annotate the textbook when reading it.","created_at":"2020-06-23T17:07:57.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-23T17:07:57.000-05:00"},{"id":4101,"first_name":"Katherine","last_name":"Hatzis","position":"Senior Lecturer II","institution_name":"University of Massachusetts Boston","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covers everything that one would want to teach in a business communication course.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"As far as I could tell the book is accurate and free of error and biases.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The book is up to date and it can be easily updated in the future.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing is clear and it does not use difficult language so this text would be appropriate for ESL or International business students as well.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I enjoyed the fact that the book used the same format throughout. It started with learning objectives and ended with takeaways and exercises.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text was well divided into smaller sections which can help when assigning reading homework.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book was well organized and straightforward. I like that it has a table of contents which helps with reading through the material.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The book's interface was fine. I just wished it was linked at the bottom of the page rather than having to constantly to go back to the main menu to go be able to move and read the next section or chapter. I had to keep going back to the main menu when I wanted to go to the next section of the same chapter. I think it would have been easier if it had a link at the end of the section that connected the next section.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammar errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book appears to be culturally neutral.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Overall it is a good general Business Communication textbook and it has a lot to offer. This is a textbook that I am going to incorporate into my courses.  The only thing that I didn't like was navigating through the textbook.","created_at":"2020-06-27T06:41:54.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-27T06:41:54.000-05:00"},{"id":4516,"first_name":"Dee","last_name":"Fretwell","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Southern Oregon University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The subject is well covered for the introduction to Business Communication, with a gap in addressing very specific etiquette around professional communication via digital formats, such as emails, project management software, etc. until mid-way through the book.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Quite on point! I was impressed with the direct nature of the content and the broad audience types the curriculum was trying to reach.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Nicely written for readers of all ages from many backgrounds.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clean, concise and grammatically on point.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"I noted no inconsistencies.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Chapters were broken up nicely with graphics and such, allowing the reader to not fatigue as quickly as they might otherwise.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Pretty well done, with a request to begin examples of proper business writings earlier in the chapters.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Easy, clean and totally relevant.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Great!","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Seemed appropriate to me!","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Well done! Will likely use next term!!","created_at":"2021-01-05T11:36:42.000-06:00","updated_at":"2021-01-05T11:36:42.000-06:00"},{"id":4697,"first_name":"Sharon","last_name":"McDermot","position":"Business Adjunct","institution_name":"Northern Essex Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is very comprehensive but I wish there were more coverage of business writing in different modalities.  They do touch on texting and email but I think there needs to be more information on those subjects.  The book does discuss business presentations and audiences which is great.  I would also like to see more real life exercises to use with students.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I did not see any inaccuracy.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This book was written in 2015.  Many things have changed in business communication.  I would like to see it updated to include the use of social media in business and how important that can be to the success of a business.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The book had good clarity.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text was consistent with terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is easily broken up into smaller assignments and chapters.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book can easily be arranged to prepare for a class using progression.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not see any interface issues nor did I have any problems with it.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not see any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book does have chapters on intercultural communication which is great.  I have been looking for that in an OER textbook.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"If this book were revised to a more current date and included the social media aspect of business communication, I think it would be very useful.  It does contain a lot of good information.","created_at":"2021-03-18T10:30:42.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-03-18T10:30:42.000-05:00"},{"id":4806,"first_name":"Terianne","last_name":"Brown","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Hawaii Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is a thorough book but could benefit from certain chapters being expanded and others being condensed.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"There are no issues with bias and no errors are evident.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"There are a few references to outdated social media platforms, however, the text can be easily updated without taking away from the message of the contents.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book uses appropriate language suitable for all readers.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book has a consistent format. Headings and subheadings are standardized, as well as key terms being bolded.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The book can benefit by expanding the sections in Chapter 9 into individual chapters.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book is well-organized and is easily followed.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Multiple interfaces are available and no immediate issues are evident. It was easy to Zoom into images in the online and digital pdf versions of the book.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are no evident grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"There are no direct references to specific races. The text does refer to race as something to consider in business communication but contains nothing culturally insensitive or offensive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is a well-written text that is well-suited for an Introductory to Business Communication course. The book could be improved by including more images and/or infographics to make it more interesting and less text-heavy.","created_at":"2021-04-20T14:38:02.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-04-20T14:38:02.000-05:00"},{"id":4897,"first_name":"Karen","last_name":"Gaines","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Kansas City Kansas Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is pretty thorough with the topics that are covered. In fact, there are topics in the presentation sections that are not normally covered in the business communications textbooks that I currently use. The order in which the subjects are presented is different than what I have been used to, and wanted to know if there was a particular reason for some of the ordering of subject matter.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Information is accurate and free of errors and bias.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The information is relevant and timely. However, there should be more focus on virtual meetings, etiquette, how to productively run them, etc. and how to better engage others as there is less in-person interaction.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"It was written in a clear and concise manner. The narrative was conversational and engaging.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Found the writing to be consistent throughout the book.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This book was easy to get to the specific information within each chapter with the use of subsections. Though there were some sections where they were text heavy, the use of the headings helped to break up the information into more visually appealing and practical hunks of information.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"It is easy to follow, but I am more used to having examples of writing styles (routine, persuasive, negative) grouped together earlier in the book.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"This was an easy to navigate the book.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not see any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text is inclusive in its depiction of different groups of people.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Are there instructor resources available such as PowerPoints, more in-depth assignments, videos, and tests?","created_at":"2021-05-07T15:55:21.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-05-07T15:55:21.000-05:00"},{"id":5140,"first_name":"Steven","last_name":"Bookman","position":"Adjunct Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Pace University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all areas in addition to topics (e.g., ) not always covered. However, I wish some topics have more coverage (i.e., business modalities) while others have less. Overall, the this text is good for an introductory business writing course.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate, error-free and unbiased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is up-to-date.  However, I wish the book was updated, so that it includes social media. Having said this, necessary updates would relatively easy and straightforward to implement. I had to bring in my own examples and case studies from other sources to supplement the text.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The author writes this text in a lucid, accessible prose, and provides adequate context for any jargon/technical terminology used.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is internally consistent in terms of terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is easily and readily divisible into smaller reading sections that can be assigned at different points within the course (i.e., enormous blocks of text without subheadings should be avoided).","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics in the text are presented in a logical, clear fashion.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is free of significant interface issues, including navigation problems, distortion of images/charts, and any other display features that may distract or confuse the reader. There are a few options to read the book as well.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive in any way although there could be some text with diversity, as this is a big issue these days. In the book's defense, it can easily be updated since it was written in 2015.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2021-06-23T15:46:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-06-23T15:46:00.000-05:00"},{"id":33645,"first_name":"Christina","last_name":"Wooten","position":"Business Technology Faculty","institution_name":"Rogue Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The material covered in the text is comprehensive as expected from a Business Communications text. Basics of Communication, Message, Audience, Writing, Types of Delivery, as well as three sections on different styles of presentation are included. \r\nThis text does not have an index or glossary. \r\nThe table of contents is thorough with chapter and section headings linked for easy navigation.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text accurately portrays the topics covered. It appears to be overall an unbiased text. \r\nThe content is, overall, error-free.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Overall, the text is up-to-date with technical information. \r\nThere are some cultural points that may become outdated quickly (or could feel alienating to some students). For example, in \"Demographic Traits\" on page 86, there is a heavy focus on male/female as an example of a demographic trait. \r\nHowever, later in the same chapter, a lengthy discussion on \"mutuality and non-judgmental-ism\" ensues. \r\nChapter 9 covers \"up-to-date\" communication methods used in the business arena very well. These include text, email, netiquette, memos, letters, proposals, reports, resume, and sales messages. \r\nChapter 18 covers Intercultural Communication. My concern with this section is the references used are from 1958 and 2005. I feel strongly that there are more recent examples of references that could be used.","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"The text is written clearly with many bold faced words. There is no glossary or side-bar definitions, so the student would need to be informed to look the words up in a different dictionary.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent in terminology, ideology, and framework throughout. The flow would be easy for a student to follow through a course.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The text is laid out in such a way that reading assignments could easily be created. Also, the text is broken up with exercises and images (most of which are relevant, clear, and correctly cited.)\r\nWhile some sections of the text do not have images, the blocks of text are broken up into nice sized sections with headings.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"One change I would make if I were to use this text would be as follows: \r\nChapter 18: Intercultural and International Business Communication is the next to last chapter in the book. I would place this far earlier (around the section where Sender/Receiver and Audience are discussed). \r\nThis was the only place in the text where the material appeared (or felt) \"out of order\" for overall flow.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The links provided in the chapters and in the additional resources all work accurately. \r\nImages are clear and mostly related to text. \r\nThere are two images that could be changed to a better image (one is the iceberg in Figure 3.4 the second is a clip art type image in Figure 9.6 which looks strangely out of place.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any glaring grammar issues or errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not notice any examples that could be exclusive other than the gender example previously mentioned. \r\nThere are several images which appear culturally inclusive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The exercises though out the book (questions) are excellent starter questions for online discussion forums. \r\nThe \"Additional Resources\" links at the conclusion of each chapter are excellent and offer the student (and instructor) many additional resources for class. \r\nThere is no glossary or index for this text.","created_at":"2022-01-03T15:01:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-01-03T15:01:00.000-06:00"},{"id":33808,"first_name":"Susan","last_name":"Lantz","position":"Teaching Associate Professor","institution_name":"West Virginia University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is comprehensive. It definitely covers the basics.   It covers areas of writing that I might not use for more advanced college writers, but would be absolutely vital for beginning college writers.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content was accurate.  (Except for the page about web-search engines. . . which was outdated.)","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"For the most part, the authors/editors did a good job of avoiding language or references that were dated.  They might want to revisit the page that lists \"Some Examples of Internet Search Sites.\"  They listed \"Alta Vista\" for example. . . which has since been taken over by Yahoo.  They also list sites like dogpile, webcrawler, and The Encyclopedia Britannica.  This information was pretty cutting edge in 2002, but times have changed.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The material was well-written, clear, and concise.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text was internally consistent and easy to navigate. (This might change, though, according to formatting. I found the PDF easy to use, though.)","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I was pleasantly pleased at how easy to the text was to read, divide, and excerpt.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text was organized quite nicely.  It was easy for me to find what I was looking for, and it followed a logical progression.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Navigation was no problem.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Grammar was fine.  It was not (thankfully) overwritten.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I was very pleased to note that the text chose to discuss sensitive cultural issues in a very elegant manner.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Here's the thing about communication: The rules don't change much.  Business Communication is all about getting the right information to the right person at the right time.  What does change, is the technology we use to make it happen.  It is nearly impossible to publish anything current that covers everything one needs to to about current methods of communicating using technology.  The information is too \"bleeding edge\" and changes so quickly, that it would be out-dated almost immediately.  The thing that this book does (and does very well) is stick to the basic rules of communication that don't change (with the exception of the search engine page.) Nearly every other section of the book sticks very firmly to  the information that students need to know that does not change on a regular basis.  The information about social media/videos/tiktok/instagram/facebook/YouTube/thenextbigthing is easily imporable from the web. This division makes it almost the perfect open educational resource.","created_at":"2022-04-25T15:22:51.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-04-25T15:22:51.000-05:00"},{"id":33872,"first_name":"Jessica","last_name":"Rick","position":"Assistant Professor of Communication Studies","institution_name":"University of Southern Indiana","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is a comprehensive look at business and professional communication. It covers almost everything I would cover in my business and professional communication class. I really like the chapter on intercultural and international business practices as those are two areas often not included in other books.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This book is accurate.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"I didn't find many errors, but the definitions and models of communication are outdated. I believe the author could have found more recent definitions, models, and conceptions of communication. I also would have liked to see more of a discussion of organizational communication concepts in business communication.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Students were able to read and understand the book and its contents.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book uses consistent terms and structure throughout. Previous chapters provide a good scaffolding for later chapters.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"This book is almost too comprehensive that it is hard to navigate. But I do like that I can mix and match different parts of the book to fit my schedule and class content.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Students were able to follow the organization of the book. The numbering system makes it easy for students to find what to read for each class period.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No issues with the interface of the textbook.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No issues with the grammar.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Some of the examples could be updated to reflect a more nuanced understanding of a variety of perspectives. But overall, I was pleased with the cultural contexts discussed.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2022-05-20T14:53:38.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-05-20T14:53:38.000-05:00"},{"id":33888,"first_name":"Heather Leigh","last_name":"Maher","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"City Colleges of Chicago","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"While the book covers many essential topics in detail, others are less updated than is optimal and yet others are intermingled with other chapter headings, making them harder to find than I am used to in this type of textbook (such as more basic but important principles, such as audience analysis, which is scattered throughout several other chapters beyond the one titled as containing such information). Some ideas are basic, which is great to cover survey and more advanced courses, but I have a feeling I'd be having students read selections from several chapters for several topics I'm used to having more consolidated. While the table of contents is hyperlinked in the online and PDF versions, there is no index, which makes it tedious to identify every location relevant to a topic without extreme front-loading in course planning. Despite this, if it had more information on electronic elements that have changed the business landscape in the past 10 years or so, it might be worth doing the work--and maybe even supplementing missing items.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"It is accurate, but missing definitions for some jargon that may be hard for brand new business students, while including others when they probably aren't necessary. It seems to be biased only in that it seems to have a very specific student audience in mind, but I cannot for the life of me imagine actually meeting a student with that exact blend of needed and unneeded knowledge in one of my classes. Again, good if you like to customize your reading selections a great deal, but not as great if you're looking for a single text to fill the majority of your course content with only a smaller percentage of supplements from other sources.","relevance_rating":2,"relevance_review":"The book is already missing any significant content on how technology has massively changed business communication in the past 10 years, and while it mentions it indirectly (basically saying \"it's affecting things\") in several places, without at least one chapter dedicated to those changes, it seems both incomplete and very hard to update and revise.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Some jargon isn't given enough context to be clear for the range of learning levels the book attempts to cover (by my assessment), but the prose, while very heavy (minimal application of actual business writing principles in terms of white space and using visuals), is clear and well-edited.","consistency_rating":2,"consistency_review":"The writing is consistent, but the level of assumed pre-existing knowledge is not consistent from chapter section to chapter section, or across chapters (some are much more consistent than others). The organizational structure is the weakest element of the book, as I mentioned with overlapping concepts discussed in multiple chapters that are not labeled in ways that would lead a reader--much less a student--to expect to find certain pieces of information in them.","modularity_rating":2,"modularity_review":"As mentioned, there's overlap across chapters on topics, but not information, so you really need the whole thing. It's loosely organized into \"Business Communication\", \"Business Writing\", \"Business Presentations\", a bit on rhetoric, and then what feels like the author felt was \"left over\" in that they are important topics that didn't fit into the original outline? Maybe in a revision? I can only speculate. It also is quite prose-heavy without bread for illustrative graphics, which are always better received at the undergraduate level.","organization_rating":1,"organization_review":"One of my comments on \"Modularity\" is really the core commentary for me on this category, as the structure and organization looked excellent in the chapter titles, but the content proved they were a bit unfocused and, in some cases, misleading as relevant ideas were discussed in completely different sections:\r\n\"...there's overlap across chapters on topics, but not information, so you really need the whole thing. It's loosely organized into \"Business Communication\", \"Business Writing\", \"Business Presentations\", a bit on rhetoric, and then what feels like the author felt was \"left over\" in that they are important topics that didn't fit into the original outline? Maybe in a revision? I can only speculate.\"","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The table of contents for the electronic PDF and the online version is all hyperlinked, which is great. The drop-down menus listing sub-sections in the chapters in the online version, is a bit clunky and unintuitive.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Well-edited.","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"All inter- and intra-cultural information in smushed into one of the chapters that feels like an afterthought or revision chapter added later. There is no integration of global business communication in any regular manner throughout the text, and exercises (which are weak in general) are very monocultural. It reads like a textbook for upper-middle class white students, written by one just a generation older. This is definitely an area where you'd need to go find another, *much* more detailed and specific source, especially for examples and possible homework exercises or group activities to put into action.","overall_rating":6,"overall_review":"In general, I feel that this book is dated--not as much in content (but technology and non-American business knowledge and potential issues absolutely need a major addition with details and specific information), but in what it appears to emphasize. Perhaps the author was teaching several levels of skill across various classes and wanted one book that they could pick appropriate sections for all of them, or even just to save students even more money, but it reads as poorly organized and needing a major editorial structural overhaul (although I don't think modern editors even do that much work with authors any more). If you are willing to read the entire book, pretty much make your own index for how you want to organize your class, and don't mind supplementing close to half of your readings with outside sources, it could be extremely useful. However, you will definitely need to find the cultural and technological information elsewhere. I have survey-level students who have offered more specific and detailed information on both areas, but I do teach at an extremely diverse college system with many 1st, 1.5, and 2nd generation immigrants, as well as international students, which are excellent resources themselves in these areas.","created_at":"2022-05-31T00:01:11.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-05-31T00:01:11.000-05:00"},{"id":33951,"first_name":"April","last_name":"Schofield","position":"Senior Lecturer and Director","institution_name":"Metropolitan State University of Denver","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is a very comprehensive textbook and includes over 600 pages of content. It includes the necessary components to help students communicate effectively in business environments.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The included content is very accurate. There are some areas that need updating to reflect the current business environment.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Since the book was published in 2015, newer concepts are not addressed. For example, how to communicate effectively in virtual meetings or via social channels. The nature of how we communicate has significantly changed since 2015 so any business communication textbook that is older will have similar shortfalls. I do believe this content could be added in standalone sections or chapters.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is conversational and engaging. It is appropriate for an introductory level class and for students from various majors. I think all students could benefit from the communication concepts outlined in this book, not strictly business students.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The format and writing style are consistent throughout the entire book.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book is easily broken up into smaller reading sections. I appreciated the questions to start each chapter, the reviews of important concepts, and the exercises at the end of each chapter. These could be used as classroom conversations, homework assignments, etc.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The early chapters are foundational (why communication is important, the science of language and communication), followed by \"how to\" chapters. The table of contents provides a robust overview of topics, beyond chapter titles.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"There are multiple formats available, including PDF, ebook, online, XML, and ODF. I reviewed both the PDF and ebook versions. The various sections in the table of contents are hyperlinked. I found both formats easy to navigate and did not experience any issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book is well-written and I did not notice grammatical errors. This is very important for a book focused on communication!","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Intercultural and international communication is addressed throughout the book and an entire chapter is devoted to the topic.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2022-07-15T14:52:30.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-07-15T14:52:30.000-05:00"},{"id":35532,"first_name":"Linda","last_name":"Mallen","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Northern Essex Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I found the content to be very comprehensive,  from implementation of idea, through research, writing and revision, and then onto presentation. Also, each stage was well detailed to help create that thorough and effective business document. In the classroom, I expect as is often the case that not every bit of detail can be discussed because of time limitations, but it is good to know that so much information remains there for the student to explore.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"My review to date does show that the instruction is accurate and appropriate for student success.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The business student can be well served by the organization and direction here. Points made are relevant to business needs and demands. Writing and presentation instruction is delivered in a manner that speaks to business responsibilities and effectiveness. The focus on strong organization, logic and productive content is all well delivered.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Good business writing is clear, direct and concise. The content here is reflective of those qualities. Fundamentals of writing and speaking communication are distinct and direct and effective.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Professional wording and tone are consistent, and what you would expect in a higher education textbook.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"As I consider open resource textbooks for communication and professional communication courses, I appreciate the set up here. It was essentially what I was looking for as I work with students of varied skill sets. An instructor can direct students to specific modules, and/or students can easily locate and identify modules that would benefit them the most, go to that section, and still find content that was clear and comprehensive and relevant to their business needs.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"This element of organization I have mentioned several times in this review.  It happens for good reason. The layout of instruction and content is logical, progressive and productive. Students can begin at first chapter and progress forward, or move to the section that would benefit them the best. All here is very manageable.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Effective, though with time passing and with application some charts or interactions or activities or exercises might be updated or replaced ... but that is true of any textbook.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There will always be discussion in the field about how to say something the best or deliver something differently or varying stylistically, but for the instruction here so far I have found no significant errors of grammar or any phrasings that were problematic.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Entire sections deal with this matter of culture and cultural sensitivity. It appears to me so far that attention to that is presented throughout.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I was in search of an open resource in communications and business communications. This appears to be a good and comprehensive fit.  Much of the professional experience I bring to the higher education classroom is in business management and communications. This textbook appears to me to be a good partner.","created_at":"2025-06-18T11:53:17.000-05:00","updated_at":"2025-06-18T11:53:17.000-05:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/business-communication-for-success","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:31:41.000-06:00"},{"id":77,"title":"Stand up, Speak out - The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2016,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":"9781946135254","license":"Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"Stand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking features two key themes. First it focuses on helping students become more seasoned and polished public speakers, and second is its emphasis on ethics in communication. It is this practical approach and integrated ethical coverage that setsStand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speakingapart from the other texts in this market.","contributors":[],"subjects":[{"id":6,"name":"Humanities","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":null,"visible_textbooks_count":418,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/humanities"},{"id":33,"name":"Literature, Rhetoric, and Poetry","parent_subject_id":6,"call_number":"PE1408","visible_textbooks_count":124,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/literature-rhetoric-and-poetry"},{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":332,"url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/","year":2023,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2023-08-22T22:24:53.000-05:00","name":"University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing"}],"formats":[{"id":530,"type":"Online","url":"https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Public_Speaking/Stand_up_Speak_out_-_The_Practice_and_Ethics_of_Public_Speaking","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":529,"type":"PDF","url":"https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Public_Speaking/Stand_up_Speak_out_-_The_Practice_and_Ethics_of_Public_Speaking","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1737,"type":"eBook","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2274,"type":"XML","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2275,"type":"ODF","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4.5","textbook_reviews_count":59,"reviews":[{"id":125,"first_name":"David","last_name":"Askay","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"California Polytechnic State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook provides a comprehensive discussion of topics related to public speaking, including focused chapters on commonly assigned informative, persuasive, and entertaining speeches. Content is consistent with other textbooks with chapters devoted to ethics, listening, research, outlining, organizing, and language. One topic that is not included is discussion of small group communication. While many public speaking courses do not cover this material, those teaching a hybrid class will need to find supplementary material. That said, a hybrid class may benefit greatly from using this textbook to cover public speaking, while turning to other resources for other topics (e.g., interpersonal, organizational, small group communication, etc.). Lacking from the text is a index, which may limit the ability of students to efficiently look up and review certain topics. While adding an index would be beneficial, it is worth noting that the entire textbook is searchable.","accuracy_rating":2,"accuracy_review":"The textbook provides an accurate introduction to public speaking. I did note that while sources are clearly cited in-text, a comprehensive bibliography is not provided at the end. This could be useful not only for providing examples of citations for students, but also for aiding them in finding referenced material.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Public speaking has been largely taught with the same concepts for thousands of years. While there tends not to be huge revisions or additions to public speaking, the greater challenge that many instructors find it reaching the contemporary audience. This text includes references to timely and engaging examples (e.g., Avenue Q, TED Talks, Randy Pausch's \"Last Lecture\"), to which students in my classes have responded favorably. Also included are hyperlinks to online references that students may find useful for developing their speeches and finding examples.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The writing of the textbook comes across as clear and straightforward, even humorous at times. Chapters begin with learning objectives. Jargon is well described, but not appearing in the text are the familiar bold definitions that many students may be accustomed to. Contemporary examples are often referenced when introducing new terms, which helps to situate the knowledge. Each chapter also concludes with key takeaways, exercises, and assessments to aid students in testing their understanding.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Chapters are presented in a logical order that builds on previous chapters.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"Each chapter is divided into effectively smaller sections, which allows for tailoring of reading assignments. Paragraphs, headings and subheadings are used extensively and effectively. When self-references to the text are made, a hyperlink is provided to guide students to this area. While each chapter is divided into topics, there is no of table of contents at the beginning. Additionally, there is no list of sub-sections within each chapter. This may impede the ability to both students and instructors to quickly find and assign relevant sections of the book. Stronger chapter outlining, table of contents, and page numbers would be a welcome addition to this text.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Topics are presenting in a logical order that builds on each other. Chapters begin with learning objectives and introduce the need to understand the material. Subheadings help to guide the reader through topics and make clear visible delineations of the content. As mentioned before, a more detailed table of contents for the book and each chapter would aid in the organization.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"The interface of the textbook is readable, but the lack of a professional typeset is evident. At times, font sizes and types are inconsistent and spacing between sections could be enhanced. The formatting of tables are barebones, sometimes extending beyond single page. The spacing of table headings likewise extend beyond a single line. Paragraphs tend not to be indented and spacing between paragraphs is small, leading to a squished appearance. This can be distracting and sometimes difficult to read. While the content is good, the design does leave something to be desired.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The textbook comes across as straightforward and contains only occasional typos or grammatical errors","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The textbook explicitly covers cultural dimensions of public speaking and audience analysis. Examples are inclusive of various political orientations, races, cultures, and ethnicities, although","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2014-07-15T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2014-07-15T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":129,"first_name":"Michelle","last_name":"Lutz","position":"Adjunct English and Communication Professor","institution_name":"University of Northwestern - St. Paul","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This wonderful book goes well beyond any communication text I have read or used as a professor. In addition to covering the basics, it includes well-developed insights, ideas, and examples for how to create and deliver ethical and quality speeches in a meaningful format. There are 18 chapters that deal with everything from \"The Importance of Listening\" to \"Supporting Ideas and Building Arguments\" to \"Concluding with Power\" and so much more. Learning objective sections are included at the beginning of each chapter, and each chapter ends with \"Key Take Aways\" sections that summarize the main points just covered. These are key features that students will greatly appreciate as they process through the content. Numerous online sources are referenced and made available with just a click of a link. Additionally, each chapter includes optional exercises, end of chapter assessments, and answer keys. This is a very comprehensive text that includes a broad spectrum of speech topics.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is current and accurate. Moreover, the text actually taught the importance of using up-to-date and credible sources when researching and preparing for a speech. For example, I appreciated the teaching on the \"Ethical Pyramid\" (end, mean and intent) which was thoroughly explained in a way that showed the value and importance of being truly honest with both content and delivery. I appreciated the precision that was used throughout the text--such as including key questions for helping students to find a topic and steps for how to find current academic data. I also found the high quality techniques for how to avoid plagiarism and properly cite sources, and the multiple approaches for writing an ethical speech from beginning to end to be valuable.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text covers tried and true speech techniques and approaches, but it is not dry, and the authors' insights and analogies are refreshing. I appreciated how they covered areas that are frequently skimmed over in other textbooks. For example, they discussed dimensions where your communication takes places such as temporal, physical and social-psychological dimensions. On p. 15 they say, \"You have to know the types of people in your audience and how they react to a wide range of messages.\" I found the points made in this section exceptionally relevant for students who often miss their audience. I also really liked the section on communication apprehension (stage fright), and how they intelligently explained away the myths of those who suffer from speech anxiety and then offered helpful tips for how to overcome it. Stage fright is something many students struggle with, and this section is just one great example of how this text has enormous validity and permanency. As time goes on, this text will inevitably need up-date various websites, but other than that, I don't see any changes that will be needed for quite a while.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This text is clearly written with solid illustrations and examples. I believe students will find it much more engaging than the average textbook because the analogies are interesting - not bland like other textbooks I've reviewed. The authors defer (and rightly so) to the NCA Credo on Ethical Communication for guiding the study of communication and ethical principles. This further assists in creating a clear foundation that will help show students how honesty can be integrated into the research, writing, and giving of their speeches.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The lay-out and structure of the text is consistent and perfect for classroom use. I plan to incorporate some of the exercises and end of chapter assessments into my future class discussions. I also appreciate the fact that throughout the text, they refer to ideas that will be explored in future chapters such as \"We will discuss these fallacies in more detail in Chapter 8 - 'Supporting Ideas and Building Arguments'.\" This was helpful because if you wanted to skip ahead and read more about fallacies (or whatever topic was being discussed), you knew right where to find it.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The design of the text clearly shows the beginning and end of each chapter. It is easily dividable, and you can pick and choose which chapters or sections to use or not to use. I like that it is broken down into four broader categories: why public speaking is relevant, how to mentally and physically prepare for giving a speech, how to design and structure a speech, and how to present a quality speech in an ethical fashion.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text is arranged in a consistent and highly organized way that helps the reader stay interested and yet focused on the objectives and topics at hand. Each chapter flows nicely from one topic to the next and ends with a summary and some valuable exercises before moving onto the next.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not experience any interface issues, and nor did I notice anything that might be confusing to students. The images and graphs were colorful and visually appealing. The font styles and sizes used worked well, and there was not anything that distracted me from the text.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"I did find a few places where a comma should have been used and where words were squished together and a space was necessary (perhaps this is an interface issue - not sure). However, overall, the text is well written both style-wise and mechanically.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not find the text to be insensitive or culturally offensive in any way. In fact there is an entire section devoted to using inclusive language, and they discuss the National Council of Teachers of guidelines for using gender-fair language that not only helps one convey what he/she means but helps audience members feel included in the speech giver's message. I also appreciated that in the final chapter, they have links to youtube clips of famous people giving speeches for various occasions. By clicking on the link, students can see a roast of President George W. Bush done by Stephen Colbert, a eulogy for the late Rosa Parks by Barack Obama, and Derek Jeter's farewell to Yankee Stadium to name a few. Students know these famous people and appreciate the opportunity to see them give speeches because they are part of their current culture.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I highly recommend this text, and I plan to use it in a debate class that I teach. I like that it covers the basics (but in a refreshing way) and yet so much more. The material is current, intelligent, and well-researched, and it includes an abundance of sources, exercises to use in class and a great deal of helpful and insightful advice on how to approach researching, writing, and giving an ethically sound speech.","created_at":"2014-07-15T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2014-07-15T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":214,"first_name":"Mike","last_name":"Baxter-Kauf","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"University of Minnesota","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text does a nice job covering the mechanics of constructing a speech and has a very thorough explanation of the goals, ethics and other \"preliminary questions\" that go into the process. The section on speech delivery (contained entirely in one chapter of just under 40 pages) is somewhat small in comparison to the rest of the text. There are three types of specific speeches covered (speaking to persuade, inform or entertain) and while each is dealt with in a good amount of detail, some may want more of these \"specific speeches\" included. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Of course, the questions here are going to be less about the literal accuracy of facts/figures and more about the way the text aligns with one's own opinions of what constitutes a valid and well composed speech. Overall, I think the text is unlikely to substantially contradict anyone's instructional claims. Take, as an example, the section on \"the purposes of speaking.\" While there may be more detail in terms of breaking down the purposes than any given instructor would mention in class, the overall questions of purpose (why do we speak?) and the importance of purpose (both in terms of audience relationship and the analysis of a given speaker) are both general and still very useful. I did not feel any particular bias (besides one to the importance and relevance of speech making, which I would expect from any such textbook) while reading the book. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"There is nothing that will make the text become obsolete or useless at any point in the immediate future. Examples are relatively timeless and will be easily updatable with little need to change much of the underlying text. Many examples are related to the regular occurrences of college life (class, roommates, homework, social events) and others to political questions unlikely to disappear in the near future (health care, immigration, popular trust/distrust of politicians). The book does an excellent job maintaining a balance of \"up to date\" and \"will  soon be out of date.\"","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Even very late in the text, there is very little jargon that would interfere with a student's ability to read and understand. This is especially useful since so many courses would likely not use the text from beginning to end directly, but likely jump around or include sections on informative or persuasive speaking when those first come up in class (even though they are at the end of the text). The writing style is very clear, if anything, it could be criticized for remaining too simplistic with a very basic but certainly very clear sentence structure. Since public speaking courses are often introductory level for beginning undergraduates, this is not much of a problem. There is a clear difference between the way most of the speeches are written (with more advanced and intricate prose) and the way the instruction itself appears (basic and straightforward). That could be considered good or bad, I found it mostly neutral. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I did not find any instances within the text where there was inconsistency in the terminology or framework of the text. The tone is continually instructive, it retains a solid dialogic and pedagogical relationship with the reader. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The large-scale chapters are well  divided and easy to use. While the chapters build well on one another, I think there would be little to no confusion caused by jumping around the book. There are smaller chapter divisions (which are somewhat hard to find without a more explicit table of context or index) but which could probably be used in much the same way if someone cared to define reading assignments that precisely. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"It is hard to determine where chapters about specific speeches should fall within an overall text. The authors of this book have chosen to place them at the end, which may make sense, but probably makes it difficult to assign the book in order, since likely some of these speeches need to come earlier on. The progression of the chapters makes logical sense beyond that, moving from the pre-requisites of speaking, to the process of topic selection, audience analysis, speech construction and delivery. Some increased discussion of ways the text could be used may be helpful to guide instructors and make their adoption of the book for their course more seamless. ","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"There are no substantial issues that make anything unusable or unreadable. I was not distracted. The text, however, does not feel like a traditionally published text book, it feels notably lacking in images, color and typesetting. These are minor issues for me, in comparison to its usability, intelligence and cost, but should be noted. I cannot imagine it confusing the reader, but it may engage them less if they are students not used to the extreme \"textually-centric\" notion of the book. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Any grammatical issues were extremely minor. I did not notice anything routine or systematic. At no point did the grammar interfere with my ability to understand the meaning of the text. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I did not find any actively offensive issues in the book. There seemed to be little discussion of questions including gender, race, class, sex, ability in a way that could be productive. The text seems to take a traditionally \"neutral\" stance by not addressing these issues and trying not to alienate any readers of the \"public speaking advice.\"\r\n\r\nThe book does make good decisions regarding the use of inclusive language and the examples do seem to use individuals with traditionally gender-diverse names. The examples of famous speeches do include non-white speakers, but again, often speaking on relatively innocuous questions. It is not retrogressive, it is not revolutionary. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2015-06-10T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2015-06-10T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":270,"first_name":"Sarah","last_name":"Zwick-Tapley","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Colorado State University","comprehensiveness_rating":2,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is an excellent introduction to public speaking.  I especially appreciate that ethics is covered in addition to standard public speaking information.  This book does not however have a table of contents, index, glossary or \"search\" feature.  As a result, it is very difficult to locate specific topics quickly.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"All of the information and examples given are, to the best of my knowledge, accurate.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"With one exception, the book is up-to-date and should be relevant for the next ten years.  There is one reference to The Colbert Report.  Since the publication of this book, that television show has gone off the air.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This textbook is extremely easy to read.  Jargon is immediately defined.  High school and college students would not have any problems in understanding the text.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The terminology and framework are consistent throughout the book.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"All chapters are broken down into easily divisible subsections.  It would be very easy to change the order of some chapters without creating confusion among the students.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics in this textbook are arranged in a very clear and logical order.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"My main complaint of this textbook is its lack of a table of contents, index, glossary and \"search\" feature.  It would be very difficult for students to quickly find specific information.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no grammatical errors.  I did, however, find a number of spacing typos (pgs. 7, 73, 76, 108, 113, 359 and 600).  I am not sure if this is a result of an error on my personal computer or an error on the part of the authors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This textbook does an excellent job of reflecting diversity in our society.  The examples used include different backgrounds, genders, races and ages.  Inclusivity is one of the topics covered in this book.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"It is a shame that this book has no table of contents, index, glossary or \"search\" feature.  Otherwise, it is a very accessible, comprehensive and well-organized text.","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":307,"first_name":"Jeremy","last_name":"Estrella","position":"Dept. Chair/ Instructor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covered many of the essential elements of a public speaking textbook. It has a thorough overview of ethics and public speaking, communication apprehension, organizing/outlining, informative speaking, visuals aids, persuasive speaking and the relavnce/importance of public speaking throughout. One foundational aspect of public speaking was missing in this book. In my review I noticed that there was little reference to the classical roots of public speaking, rhetoric and the canons of rhetoric. There was some mention of ethos, pathos and logos but these were minimal. Also the section on credibility was limited. I found the chapter on researching to be on the long side. I understand this is an important part of a speech however most public speaking classes have some sort of writing prerequisite which covers rearching themes. The part on attention getters could include more strategies. ","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"There are many mentions of relevant communication theories which many books don't cover. The myths about communication apprehension I found to be accurate and overall the book covers many of the things I cover in my classes. I found the ethics pyramid to be a nice touch. The part on researching accurately explained how there is much more than just google as well as some of the limitations of such searches. The coverage of communication beyond public speaking was great too. Since there was little to no mention about rhetoric, I find that as a big inaccuracy since rhetoric is the foundation to this area of study. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The coverage on visual aids was very up-to-date as well as examples throughout. Some of the examples could be seen as too current and may be obsolete in a few years but periodic updating should allievate any of these concerns. I like the coverage on technological difficulties because that would always be relevant. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This book was very easy to follow and understand. Any jargon from the discipline was explained and didn't assume the student would know. Some typos here and there. I like the inclusion of theories especially theories of persuasion (ELM). ","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"Yes, but from a very communication science basis. I would have liked to see more from rhetoric. ","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"Yes, but I would have to reorganize it according to how I present the information in my class.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"I liked how the content of a speech came before delivery but when it got to organization it was disorganized. The sections on organization seemed disorganized and jumped around a lot and could come across as confusing. I would like to see more coherence to the sections on organization. I might have to switch things around if I were to use this book. The part about Informative Speeches could have been presented earlier. ","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"I don't know if there is another was to view the book other than pdf but I had trouble accessing the tables/figures. Also, there is no index nor table of contents in the pdf version. I know you have to access the TOC through another site but all versions of the text should have this.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Some typos. No grammatical errors noticed. ","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"It came across to me as mostly culturally void. Most of the text read as if there was no reference to culture. There were a few examples here and there but I would have liked to see more. Some books I've reviewed have chapters dedicated to culture and how to reach your diverse audience members. It would be fine to mention cultural specifics from diverse backgrounds. ","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"Overall, I liked this book and see myself as potentially adopting it. I liked how it had an extensive coverage of the basics of public speaking and relates many themes/ concepts back to the foundational ideas (i.e., audience analysis). There is also coverage of many things I don't see in many public speaking texts such as, dialogic theory, NCA Credo for Ethical Communication, free speech, myth about communication apprehension, oral and written style of communication, listening, tips on using notecards, using animals as visual aids (I've been asked this), public speaking pyramid and communication theories. There was, however, little to no mention about rhetoric nor credibility (I would have to supplement this information). I liked how the author included personal examples (nervousness about giving a speech). Conclusion, I would consider using this text if a few tweaks were made. ","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":313,"first_name":"Jonna","last_name":"Ziniel","position":"Department Chair","institution_name":"Valley City State University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all major components of public speaking in general. However, there are some major components missing that you will most likely need to supplement. There is not a section on group presentations, group dynamics, or leadership. If you tend to cover communication theories in class, such as broad areas of communication, there is not a clear section for that either.  It DOES cover the different models of communication, so there is some theoretical discussion in the book, but it does seem to be lacking. This is easily supplemented, but if you choose to use this book, you should plan to supplement in those key areas. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book is clear and easy to read. It is student- friendly and has a minimal number of errors. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"the book contains the standard approach to public speaking, and covers relevant topics. I think there could be some updates that include giving speeches digitally, but otherwise it does seem like a book that can last for many years without many updates. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing style is very accessible to students and easy to follow. The language used is vivid and descriptive. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book uses the correct terminology and is consistent in the terms it chooses to use. ","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"I wish the book had chapter headings on the top of each page for ease in finding each chapter. It is difficult to find a certain chapter while scrolling through the entire book, so it could be much more user friendly. The units and subunits themselves were clear and easy to understand, but the use of those units and subunits were at times difficult to follow. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The flow is fantastic and easy to follow. Students will enjoy how each chapter builds upon the previous chapter, and the class is able to move in a logical fashion by following the chapters of the book. ","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Navigation for the text could be much better. It is not easy to navigate through the text, and having an interactive menu would be extremely helpful. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The grammar used in the book is good. There are few spelling and grammatical errors. The key terms you would present to a public speaking class are present. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I wish the book would speak more to diversity and public speaking. It does cover SOME aspects, but this area could have been much richer and more well-defined. ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This is a fantastic supplement to the classroom, and easy to use whether you are brand new to teaching the class or a seasoned professional. ","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":341,"first_name":"Kari","last_name":"Frisch","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Central Lakes College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook actually covered more than what I was anticipating.  I falsely thought it was going to be more of a handbook or guide, something I'd use supplementaly. The actual pdf version does not start with a chapter page of contents, nor does it end with a glossary. I think the page of contents would be useful as it would help outline the content as well as help students navigate to topics more easily.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Each textbook takes a slightly different approach to communication topics. This is no exception but is more comprehensive than I anticipated.  For the most part the content seems accurate and error-free. There are some numbering errors (in end-of-chapter assessments) and the occasional word misspelled (more of a spacing issue as in on page 168 \"afinding\").  It seemed to address some issues with cultural sensitivity (e.g. ethical language choices that include member identification/labels) and exercises that state unbiased examples like \"one audience will consist of business men and women...\".","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Some of the content and statistics are dated. Even in the book's description there is evidence that updating might need to be done very soon: \"Currently, the amount of information available to people doubles every 18 months and is expected to double weekly by 2015.\" This is then later contradicted in chapter one, \"Researcher Norman W. Edmund estimates that by 2020 the amount of knowledge in the world will double every seventy- three days\".  One study referenced was from 1975--maybe there is a more current study that could be used instead?\n\nThere were other references to pop culture, some newer than others, which could also help engage students but at the same time risk it being dated (Stephen Colbert Report, House). However, at other points they are referenced more statistically so perhaps it gives it a little more longevity.  The latest date reference is 2011 so that's already setting it up to be a bit outdated already. There are also several links and that can be dangerous for a live site as those are beyond the authors’ scope to keep active. I noticed several broken links already (mostly with the document links).\n","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"I think the language used in this textbook is very accessible. This is one of the strengths of this particular resource. There's not very many graphics but the text is clear. It is something that college students should be able to read easily.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The framework for the resource seemed to be consistent for the most part with learning objectives identified in the sub-headings and the key takeaways listed at the end. Exercises seemed to end each sub-unit and an end-of-chapter exercise (assessment) ended each chapter.  So yes, I think there was consistency in the framework.\n\nOne thought that came to me after going through the rest of these questions is the fact that the text did not highlight any terms like some textbooks do.  This is sometimes a nice visual for students.\n","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"There are 19 chapters, not 18 as stated in the description. Most chapters seem to have logical groupings. They are usually broken down into sub-headings which break up the reading into more manageable chunks.  Note: Chapter 19 is not a typical chapter, it is more of a summary. The authors at one point refer to it as an appendix.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"It was helpful that the text laid out the learning objectives at the start of each sub-unit heading. That helped set the framework for what followed. Likewise, the \"key takeaways\" at the end of units were also helpful.\n\nThe \"end-of-chapter assessments\" were a bit confusing and messy, especially the first time it was encountered as the heading was \"chapter exercises\" and it directly followed the same colored highlighted section titled \"exercises\". Perhaps if this had been highlighted in a different color it would have helped.  There were numbering and spacing issues as well.  There was only one number in the text and there were two answers in the following answer key. So that wasn't very clear either. \n\nI also thought chapter 19, was a bit confusing with the chapter written as an introduction, \"In this appendix, we have introduced you to the basics of effective public speaking...All the concepts discussed in this appendix will be more fully discussed in the other chapters in this book.\"\n\nAs mentioned, I would have liked to a content guide included in the online resource itself.  I think this helps students see the overall outline of the resource as well as helps them navigate to specific content more quickly through the use of page number references. \n\nAlso, having just studied some ADA best practices, I wonder about the left-justifications of the margins without spacing between paragraphs.  That makes the screen very text heavy on the left side without any breaks.  The line spacing however does seem wide enough to meet recommendations, but I just wonder if the left alignment would be distracting to some learners. There’s also not a lot of breaks for supplemental graphics which could also appeal to your visual learners.\n\nThere's also the issue that this font is not ADA compliant.  Sans-serif fonts are less distracting for those with visual impairments. The headings appear to be in a different font as they are sans serif along with the text in those highlighted areas such as the \"key takeaways\" and exercises, but \"sidebars\" (like NCA Credo on page 24) were back to a serif font. So there seems to be some inconsistency there with ADA best practices.\n","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"In the beginning the links I tried seemed to work, however, when attempting to get back to the text, the reader is sent to page one, which could be a hard adjustment for students as they then have to scroll back to find where they were at in the chapter. Closing the window closes out the whole resource (linked site and textbook pdf). So perhaps as instructors it might be helpful to suggest students copy links into a new browser window to avoid these frustrations as I don't know if anything else can be done by the publishers that would be similar to what many of us can do in an LMS or learning management system (e.g. having links open automatically in a new window). Again, I wonder about the ability of screen readers to navigate the URLS (descriptive caption verses full link address) and the need to scroll back to last spot in text.\n\nLater I found links that were not active and would bring up error messages. For example, I could not access 4/5 templates provided in table 7.3. The issue seemed to occur more often with accessing documents versus live websites but instructors do just need to be aware of this, and try all active links you want to use if choosing this OER.\n\nThere are also times when spacing is used before subheadings and other times it does not appear to be used which can make reading more difficult. (Page 8, 13, 21, 30, 37 etc.)\n\nAs mentioned before there are numeration issues with the end-of-chapter assessments. There are also issues with spacing/indentation in those areas as well, at least when viewed on a mac. Only the first question is numbered and the spacing for answer options aren't in alignment so that's distracting. This occurs also in other parts of the text with chapter sub-units (e.g. page 198 where the only sub-point that has an indentation is \"a\".)\n\nIt was also very confusing in chapter 6 knowing where the written speech example started and stopped. There was no differentiation in the text, font, spacing, colored highlighting (i.e. text box), or alignment which indicating it was the referenced speech. I found that extremely confusing, especially when asked to go back and compare one speech to the other.\n","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"I did not find significant issues here.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The unit on audience analysis touches on cultural variables but could have gone into a little more depth. This would be an area I think that would need some supplemental material.  For example, \"group membership\" did not go much further than academic major. However, I also appreciated that gender and race weren't discussed in stereotypical terms in this unit. Again, I think this is where instructors would need to add some additional discussion/resources.  \n\nThe text also discusses insensitive humor, which is also an important topic.\n","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"The textbook bills itself as one combining \"practicality and ethics\".  I was anticipating that it would be more of a handbook or supplemental resource and it was much more textbook-like, if I may, than I anticipated.  It covers more than the basics. There weren't many self-assessments, what was included was practical. For example, I appreciated the public speaking ethics checklist on pages 37-38. There are also some suggested exercises that could be used as good assignments or just for student reference.\n\nI also liked that some of the exercises directly related to issues relevant to campuses.  For example, the exercise on page 41 asks students to find their campus code on free speech. Keeping students engaged to their content and their context is important to me.\n\nI do have some reservations about using this textbook from an ADA standpoint. Besides the font, links, and spacing issues mentioned already, some tables are sub-divided (as in table 9.2) which is not best practice as I understand it and can be confusing when used with a screen reader. So those ADA issues concern me. But I do have to say that doing this review changed my opinion of whether or not this OER could replace a current textbook. To be honest I thought this would be something I'd consider more as a supplemental resource.  However, now, if the ADA issues were resolved I would consider using it in place of a current hardcopy textbook and add some additional resources in as supplemental to accompany this particular resource instead of vice-versa.\n","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":344,"first_name":"Kathryn","last_name":"Black Lance","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Central Lakes Community and Technical College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook covers all of the necessary topics included in your typical Public Speaking Introductory course to include audience analysis, ethics, listening, organization, outlining, research, language, and topic selection.  It has specific chapters devoted solely to informative, persuasive, and entertaining speeches.  It also had specific chapters devoted just to the Introduction and Conclusion which provided nice emphasis on the bookends of a strong speech. The only topic that was not covered in this text that is covered in my current text is Group speaking.  I don't see this as a deal breaker with selecting this text, it just means that additional content would need to be added if an instructor wanted that component included. Most topics were adequately or thoroughly covered. The text needs a Table of Contents and / or an index as a part of the document.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Most information seems very accurate, unbiased, and free of factual errors. Credibility could be added to the textbook by adding background information on the authors and comprehensive reference information at the end of the textbook.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content of Public Speaking is rather timeless, but finding examples that multiple generations are familiar with is the challenge. This is a strength of the text.  It includes up to date references to include TED Talks, YouTube, and statistical predictions for 2020.  It also includes live links to relevant speeches in each of the Entertainment speech (Ch 18) categories such as Tiger Wood's apology speech, Colbert's Roast of George W. Bush, and a Speech of Presentation gone wrong with Taylor Swift and Kanye West.  Most of the references used throughout are still household names, but should be replaced as similar examples occur in the future.  Replacing these events would be rather simple.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is very clear and easy to understand.  It uses a reading level and vocabulary that will be appropriate for your typical beginning speech course at community and technical colleges as well as four year Universities. All jargon was appropriately explained or illustrated with timely examples or illustrations.  I would like to see clearer and more complete illustrations of the Models of Communication.  I prefer the traditional Transactional Model of Communication where it also includes Context, Noise, Channels, Message and illustrates the back and forth motion.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"The overall feel, reading level, and conversational style of the text seemed to be consistent throughout.  Visually, there seemed to be some inconsistency.  My training on textbook selection encouraged us to look for a nice balance of words, pictures, and white space.  I would have liked to see more illustrations in the book.  There also seemed to be little white space in the text and inconsistent spacing. There was a lack of spacing between paragraphs throughout most of the book except in Chapters 6 and 7 (spacing was better in these chapters).  White space offers students a psychological break and indicates a change in topics.  I am not sure if it is an interface issue, but I saw this as inconsistent. I also would like to see key terms  in bold or italics. I only noticed this occuring in Chapter 5 (Italics).  I would like to see this occur throughout the text. ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"This text can easily be divided and assigned out of order or in sections. As mentioned earlier, a Table of Contents and an Index would improve the modularity of the book so students are able to find the various topics of study.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Topics are presented in a relatively logical flow.  It seems that authors always struggle where to place the chapters on the specific types of speeches. It seems awkward to wait until the end, but yet there does not seem to be a natural place to insert them without breaking up the foundational skills of speech writing. These authors placed them at the end which is similar to the book I use now. I think it works, but does require that I assign a later chapter earlier in the semester in order to spread the speeches out throughout the semester.  I am not sure if there is a way around that.  One thing that I recommend is using varying Font size and indentation to add clarity to the organization of the individual sections (Ex. on page 92 the heading above says \"6 Ways to Improve Your Critical Listening\" and the subsections listing these six things use the same font, font size, and indentation so there is no differentiation between the heading and the smaller sections. Another example is on page 116.)","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Most of the interface is very good.  The charts and assessments are fantastic.  The only interface that was off was found in several chapter assessments.  It would have numbering for the first question (1.) and then the second question would be indented with no numbering.  The only other question was whether the squished text was a spacing issue or an interface issue.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any glaring grammatical issues other than the errors mentioned with the end of the chapter assessments.  There were a few instances where a sentence seemed rather long, but for the most part, it was very strong grammatically.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The textbook does a good job of addressing the different facets of inclusive language, ethnic identity, and audience analysis.  I was surprised that socioeconomic status was not included in one of the discussed categories in audience analysis (it is listed at the beginning but not expanded on).  The textbook incorporates a good variety of ethnicities in it's examples and illustrations.  I found the incorporation of the term Chronocentrism very good.  It demonstrates strong cultural competence on the part of the authors.  It is hard to find that term incorporated in an intercultural text much less a Public Speaking book.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Unless another text would sweep me off my feet, I am very interested in adopting this text for my course.  While there are imperfections, the strengths of the book and the cost savings far outweigh the areas for improvement.  The strengths that I see that have not been mentioned yet include: 1. a fantastic chapter on Ethics that incorporates the NCA Code of Ethics and strongly addresses plagiarism, 2. an important discussion on Powerless vs. powerful speech, 3. practical questionnaires and checklists that help students understand things like Who is an expert?, Is a source biased?, attributes of a strong Thesis, and the components of Monroe's Motivated Sequence., 4. Valuable links and resources (see chapters 6, 7, \u0026amp; 8 especially). 5. Links to actual speeches that can be used for analysis. 6. A list of objectives at the beginning of each chapter and take-aways and assessments at the end of each chapter.  The only other thing that would sweeten this deal is if there was a test bank for this text.   I look forward to implementing this zero cost, relevant, and engaging text into my public speaking classroom. ","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":359,"first_name":"Stacie","last_name":"Williams","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text stands up very well against many popular public speaking textbooks from large publishing houses that I've used. There are well written chapters for all of the concepts covered in a 100/200 level public speaking course.  In terms of content, I only have three problems. First, there is no table of contents or index. Second, there is no glossary for students to reference. And lastly, the chapter on persuasive speaking (chapter 17) is lacking some essential information about argumentation. Namely steps to constructing an argument, identifying logical fallacies, and ethos, pathos, logos appeals. I would add to the persuasion chapter before teaching from this text. In terms of content, the persuasive speaking chapter is the weakest point of this text. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The information presented in the text seems very timely. The first chapter includes information about speaking in the 21st century via media like vlogs and TEDTalks.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":" Theories and concepts presented in the text are very foundational to public speaking. The examples presented of these concepts and theories were timely/contemporary and are integrated in a way that would make them easy to update in the future. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Appropriate language for the level of the audience is used. The chapters were easy to read and used discipline specific language when necessary.  ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The format of each chapter is consistent and sets a tone of predictability in layout/design. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Some of the earlier chapters contain larger blocks of text that could benefit from being broken up. Starting in chapter 6 the examples are more clearly identified/highlighted through paragraph dates and indents. The chapters would be easy to assign in any order, or having the numbering changed to reflect the order in which readings would be assigned. The only caution is chapters are renumbered is that within the text of come chapters there are references to find more details in other chapters. Those references have the chapters numbered, so do a word find on the document to consistently replace all chapter number references. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The text was relatively easy to navigate. If each chapter had a listing of the subsections that would be easier for students to navigate. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Each chapter is broken into smaller sections. From a layout standpoint it would be nice to have a listing of all chapter subsection numbers and names to follow. It would act as a preview of what's to come in the chapter. Some of the exercises at the end of the chapters have some display problems (pdf version). There are multiple choice questions in the exercise section that are not numbered, or the response options are not presented in a consistent manner. Something that could be easily fixed in the MS Word version. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There did not appear to be any grammatical errors in the text. There were some font inconsistencies. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The section on language use did a nice job of addressing cultural relevance and sensitivity to diversity. The audience analysis chapter is inline with other industry textbooks, though I think there is room to more fully address cultural relevance and diversity. The psychographic section of the textbook could explore this topic more fully. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This textbook isn't \"perfect\", but I've never taught from one that provided all of the information I wanted my students to learn. What I like about this text is that it's inline with many other industry textbooks and it provides me the opportunity to customize the text by adding or removing content. I believe that it provides a great framework for instructors to build their course upon. The lack of materials like a glossary, index, or even a test bank might be a problem for a new instructor. But, if you've taught public speaking for even a year you should be able to use this text without making significant changes to your curriculum. ","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":402,"first_name":"Shannon","last_name":"Crawford Barniskis","position":"Instructor, Doctoral Candidate, Consultant","institution_name":"University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is quite comprehensive, and covers similar materials to other public speaking texts. Where it stands out is in its excellent and clear advice for the students. The advice on dealing with nervousness, analyzing one’s audience and adapting the speech to them, selecting and narrowing a topic, research, building arguments, creating speeches that unroll in effective stages, building credibility, persuasion, and the physical presentation of a speech was all quite strong. \n\nThe information about different listening styles will be useful for people throughout their lives, not simply in the context of public speaking, but it will definitely help those who wonder if their audience is paying attention.\nThe book even includes information on citation styles and research tools. It addresses a very wide variety of speaking circumstances, including key notes and toasts. I would have loved to see a specific section aimed at presenting a poster—there is little available on this topic and posters are being used more in university and academic settings. This is a type of public presentation that is challenging but rewarding if done well, since it is so interactive. When done poorly, it is a waste of everyone’s time. \n\nSome of the less effective information centered on specific presentation aids such as slideshows—students would be better served to integrate this text with other texts for this topic, such as Duarte’s Slideology. \n","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The book is largely accurate and unbiased. There is one area in which the content is uneven, however. The ethics discussion is sometimes thin to the point of being misleading.\n\n\nFor example, he book says, “One option for assessing intent is to talk with others about how ethical they think a behavior is; if you get a variety of answers, it might be a sign that the behavior is not ethical and should be avoided” (p. 19),  are highly problematic from an ethical theory perspective. Issues that have a variety of ethical answers should not be avoided, but engaged with thoughtfully and using ethical frameworks to analyze. And polling one’s acquaintances about a behavior doesn’t determine its ethical basis, merely your acquaintances perspectives/cultural ideologies. Statements like this made me question this book’s aim to teach “ethical” public speaking. In addition, the discussion about means-ends is so oversimplified as to be deceptive. \n\n\nHowever, the thorough look at the National Communication Association Credo for Ethical Communication redeemed this section. While the authors’ discussion of ethical theory is problematic, the information they give regarding information honesty, acceptance of diverse perspectives, and other parts of this credo, is sound.\nThe checklist of ethical considerations the authors provide is particularly useful. The end-of-chapter ethical questions are interesting, and provide scenarios that offer good fodder for ethical conversations.\n","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The book is relevant, and uses up-to-date terminology and examples, most of which will not swiftly become dated. Some references, such as to the TV show \"The Office\" will become dated.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clear writing, easy to understand. The book is often funny. The examples are clear and demonstrate the points the authors intended. \n\n\n","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent, clear, authoritative, and well-researched and supported. It builds in a logical fashion, so that by the end of the book, the students will have a clear understanding of what it takes to be a good public speaker.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is easily teachable, with clearly demarcated sections that can be used separately or cumulatively. Good use of learning objectives to highlight key ideas, “key takeaways” do a wonderful job of synthesizing the information.\n\nThe exercises occasionally look like busy work, but many are quite helpful. They would be particularly useful in a class focused entirely on speaking. In a class that merely incorporates speaking as part of the learning competencies, the exercises are less important than the excellent advice on speaking. However, the book offers such a clear and compelling of the process of argumentation that I could see it being used in a writing course, or in the context of many other courses that ask students to create arguments in papers, speeches, posters, or other presentations.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics in the text are organized well. There are some topics I would not expect to see highlighted in a text of this nature, such as \"librarians are your friends\" and information on how to research a topic. These topics are so welcome and helpful that these parts of the text could be assigned in a wide variety of classes that require a research project. This really made the book stand out for me.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The book's formatting and interface are largely clear and easy to use and understand. I do find the lack of indents or spaces separating paragraphs or blockquotes, and the many other spacing errors distracting. Formatting issues signal laziness to me. I read the pdf, which should not have exhibited such formatting errors in the way a converted ebook format could.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I didn't see any grammatical errors in the text.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The books is culturally relevant in that is makes students aware of sensitive topics, ways to present them, and it challenges assumption about cultural superiority. \nMore importantly, the book teaches sensitivity by explaining how and why students should listen ethically and be open minded. It presents audience  analysis less as profiling than as ensuring the speaker is meeting the audience on respectful and sincere terms.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I teach applied public speaking in an Information Technology Ethics class, and I was intrigued by the promise of “ethics” in the title. It seemed a perfect confluence of topics to assign as a guide for my students as they prepared their speeches. While public speaking is not the main focus of this class, it is a critical skill to be learned by all of my students. Students will be wrestling with challenging ethical issues in their careers, and often have to persuade or inform their colleagues about ethical problems. I will be assigning parts of this book for future sections of this ethics class. One of the competencies for this class involves being able to communicate ethics issues clearly and convincingly. To that end, I want to ensure my students understand their ethical duty in the midst of that communication process: they must acknowledge any of their biases when possible, and seek to present as many sides of the issue as possible. The books does a particularly good job of describing exactly this process.\n\nI have been a consultant for 14 years, and have read and used a variety of public speaking texts in my work. This book is relevant to real-world public speaking needs, while also being useful in a classroom setting.\n\nThe book provides a solid theoretical basis for the public speaking, from Shannon \u0026amp; Weaver’s signal/noise information theory to Bakhtin. Da Vito’s theoretical framework is a great basis for speakers to consider. Good historical grounding as well—the book notes ancient Greek and Latin speech types, for example. Later in the book, the authors usefully talk about cognitive dissonance theory and other theory that makes it difficult to persuade listeners to one’s perspective.\n\nHIGHLIGHTS: ethical checklists, research tips, active listening and assessments of the audience.","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":407,"first_name":"Richard","last_name":"Schutta","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"University of Wisconsin- Stout","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is by the best text book on public speaking that I have seen recently in terms of the overall content. What I would like to see is a better glossary of key terms. Yet, what makes this a great text is the break down of key takeaways and more importantly the end of section exercises that I find lacking in other public speaking texts. \n\nThe thoroughness of the text is what really has captured me. The text doesn't skim over key concepts, but instead really provides a detailed explanation with numerous references to scholarly supporting material  for students. The use of in-text sources provides a great illustration of the comprehensiveness of the text. This book really does a great job in touching on concepts like attention span or stages of listening that I have not seen in other public speaking books or developed out like this text. ","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"I would have liked to see a reference or works cited page included. In this age of information I strongly encourage my students to cite all their sources. I think it should be important for a text book, especially open textbooks to include a reference page. In addition, this would help the students understand how to prepare a reference page. More importantly,  also if a student wanted to look at another (s)more in-depth they would have a detailed list to refer to. \n\nOtherwise, overall the information is accurate and students will get a wealth of information on public speaking from this text. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"This book is update. In a topic like public speaking, the key concepts and methods do not change all that often, or at all. I like the various references to more current speeches (Obama) with more classic speeches (MLK's \"I Have a Dream\"). Often texts will update and remove \"older\" references, this text has found the perfect balance. \n\n","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I loved that this text took the terminology of public speaking and made it understandable and easy to read at the same time. I actually found reading this text incredibly enjoyable. There isn't an overload of technical terminology without an easy to understand description to follow. Students will find this text more enjoyable to read than the \"guidebooks\" that are on the market. \n\n","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Everything in the text flows consistently from section to section and chapter to chapter. Concepts clearly build off each other. The writing is consistent as are the use of examples and sources throughout. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I really liked the book is divided. When I teach my courses, I don't start at page one and work all the way through, I like to jump around, so the way this text is divided is perfect! More ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I thought the text was consistent in organization with other texts. However, I would maybe put speaker apprehension before the chapter on ethics. Ethics is certainly important, most students coming into a public speaking class are going to be nervous and really dreading it, so I think focusing on speaking apprehension in the first or second chapter makes the most sense. This way too, the ethics chapter can lead off developing speeches. \n\nI would also suggest a table of content be included in the PDF version that way a student can quickly find the start of a chapter or section and go directly to it. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I found no issues with the interface. Everything appeared properly and even printed clean if a student needed to print a page or pages. All the images were clean without issue. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found a few places where spaces were missed between, but nothing else of major significance. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text does a good job of incorporating cultural relevance into the content (e.g. Chapter 5) and provides clear examples of some words to use or not use. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, I would highly recommend this book to my university and others teaching public speaking. It is by far the most comprehensive book that I personally have seen. It is easy to read, students will not get bored reading this text and it provides great examples and resources for the students and any instructor. \n\nI would only suggest inclusion of a reference page, a glossary, and a table of contents. ","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":416,"first_name":"Karen","last_name":"Krumrey-Fulks","position":"Lead Faculty","institution_name":"Lane Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook is backed with current research and great examples making it an interesting and informative read.  It reaches out to students by providing relevant stories and illustrations along with bibliographic footnotes.  Unfortunately, those footnotes lead to nothing.  There is no bibliography or index or glossary of any sort.  There is nothing at the end of the chapter, nor at the end of the book to indicate reference sources.  Student who want to learn more, or to check their secondary references (as encouraged in Chapter 7 on researching the topic) are out of luck.  And for those interested in chapter topics, there is no table of contents list either.\n\nStudents looking for bold-faced vocabulary words will have to highlight them on their own.  The words DO exist, and are very easily understood, but the book doesn't provide that common study help that many students rely on.  What is helpful though, is that each chapter section does provide a learning objectives box,and key takeaways box plus useful exercises and/or self-quizzes to test knowledge.  There are also additional links to resources on the web that I am sure students and instructors will find very helpful.\n\nIn the bigger picture, this textbook might not have all of the stylistic conventions that students and instructors have learned to appreciate in a textbook, but the content covers all that I would require in a public speaking textbook and more.  I was pleasantly surprised at the scope and the depth of this book.  Content-wise it can stand up to anything that's out there.\n\n","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The research for the book appears to be accurate, but without the bibliography it's hard to judge with certainty.  In my reading there wasn't any information that drew red flags for being incorrect or biased.  What did stand out was the lack of proof-reading.  There were numerous places where words ran together without spacing.  In the outline section, which is typically the most difficult thing for my students to learn, the formatting was horrendous.  Yes, it is often difficult to get computers to format outlines correctly because of auto-correct, but students rely HEAVILY on the text when creating their own outlines, and what is shown is NOT what I want any student emulating!  There needs to be some serious work done in the formatting of this chapter for the examples to be acceptable.  Proofreading could move what is a good book to a desirable book.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Public speaking is not a subject that changes quickly as the generations go by.  Much of what does change is stylistic or technological in nature and we just adapt the basics to the changes.  It's not likely that this text will become obsolete in a short period of time.  The text and chapter arrangement is relatively timeless.  Even the examples that are used are explained in such a way that they will be relevant for the decade to come.\n\nA great way to ensure relevance and longevity would be to improve the readability.  If students are reading the text electronically, paragraphs need to be indented or delineated clearly.  Having everything flush left, makes for a confusing read at best.  When looking at screen after screen of dense wording becomes difficult for the eyes and will discourage students from spending much time with the chapters.  Indenting paragraphs, creative use of \"white\" space, and illustrations will lengthen the amount of time a student spends with the content.  As it says in chapter 15 (Presentation Aids: Design and Usage), \"presenting [is] much more than just a collection of words and ideas.\"  (pg. 473)","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I found the prose of the book to be very readable and interesting.  There were many vocabulary terms that were defined in such a way that I often appreciated the clarity of the definition.  The examples were clear, current, and relevant.  Much of the book was easy to relate to and invited the reader into the topic.  \n\nThe only aspect of the book that wasn't clear was why chapter 19 (Your First Speech) exists.  It's in a different typeface, and seems to be an afterthought, or maybe a conclusion to the book, because it summarizes much of what the previous chapters covered.  I suspect that a simple checklist in an appendix would be a good substitution.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Moving from chapter to chapter, or even section to section within a chapter, was smooth and easy to follow.  There were not any consistency issues that caused any problems for me.  The authors referred back to specific sections at times to keep the topic relevant, and when checked, the references all were correct.  The web links all worked as well.\n","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"In general, the modularity was effective.  As I was reading, it was easy to figure out which sections or which chapters could be eliminated for my student needs without losing the integrity of the book.  I liked the ways that the subheadings were labeled with numerals so that a continuity was established making it easier to realign as needed.  The outline chapter uses some lengthy examples that could possibly be shortened, but overall, the modularity is stellar.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization of the chapters (excluding 19) makes sense and is fairly typical of most public speaking books.  It's logical and follows a linear fashion from the rational of public speaking to the completion of the speech.  I appreciated the review of the fundamentals of the communication process and listening at the beginning to the discussion of language choice and delivery near the end.  \n\nThe structure and flow of the book could be improved for readers by proofreading and stylistic devices.  Students need a bibliography and index.  Bold vocabulary terms help student know what's important.  Indented or other stylistic devices to delineate paragraphs.  Use of white space and/or illustrations to break up the huge blocks of words.  \n\nJust as giving a speech is not just about the message, an effective book is not just getting the words on the page.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"In general, the navigation throughout the book is easy.  With the exception of the lack of a table of context, index, and bibliography, it is fairly easy to navigate throughout the book.  The links to the web are easy to follow and working.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There were a few grammatical errors and run-on words.  A good proofreader can fix these problems easily.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked the written of this book.  As I was reading though it, I was always thinking of ways to make it work for our public speaking classes.  There are some things that I would change, and I certainly would do some proofreading and stylistic revisions, but this is a solid book that is engagingly written.  I believe that with a little tweaking here and there--plus an instructors \"unique\" classroom presence--students would find this book appealing and useful.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked the written of this book.  As I was reading though it, I was always thinking of ways to make it work for our public speaking classes.  There are some things that I would change, and I certainly would do some proofreading and stylistic revisions, but this is a solid book that is engagingly written.  I believe that with a little tweaking here and there--plus an instructors \"unique\" classroom presence--students would find this book appealing and useful.","created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":430,"first_name":"Leslie","last_name":"Harris","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee","comprehensiveness_rating":2,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is a good basic public speaking textbook. It covers the main topics that one would expect in a public speaking textbook and includes plenty of practical advice. The sections on ethics and organization are particularly helpful, and the writing is generally light and engaging.\n\nDepending on how an instructor is using the book, a potential weakness is a lack of rhetorical theory. My preference would be that the authors use rhetorical theory to explain why students may be making particular choices in their speeches. The audience, argument, and persuasive sections are particularly weak in this respect. For example, I would have liked to see not only an understanding of the audience and its demographics, but also a consideration of ways in which an audience can be constructed by the speaker. Important elements of persuasion such as framing and identification are absent. The authors do list figures of speech, but there is little consideration of what those figures do or how they may work in public speaking. \n\nA more serious issue is the lack of table of contents, index, glossary, foot/endnotes, and bibliography. The lack of an index, table of contents, and glossary can make it difficult for students to use the book. The absence of notes and bibliography is particularly problematic when we are attempting to teach students to responsibly cite sources. There are markers of notes in the text of the book, but I have been unable to locate any actual notes to correspond to those markers at the end of the pages, chapters, or the book as a whole. My best guess is that the notes were lost in formatting,  or perhaps the problem is unique to the pdf version that I read. Nonetheless, these elements need to be present in every version of the book.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I don't see any major problems with accuracy. However, the absence of a bibliography and/or notes is a problem.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Some of the examples could use updating, but I don't see any major issues. There are many web links in the text. I did not check if all of those links are still active, but instructors will need to check the links if they are expecting students use them.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The writing is generally clear and accessible. The learning objectives are clearly stated, and there are good summaries at the end of each section. Some of the checklists also seem very helpful. Clarity could be improved by pulling out definitions into a separate box or glossary. Some of the spacing and formatting issues may also introduce confusion.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is generally consistent. I didn't see any major shifts in terminology or anything else that would make me concerned about consistency.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The chapters and subsections are generally clear, and there is an appropriate amount of self referencing. A clear and detailed table of contents would make it easier to assign specific sections and navigate.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization of the chapters are clear and similar to other public speaking textbooks. However, Chapter 19 was strange. It seemed like a general summary of the overall book, and at at least one place the book called the chapter an appendix. The chapter seemed disconnected and didn't seem to add much to the overall text.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"The book was, at times, difficult to read, and the formatting seemed sloppy. There are no spaces or indents between paragraphs. Throughout the text there are additional spaces or missing spaces between words (such as \"anidiom\" instead of \"an idiom\"). Some of the figures are missing (such as 17.1 in my pdf version), and some tables are formatted in a potentially confusing way. The font occasionally changes. There is no easy way to navigate between chapters and because there isn't a table of contents with page numbers, the reader has to scroll through the book to find a particular section or chapter. However, there are not indicators, like chapter titles, at the top of pages to aid navigation. There are also places where sample speeches are not distinguished from the text, so it can be difficult to see where the text ends and the sample speech begins.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not see any serious grammar issues.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"There is nothing clearly insensitive or offensive in the book, but there also was not a comprehensive treatment of culture. Culture and related issues of power are important to public speaking, and I was disappointed to see only a cursory treatment of these issues.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"This book includes practical advice and contains much of what an instructor would expect in a public speaking textbook. I could see the book functioning as a good supplement to a public speaking course. The interface/formatting issues are a problem. Perhaps there are different versions of the book, but all versions need to have notes and bibliography.  I am also disappointed by the absence of rhetorical theory. It's impossible to include the content that will satisfy every instructor. However, most public speaking textbooks include at least some rhetorical theory, which I see as important to (1) explaining why we are asking students to make specific decisions and (2) creating a framework for more advanced communication courses.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":440,"first_name":"Katie","last_name":"Trombley","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"M State Community and Technical College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook was one of the most comprehensive public speaking textbooks I have viewed. However, I found it to be lacking in critical thinking skills, such as identifying fallacies. There was no index, glossary, bibliography, or bold keywords throughout text.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The majority of the content is accurate. I would like to see \"noise\" added to The Transactional Model of Communication. The speech outline did not follow the pattern of outlining I use with students. It started with Roman Numerals and then numbers 1, 2, 3, etc. rather than capital letters. A space is needed between “should” and “do” on page 519. The table of contents needs to be updated to include Chapter 19 – Your First Speech.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The overall material is not likely to change in the next few years. MLA and APA guidelines were up-to-date. The biggest drawback in this category is a lot of research cited was over 10 years old.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The authors used a friendly style in their writing that I think would keep students’ attention.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The theme of ethics was seen throughout the book. It was not in every chapter, but some material relates to ethical issues better than other material.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I would have no trouble teaching chapters or sections of chapters out of order from the way they appear in the textbook. There was an appropriate amount of subheadings.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics are presented logically. I did not like how the thesis statement was with the introducing a speech chapter. I like to teach thesis statement with the specific purpose.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Very poor. There was very little use of color, pictures, and other graphics.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This textbook did an excellent job of appealing to college students’ interests such as O, The Oprah Magazine, Ted Talks, and popular television shows. It lacked material on international culture.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"There were useful checklists/questions for students, such as the “Public Speaking Ethics” checklist and “Who is an Expert” questions. The text also included learning objectives at the beginning of each chapter, summaries throughout each chapter, and assessment questions at the end of each chapter. There were numerous websites to provide students with extra resources on a wide variety of topics.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":464,"first_name":"David","last_name":"Edwards","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"South Central College, Faribault campus","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"All the topics one would expect in a public speaking course are included. They reflect the standard topics found in almost all mainstream public speaking textbooks. There are no topics missing.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"No inaccuracies found in book, although a couple of the links did not work. No bias found, and it appears the authors are careful to work diversity into the book, both in the names, examples, and samples included.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Book is very up-to-date, which means it would likely need to be updated just as frequently as a printed version for several reasons. Many of the examples and samples provided are current topics or well-known people. In a few years, those will be out-of-date and will need to be updated. One suggestion is to use the word \"summary\" instead of \"key takeaways\" at the end of each section/chapter. \"Key takeaways\" is really a current buzzword in the business world, which will likely not be known by students and won't be used after the \"freshness of the term\" has worn off.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Book is written using simple, down-to-earth, language. It is very conversational and easy to understand. Public speaking is not an overly-difficult subject to understand, so this really reflects the simplicity of the subject matter.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Book is consistent in terms of terminology and framework (which I am assuming refers to the \"look\" or layout of the book). Each chapter begins with objectives and ends with a summary and some sample exercises/questions. When chapters have subdivisions, those subdivisions also are consistently laid out.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"Text is divided into appropriate chapters and sub-divisions of chapters. However, the book is simply way too long (622 pages!!!) and each page is quite difficult to read due to the fact that each paragraph is NOT separated by a space. This gives each page the appearance of one gigantic paragraph. This makes it a daunting task to read through a page, much less a full chapter (which is very long). This is the reason I wouldn't use this text in my course, although I might use parts of some chapters as supplements to what I currently use.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"While all of the chapters seem appropriate, I'd suggest moving a couple of them. First, chapter 4 and chapter 14 should be switched with each other. Chapter 4 deals with delivery and needs to be discussed before the construction of a speech, not after. Second, chapter 15 should come right after chapter 8. Chapter 15 deals with visual aids, which should be discussed at the end of the support chapter (since visual aids are a form of support). While it's true that an instructor can order the chapters in any way he/she wants, I think these two changes will be the most logical order.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Didn't see any interface issues or navigation problems except for a few links that didn't work. To be honest, there were not very many pictures, graphics, or features. Tables were frequently used, perhaps too much as it doesn't look much different than the rest of the block paragraphs of text. Perhaps, more visual variety needed in book.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"Grammar is fine, but an important note about mechanics is mentioned above and will be repeated here. The book is simply way too long (622 pages!!!) and each page is quite difficult to read due to the fact that each paragraph is NOT separated by a space. This gives each page the appearance of one gigantic paragraph. This makes it a daunting task to read through a page, much less a full chapter (which is very long). This is the reason I wouldn't use this text in my course, although I might use parts of some chapters as supplements to what I currently use.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Like all current textbooks, it appears that the authors have made a concerted effort to use names, examples, and samples that reflect various cultures. Sometimes, it seems forced.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Thanks for giving me the opportunity to review this book.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":569,"first_name":"Kathleen","last_name":"German","position":"Full Professor","institution_name":"Miami University -- Oxford, Ohio","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"Stand up, Speak--The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking is a relatively comprehensive textbook, although it’s longer than many commercial textbooks which accounts for some of its breadth of coverage. It is highly suitable for an introductory course in public speaking that is taught from a communication theory/sciences perspective.   It combines the best features of an introductory workbook such as interactive checklists and extended examples with strong features of a textbook.  Among the most thorough treatments in this textbook are the ethics features (Chapter 2) which are woven throughout the book and concrete suggestions for the implementation of ethical choices in speaking.  The weakest topics which might be supplemented, depending on the course emphasis, are:\n\n*\tThe several stress management techniques (Chapter 3), such as systematic desensitization and cognitive restructure, which are described but not in enough detail to offer viable alternatives to students.  In addition, such techniques are not usually undertaken without professional guidance.\n*\tStudents are not provided with practical, immediate suggestions for anxiety reduction.\n*       Argumentation, its development and critique, is also very rudimentary.\n*       Persuasion is introduced but not well developed.\n*\tCritical analysis of argumentation and persuasion are also very limited with no mention of fallacious reasoning etc.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"There is strong treatment of contemporary behavioral theories such as cognitive dissonance, consistency theory, elaboration likelihood model, etc., but very limited recognition of rhetorical theory.  If you are looking for a textbook that is well grounded in rhetorical principles, this is not it.  In some cases, new language such as “temporal dimension” (p. 13) could be recognized as the traditional rhetorical “kairos” although there is no clear link.  In at least one instance (p. 73), the interpretation of Aristotelian categories of speaking as three types of listeners is misleading, or at best, confusing.  The historical claim that citizenship was determined by property ownership and that all property owners were prosperous is not credible (p. 73).\n\nThe use of interpersonal research and models as they are adapted to public speaking is useful.  Some of this informs the development of purposes for public speaking, models of dialogic communication and principles of critical listening (p. 91).  Description of various types of “noise” in listening is particularly good (p. 80) and well rooted in strong research in interpersonal communication and listening.\n\nWhy is there no permission included for Monroe’s Motivated Sequence (pp. 572+)?  To my knowledge this is copyrighted information and the authors are incorrect when they write that it is included in most textbooks.  It is featured only in the Monroe, Ehninger, et al. textbooks because it was developed by Alan Monroe as part of his original army officer’s training manual.  Permission must be obtained from Routlege to use this model.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"There are many examples, especially in the last 2/3s of the textbook.  These examples are derived from contemporary issues and many of these issues such as the military “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on sexual orientation will eventually become dated.  Other examples and check sheets that ask students to review their hobbies, favorite books, classes, etc. for speech topic ideas etc. will remain viable for much longer.  As always with examples from contemporary political and business speaking (Obama’s speech citations, for example) will become quickly dated.  Within another 4-8 years, the typical college student will not likely remember events/leaders from their elementary and middle school years.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"This textbook has an average concept load of approximately 4-6 ideas/chapter.  There are many lists which appear to expand the load, but these are usually just checklists of options such as types of introductions or conclusions rather than new ideas.  Often, practices such as informative speaking or types of transition are illustrated in multiple ways which is especially effective for students.\n\nThe reading level for the textbook is quite low.  Most high school and college level students will have very little difficulty with it–sentences are relatively short, vocabulary is not challenging, and sentence structure is straightforward.  \n\nOne difficulty in the textbook is that new vocabulary/concepts are not consistently defined clearly or in the context of the discussion.  For example, “transactional” and “interactional” are used interchangeably at one point although they were established as separate concepts.  The problem is further complicated as “dialogic” is introduced into the discussion.  At other times, however, such as in the discussion of primary and secondary research (p. 190), the definitions are outstanding.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This textbook is both consistent with most other commercial textbooks on the market and internally consistent in its approach to teaching public speaking.  The topics replicate topics covered in most other public speaking textbooks except perhaps if you are looking for more fully developed treatment of argumentation or persuasion or you want to present outlining or demonstration speaking to students.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Instructors and students will find this textbook very easy to use as distinct units or as it is presented from beginning to end.  It appears to be very easy to rearrange the chapters without confusing students.  In fact, I would personally use several of the later chapters much earlier in the semester and perhaps not use the extensive, although excellent, discussion of special occasion speaking at all.  This textbook seems designed for such rearrangement.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The template for each chapter is consistent throughout the textbook.  There are clearly delineated learning objectives, take-aways, and assessment questions for each chapter.  Headings for chapters and subheadings are clear and easy to navigate.  Overall, the chronology of the chapters follows the development of most public speaking courses from “why should we learn public speaking” to the steps for your first speech, to more advanced forms of speaking such as informative, persuasive, and special occasion speaking.  Most commercial textbooks follow a similar formula.\n\nSeveral minor problems interrupt the flow of an otherwise well-organized textbook.  For example, the list of librarians and the etiquette for interacting with them is both odd and strangely placed at the beginning of the research chapter (p. 185).  I’m also wondering why “Speech Preparation Time” is included in the midst of a discussion of research (p. 197) and why the statistics oriented website information is included in Chapter 8 on argumentation rather than in the previous chapter on supporting material.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Students are invited to interact with the textbook through checklists and student-friendly examples.  These are well integrated into the development of stages of speech development.  Infrequent diagrams and models provide additional support for concept development.  Occasionally, summaries describing how lists of topics such as temporal, spatial etc. elements (Chapter 1) relate to the transaction diagram might be helpful for students who will have difficulty making these connections on their own.\n\nThe small units with key objectives listed after each one is probably helpful for students.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Occasionally words are run together such as “inlistening” (p. 73) or “shoulddo” (p. 523) although this may be the result of formatting issues while downloading. \n\nMinor stylistic problems occur occasionally such as “hearer, that”–“hearer who” is more grammatically correct.  Most of my students probably wouldn’t notice.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Many public speaking textbooks achieve the appearance of inclusion through illustrations that feature various ethnic groups, individuals using wheelchairs etc.  This textbook does not have that luxury because there are no photographs other than the cover image.  There is an attempt to create the facade of inclusion through the use of names such as “Jose,” “Pablo,” “Ursula,” “Fatima,” “Yukhi,” and “Juanita.”  This is rather superficial.  There are several examples that also use Native American culture and others.  This helps recognize the potential diversity of readers and audiences.\n\nHowever, the most genuine attempt to stress inclusiveness occurs in the discussion of language and audience analysis.  This is quite good.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This is a solid, low-level textbook that would be appropriate for either advanced high school students or entry-level college students.  It represents a communication theory/sciences perspective and, although there are a few references to Aristotle, it does not represent a rhetorical approach to teaching public speaking.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":605,"first_name":"Rosemarie","last_name":"Tillman","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Lane Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"I love how thoroughly this textbook covers thesis statements. I think the Chapter Exercises and Key Takeaways are especially useful for this element of a speech's introduction. I find students are often stymied by the differences between thesis statements and specific purposes, and consequently develop one or the other, but never develop very strong statements. I think it might be more comprehensive to directly deal with the five elements of orienting material rather than simply referring to five or six things that should happen within the introduction.\n\nI did not see either an index or a glossary. Both of these features would be a benefit to this book. Many students rely heavily upon these features with the traditional textbook, most notably when they have not set aside time to complete the assigned readings. I think students' reading habits will transfer to open textbooks, and without an index or glossary, many students will be frustrated and deem the open textbook less helpful, even less user friendly.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"There is no index or bibliography, so there is no way to determine research accuracy other than your personal knowledge base. Students do not usually have a very extensive knowledge base. Students might also think because the text does not offer a reference list or bibliography that they do not have to offer one with their work products.  \n\nAlso the chapter on Outlining does not accurately cover outlining principles. The three major sections (introduction, body, conclusion) are not covered with the four levels (Roman numerals, capital letters, Arabic numerals, lowercase letters) working within. Neither does the significance of indentations to the flow and consistency of information that constitutes the message seem to be apparent.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I believe the content of the text is up-to-date and will remain so for a while. The fundamentals of public speaking do not readily change. Perhaps rearrangement of chapter order to that more similar to the speech making process might increase relevance. Clarifications of formatting might make technological updates easier to implement, thereby increasing longevity.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is understandably written. There is no restricted code that is not defined or explained. All explanations provide clarification suitable for the typical undergraduate.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"The text does not consistently use APA's style format. When explaining oral as well as written documentation of sources for student use there seems to be adherence to APA's 6th edition. However the authors' citation of sources does not consistently or correctly offer direct in-text quotations. The citations offered in text are more appropriate for bibliographies and reference pages than chapter content. The in-text citations also misuse punctuation and provide some information that does not belong and leaves out other information that does belong. Additionally some citations provide redundant information.\n\nThen there is inconsistency with labeling. For example, Elspeth Tilley's Ethics Pyramid is also labeled and occasionally referred to as the Ethical Pyramid.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I found the modularity effective. It seems as though customization would be effortless, particularly with the subheadings provided for each chapter. Plus if I decided to reincorporate some reading I did not assign, it appears as though that would be a naturally easy adaptation.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"For the most part the layout of the text follows the speech making process. It is an easily understandable guide to being effective throughout the process. If the desire is to have the text's information flow as logically as the speech making process does rearranging the chapters so that Outlining follows Finding a Purpose and Selecting a Topic, and Creating the Body of a Speech follows Supporting Ideas and Building Arguments would set up a structure that is more similar to effective design, research, development, and practice of a speech.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Navigation is straightforward. Navigation could be more fluid with the addition of a glossary, index, and bibliography. It is refreshing that the embedded Internet links actually work and without additional navigation at a site. You are taken directly to the video, web page, blog entry, etc. referenced without needing to figure out how to access the referred resource.","grammatical_rating":3,"grammatical_review":"More proofreading is needed. There are spacing, typographical, outlining, and grammatical errors. There needs to be some revising and editing in the formatting of the examples, citations, and outlines. Additional proofreading could easily eliminate aspects that instructors will see as distractions and clarify aspects that students may find confusing.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I think this text is culturally relevant in ways that matter to both students and instructors. Students like examples that connect to their personal lives, media, current events, and entertainment. Offering links to celebrities, politicians, professional athletes, and other news makers engaging in public speaking episodes helps students see how the skills and strategies they are learning are relevant and useful. For instructors I believe the chapter on The Importance of Language will be appreciated. It can be challenging to assist students in using and acknowledging the impact of inclusive language. Instructors' use of this chapter can meaningfully encourage students to say what they mean in ways that engage audience members and have listeners feel included in the message.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This is a solid textbook. My current institution has just implemented a prescribed traditional textbook for all of its public speaking courses. In our next review of the public speaking course, if the few issues I noted are remedied, I plan on recommending this open textbook for adoption.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":613,"first_name":"Paul","last_name":"Vinelli","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"As I was reading through the text, I considered whether it effectively complemented my lesson plans - and altogether, I feel it succeeded.  The book goes into great depth in each of its major chapters, and offers students tips on how to tackle particular challenges.  I can use the text as a general framework for introducing content and terminology, but ultimately the in-class exercises I’ve developed over time will be necessary to move students towards next steps.\n\nThe PDF version lacks a glossary and easily navigable Table of Contents, which is to its detriment.  I’d encourage students to use the GitHub site if possible - though introducing the navigation aspects might take up valuable class time.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Altogether, I found the content to be straightforward and sensitive to a range of audiences.  The authors are extremely thorough in their use of citations in the online version, but unfortunately some of these do not translate directly into the PDF.  I find that they are consistently strong in attributions, offer objective examples, outline strong ethical behaviors and pose interesting questions for the reader.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Most of the text will be useful for the long-run.  For instance, tips on how to grapple with anxiety or brainstorm original topics are fairly timeless.  However, the authors will have to regularly add modern examples of political speech (e.g. updating for who’s in office) and cultural touchstones.  The writers must be vigilant in maintaining active links - I found several “dead URLs” throughout the text, most of which direct to individually-maintained academic websites.  It’s critical to keep these fresh to maintain the text’s credibility in the eyes of students and faculty.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is written in a clear and accessible style for students.  At times, the authors overelaborate on certain points, but on the overall they do a nice job explaining topics.  I feel the “Key Takeaways” are strong and straightforward - my opinion is that they could be used as models to retroactively edit several chapters in the interest of brevity.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The authors methodically define terms and explain concepts.  In addition, they regularly signal what’s coming next, and do a nice job walking students through the transition from ideation to execution.  The text has an even-keeled, encouraging and conversational tone, which helps keep the reader consistently engaged.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The authors do a nice job utilizing headings, subheadings and chapter designations.  This was far more evident in the “online” version, where I was able to quickly jump within chapters via the Table of Contents and “Next Section” buttons.  As per other textbooks I’ve used in the past, I will choose to present topics in an order I find most meaningful to my classroom.  This book is organized in a way that makes this possible.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The book is capably modeled to tackle many of the fundamental topics in public speaking.  I had little trouble following the authors’ arguments and ideas, and they effectively preview and review.  I would prefer to see the outlining chapter introduced earlier, as this is a fundamental skill that we practice before thinking about major speech construction (often through reverse outlining).  I believe that thinking broadly about speech framework before content creation is key - but that’s a personal teaching preference.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Because the text is 622 pages, I found the PDF version to be difficult to navigate on a personal computer - especially if I wanted to backtrack to a particular section.  Nevertheless, the type is sufficiently large, and I can assign students chapters accordingly.  Unfortunately, I cannot readily convert this to a printed text for students who prefer their readings in book form.\n\nI believe the “online” version is far more usable. I could readily jump throughout the table of contents, and the authors did a nice job adding intra-text links.  However, the plain text occasionally has formatting issues with citations.  I’d suggest making the two versions consistent.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any significant grammatical errors in the book.  There were some formatting issues with spacing, but I did not find these to be too distracting.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Given that the subject is Public Speaking, I feel the authors do a solid job clinically distinguishing between inclusionary and exclusionary language.  However, I’d like to see more culturally engaging examples.  For example, the “Presentation Aids” chapter could have used visuals representing arts and humanities in addition to the primarily scientific examples.\n\nI feel the authors could have included more examples of speech along the lines of Paulette Kelly’s “I Got Flowers Today” (page 367).  It would be wonderful to use a compelling poem to demonstrate an assortment of rhetorical devices…\n\nOne section I found off-putting was the example of the “entertainment speech” in Chapter 6.  The speech uses an obscene acronym to create a “fictional university” that is insulting to residents of Harlem - an inappropriate and decidedly unamusing attempt at a joke.  I believe the authors should choose a different speech and delete this one from the text.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I appreciate how the authors emphasized how to work with and correspond with librarians in the chapter on research.  I often encourage students to begin building relationships with librarians - whether in person or virtually.  It’s clear that they’ve done their due diligence in surveying experts, and I plan to reinforce this message of engagement.\n\nWhile I found the research section to be authoritative, at times it turned into a bit of an information dump.  It’s wonderful to see plenty of resources listed, but mentioning 9 different databases in one paragraph can be a bit excessive.    Odds are my students don’t need a list of 11 major publishers in the Communication field.\n\nHowever, I will say that I welcome the authors’ inclusion of full tables of citations in both MLA and APA style.  I often send my students to Purdue’s “The OWL” website, and these tables serve as a strong counterpart.\n\nAltogether, I can see myself using this book in the classroom.  I was glad to see references to thinkers like Bakhtin, but I would also like to see greater attention paid to rhetorical theory.  I feel that Richard Toye’s “Rhetoric: A Very Short Introduction” would be a good complement to this textbook for an additional scholarly perspective.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":615,"first_name":"Suzanne","last_name":"Burdick","position":"Community College Instructor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text was very comprehensive.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"This textbook was mostly accurate, except that it did not practice what it preached by being overly wordy, rather than concise, which was ironic since brevity is a foundational trait of effective public speaking.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The book was relevant to today's students.","clarity_rating":2,"clarity_review":"The wordiness and unnecessary length of the text detracted from its clarity.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The text was internally consistent.","modularity_rating":1,"modularity_review":"Again, this text was unnecessarily long and cumbersome to use.","organization_rating":1,"organization_review":"See above.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"No comment.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Fine.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Fine.","overall_rating":6,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":762,"first_name":"Patria","last_name":"Lawton","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Inver Hills Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is a comprehensive guide to the many aspects of public speaking.  So often to save money for the students, Instructors have relied on a pocket guide style of public speaking book. This is a nice option if you want to include the thorough information found in the first 140 pages of the book, which is centered on more general communication theories and principles that aren’t exclusive to Public Speaking, but rather the communication discipline as a whole. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Information presented in the book is accurate for the most part.  A more accurate section on outlining should be included with full sentence, properly formatted sample outlines. This is an area where beginning students typically struggle and seeing the formatting be incomplete on the included outlines in this text is a cause for concern as students will often simply “copy” what they see in the text. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Public speaking principles haven’t changed much over the years, so the longevity of the information is solid. That being said, some of the examples are already showing their age – the text included references from 2006, 2010, etc. -  that doesn’t seem like that long ago for some of us, but I would prefer to see examples, especially in an online text, that are less than 10 years old. I would imagine that it will take some work to make sure the links are all up-to-date throughout the text because they are so numerous. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Concepts were clearly defined using clear examples for the reader.  The text was easily digestible for a student in a 100 level speech course. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The layout of the book was extremely consistent. Each chapter begins with learning objectives and ends with review activities. The sections were arranged in a logical order. ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The clear division of the chapters makes it easy for the reader to know where concepts begin and end. It is set up in a way that allows instructors to pick and choose the content in a different order than it is presented. It is also organized in a way that would work if an instructor wanted to work through the material in a sequential order. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"A table of contents would provide a roadmap for the reader, which is extremely helpful in a text that is 600+ pages. The parallelism in the chapters is beneficial for the reader as they know when each chapter starts and stops, as well as being able to view outcomes and practice those outcomes at the end of each chapter. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Most of the text was nicely presented. The lack of a reference section as well as the lack of a clickable table of contents in the PDF version made it difficult to navigate – that may have simply been a feature of the PDF version. ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There are multiple instances of spacing issues throughout the text. There were also issues in which excerpts from speeches weren’t separated appropriately from the larger text. There are a few places where outlines are referenced, but formatted completely incorrectly (such as the “outline” on page 617). ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text has a section devoted to considering the audience’s diversity which discusses respecting diversity and avoiding stereotypes in your speeches in the ethical speaking section. I thought the speeches referenced by the text were culturally relevant and diverse. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This book would be a great substitute to a traditional public speaking textbook. Although many instructors tend to use the pocket style guides to teach public speaking to keep costs down, those often aren't extensive enough. The few things that are irksome about this book, such as a lack of clickable navigation on the PDF version and the failure to incude any reasonable outline examples can easily be remedied with supplemental material. ","created_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":789,"first_name":"Gregory","last_name":"Epps","position":"Associate Clinical Professor","institution_name":"West Virginia University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covered all of the areas associated with the subject matter.  This was a major strength of the book.  I did not see a glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I don't think that the book was biased as was accurate.  I think other professional speakers may differ on a few points.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The book basically perpetuates the known facts and information regarding public speaking.  The information is straight forward and user friendly. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This book is very clear.  It presents information, provides practical examples, and provides good reviews. The writing is easy to follow.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"For the most part the is consistent with the information it provides.  There was, what I consider, some differentiation regarding the topic of memorizing speeches.  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This book did an excellent job dividing topics into sections and sub sections.  It was divided appropriately and systematically. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The flow of the book and the structure are very good.  The organization likely works well with students, however some of the information seemed to fall later in the book than I would have anticipated. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"There were no significant interface issues.  The images and other displays were simplistic and colorful.","grammatical_rating":3,"grammatical_review":"I noticed no grammatical errors.  However, I did find it interesting that there was not a space between paragraphs.  I also noticed a few other spacing issues.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"There were no issues with cultural relevance.  All examples were appropriate an non offensive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This was a very comprehensive book that covered all of the necessary components of public speaking.  There were ample opportunities for review and reinforcement.\n\nThe book was somewhat long and I wonder how it was used along with classroom teaching and if everything gets covered thoroughly.","created_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1530,"first_name":"David","last_name":"Sours","position":"Humanities Instructor","institution_name":"Rogue Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book’s discussion is generally thorough, explaining concepts clearly, illustrating their importance to the speech development process, and providing concrete examples.  Particularly excellent are the discussions of ethics (especially plagiarism issues), listening critically, and audience analysis.  Also good are the sections on how to select a speech topic and purpose, research and citing sources, developing main points and supporting evidence, common organization patterns and outlining techniques, and constructing arguments.  Practice, delivery, presentation aids--all of the topics common to college public speaking courses are included in sufficient detail to make this a very useful text.\n\nThe section on communication anxiety and how to address it is unremarkable in that it covers similar terrain to most other public speaking texts without shedding new light on the subject.  It will nevertheless be useful for many students.\n\nThe text has no glossary or index; however the table of contents is interactive and easily accessible from any page, making it easy to hunt down topics of interest.  There is an effective search tool as well.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The authors write with precision about all aspects of the public speaking process.  They explain concepts clearly, and provide excellent historical and contemporary illustrations.  They are meticulous about citing sources.  Claims and supporting material appear to be accurate and carefully considered.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Although the text was originally published in 2011, at no time does the content seem to be out of date or irrelevant to our current political or social climate.  Because many of the conceptual illustrations are drawn from history, they have a timeless quality.  But even the more recent examples will remain useful to speech students for some time, such as a reference to the 2010 debate over the Affordable Care Act. Regardless of changes that may be made in our health care laws, the authors' point should still be relevant for the foreseeable future.\n\nIn a number of instances, the authors make effective use of academic forecasts which should continue to have relevance for the foreseeable future.  Following is one example, found in section 1.1:  \n\n“Researcher Norman W. Edmund estimates that by 2020 the amount of knowledge in the world will double every seventy-three days (Edmund, 2005). Because we live in a world where we are overwhelmed with content, communicating information in a way that is accessible to others is more important today than ever before.”","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is engaging because of the use of specific and highly relevant examples, word precision, and the use of direct language to draw in the reader (e.g., through the use of direct pronouns).  The authors have a highly organized style, making frequent use of previews, transitions, and summaries to maintain reader focus.  Terminology is explained clearly and rendered useful through the use of examples that the student reader should be able to relate to.\n\nAlso, the authors appear to have many years of experience behind this, and to have given careful thought to some of areas that often can be quite confusing to inexperienced student speakers.  For example, their discussion of speech purposes in section 6.1 includes a brief but illuminating analysis of why many people become confused about the difference between informing and persuading.  To some, this may seem a minor point, but it can actually lead to significant problems in speech focus and preparation.  The authors explain this and other many other issues with great clarity.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Key terms are used with consistency throughout the text.  As explained below under Organization, the progression of ideas should make sense to the overwhelming majority of readers, moving from a general conceptual framework in the early chapters to more specific applications and “nuts and bolts” of speech preparation in the later chapters.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Chapter headings are clear, and so are subheadings.  Most of the sections of this text can be used as standalone readings.  The sequence of topics in the text, while logical, needn’t be followed.  The sections are self-explanatory enough that it should be easy for an instructor to re-order the topics as needed.  Students who have a particular need to know should be able to zero in on a topic of interest without reading everything that came before it.  This text, without a doubt, will work in a modular fashion if that is needed.\n\nWhile the authors do make use of cross references to other sections of the text, these are primarily provided to make it easy to check back and forth using the hyperlinks which are included.  Most readers will appreciate this feature.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The first five chapters address general principles of public speaking such as the overall speech process, ethics, audience analysis, and managing anxiety.  Later chapters take these principles and apply them more specifically, zeroing in on how to identify an appropriate topic, how to develop an audience-appropriate focus (specific purpose), how to conduct research, etc.  These later chapters furnish excellent examples from student speeches—of purpose and thesis statements, introductions, bodies, conclusions, etc.  Many hyperlinks to videos and audios are also furnished for further illustration.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"This was an easy-to-use online text.  Finding terms using the search tool was a breeze; the sidebar table of contents, found on each page, is very helpful.  Most—though not all—of the hyperlinks work.    Illustrations are attractive and appropriate, though not particularly imaginative (many appear to be public domain clip art).  \n\nOne minor font issue concerns key words which are highlighted in blue—the same as hyperlinks.  Another minor issue involves the subheadings. There are subheadings and there are what could be called “sub-sub-headings” where a large topic is broken into subtopics which occasionally are broken down still further.  Because all the subheadings use the same font and point size, this can lead to confusion over what topic is being addressed, slowing down comprehension.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found only two typos and one missing word.  The grammar is not a problem in this text.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"At no time does this text use any language that I would question.  Numerous examples are given featuring different races, religions, ethnicities, etc.  The authors’ discussion of audience analysis, in particular, is a good lesson on the diversity found in the typical college classroom—even one where most of the students appear to be from a similar ethnic or racial background.  As they state in section 5.2:   “Not all cultural membership is visibly obvious. For example, people in German American and Italian American families have widely different sets of values and practices, yet others may not be able to differentiate members of these groups. Differences are what make each group interesting and are important sources of knowledge, perspectives, and creativity.”","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"The authors include some excellent discussion questions at the end of each section, as well as chapter activities and short assessments.  These should provide excellent opportunities for partner, small group, and whole class investigations and discussions.  Also provided are frequent checklists to help students assess their own progress.\n\nOne section I was particularly glad to see—section 6.3—is called “Drawing a  Blank.”  It does an excellent job of addressing one of the big issues that many inexperienced speakers face—the feeling that they have nothing of interest to talk about.  This section offers numerous helpful strategies for getting these students on the right track.","created_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1688,"first_name":"Morgan","last_name":"Hess","position":"Instructor of Record","institution_name":"University of Maryland","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all areas and ideas of the subject appropriately, some with more originality than others. The ethics approach is interesting, and provides for many discussion starting points. The practical how-tos (speaking anxiety, visual aids, etc.) are less exciting, but sufficient overall.\n\nThere is not an effective index and/or glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I didn't see any bias or errors. Lots of citations for curious or unconvinced students.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The book basically perpetuates the known facts and information regarding public speaking. It's not particularly culturally relevant, so take that as you will. The information is straight forward and user friendly.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"SO clear! any undergraduate can easily read and understand it. The examples are especially clear.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The progression of ideas make sense, moving from a general conceptual framework in the early chapters to more specific applications later on. Terms were consistently defined and used.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Divided easing into assigned readings.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"As mentioned above, the structure was logical. I won't have to mis up chapters on my syllabus, which is nice.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Simple, colorful, easy to see.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I didn't notice anything!","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"It's not insensitive or unethical (haha!) in any way. It's not particularly \"culturally relevant\" in the examples it uses, but If this question is asking about its accessibility its perfectly adequate. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I like it! Puts a different spin on public speaking for an intro class, and definitely worth pulling from.","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1900,"first_name":"Narissra","last_name":"Punyanunt-Carter","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Texas Tech University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is the BEST public speaking book on the market. It covers every major and essential aspect of public speaking.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The information is completely accurate and unbiased. Students love using this book!","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The book provides several examples that help make the public speaking easier to comprehend and retain. The information is straightforward and very relatable.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is clear and concise!","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The terms in this book are consistent with other text books on the market.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The author(s) do a great job confining and reiterating information so that students can truly learn the information.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization of this book is logical, straightforward, and clear. I love how this book is organized. It helps making a speech easier and effective.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The book provides great visual features so that it makes learning fun and exciting.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors. It is written very well!","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This book is perfect for all classes on public speaking. It is inclusive of all races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I've reviewed a lot of public speaking textbooks in my career. This book is by far the most thorough and most comprehensive books on public speaking. My students truly enjoy learning from this book. And I adore using this book to teach public speaking. If instructors need a public speaking textbook, then they should definitely use this book. I would require it for all my public speaking courses.","created_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2121,"first_name":"Brian","last_name":"Timm","position":"Professor","institution_name":"North Hennepin Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text addresses key concepts appropriate for an introductory level public speaking course. The content is extensive and larger courses may not have the time to address all of the material included. It would be nice to see more coverage about how to effectively present in group contexts. No glossary, but the online search function is user friendly. Coverage of ethics in public speaking would create opportunities for class discussions.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate, arranged in a useful manner. It appears to be free from overt bias.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content appears to be up to date, though some of the examples may require more context in the future.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Textbook is written clearly and accessible for an introductory college level course.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Terms are used consistently and in an accessible format. The end of chapter exercises allow students to reflect on the content learned in each chapter.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is presented in a way that would make it easily adaptable to different course structures or schedules. The content does not rely on being presented in a specific order.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The structure of the content in the text is logical. Presenting the introduction, body, and conclusion content in separate chapters allows for more time to focus on each rather than having them lumped together.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is easily searchable for terms both online and in PDF format. The online version makes moving between chapters easy with the navigation menu.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No major grammatical errors or typos.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text does not appear overtly culturally insensitive. Given the emphasis on speaker ethics, this makes sense.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"The outlining section could offer more examples, but overall this is a solid introduction to public speaking textbook.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2160,"first_name":"Lisa","last_name":"Hoopis","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Rhode Island College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book was very easy to understand and comprehend. I plan on using this with my peer education group who has to do public speaking.  This text was perfect in covering the basics and giving them a good foundation.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book was accurate and up to date. I like that the information was supported by research and examples.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The basics of public speaking were covered here and relevant examples were used.  I feel it would have to be updated regularly to keep it up to date but that can easily be done with current examples.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book seemed straight forward, relevant and to the point and covered all of the basics I would expect it to cover.  I like that it clearly discusses issues around plagiarism and freedom of speech and was divided into 4 clear areas.  In this day of political turmoil I feel it is helpful for speech writing and also having thoughtful, meaningful challenging conversations.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book was consistent in format and layout and was the framework was laid out with objectives and references which I think is important.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I did not see any issues with the layout. I like how the information was presented and repeated for comprehension.  I liked objectives were clearly laid out and there was a table of contents that organized everything nicely.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I really enjoyed the layout of this and flow throughout the book.  I think it would be easy to assign students sections of this book although it is difficult to navigate to sections without going through the entire book.  I like that it starts students at the beginning gaining confidence, considering audience d then creating and delivering the speech.  I would have also liked to see something on seeking and accepting feedback and journaling the experience at the end.  I liked the way the chapters were laid out and organized.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"It is difficult to find a particular section without going through the entire book.  I would like to see clickable tabs on the side that would take you to where you need to go rather than just the errors to the next section.  I liked the visual features and the tips it offered.  Some of the links did not work which was frustrating especially if students want to get more information.  I liked how it provided objectives at he start of the chapter and a review of the info. for comprehension.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I would have liked to see more on this area.  I do feel it was a little weak in this area and would recommend adding something around mention of privilege and presenting to communities you are not a part of and being culturally aware and sensitive and using inclusive language is important.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I would have liked to see more on preparing for controversy at the conclusion and responding to difficult questions.  Overall I feel this text did a fantastic job at covering the basics and I am considering using this text with my peer educators.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2200,"first_name":"Ruth","last_name":"Fairchild","position":"Instrucotr","institution_name":"Ridgewater College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Stand Up, Speak Out covers public speaking effectively, providing clear explanations of the content. As the title says, both the practical and ethical aspects are included. The sections on audience-centered speech design, research, and evaluation of sources are especially thorough. One area that some instructors may expect, but will not find, is the history of public speaking; fortunately that could be supplemented easily with material from other sources.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is presented fairly and accurately. Examples within the text show a broad range of contexts and applications for public speaking. The visual components of the text vividly enhance reader understanding. Two of the images in Chapter 15 do not match the correlating text, but otherwise the figures are well chosen and explained.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Much in public speaking stays the same over the years, but this text emphasizes the relevance of the field and the related skills in the 21st century. In several chapters, this point is made through a “why” section: why public speaking, why analyze the audience, why outline. Throughout the text examples draw from current affairs and social media, as well as from contemporary students. As the text ages, these examples may need to be updated since many are from before 2010.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text excels in clarity and ease of reading. Key words are shown in blue letters and are explained within the text itself. A glossary or lists of key words by chapter would be useful and eventually may be available through the shared supplemental materials.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The structure is consistent throughout. Headings are in bold and are clearly spaced. The inclusion of learning objectives at the beginning of each section and of the coordinating key takeaways at the end reinforce the focus of the section. After the initial chapter on ethics, the end-of-chapter “Speaking Ethically” exercises tie the content together nicely.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The division of the chapters and sections would make it easy to assign them according to a variety of schemes. A different organization of the text would not detract from its cohesive feel. When a concept is referred to in a later section, a reference to the previous coverage of it is given. However, more such references could be given in earlier sections to highlight that further coverage of certain concepts is available in another section. For example, Chapter 9 refers to Chapter 6, but 6 does not refer to 9. In short, more cross-text references would be welcome.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Even though the chapters and sections could be assigned in varied orders, the overall organization of the text is coherent and cohesive. It matches common structures of public speaking texts, moving from foundational topics to speech design and delivery, and then to types of speeches.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Readers can navigate the text smoothly from one part to another using the pull-down table of contents. Images display nicely online and look the same in the PDF version. I did not try the mobile versions but would expect them to work well, too.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The textbook contains minimal typographical or grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The images and examples in the text provide diversity. Since there are no sections overtly related to cultural variations in public speaking or to diverse students’ challenges with it, instructors would need to cover that with supplemental materials.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Although I currently use the online Public Speaking Project textbook and find it effective, I would be likely to try Stand Up, Speak Out because it is a bit more streamlined.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2274,"first_name":"Kristen","last_name":"Hungerford","position":"Visiting Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Miami University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all areas and ideas that are typically discussed in an introduction to public speaking book.  However, the textbook is missing an index or glossary of terms that would be important for students to refer to and learn from, either placed at the beginning or end of each chapter or at the end of the textbook. Also, in my printed version of the text, the table of contents states that there should be appendices at the end of the book. However, there were none located at the end of my printed version of the text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book is accurate in its explanation of relevant course content on the fundamentals of public speaking. The author provides a wide variety of examples from many different cultural sources.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content is up-to-date. Other then maybe sharing more popular or widely known examples, content in public speaking textbooks does not dramatically change. Really the only updates that continue to change are in regards to media/technology and public speaking and maybe more current examples of ethics in public speaking.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is accessible for all reading levels. The only drawback I noticed in the textbook is the lack of citing enough or any references as in-text citations throughout the chapter or at the end of the chapter. It is typical to see more direct citations from ancient and modern rhetoric and communication sources listed throughout the chapters of public speaking textbooks. This task also reinforces to students the importance of conducting research and properly citing sources.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is internally consistent in terms of terminology and framework that is standard for a textbook on public speaking.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The text is easily presented into smaller reading sections that may help students retain information. However, in comparison to other public speaking textbooks, I think that having some of the smaller reading sections in the textbook makes it too choppy. I would prefer to view a more continuous stream of thought on some of the topics in some of the chapters with listed subheadings of course, as I have seen done more effectively in other public speaking textbooks.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics follow the typical arrangement of course content on public speaking for this kind of text. The topics provide a natural progression for students learning about speech preparation.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The printed version of this textbook does not contain any page numbers. Page numbers are only listed in the table of contents in the printed version. The lack of page numbers in the printed version would make it very hard for an instructor to use during class time. It would make it nearly impossible to direct students toward certain page numbers for course content and examples.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text seems to contain no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"As previously stated, the textbook uses a variety of cultural examples of public speaking situations. The only drawback that I notice is that the examples are not famous or popular ones that students might relate to more when reading the book. In other public speaking textbooks, I tend to see copyrighted examples of really popular public speakers - such as from national politicians or entertainers, etc. However, I understand that it might cost more to acquire the rights to those really popular public speaking examples.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The biggest drawbacks included not enough listed references, no listed glossary of key terms, no listed page numbers in the printed copy of the text, and a lack of popular examples from public speeches. Other than those areas, I think a reader would be more engaged with reading a textbook with more eye catching, fancier headings and other aesthetics, including more images, graphics, and charts to further explain key concepts.","created_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2318,"first_name":"Ben","last_name":"Walker","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Southwest Minnesota State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text has everything you'd expect in an introduction to public speaking book. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"All the information is accurate and in line with the discipline as a whole.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The authors have done a nice job making sure the content is relevant. Nothing is significantly dated.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing and flow of the book is easy to understand and terms are explained well. The visual aspect of the text also makes it appealing. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent throughout, with no major issues. Everything is unified in the approach to teach public speaking.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"All the chapters make sense. They are separated in a similar fashion as most public speaking textbooks.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics are organized in a similar fashion as most public speaking textbooks. The topics build skills from foundational to more advanced. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Visually, the book is pleasing to the eye and does not distract from the content.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No major grammatical errors that I saw.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This text is not insensitive, but it does approach public speaking in a very ethnocentric way. American academia is rooted in whiteness and so is it's traditions. The textbook is appropriate for introduction courses because it is similar to what most textbooks offer. That being said, what most texts offer is based on a public speaking tradition that is a bit stale and focused on traditional Western/white oratory. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Solid text. I am happy there is something of this quality for free.","created_at":"2018-09-25T09:20:58.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-09-25T09:20:58.000-05:00"},{"id":2547,"first_name":"Rachel","last_name":"Davidson","position":"Assistant Professor of Communication","institution_name":"Hanover College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covers every necessary aspect that students need to know for an introductory public speaking course. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Not a heavy emphasis on a rhetorical approach to public speaking but I think that is ok for an introductory class who may not fully understand the rhetorical tradition. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Some examples are likely to be dated soon but that is to be expected with any textbook. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The language used to convey the ideas is appropriate for a student reader. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent with other public speaking textbooks and uses consistent language throughout. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Students will appreciate how easily the book can be navigated by section/topic. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Organizationally, the book reads well and seems to chronologically follow the speechmaking process. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Navigation is clear and straightforward. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I didn't notice grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Text is not insensitive or offensive though is written from an implied Western framework that privileges American expectations in effective public speaking--not a detriment to the book, just an observation. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2019-01-25T07:42:16.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-01-25T07:42:16.000-06:00"},{"id":2617,"first_name":"Carrie","last_name":"Tomko","position":"Senior Lecturer","institution_name":"OhioLink","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"From start to finish, Stand Up Speak Out (SUSO) contains a comprehensive collection of topics on public speaking, ideal for the college classroom.  There is nothing lacking in this online resource.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"No issues with accuracy.  ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The textbook is set in a timeless fashion, without reference to current pop culture that might fade over time, as are other textbooks available.  Therefore, this one will stand the test of time.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"OUTSTANDING clarity in presentation of topics and subtopics, with step-by-step choices and advice in constructing a speech, for example.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The format of the book's verbiage consistently presents information to the student in a way that is parsed and absorbed easily.  Headlines and sub-headlines add to this easy.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Easily, this textbook can be referenced in whole, or in partiality.  Whether teaching a semester's worth or a chapter's worth, Stand Up Speak Out (SUSO) provides pockets of information full of details.\r\n\r\n","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"As an educator, I appreciated the practical layout of each chapter, as well as with the collection of chapters that flow naturally and logically, sure to enhance student learning.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No issues in interface.  Nothing distracting or confusing for the reader.\r\n\r\n","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no errors with grammar.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The textbook does not offer politically incorrect presentation.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Clearly, this is the best open textbook available for a public speaking course!","created_at":"2019-03-05T13:06:39.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-03-05T13:06:39.000-06:00"},{"id":2665,"first_name":"Robert","last_name":"Green","position":"Assistant Professor of Communication Studies","institution_name":"Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Although the comprehensiveness of this textbook  might be a barrier to some students, and although the market appears to be trending towards minimalist textbooks, the comprehensiveness of this textbook is one of its strongest points. Many commercial textbooks appear to take a \"lean and mean\" approach to the subject in terms of small chapters, efficient textual information, colorful stock art, and online subscription models. I think an apt comparison would be with \"throwaway fashion trends.\" \r\n\r\nThis book, on the other hand, prioritizes comprehensive substance. In fact, I've used this book as a reference to supplement commercial textbooks. For example, I believe that the section on Using Notes Effectively (14.3) is the most-fully principled, conceptualized, and explained account on the subject (let alone among competing open-source texts).\r\n\r\nI take off a point because the book lacks a glossary, index, or a listing of key terms at the start or end of chapters. Moreover, I could easily see how some students might get lost due to the comprehensive and substantive nature of the text. Nonetheless, clearly-labeled learning objectives and exercises should provide some guidance for students and instructors. ","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"Although this textbook generally provides a standard account, you might issue with liberties taken with traditional approaches. \r\nContent is, for the most part, accurate. Concepts are grounded in relevant research literature, and a variety of examples are used to illustrate these concepts. I don't detect any unfair biases.\r\n\r\nHowever, you are likely to find some odd, though minor, deviations. For example, I find issue with how the book models outline symbolization. In this text, subordinate points are listed as Arabic numerals (1., 2., 3.) rather than upper-case capitals (A., B., C.). Although that might not bother those unwed to tradition, I'm not sure why the change is an improvement.  You'll also notice that Main Point II of the sample outline (pp. 329-331) does not meet the rule of division.\r\nFinally, the textbook should correctly model assignments. I would also like to know why APA references are not formatted with hanging indent. Ultimately, I think these are issues that should be addressed in the next installment. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Textbooks on public speaking tend to lag when it comes to technological advances and current events (such popularization of \"fake news\" and conspiracies). Research librarians have developed new guidelines on evaluating the quality of sources, and I hope future updates will incorporate this research. \r\n\r\nNevertheless, I find that many principles of public speaking are timeless, and this book does an adequate job of establishing and explaining the importance of such principles. I often find myself building off of these principles to introduce new developments.\r\n\r\nI appreciate that the text establishes expectations of intellectual rigor.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text offers a substantive, comprehensive account of public speaking balanced by a casual tone. Chapters are clearly organized. Key concepts are in bold, and examples are of sufficient quality and quantity. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I find the tone and style to be consistent throughout the text, which is often a problem with open-source public speaking texts. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I generally find the textbook to be well organized with chapters broken down into key sub-topics. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I find no issue with the organization of the book. It is organized in a logical fashion, and the modularity of the text enables you to organize the sequence of \r\nmaterials as you desire. I do wonder what purpose the appendixes serve. Why not include them in the chapters? \r\n","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I find no issue with the interface of the digital pdf. The hyperlinks to various chapters and sub-sections appear to work, and I can generally navigate the text with minimal effort using the search function.   \r\n","grammatical_rating":3,"grammatical_review":"I've found minor grammatical/typographical/stylistic issues. E.g. look at where Appendix 1 is listed on the table of contents. I've also found issue with APA formatting, in model student materials and in end-of-chapter references. Students find APA style challenging enough as it is, and the textbook's errant ways will only introduce more confusion.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"As a prior review has mentioned, public speaking is grounded in the western tradition. This book is grounded in that tradition, for better and for worse.\r\n\r\nThere is no explicit chapter on intercultural communication. Important concepts related to culture and diversity are embedded in discussions of audience analysis, ethics, and language choice (among other areas). For a public speaking class, I prefer the embedded approach because it develops a sense of inclusion and diversity as practice. \r\n\r\nMuch has happened over the past two years with respect to diversity and inclusion, so instructors might wish to supplement materials to account for developments. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Although I do find issue with how the book covers some issues, I generally believe that the book offers a comprehensive account of the subject. It is well organized and written in an accessible style. ","created_at":"2019-03-13T15:11:37.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-03-13T15:11:37.000-05:00"},{"id":2695,"first_name":"Doug","last_name":"Marshall","position":"Assistant Professor ","institution_name":"SUNO","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I find Stand up, Speak out to be a very comprehensive public speaking textbook. I find no major deficiencies with this work and find it to be very comparable to the major players in popular public speaking texts.  ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I have no real issue with the accuracy of this textbook. Some may have different opinions in regard to the positions and assumptions of the author but this is clearly accurate. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"One of my biggest gripes about popular public speaking texts is that many of them are packed with examples that are relevant for that one particular moment in time. In other words, public speaking texts purposely age themselves so that the author can update with new timely examples and sell more copies. This text is nearly void of popular culture references thus allowing the instructor to make those references his or herself. Excellent! ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"A textbook for an introductory course should not lose the students. This text presented material in a polished, clear way that helpfully unpacked any jargon or technical language that was used. I believe that this text balances the idea of meeting the student where he/she is and inviting them to become part of a bigger conversation. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The structure of this textbook was clear and consistent. Terminology is used consistently.  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"It is divided up well. I see no issues here. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I question some of their placement of the topics but I would just simply assign the chapters to be read out of order. For instance, the final chapter is preparing students for their first speech. Ideally, they would be covering this early because it is rare to wait until the end of the class to give the first speech. This small problem that I have can be easily addressed by the instructor. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is fairly standard but good. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I admittedly do not have a great eye for grammatical errors (see all examples of my writing) but I found nothing problematic with this text.  ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I found no issues of cultural inappropriateness. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Overall I enjoyed Stand up, Speak out. It has all of the necessary elements that a basic public speaking text should have. It is well written and has made me reconsider these open source texts. ","created_at":"2019-03-25T12:42:53.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-03-25T12:42:53.000-05:00"},{"id":2800,"first_name":"Emily","last_name":"Plec","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Open Oregon Educational Resources - Western Oregon University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The only thing lacking from the book is a good foundation and introduction to the classical study of rhetoric from which contemporary public speaking practice draws. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The text uses some outdated terminology and examples, and demonstrates bias in terms of representation (mostly images of white males, few examples of contemporary speakers who diversify the visual representation). On the whole, though, the content is not overtly objectionable and shortcomings could be acknowledged or discussed in class. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The structure of the text affords a lot of chapter coverage to material that will not need frequent updating. Given the level of detail in the chapters, though, deciding what needs to be updated where might be challenging. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Clear writing but a far cry from compelling, especially for a course that introduces students to elements of style.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I felt this was one of its strengths. There was a lot of useful repetition and high degrees of internal consistency. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I liked the searchable digital PDF version and did not preview other versions of the text. It is suitable for my purposes. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I felt the overview of purposes was unnecessary and feel argumentation needs to be addressed earlier in the text. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I found the text very easy to interface with and find that for which I was looking. ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"Some inelegant phrasing but no glaring grammatical errors in the chapters I read. ","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"This is where the book could be most improved. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2019-04-17T14:51:55.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-17T14:51:55.000-05:00"},{"id":2843,"first_name":"Sunni","last_name":"Davis","position":"Faculty, Communication Studies","institution_name":"University of Arkansas Cossatot","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text was very complete and covered the essentials for a basic introductory course in public speaking. Giving students a solid base in delivery is a key to giving confidence to beginning speakers, and this text covers the essentials in clear and concise language. I particularly liked the sections on explaining the pros and cons of different speaking formats. End of chapter exercises were nicely done. I missed a glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I found the methodology in the book to be in line with most popular textbooks on the subject.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text reflects standard methods of teaching public speaking. Although technology changes, the basic precepts of instruction are adequate and the chapter on research can be easily supplemented to update as needed.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The language is appropriate for beginning speakers. It is clear, concise, casual and avoids overusing passive voice. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Language is consistent and in spite of including multiple authors, is seamless.  Terminology and framework is reflective of standard textbooks. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Nicely divided. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I like to start students speaking early in a course, but this book places relevant information closer to the end of the text. That isn't really a problem as chapter readings can be assigned in any order, and I suppose instructors differ on the best way to teach students. My personal preference would be more integrated materials - the appendices could easily be integrated into chapter sub-topics. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Easy to navigate, no visible distortion of materials.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Nicely written.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Good section on audience analysis, but I would like to see more emphasis on inclusiveness and cultural sensitivity.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Overall, I thought it was a good, basic book that will work well for any beginning public speaking class. I was very happy to see the chapter on ethics and thought the end of chapter exercises for that section were quite appropriate. I also liked the explanation of the different speaking formats. Using pyramids as a visual reinforced the foundational nature of the text. ","created_at":"2019-04-25T22:39:42.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-25T22:39:42.000-05:00"},{"id":2846,"first_name":"Adria","last_name":"Goldman","position":"Assistant Professor of Communication","institution_name":"University of Mary Washington","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book touches on the main topics traditionally covered in a public speaking text/class, ranging from the role of ethics to the different types of speeches (informative, persuasive, entertaining). The text guides readers through the speech process, noting the role of both speakers and audiences.  While I did not find a glossary or index, the table of contents is detailed and helps with navigating through the text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I did not note any inaccurate information.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content is up-to-date and includes examples and activities to help bring in new, relevant material. I suspect any future necessary updates will be 'relatively easy and straightforward to implement'.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text provides a breakdown of key terms and concepts. The information is clear for college students to follow. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I did not note any inconsistencies in the text. The consistency in the organization is a nice treat that will likely help students follow along (each chapter follows similar format--objectives, content, major takeaways and activities/discussion questions).","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The table of contents in broken into subsections, given users the ability to re-organize the material to fit their course design. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Topics follow a logical order. However, as noted above, the organization and presentation of the book provides users with the opportunity to move things around to fit the course. In addition (as noted above) the organization of the Table of Contents is very user friendly. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Overall, the interface of the text is clear and user-friendly. The table of contents to the side (with appropriate links and redirects to different pages) seems like it would be very useful for students moving through an online text. I did notice a link that didn't work (White House source, section 1.2) but I believe that is a quick fix. It is also helpful that users have the option to make text larger. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not note any grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book does not appear culturally insensitive or offensive. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Some of the images were a tad confusing. Perhaps captions would help. For example, there's a puzzle (with missing piece) for section 11.1 on conclusions. Is this because 'conclusion is the final puzzle piece in the speech'? I assume so, but students may question the relevancy of some photos. I was also unclear on the reference style used. The references appear to be in APA but direct quotes do not include a page or paragraph number with the parenthetical citations. This may be confusing for students who are expected to learn and use APA. Lastly, I think it is great that the book is offered in various formats.","created_at":"2019-04-26T14:23:58.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-26T14:23:58.000-05:00"},{"id":2974,"first_name":"Lori","last_name":"Adair","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Aims Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text book is very inclusive and covers all the typical concepts you would expect to find in a public speaking text with additional hyperlinks to extra content.  The content is explained clearly, and often in a more concise method than many other textbooks. \r\n•\tEach section within each chapter also comes with additional information including: learning objectives, making it clear what students will gain from each chapter, key takeaways, chapter exercises with an answer key.\r\n•\tThe text uses a clean, easy-to-read font with appropriate and appealing free and public domain images\r\n•\tThis textbook does not come with an index or glossary but it does have an effective table-of-contents and search tool. The search tool will lead the reader to a page that includes all the sections where terms or concepts are referenced. However. the reader then has to select “read more” to find the actual term which can be a bit frustrating\r\n•\tThe text did a great job discussing newer technologies and options when presenting computer-based media aids","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"All content is clearly explained and comes with an excellent variety of images given appropriate credit including hyperlinks to the original image content. The content did appear to be as relevant, error-free, and unbiased as any of the numerous public speaking texts I have used over the past 30 years.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The book was created in 2011 and utilizes timeless content so that no matter when the reader examines this text, they will find it useful and appropriate though perhaps a bit dated with some images and examples. However, public speaking concepts have remained constant for decades allowing the authors a lot of freedom in their content. Nonetheless, additional resources for presentations and online speaking would enhance the text books. Public speaking is often taken online and it could be helpful to discuss how to gather an audience and use resources to easily record and upload presentations.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is designed much like an actual speech outline. Each section comes with a preview, a body, and a summary, all of which are clear and concise. The authors use ordinary language easily understood by a wide audience without being overly simplistic. The author considers its audience and involves them using pronouns such as us, you and we.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"•\tThe chapters move from general to specific in terms of content and conceptual framework making it easy to follow and understand where concepts are likely to be found. The chapter learning objectives and takeaways present clear objectives for what the reader should learn and what they should understand after reading the content. Each chapter then provides exercises to reinforce the content. \r\n•\tThe text follows a consistent pattern throughout, including bolding key words, and hyperlinking extra content and references. However, they could be more consistent with chapter exercises. Some provide question and answers but some don’t. For example, 15.4 provides an excellent exercise asking the reader to understand what is wrong with a specific slide but they don’t provide an answer. Ideally there would be more examples covering many problems with slides. They could even link to longer quizzes testing the concepts.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This text makes good use of heading design. Each section begins and ends the same and takes advantage of consistent colors to indicate learning objectives (black/gray box), key takeaways (green box) and exercises (blue box). It was very easy to find specific concepts using the contents tab. Information is presented in small, easily digested chunks. The only dissatisfaction I experienced was having to navigate to the next section after a very brief intro to the chapter. Example: Ch 4 The Importance of Learning.  We are provided with 2 brief paragraphs and then a reference. You must navigate to 4.1 to learn more. Students will find it easy to skip the intro sections and go right into the first sections, missing out on valuable information. For this reason, I recommend merging section intros with the content for the first part of each chapter to encourage reading it.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Overall, the topics are presented in a logical order, though they add important information about the first speech in an appendix.  By calling it an appendix, it appears less important. This is highly important! Perhaps make this an entire chapter with full example speeches and slide decks to give the appendix more value. If a different order of material is preferred, it’s easy enough to assign sections in the order desired.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"This text can be viewed online electronically or downloaded into several formats including EPUB, Digital and Print Pdf, allowing an option for any user preference. \r\n•\tFor the online version, the home page provides an excellent table of contents which is hyperlinked allowing the reader to go directly to the desired section.  However, once in the text, navigation is less intuitive. For example, the reader can use the contents to navigate to any sub-section, but once you reach the end of the page, you must select the contents button at the top again to move forward, or, even less intuitive initially, the reader can advance through the content by selecting the next arrow at the bottom right of the page. This is a bit cumbersome, but not too difficult to work with. It would be better if that content tab were locked at the top of the screen while the reader scrolls down to read.\r\n•\tThis text provides a search tool making finding specific topics or terms very easy to find.\r\n•\tReaders are given the option to increase font size for easy reading comfort.\r\n•\tWhile all links worked, some had to be selected a second time to make the connection.\r\n•\tThere are no page numbers for the electronic guide, so if a student downloads a different version, referring to specific pages is not possible.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The text contains a number of minor errors including typos and misspellings. For a text of this size, it’s not overwhelming, but for a professional document, these instances should have been discovered and removed, and doing so would improve this text. These errors include a number of misspelled names such as George in one place and  Geogre in another. Other specific misspellings and typos include but aren't limited to: Atrocitties, Publiclly, noisef, Suprisingly, condominium, opporutunity, Settiing, Aloting, Bilbiography.\r\n\r\nIt could also be a stylistic choice the author made including how commas, dashes and hyphens are used, or more accurately, not incorporated. Examples include using words not identified in a standard dictionary such as nonuseful and nonoffensive. \r\nThe text lacks commas after most introductory elements or between clauses and phrases consistently through the text. \r\nIt also lacks space between words such as (but not limited to) \"orphansin”, order)Author, Laudel’sJournal","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Cultural references were appropriate and up-to-date from my perspective. Images appear to be varied and diverse to make all readers feel represented. When discussing audience diversity, the inclusion of the word chrono-centric surprised and delighted me.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this OER text is excellent and I will be using it! It's ahead of its time given that it was written in 2011. What I like most is that it provides meaningful content in concise chunks, an approach that seems best-suited to my students these days.","created_at":"2019-06-05T18:16:45.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-06-05T18:16:45.000-05:00"},{"id":3124,"first_name":"James","last_name":"Jarc","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Central Ohio Technical College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is very thorough and comprehensive for the most part. The content is well organized and clearly presented to the reader. Topics are all relevant to a basic public speaking course, and some of the modules could even be used for professional development or workplace training programs! Each chapter includes a clear introduction as well as learning goals, review points/key takeaways, activities, and citations. While the text does not include an index, the chapter navigation feature is useful and handy. The search function is also quite convenient.  I would have liked to see the authors include some more focused \"key terms\" and definitions, but that does not necessarily take away from the quality of this text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This textbook is quite accurate. The authors do a good job explaining complex concepts and providing support for the main arguments. Citations are clear and come from good source materials. The text is not biased, per say, but it is written in a very colloquial style which lends itself to some editorializing, and sometimes feels less than authoritative.  ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"This book is as relevant as possible, given the long-standing and historic nature of public speaking content. The book appeals to contemporary readers through the tone of the writing, imagery, examples, and exercises. It also includes more up-to-date information about technology, including references to popular presentation software/services. Some content, of course, will become outdated over time, but this text generally includes content that will age gracefully.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"For the most part, the text is written in a clear, accessible voice. As noted above however, I found that sometimes the writing feels too familiar to the reader, and may not be as clear as it could be. Given the subject matter and the intended audience, however, the non-technical, non-academic writing should be welcome for students in a basic public speaking course.    ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Writing, content, organization, and support are all mostly consistent throughout this book. The authors include visual cues (such as bold words for key terms), and utilize a common formatting schema throughout. Some chapters contain more depth than others, though this is understandable as some topics are more complex than others. Chapter exercises also vary in terms of quality, complexity, and learning objectives.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This text is clearly organized, and presented in manageable sections. Each chapter is divided into subsections for enhanced modularity. Further, each section contains clear headers and succinct paragraphs, with numbers and bullets when appropriate.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"In general, this text contains a clear and reasonable organizational structure. I personally disagree with how the chapters are organized (e.g., informative and persuasive speaking are near the end; introductions and conclusions are separated from delivery), but this is a matter of personal preference. All the information is there, and is formatted so that I could easily assign readings in a different order.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I found the design and interface of the text to be clear and user-friendly. The online format works really well. I enjoyed having the chapters and subsections in the sidebar for easy access. The search tool is also helpful.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There are a handful of grammatical and stylistic issues throughout this text. I did also note some errors with formatting of in-text citations and references as well. None of these issues are overwhelming to the reader, nor to they detract seriously from the usability of the material.   ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This material is generally free from cultural bias, and makes attempts to use inclusive and culturally-sensitive language. I found no instances of offensive or inappropriate content. The book does include some aspects of intercultural communication, but I feel it could go a bit deeper in some places. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, a fine textbook for the basic public speaking course. It's packed with good information, provides solid recommendations for students, and offers great support for educators. The online format is a delight to use! ","created_at":"2019-07-29T09:51:52.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-07-29T09:51:52.000-05:00"},{"id":3146,"first_name":"Jessica","last_name":"Papajcik","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Stark State College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Stand up, Speak out scores well on comprehensiveness.  It's breadth in coverage is what we should expect for a public speaking course.  The table of contents is detailed and covers all subsections within each chapter. However, there is no glossary and this text does not provide sidebars for key terms and/or concepts.  On a positive note, this text includes learning objectives at the beginning of each chapter, \"Key Takeaways\" which is a bulleted summary, and an \"Exercises\" section at the end of each SUB-SECTION in every chapter.  It also contains End-of-Chapter Assessment questions, however, answers are provided directly underneath the questions.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Stand up, Speak out is accurate in terms of content and writing.  It is written objectivity with inclusive language.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Stand up, Speak out is written and arranged in a straight-forward way. Maintaining and updating this text should prove to be simple and easy to implement.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Stand up, Speak out is written clearly with many practical examples.  Key terms are bold within the text and defined accordingly.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Stand up, Speak out uses consistent formatting in terms of chapter layouts, subsection headings, key terms, fonts, and images.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Stand up, Speak out is divided into chapters, which are divided into sections, which are divided by concepts.  The information is \"chunked\" in such a way that smaller reading sections can easily be assigned and students start/stop in the review process.  I am not a fan, however, of the style of the chunking within the subsections. The font used to label each section concept is much too large and there is too much white space above and below the titles.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Instructors disagree on the order of topics within a public speaking course.  This text seems logically organized although I would have preferred the section on argument be moved into the persuasion section near the end of the text rather than put with researching and supporting materials.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Stand up, Speak out works well as an E-text.  It navigates easily and the images and font are not distorted.  The display is easy to follow and use.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Stand up, Speak out is free of grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"While this text is not offensive, it does not adequately incorporate and weave culture through the fabric of the text as I feel it should.  It severely lacks content in terms of the cultural perspective.  As a previous reviewer claimed, this text is \"culturally void.\" ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this text is a sufficient option for a public speaking course. Most instructors will need to supplement in terms of rhetorical theory, culture, and arguments/reasoning.","created_at":"2019-08-13T10:36:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-08-13T10:36:39.000-05:00"},{"id":3206,"first_name":"William","last_name":"Bettler","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Hanover College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"As an experiment, I used this text alongside another general public speaking text in my introductory public speaking class. I consistently found that while the two texts had more similarity than difference, this text had extras. For example, while both texts covered genres of speaking, rhetorical concepts/terms, presentation/visual aids, audience analysis, etc. this text had the extra dimension of integrating ethical considerations into each topic (and this is no small thing--this is a substantive difference). Further, the chapter exercises at the end of each chapter were useful to my students.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This particular criterion doesn't apply as much to a public speaking text--it's hard to label something as \"accurate\" in the context of public speaking pedagogy. Public speaking texts tend to be collections of \"best practices,\" and this text is an especially useful one. I particularly appreciated the chapters on Introductions and Conclusions, which are very detailed and could have easily been mentioned above in my response about \"comprehensiveness.\" In terms of bias, the authors of this text do an excellent job of side-stepping some common pitfalls. For example, the chapter on presentation aids has an example from the Chinese alphabet, avoiding any hint of ethnocentrism. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Staying relevant is a real challenge for public speaking texts. With its emphasis on best practices, an effective speaking text is expected to encompass the history of public address, from the Ancient Greeks to the present day. Consequently, a chapter on Presentation Aids, is particularly challenging to write. This text is laudatory in its attempt to blend timeless wisdom (e.g. clarity and understanding are key goals of using presentation aids) with more timely observations, such as which type of software to use to make audience-grabbing graphics. Table 15.1 in section 15.3 is going to be quite useful to students, as it not only identifies the most popular software packages, but also contains links that enable students to download or purchase the software. While this sort of content is, by nature, time-sensitive, it represents a strength of this text. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This books is accessible and easy to read. It contains a fair amount of specialized language, definitions, and concepts. But it is quite thorough in its explanation and discussion of said content. For example, in section 4.2, the text identifies, defines, and discusses 4 different listening styles. These immediately became vocabulary words, but, at the same time, they are explained and illustrated in such a way that students who face the challenge of public speaking can easily recognize the different types in their potential audience(s) and adapt their speeches to suit the appropriate style(s). Section 5.2, which focuses on different types of audience analysis, is similarly detailed in its use of specialized language and, here again, students are likely to match their speech preparation to the type of audience analysis that suits their particular rhetorical situation. I make a distinction between vocabulary/specialized language--which has a purpose and serves to deepen understanding; and jargon, which is only intended to impress people, on a shallow level. This text is rich in vocabulary and specialized language and mercifully devoid of jargon.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text registers the tension between focusing on the speaker and focusing on the audiences and does an admirably job of demonstrating how they are two sides of the same coin. The 5 Canons of Rhetoric form a sort of shadow-organization for the early chapters, with the above-mentioned emphasis on ethics introduced early on, and integrated throughout. Later chapters use the anatomy of a speech as an organizational structure. The text concludes with consideration of the different genres of public speaking. This is all to the benefit of students. It makes the content seem to unfold logically and demystifies the art and technique of public speaking.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This is one of the real benefits of this text. When I used it in class I was able to portion out particular chapters as individual reading assignments. The emphasis on ethics and the responsibility of the speaker to consider the relationship with, and to the audience, forms the conceptual glue that holds these chapters together. I used the chapters out of order. For example, I like to discuss different genres of speaking fairly early in the term. Also, I like to discuss language and argument in smaller chunks throughout the term. These strategies were all possible with this text. It's quite flexible.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"As mentioned above, this text has a useful flow, as it moves from a set of chapters loosely based on the 5 Canons of Rhetoric, to a set of chapters built around the anatomy of a speech, and, finally, to a set of chapters covering some key genres of public speaking. Introducing \"ethics\" in the 2nd chapter is especially useful.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Interface issues are strong. The figures are easy to read and understand. Navigating is a breeze with not only chapter breaks, but also section links to click on.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text is written in a professional style, free of grammatical errors. Nonetheless, it is a highly readable and accessible text, to which my students responded positively.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This text reflects cultural sensitivity and is inclusive. This is reflected in photographic images, illustrative examples, and the general ethical disposition of the text. Section 2.2 contains the NCA Credo for Ethical Communication. This not only familiarizes students with a set of principles reflecting a high ethical standard, but it seems to set the standard for this particular text.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This is a strong text. It has all of the content that other texts have, but with its thoroughness and its consistent integration and discussion of ethics, it gives students something extra, something useful, something important. As I said above, I used this text alongside another, and students routinely preferred this text.","created_at":"2019-10-22T16:24:23.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-10-22T16:24:23.000-05:00"},{"id":3382,"first_name":"Alyssa","last_name":"Harter","position":"Assistant Professor ","institution_name":"Umpqua Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook is very comprehensive in covering relative topics to Public Speaking in an effective manner. The authors provide an index and glossary, in addition to an embedded table of contents to navigate the text. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Free of errors and very unbiased. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The book is relevant and echos the tried and true conversations within Public Speaking for decades!","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Any technical terminology is defined using clear definitions and bold font to clarify subject specific terms and concepts. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Yes, consistency is clear. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is divided into smaller sections, in addition to being quickly navigated from the Table of Contents based on the smaller sections within a larger chapter. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I was a major fan of there being larger sections/progressions in speech making. Examples: Topic Selection/Research, Organizing the Speech, Delivering the Speech, and Speech Types. Most Public Speaking textbooks are organized in this manner, which is how logical public speaking courses progress. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The text lacks interface issues. However, the authors should constantly check the embedded links to videos to verify the owner of those videos do not remove/alter them in any way. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"One comment that I received from a student in my Public Speaking class using this textbook is that Ceremonial Speeches listed in Chapter 18 are Anglo-American. This student made note that most of the speeches listed talked about American custom, with little note of how other cultures would approach a speech such as a eulogy. Reviewing the text for myself, I agree with the sentiments this student posed. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Stand up, Speak out is a comprehensive and relevant textbook to adopt in the Public Speaking classroom. The content is easy to use and navigate for students and educators alike! I appreciate the chapter exercises, examples, and charts embedded within the text for students to refer to. Having used various public speaking textbooks, this one ranks highly among other well-revered authors and textbooks within our discipline. ","created_at":"2019-12-16T10:12:21.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-12-16T10:12:21.000-06:00"},{"id":3836,"first_name":"Sherri","last_name":"Raftery-Patton","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"North Shore Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Stand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking is a practical, comprehensive and complete guide to learn the tools of public speaking. I highly recommend this book, every chapter is valuable, easy to understand, and questions at the end of each chapter offer ways to learn how to review what was read.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The accuracy of this book is on point to the world of public speaking, communicating, and presenting, especially for beginners and those who want to review and rehearse their skills.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The relevance of this book is up to date. Perhaps offering ZOOM and online speaking options in our new age of virtual learning.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This book offers clarity, the words are easy and fluid to understand, and the technical terminology is  appropriate.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The flow and consistency worked and their were references to previous chapters and sections, that were helpful to go back and review.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I think the modularity worked well for this text and this subject matter.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Personally, for my courses, I would like to see these topics sooner in the text rather than later, especially the informative and persuasive speaking because those are required and having students review those early in the semester would be beneficial. \r\nChapter 16: Informative Speaking\r\nChapter 17: Persuasive Speaking\r\nChapter 18: Speaking to Entertain","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface was easily manageable, perfect for online learning courses. The use of charts, graphs, photos were complimentary to the particular topic.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Grammar was appropriate, nothing real stood out.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I found this book to be inclusive, offering cultural differences, and other races, gender identities, and ethnicities certainly adds more welcoming value to a wider audience. Variety of photos and speakers helps all students to feel inclusive and identified.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This is an excellent resource for students who are starting to learn public speaking and presentation skills. The content is worthy and I appreciate how easily and accessible it is. One comment I would recommend is to make it clearer with a button that says either \"open\" or \"access\" book here because it is not clear initially how to open the link. As a professor, I highly recommend Stand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking. Students will become more confident and knowledgeable by the end of the semester with the help of this text book!","created_at":"2020-05-27T09:14:10.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-05-27T09:14:10.000-05:00"},{"id":3927,"first_name":"Patrick","last_name":"Bartee","position":"Professor of Speech","institution_name":"Valencia College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"In my personal opinion, the book covers the major steps of effective public speaking tips.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I pulled this statement from the books information.  Stand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speakingfeatures two key themes. First it focuses on helping students become more seasoned and polished public speakers, and second is its emphasis on ethics in communication. It is this practical approach and integrated ethical coverage that setsStand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speakingapart from the other texts in this market.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This text is very straightforward and totally up to date.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The reading is very clear and very easy to understand.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"It is totally on point with consistency.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This text has everything necessary to help a student understand the flow and steps to effective public speaking.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The structure and flow worked well in my personal opinion.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There is nothing confusing in the reading and understanding in my opinion.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I didn't find any grammatical errors in the text.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"It appears to be inline with cultural insensitivity.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"No thank you.  The text appears to be inline with methods of the learning pedagogy.  I believe that a student would be able to follow the step-by-step style and flow of this text.","created_at":"2020-06-08T00:38:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-08T00:38:39.000-05:00"},{"id":4026,"first_name":"Stef","last_name":"Donev","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Worcester State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"In a time when people routinely talk about “fake news” and “alternative facts” and news agencies such as the Associated Press, CBS, NBC, etc., regularly run “fact checks” on speeches and announcements by politicians, government agencies, large corporations and organizations, the book’s stress on the ethics of public speaking is a welcome addition to the long list of public speaking textbooks. It does this quite well, and clearly and concisely, without detracting from any of the other essential elements of public speaking. \r\nThe book also covers all the components of the speech-creation process, from generating topics and audience analysis to writing, the use of humor, and delivery. While it does not provide a glossary of terms or index, its table of contents lets students know exactly what each chapter and section deals with.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book covers all aspects of speech preparation, writing, and delivery and does so accurately and professionally. It also includes samples and guidance for the standard range of speech types. As an added bonus, the book also offers good examples and advice on using humor in speeches, when and where to use it, good sources of it, how to let it develop and flow organically from the speaker’s topic and research, and how to find the right types of humor for different speeches and audiences.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The only real change in the craft of public speaking over the centuries has been the technology used to deliver it and make it more aurally and visually stimulating. Even though this technology keeps changing, the book offers a look at how to use current technology, covering everything from handouts, chalk board, and flip charts to maps, Power Point, and audio and video clips. If new technology is developed it would be easy to add it without disturbing the flow or structure of the book.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Like a good speech, the book is written clearly and simply. It is easy to follow and tailored to its audience. Even though it does not provide an actual glossary, it does explain the technical terms it uses.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book follows the standard pattern of other public speaking books, hits the same major points that the rest do, and does so with a bit more flair than many others.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is broken down into simple and clear bite-sized chunks, appropriate for people who tend to spend more time reading computer screens than books. The various sections, or modules, are distinctive and the explanations simple and focused.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The use of Learning Objective boxes at the start of each section let students know what is important in the upcoming sections, and the Key Takeways boxes at the end give them a chance to review and make sure they understand the points of what they have just read. It also includes exercises that can be used to test their actual understanding of the material. \r\nAs with most of the speech books I’ve used over the years, explanations, examples, and advice about various types of speeches are at the end of the book even though students will be standing up and speaking long before they go through all the chapters with the information they need to do those speeches well. This means a certain amount of jumping around. It is awkward and confusing, but so is developing the skills to be a good public speaker.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The book is easy to navigate, and the paging and art are consistent in the various formats, but, like all books with digital links, there is always the danger of web addresses and URLs vanishing over time.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"A grammarian might quibble over some of the comma placements and the usage of the occasional semicolons, but the text contains no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text talks about culture, cocultures, and subcultures and the importance of recognizing them and dealing with them intelligently and respectfully. It covers the various conditions which shape culture: age, gender, ethnicity, education, group membership, occupation, etc., especially in terms of audience analysis and shaping speeches to fit a specific audience.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Ethics is the second chapter of the book. Since there are times when teachers fail to get all the way through an entire textbook in a class, it is good that it is dealt with up-front, which helps ensure that it is part of every speech the students give.\r\nI will use this book the next time I teach Public Speaking.","created_at":"2020-06-21T15:58:35.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-21T15:58:35.000-05:00"},{"id":4152,"first_name":"Constance","last_name":"Berman","position":"Professor of Communication","institution_name":"Berkshire Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Quite comprehensive - including a chapter on the so important but often neglected topic on LISTENING; all parts of a speech structure covered well - intro; body; conclusion.  Types - informational, persuasive, entertainment.  Keeping learning objectives clear and then following up in sections is thoughtful.  The only section I would recommend be updated is the Visual Aids - needs to be more complete on using Power Point and examples and structural and delivery guidelines. \r\nI am sure there is an index but my reading version did not show it.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text is quite accurate - especially in considering various modes of delivery and purpose.  The chapters on research are quite up to date and long reaching","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The fundamentals of public speaking do not change - book definitely follows the \"canon\" of the course with examples that are relevant but not tied to current specifics.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Would be very clear for first and second year college students.  Serious approach with an ear for what kinds of questions students might have - especially in the chapter on dealing with speech anxiety and debunking myths about nervousness and solutions to this pervasive  problem.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Very well organized with theory, practice, learning objectives and exercises and wrap-up for each section.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Easy to find topic subheadings - could be used by the instructor as a resource for different topics and does not need to be used chronologically.  Can be a good resource.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Clear on organization - why and how the student can proceed.  Sub-section headings are very helpful.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Some good illustrations - although could use more - do not seem to have navigation problems.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Certainly written well with good examples that students can follow - asks good questions and then answers them.  Includes a section on humor which is down to earth and respectful and inclusive.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Quite inclusive with a section on what inclusive means when you are speaking in public and furthermore, what it means to be \"ethical\" - in each chapter - and how to use sensitivity towards the speaker's audience.  Good examples of knowing the audience and ways to show that you respect the audience.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"When compared to the industry giant - Lucas' work - this open source book is a very good alternative.\r\nOn Persuasive Speaking - there might be a little more psychological presentation on what moves people and why people do not embrace certain ideas even if presented with great evidence - How to breach this barrier might be interesting to students in today's divisive climate.\r\nI like the Appendices - gives a further look on some topics - short and easy to follow for students.","created_at":"2020-06-29T18:31:40.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-29T18:31:40.000-05:00"},{"id":4180,"first_name":"Lucy","last_name":"McKain","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Middlesex Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I thought this book covers most of the basics of writing and delivering a speech topic. I was disappointed however that it does not go into how to write a specific objective or purpose and why that is so important in your thinking and planning before the speech. I have found students have a difficult time adapting topics to different audiences. So practice with this is critical to meeting the audiences needs as well as the speechwriters.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I think the many examples and topic comments are helpful to the learner.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Yes the images and illustrations are interesting and well done too.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written clearly and is easy to follow.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The overall design and framework is consistent.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text modularity would not present any disruption to the reader.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Text organization is clear and logical.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is clear and free of distractions.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are no grammatical issues of concern.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This text is culturally relevant.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I was hoping to find a linear diagram or model of the process of speech writing. I believe a graphic model for some students, helps to solidify the concepts with an image that is easily recalled.","created_at":"2020-06-30T13:27:43.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-30T13:27:43.000-05:00"},{"id":4322,"first_name":"Shelly","last_name":"Grady","position":"Adjunct Communication Instructor","institution_name":"Community College of Aurora","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The big concern for me was that there was a brief mention of ethos, but no mention of pathos or  logos, and little to no discussion of fallacy. These are vital components of the persuasive speech process, so I was looking for further detail. The information on PSA is a great start, but it doesn't speak to pinpointing the onset of anxiety prior to the speech act, which is something I always try to address. \r\n\r\nOn the other hand, I found the text to be very comprehensive in regards to building the speech introduction, body, and conclusion, as well as in addressing outlining and resources. The analysis tools will be very helpful for students, and the charts do an excellent job of illustrating options.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is error free, and for the most part it is not biased. I did find some contradictions in how gender is represented that could be viewed as biased. In the beginning, there is a clear warning against heterosexism, but the next time the author speaks to gender it is presented as binary. The author specifically warns against this in the section on using language appropriately, but the gender section itself doesn't acknowledge non-binary people.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The most recent example is from 2011, which in itself is not a concern. However, there are a number of places where the examples are identified as being recent, which can make the book seem somewhat outdated. The biggest concern here is that some of the links are no longer viable. Of these, some will redirect you, but the majority give an \"oops, this page doesn't exist\" style of warning. There are also a few links, such as the one for VSOTD, that require users to pay to access the referenced information. It is clear in the text which sites would incur a fee at the time it was published, but be sure to check the links now and update them as needed.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book does a phenomenal job of breaking down the terms and making them easily understood. There are a number of communication theories addressed throughout, and the supporting examples do an excellent job of illustrating these. Each time a new term is introduced, the definition and supporting examples are offered.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The Speaking Ethically sections do an excellent job of continuing the importance of ethics throughout the entire text. The book does a good job of scaffolding concepts throughout and calling back to previous chapters to build further upon presented information. The only lack of consistency was the previously noted contradiction in how gender is addressed in a binary way in some places but as non-binary in others.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I appreciate that each chapter is broken into subsections, which will make it easy for me to pick and choose which pieces I want and assign them in a different order. The Key Take Aways, Exercises, and Speaking Ethically sections were particularly valuable, and did an excellent job of breaking down the sections in accessible pieces.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The text is set up in such a way that you should ideally read all the way through prior to presenting. While this is common among public speaking texts, I do not think it is realistic for the classroom. You will need to rearrange the content unless you are planning to have your students present all of their speeches in the final weeks of the term. Outside of this, it is organized in much the same way that a speech is developed, which is ideal.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There were a few places where the print appeared to be cut off or a smaller size font at the bottom of the page, but this was very minor. The exercises are listed all numerically, but the answer key provides the letter for the correct response, which can be a bit confusing. Some of the links to external websites are broken, but the majority worked as intended.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors found.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"While I did not find any examples that were offensive, I did not see any representation of non-binary gender. Outside of that, I thought the used examples did an excellent job of incorporating a variety of names. The text also did a good job of addressing the importance of inclusiveness, specifically in language choice and topic selection, as both a speaker and listener.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I will definitely be using large portions of this text in my class moving forward! I really liked how in depth the discussion was in regards to the introduction, conclusion, and transitions, and I will be using the worksheets provided throughout for my students. Many of the reference database websites were still live links, but be sure to check every link to see if it is active and whether or not it will charge, as some of them now do. You will need to find additional resources on the pillars of persuasion and fallacy in arguments, but in the basic construction a speech, the different speech types, and overall presentation, this book is a fabulous resource!  As promised, it really focuses on ethics throughout the text, and the exercises at the end of each chapter should be excellent conversation starters for class discussion. One of my favorite aspects of this text is that it focuses on public speaking as both presenter and audience, which many other texts have lacked in my opinion.","created_at":"2020-08-14T19:51:14.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-08-14T19:51:14.000-05:00"},{"id":4341,"first_name":"Karen","last_name":"Pleasant","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Rogue Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text effectively covers the basics of Public Speaking, but it lacks both a glossary and information about fallacies.  I liked the chart (a student exericse) about ethical issues as well as the comprehensive chapters on Communication Apprehension (myths and how to reduce apprehension in particular) and the chapter on listening.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I didn't notice any errors in the book and the information was presented in an unbiased way to all students with references to \"us\" and \"you.\"","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The information contained in the book is up-to-date.  Each chapter is organized with learning objectives and followed up with exercises and end-of-chapter assessments, so students know the relevance of the information presented and can they assess the knowledge they gained at the end.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Easy to read and the use of supporting illustrations and other visuals was very helpful to get the information across to readers.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Yes, but a glossary would be helpful.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Chapters could be utilized in any order as needed by the instructor.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text logically follows the steps inherent in preparing and delivering a speech.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is fine and the images are clear and easy to read.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I didn't notice any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The use of language chapter addresses gender and ethnicity and more information about using inclusive language.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"While the text covers the basics of public speaking, I have looked at other OER Public Speaking oriented textbooks that are more appealing and user friendly to me.  I would like to see the inclusion of a chapter about fallacies, although I could add supplemental materials myself to cover the missing information.","created_at":"2020-08-25T17:16:18.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-08-25T17:16:18.000-05:00"},{"id":4531,"first_name":"Michelle","last_name":"Scaman","position":"Term Faculty","institution_name":"University of Alaska Anchorage","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook addresses the basic concepts of public speaking within a scope that is appropriate for 100 and 200 level courses and provides clear examples as well as useful exercises. One notable feature is the appendix which provides prompts that allow for synthesizing the knowledge gained within the chapters by assisting students with their first speech. I do wish that the textbook included more information on rhetorical appeals as well as a discussion on logical fallacies but overall, it provides a solid foundation for learning public speaking.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Theories and models are cited clearly and introduced in a logical manner. Communication scholars are referenced and applied appropriately.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The examples within each chapter help to clarify the concepts introduced but are mostly broad enough that they don't seem dated. The more specific examples that were current at the date of publication, could easily be updated.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Public speaking terminology is clearly defined with examples to reinforce concepts.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Each chapter and section featured learning objectives, concepts, terminology, examples, and key takeaways consistently.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Chapter sections are divided into concepts incrementally, making them easy to align with assignments. The learning objectives are easily identifiable within the subsections.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The textbook is clearly organized with each chapter transitioning smoothly to the next. The foundation and framework for the text are established in a logical manner that scaffolds information in an accessible manner. There are clear learning objectives and key takeaways.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The textbook is easy to navigate and images and charts were legible. This was appropriately evident in the 'Visual Aid\" section as the example charts and images could be understood clearly.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not encounter grammatical errors while reviewing this textbook.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Most textbooks fall short in this area of cultural competence. While the language was inclusive and some examples referenced culture, there is room for growth.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2021-01-07T01:23:33.000-06:00","updated_at":"2021-01-10T15:59:26.000-06:00"},{"id":4577,"first_name":"Lisa","last_name":"Merritt","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Central Oregon Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text is well organized and follows a logical progression.  As others have stated, a much-needed Ethics chapter is located prominently at the front of the book as chapter two.  All the traditional items one would expect to find in a public speaking text is present.  However, given the dramatic changes brought about in 2020 it would be useful to have information on best practices of remote delivery.  \r\n\r\nThe is brief contents is easy to read and well organized.  There is not a detailed Table of Contents. It’s not really a problem, but simply an observation. The book is also missing a glossary.  Again, not really a problem given that one can easily do an electronic search of the document instead.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book reads well and includes relatively current pictures and examples.  The writing is unbiased and inclusive.  The content is accurate with useful examples.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text is arranged in a logical progression and can easily be updated.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book follows its own recommendation on clarity (page 105) by \"using words that your audience will understand.\"  While the standard pedagogy is clear and correct, the book is written in a colloquial manner.  It keeps the information from being intimating or more difficult than it needs to be for an introductory course.  It's an enjoyable read.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"There is visual consistency with how the chapters are arranged and presented.  There is also consistency in tone and language.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Reading through the book is pleasurable.  The information is chunked into short sections with clearly stated learning objectives.  While it does make for many pages, I appreciate the spacing and headings.  It's visually pleasing and easy to find concepts that one may be perusing to find.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"While the text is presented in a logical and progressive manner, that doesn't mean one can't easily teach the chapters \"our of order\" so to speak.  For example, I prefer to explain the body of the speech before elaborating on how to develop a tailored introduction and conclusion.  Thus I teach \"out of order\" from the book chapters that proceed from Ch. 9: Introductions Matter;  to Ch. 10: Creating the Body of the Speech and finally; Ch. 11: Concluding with Power.  Nonetheless, the order of the book makes sense and is very practical.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"There are no interface errors that I have noticed.  The spacing and allowable white space helps keep this text reader friendly and visually appealing.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There don't appear to be any grammatical errors.  This is a very professionally developed book.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The inherent nature of quality public speaking requires the discussion and inclusion of cultural elements and current practices. This book does a nice job of addressing these concerns.  For example, Chapter 2: Ethics in Public Speaking includes the NCA Credo to Public Speaking which helps set the tone and expectation for inclusiveness and cultural appreciation throughout the text. To be clear, it's not an \"intercultural\" textbook.  But it does address the very basics in regards to helping beginning speakers as they build awareness and understanding of audience analysis.  No small task!","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Having taught out Lucas' \"The Art of Public Speaking\" for two decades, I find Stand up, Speak out to be a nice alternative.  The chapters follow almost the same sequence and information is as comprehensive making it a relatively easy switch for me.  This sounds selfish in a way, but that can be a big challenge when trying to find an OER.  It's nice when you can adopt an OER and not have to completely rework your course!","created_at":"2021-01-14T15:30:57.000-06:00","updated_at":"2021-01-14T15:30:57.000-06:00"},{"id":4702,"first_name":"Daniela","last_name":"Ottati-Reperger","position":"Adjunct Assistant Professor","institution_name":"New York City College of Technology","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text has a table of contents that lists its 18 chapters. In addition, all chapters contain information that perfectly falls under the umbrella of public speaking. I would have liked to see additional chapters on nonverbal communication and intercultural communication, but concepts from those two areas are still covered in other sections of the text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content presented is accurate and unbiased.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content covers the fundamentals of public speaking, and it will, therefore, not become obsolete within a short period of time. The text allows for updates to be made.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is very easy to follow and understand.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"There is consistency in how the text and other elements are presented to readers. There are “learning objectives” at the beginning of a section while “key takeaways” and “exercises” show at the end of each section. Chapter exercises and end-of-chapter assessments are also provided.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The chapters are divided into sections; this makes the content easy to use in case select chapter sections are assigned. There are headings used throughout the text that facilitate the identification of the topics covered.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The information from the text is presented in a logical way that still allows professors to rearrange how they prefer to present the material to learners.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There is a combination of images and graphics throughout the text. The graphics are of a good quality while the image selection process could improve (see 2.1 drawing and 2.2 black and white picture, for example).","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text does not contain major errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive. It includes discussions regarding diversity and what to do to make sure audiences are not offended. As mentioned before, the text could have benefited from having a stand-alone intercultural communication chapter.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This textbook can be perfectly used in a public speaking course. It is important to always highlight the role of the professor who will be able to choose how to use it and how to fill in any gaps.","created_at":"2021-03-22T18:49:24.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-03-22T18:49:24.000-05:00"},{"id":4826,"first_name":"Christy","last_name":"Takamure","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Leeward Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook covers the major components you will find in other public speaking texts.  Links connect the reader to more information if they are interested in specific examples.  Although the concepts are clearly defined, there is room for more discussion on broader communication concepts, more specifically, in the persuasion and language use chapters.  The information can be supplemented with other resources.  There is no index and/or glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The textbook is written clearly and with no biases.  The authors did a thorough job in citing sources throughout.  The APA and MLA guidelines were to date with good examples.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The information presented is relevant and can be continued for long-term use.  Adding information about presenting speeches digitally will bring this textbook up-to-date especially now when much of the teaching and learning is remote and online.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing style is accessible and easy to follow and understand.  Examples are provided to add clarity.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I like how the textbook is consistently formatted which allows the reader to know what to expect in each chapter.  It is also worded clearly and concisely.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This textbook is easily divided so the different sections can be utilized out of sequence if needed.  It allows flexibility to rearrange or add supplemental information whenever needed.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The textbook is well-organized and clearly formatted.  The consistent structure of the contents makes it easy to read.  The smooth flow of the textbook begins each chapter with an overview and then leads to each section with Learning Objectives to help identify the key points.  Finally, each section ends with “Key Takeaways”.  “Exercises” and end-of-chapter assessments are available to reinforce learning.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Although the organization of the textbook is clear, it would be helpful to add an index and bibliography so that the reader can find information easier.  I would have liked to see more illustrations and photographs which adds interest and appeal.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any significant grammatical or mechanical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The illustrations displayed cultural diversity with various ethnicities, races, and backgrounds represented.  It would have been ideal to include a discussion on cultural relevance whenever it deemed appropriate to expand how culture may influence the communication process.  This inclusion would be more appealing to the population at my campus which includes many minority groups.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Overall, I believe that this textbook does a great job on covering the major components of public speaking.  It is highly suitable for an introductory public speaking course.","created_at":"2021-04-23T04:38:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-04-23T04:38:06.000-05:00"},{"id":4911,"first_name":"Jeff","last_name":"Wade","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Northeastern Illinois University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The work is well sourced, and covers most aspects of public speaking with thoroughness. However, it is without a glossary or index. The chapters are well laid however, and the \"Key Takeaways\" and \"Exercises\" at the end of each sections provides clarity. I found the approach to speech anxiety (Ch. 3) especially enlightened. Anxiety is not a one-size fits all; and embracing the uniqueness of individual skill sets is the key for success.\r\nLacking in this book's treatment is even a cursory discussion to the physiology of the voice and vocal production. Admittedly, a course in Voice and Diction is more appropriate for a thorough examination of these techniques. So to that extent, this omission is somewhat understandable. Still, it is surprising that basic physiology (the diaphragm, Larynx, etc.) and its relevance toward the production of full resonance is ignored.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book is dispassionate in its examination of passionate topics and difficult techniques.\r\nFurther, it places the material in the proper context(s). I found no errors. All the links in the text seemed to work as well.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Without dwelling on the up-to-the-minute trends in mass media, for example, this book effectively presents timeless content with some basic modern thinking. For example, its focus on ethics is well presented early in the text (Ch. 2). Its use of the Credo for Ethical Communication is an important way to start the critical thinking process. There is a sensitivity to modern nuances and perceptions in this book, which allows the students to critically examine their goals, and those if their audiences.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The prose of this public speaking book is consistently basic, without being vague or boiler plate. Even its approach to \"drier\" topics such as research and outlining are easily accessible.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The framework for topics and issues presented in this text is one of its best features. Topics are laid out before hand and thoroughly recapped. I found the students came to rely on this consistency to help them absorb material ranging from research techniques to subjective speaking styles.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Another attribute of \"Stand Up, Speak Out\" is its organization. Like public speaking itself, there is no one particular order to present material. This book allows the instructor the freedom to effectively \"jump around\" the text as needed. There is no confusion in this, as again, the text is reliably consistent in its presentation. For example, many of the later chapters on giving specific speeches could be sewn into the course as \"speech units\" as each technique is covered.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"While not containing a glossary or index, Stand Up, Speak Out is dependably clear. It relies on basic prose to break down complicated concepts. The best example of this is from Chapter 13 on language, which might be described as a slightly more detailed glossary. The students embrace this fundamental delivery of key terms.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"This text could not have been more easy to use.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical or editorial errors were found.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The book might have incorporated a more diverse and expansive look into things like \"Stages of Listening,\" for example (Ch. 4). Is there one way to hear and listen? To whom are we, as a society, not listening? The book addresses the difference between hearing and listening, but seems to miss the most obvious metaphor for it. In fact, this treatment lacks depth in general, regardless of context. In this case, the plain basic approach of the text does not seem to measure up to the topic.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The book was remarkably easy to use and to navigate. Students found its consistency its best feature.","created_at":"2021-05-11T20:34:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-05-11T20:34:06.000-05:00"},{"id":4945,"first_name":"Emily Wilkinson","last_name":"Stallings","position":"Faculty Member - Senior Instructor","institution_name":"Virginia Tech","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook has the classic coverage of most Public Speaking textbooks today with an emphasis on ethics.  I do see that cultural identities are missing which would be important when considering the audience (although the demographic information in the audience chapter is covered quite well). And there is a very brief overview of culture on page 26. Also on page 107 there is a discussion of the diversity found in audiences.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"There is a bibliography at the end of each section in the chapters - this is nice in demonstrating the accuracy of materials., e.g. credible sources.\r\nIn chapter 1, section 1.2 under Models of P.S., I am disappointed that the 3 models shown are not detailed enough for me - I will add materials to enhance the understanding of how these models work in relation to P.S.\r\nChapter 2 on ethics is excellent, covered well.\r\nGo to Interface (below) for comments on being unbiased. - I took Accuracy to mean something different, accuracy of the material.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This book, along with all P.S. books will be around forever.   I do think when \u0026 if revised, there needs to be attention to cultural considerations and to replace some of the illustrations - they seem dated.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The content borders on information overload.  Dense is the word I would use.  Some long paragraphs, a lot of text.  However, the Learning Objectives, Key Takeaways, Exercises, End of the Chapter Assessments help the student pull the main ideas that helps with organizing and remembering material in their minds.\r\nI also like the use of headings and the use of bold for key words.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"There is consistency in the layout of this text. Each chapter is divided into sections.  Each section is clearly labeled and begins with Learning Objectives and ends with Key Takeaways, Exercises, and a bibliography (references). All parts of each section have clear labeling all the way through the chapter.  There is an ethical box connecting the material of that chapter to ethic at the end of each chapter and an end-of-chapter assessment with answer key (wish it didn't have that or the key was placed at the end of the text).","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"As I commented above, yes the material is 'readily divisible into smaller reading sections'.  From my view this is well-done by the author.\r\nI notice a worksheet at the end of Chapter 9, which is positive for students as they work through their introduction to a speech.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"As commented above, the organization is excellent. Students could easily create an outline from the structure on the chapters. Chapters and Sections are logically ordered with consideration to the steps in developing a speech.\r\nThe only chapter that I personally would move earlier in the book, is Chapter 13 on language. I do understand the reasoning of the author's placement.  After writing your outline for the speech, you could then consider language, so the placement can make sense. Personal viewpoint.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Interface is good.\r\nAs I look at pictures, they tend to be of older white men - I do not prefer this as I think it s not a good representation of the population of our country.  Little inclusion of women or people of color. (oops, I am incorrect there is a picture of a woman of color on page 250)\r\nOn page 199 there is a picture of a bibliography that looks distorted [a simple copy from a copy machine] and overwhelming.  Being overwhelming was the purpose , I believe.\r\nIn one area I saw a reference to the Bible used as an example.  I have no problem with this, if other religious texts are also utilized - I have not seen that included.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have not detected any grammatical or spelling errors. Upon use of the textbook, they would show up more readily if there.","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"As I've already stated, this is an area that needs work in this textbook.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I am looking forward to trying out this textbook in my public speaking class this summer.\r\nI am concerned with the density of the book, simply information overload [again, this is my perception].","created_at":"2021-05-19T17:48:52.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-05-19T17:48:52.000-05:00"},{"id":5087,"first_name":"Caleb","last_name":"Lamont","position":"Adjunct Faculty in Communication Studies","institution_name":"Eastern Oregon University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text covers a wide range of topics, all of which are important for students to be aware of for a public speaking text. I especially liked the section on ethical public speaking, as a lot of other public speaking texts do not touch on this. Content wise, this text really covered everything there is to know about public speaking I feel. While I did feel that some topics could have been given their own entire chapter though, all the major concepts were still touched on. The only additions could be an index and glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"There is no author biases, this was a well written text and had no errors in what was being presented.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Everything is relevant today, and will likely continue to be for some time before edits need to be made. Even when that happens, the overall content will still be accurate, it will only need to be more modernized.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Everything presented in this text is very easy to understand and easy to follow.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Each chapter pretty much follows the same format and flow, and has information divided into sections.  Following the same format/structure from chapter to chapter prevents surprises so students know exactly what to expect.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Information is divided into sections, and smaller 'chunks' so it makes reading chapters more bearable and allows students the opportunity to stop reading and pick up right where they left off easily without missing anything that is being presented to them.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Everything is well organized throughout, chapters flow clearly and logically.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Solid all around.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no errors of any kind.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"For the type of class that this text is for, it did a fine job here and was not  insensitive or offensive.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Solid textbook all around and introduces students to public speaking in highly effective ways.","created_at":"2021-06-13T18:47:54.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-06-13T18:47:54.000-05:00"},{"id":5127,"first_name":"Christopher","last_name":"Anderson","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Bristol Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The chapters cover what you hope and expect from an introductory level public speaking textbook.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate, but sometimes ignores the historical birth of the ideas in favor of more recent discussions. While this approach will work well for most avenues of student, students in communication majors would benefit from additional nods to early scholars such as Quintillian, Ciscero, and Aristotle.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"For the most part this text holds up well across each chapter with the possible exemption of chapter 15 concerning presentation aids. The rapidly changing landscape of visual aids makes chapters on them, in any level of communication textbook, difficult to keep relevant. The good news is that anyone choosing to adapt this book for their own course can choose to update this chapter or omit it as they see fit.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The points in each chapter are accessible to introductory scholars. The book may be slightly tedious in upper level courses, but this is clearly a fundamental course book and should only be used as such.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I would need a few semesters of working with the book to be certain, but it does not seem to contradict itself after my first viewing.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"The variety of visuals is both a benefit and a potential issue. Students today are often more prone to need a consistent approach to layouts. The chapters themselves are consistent in their format, but the variety of visual aids could be problematic for some students.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The chapters are organized as you would expect to see in a book used for a 15 week semester. The real strength of the book's organization lies within the way each chapter is laid out in sub-points. A clever instructor might even point this out to their students to push the idea of how well topic organizational patterns work in public speaking.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The variety of ways in which to engage with the book is wonderful, and there seem to be no interface issues with any of them.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book is well written.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book's relevance to culture is simplistic, but effective. For anyone adapting this ebook to their own course, a course director could easily add ideas endemic to their local community in a way that would make great sense to their students. Otherwise, the need for specific instances of cultural relevance are less necessary that other items.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2021-06-21T16:29:25.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-06-21T16:29:25.000-05:00"},{"id":34459,"first_name":"Patricia","last_name":"Walker","position":"Associate Professor in Communication (Adjunct Professor)","institution_name":"Prairie State College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"\"Stand up, Speak out:  The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking\"  is quite  comprehensive.  It covers all of the areas that are specific to my course.  Moreover, it provides an instructor  more substantive information and references  from which to select and chose, if needed.   For example,  the breadth and depth of the open text has information on the following:  the importance of public speaking, why  public speaking  matters, why ethics in public speaking is important,  how to gain  confidence while speaking, the importance of  listening and  the importance of knowing your audience.  It further describes the purpose of public speaking, why research is critical, how speech organization is central to public speaking--(i.e., developing the introduction, body, and conclusion), the  connection between language and delivery to a public speaking.  Moreover, all the chapters have  learning objectives, key takeaways for the chapters and their sections,   brief exercises, pictures, charts  and references--all of which enhance  \"Stand up, Speak out.\"   Lastly,  for each chapter, there is a  quiz that covers the key ideas of the particular sections.   I find  this a good quick assessment the particular chapter.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"From my over 20 years teaching courses in communication,  (especially in the area of Introduction to Communication and/or Public Speaking), this open textbook has accurate content--free from error and is unbiased.  As stated in the previous section, each chapter has references for users to gain additional information for further documentation.  The references of each chapter reinforce its accuracy and information.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Each chapter is up-to-date and relevant.  This open textbook, though copyrighted in 2016, still has useful information.  Professors  can assign  sections that are relevant to their course objectives.  For example, let's use Chapter 7 on how to conduct research for a speech.    The chapter  has  information that can be utilized or not--the instructor determines the range of information to use.   From my experience, students often struggle with  how to do  \"good\" research.  Lastly,  Chapter 7 discusses  what is research, how  to use different research tools,  how to cite sources and  how to avoid plagarism.  It also provides ethical ways  how to support  the speaker's ideas  by  supporting the instructor's lecture, the research librarian's lecture and/or  research workshop,  and by building credibility that fortifies   the speaker's ideas--the criteria for an effective speech.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook's ideas are lucid, clear, and  provides adequate context to the terminology.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"As stated earlier,  the open textbook is quite consistent.  What I mean by consistency is that each chapter has learning objectives, charts and pictures that explain the content.  Likewise, each chapter has key takeaways and questions that cover the main items.  Also, the chapter has a quiz that covers the major ideas of each chapter. It  reinforces how a speech should be developed--i.e., having a well-developed introduction, body, and conclusion that reinforce  how an oral presentation should be constructed and delivered.  Undoubtedly, I especially  like the  \"consistency\" of the open tex.tbook because of its organization and fluidity.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The open textbook has divisible smaller reading sections that reinforce the major ideas and/or key concepts of the chapter; this describes \"modularity.\"  I am drawn to this online textbook because if offers additional information that I have cited during lecture; and even if I am using another textbook, some of the chapter sections provide a different perspective and/or reinforces  the textbook that  I am currently using, thereby helping to achieve a sense of \"flow.\"","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The open text  is highly organized, which  I have previously  mentioned in my critical analysis of  \"Stand up, Speak out.\"  Whether the instructor is a veteran  or a novice in the art and skill of teaching  public speaking, this open  textbook is highly effective and can be streamlined to fit the instructor's goals and/or  course objectives.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Frankly,  this open text  is clear and free of significant interface issues.  There  are no distractions that would confuse the reader.   I have  looked over other open textbooks and found this one best meets my pedagogical needs.  Furthemore, I am really drawn to the images, images, charts, and pictures that  reinforce and/or complement the ideas in \"Speak up, Speak out.\"","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The textbook is error free, well written, and highly organized.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text is not offensive to its users.  As stated earlier, there are various  content-related questions that allow users of the textbook an opportunity to select  responses that are related to their cultural interests and ideas.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I highly recommend  \"Stand Up and Speak Out--The Practice  and Ethics of Public Speaking\" as  textbook for two basic reasons:  (1) it can be used as a standalone textbook; (2) it can also be used  as a  possible supplement  to the instructor's  communication textbook.    Lastly, even though the textbook is lengthy, this free  open text  gives  confidence for any individual who desires to be an effective communicator in any public setting.","created_at":"2023-03-14T22:19:26.000-05:00","updated_at":"2023-03-14T22:19:26.000-05:00"},{"id":35043,"first_name":"Donald","last_name":"Ritzenhein","position":"Adjunct professor of communication","institution_name":"The George Washington University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Covers the three main beginning public speaking speeches, and the generally used preparation instructions.  Chapter 5 on audience analysis is especially clear, with specific strategies and suggested assignments students can actually use.  No specific chapter on logic or fallacies.  Bibliography at the end of chapters (limited to 2011 or earlier) but no index or glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Overall many references to research studies that support the authors' advice and claims.  Or, as they point out, in the case of the Motivated Sequence don't support that it's \"better\" at persuasion than other approaches.  As with any textbook, there may be claims that some instructors would disagree with.  For me, using a mirror in rehearsal, for example, puts the emphasis on the speaker rather than the audience (good ideas, though on using practice sessions with fellow students or video taping rehearsals).  Except for \"understand,\" the learning objectives are in fact learning objectives.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"While much of the overall analysis and advice of the text still applies to preparing and delivering speeches, being \"up to date\" is a major drawback of a book initially published 13 years ago (2011) with apparently only minor adjustments when re-published in 2016.  No sources more recent than the original publication date.  Examples, sources, and some language use are dated.  The research chapter is dated given the advances in library search techniques over the past decade.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"A major strength, one of the clearest explanations, logically organized, fully supported with examples.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Consistent tone, terminology, and overall organizational framework.  Each chapter has clear learning objectives, summaries, and end of chapter exercises.  Answer keys are in letters but question options are numbered.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Despite its date (2011) sections from this textbook could be easily extracted and included with other books or as a stand-alone collection.  Some sections may strike instructors as particularly clear and helpful.  Several sections are good prompts for preparing classroom discussions or faculty lectures, even if the examples are not particularly current.  Some excellent discussion questions and cases are at the ends of chapters, and there are several worksheets that students might find helpful in preparing speeches.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Logical organization, very traditional.  The first four chapters are long and while they discuss important topics, if students were assigned to read them in order it would delay their actual speech making and presentations too long.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"All headings are in the same size font so it’s not always obvious which items are sub-items under a major heading.  Several links to online resources are broken.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical issues, but outdated gender references (his and her, “smart guy or gal”) even though the authors do highlight the importance of not assuming all members of an audience are heterosexual (p. 358)","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Use of “he or she” rather than the current preferred “they”.  Link to an inspirational speech (audio not video) is an American Christian self-help author, giving a speech to children at a church service.  A religious focus that some might not find appropriate.  As others have noted, photos of white male and female individuals far outnumber the photos of African Americans (only 4) or other non-white people.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Early chapters on why public speaking, ethics, confidence, and listening are too long to have students read at the very beginning of a basic public speaking course.  It is important to introduce these topics early, but more generally and then develop additional parameters within following assignments.  Originally written 13 years ago, re-published 8 years ago.  No further editions are likely.  Better to consider selecting sections that provide support for specific assignments rather than assigning the book as the overall text for a basic public speaking course.","created_at":"2024-05-15T12:01:08.000-05:00","updated_at":"2024-05-15T12:01:08.000-05:00"},{"id":35543,"first_name":"Von","last_name":"Beckford","position":"Visiting Lecturer","institution_name":"Framingham State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text really breaks the processes down step by step, even the steps within the steps! It gives the information in bite-sized nuggets, which is helpful for students who may not have ever taken a speech/presentations class before. The same goes for professors who may not have ever taken or taught such a course before. It also leaves room for professors to be creative with how they want to exemplify the information, or turn the examples into in-class lessons.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I love how \"Reducing Communication Apprehension\" gives examples of how it can be done, including maintaining eye contact, positive thinking and eating well. Perhaps it might help to add another segment reminding students to adhere to any anxiety medications. Mental health issues, including severe anxiety and depression are on the rise, and public speaking/presentation classes can push some students to the edge. If the obstacle goes far beyond anything that positive thinking or visualizations can do, but the class is still required, it might help to just put a reminder in that if your anxiety is to an extreme level that you need medication to control it, remember to take it beforehand.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Like Robert's Rules of Order, this text gives such a well articulated and broken-down template, in this case of knowing what the different kinds of speeches are (entertaining, persuasive, and informative), and how to effectively perform each one. Meanwhile, I don't see speeches changing so drastically in the near future that any of these lessons would be deemed useless anytime soon.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written in a very down-to-earth uncomplicated words, and does consistently explain any unfamiliar terms or concepts such as \"epideictic speaking\" (speaking in a ceremonial context), or \"Caring/Goodwill\" in the context of the three factors of credibility.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I appreciate that each chapter is set up the same way 1) it starts with a breakdown of what the text will cover 2) Then the text itself follows, and is broken up into digestible segments so as not overwhelm the reader, 3) Then it concludes with a summarizing of the takeaways, before providing 2-3 exercises based on the text to put the reading into practice. Meanwhile, certain terms and concepts do repeat, especially the concept of the three types of speeches. The text can't stress enough the three different types of speeches, and knowing your audience within each one.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"One of the highlights of this text is that it is broken up in a modular form, thus allowing the professor to take each segment (whichever ones chosen) step by step. In a class where anxiety can easily derail many students, having the subject matter presented in bite-sized proportions (and uncomplicated wording) can alleviate some of that apprehension. \n\nMeanwhile, with 4-6 sections in each reading, you can also use it to your advantage by breaking the students up into groups and assigning them each one section to review, exemplify, (etc.) whereupon they can then report that to their fellow students in a way THEY can understand even moreso. It gives the students a sense of responsibility and agency through allowing them to teach each other.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Part of me wonders if the section on \"Listening\" should precede the one on \"Speaking Confidently.\" I'm reminded of how in order to be a great writer, one must first be a great reader. In both cases, one must be able to take things in and evaluate accordingly, in order to put good things out. How can they speak well if they aren't listening to and learning from those giving them information? \n\nEmphasizing listening can help prepare students to sit and listen to a speech of any length - which is a major obstacle in a world of laptops, phones, and other mainstream distractions - but it can also reveal to the students who WANT to be listened to, what it is they respond to or don't respond to. All of that can be monumentally useful before parading students up to start talking.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The pictures and text are clear. I didn't notice any navigation issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Nothing stood out to me.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Visually, the text exemplifies people of many races including African-American, Caucasian, and Asian (Etc). They also exemplify men and women. However, I didn't notice any specific examples of terms, concepts, (etc) that pertain to people of other identities or specific non-US cultures.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2025-06-23T17:01:55.000-05:00","updated_at":"2025-06-23T17:01:55.000-05:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/stand-up-speak-out-the-practice-and-ethics-of-public-speaking","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:04:25.000-06:00"},{"id":143,"title":"Mass Communication, Media, and Culture - An Introduction to Mass Communication","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2016,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":"9781946135261","license":"Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":"","accessibility_features":[],"description":"According to the author, the world did not need another introductory text in mass communication. But the world did need another kind of introductory text in mass communication, and that is how Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication was birthed. The only question was: What would be the purpose of another introductory mass communication text? Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication was written to squarely emphasize media technology. The author believes that an introduction to mass communication text should be a compelling, historical narrative sketching the *ongoing evolution* of media technology and how that technology shapes and is shaped by culture — and that is what he set out to deliver with his new textbook. Today's students are immersed in media technology. They live in a world of cell phones, smart phones, video games, iPods, laptops, Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare, and more. They fully expect that new technology will be developed tomorrow. Yet students often lack an historical perspective on media technology. They lack knowledge of the social, political and economic forces that shape media technology. This is not knowledge for knowledge's sake. It is knowledge that can help them understand, comprehend, appreciate, anticipate, shape and control media technology. With this focus, Understanding Media and Culture becomes an appropriate title. Indeed, the title has particular significance. Marshall McLuhan's Understanding Media is a key text in media studies. Written in the 1960s, Understanding Media was the subject of intense debates that continue to this day. Its central message was that the technology of media — not their content — was their most important feature. In a typically pithy phrase, McLuhan said, \"The medium is the message.\" The title, Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication, situates the introductory text in a large, engrossing theoretical conversation. The goal is to adopt a textbook that will support and complement your teaching of this course. Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication will support an engaging and interesting course experience for students that will not only show them the powerful social, political and economic forces will affect the future of media technology, but will challenge students to do their part in shaping that future.","contributors":[],"subjects":[{"id":76,"name":"New Media Journalism","parent_subject_id":16,"call_number":"PN4699-5650","visible_textbooks_count":14,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/new-media-journalism"},{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":198,"url":"https://www.lib.umn.edu/publishing","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:37.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:37.000-05:00","name":"University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing"}],"formats":[{"id":364,"type":"Online","url":"https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Journalism_and_Mass_Communication/Book%3A_Mass_Communication_Media_and_Culture","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1750,"type":"PDF","url":"https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Journalism_and_Mass_Communication/Book%3A_Mass_Communication_Media_and_Culture","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1751,"type":"eBook","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/mediaandculture/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2268,"type":"XML","url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/mediaandculture/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2269,"type":"ODF","url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/mediaandculture/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4","textbook_reviews_count":32,"reviews":[{"id":117,"first_name":"Doug","last_name":"Trouten","position":"Professor","institution_name":"University of Northwestern - St. Paul","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all of the major forms of media and significant related topics (advertising, media economics, ethics, etc.). While the text lacks a dedicated chapter for journalism, this topic is covered at length in some of the other chapters. No glossary or index is provided.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate and free of glaring errors. Although written in a personal, conversational tone, the text avoids obvious personal bias.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is up-to-date, including discussion of social media and references to recent works of media criticism. The rapid development of new media makes it likely that some of the material in this (or any) book will quickly seem dated, but the most time-sensitive material is confined to a few chapters, which should facilitate future updates.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is written in clear, easy-to-understand language that should appeal to today's college-age reader.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text shows good consistency, introducing key ideas early and using them to facilitate understanding of material covered in subsequent chapters.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The chapters are clearly divided into subsections, each with clearly stated learning objectives, key takeaways and learning exercises. Most subsections could stand on their own, and chapters focusing on specific forms of mass media could easily be rearranged or skipped if desired.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics are presented in a logical fashion. After introducing basic ideas about media and culture and media effects, the text moves to discussion of various forms of media in chronological orders, and ends with chapters on various mass media applications and issues, such as advertising, public relations, ethics and government regulation.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"The text is a basic PDF, with fixed line breaks that limit display options. Most URLs are live links. Footnote numbers and references to chapter sections look like links but are not, which may confuse some readers. A format better-suited for e-readers would be welcome.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text strives to be culturally neutral, and should  not offend any particular group of readers. The text clearly focuses on the U.S. media context, and acknowledges this limitation early on.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is an impressively comprehensive overview of mass communication, written in a clear and engaging manner. Discussion questions and exercises are helpful resources for classroom use. A glossary, index and more flexible e-format would make this text even more useful. This text is a welcome addition to the field, and will serve students and teachers well.","created_at":"2014-07-15T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2014-07-15T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":143,"first_name":"Robert","last_name":"Kerr","position":"Professor","institution_name":"University of Oklahoma","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book devotes almost 800 pages to achieving an impressive level of comprehensiveness, considering the vast subject material upon which it focuses. Moving from Gutenberg’s 15th-century invention of the movable type printing press, through the beginning of the contemporary media age launched by the introduction of the telegraph in the mid 19th century, on into the explosive era opened with the beginnings of wireless communication, and ultimately into the revolution of Internet communication that by 2008 meant that U.S. households were consuming 3.6 zettabytes of information annually, the equivalent of a seven-foot-foot tall stack of books that covered the entire nation and represented a 350 percent increase from just three decades previously. This book manages to cover that remarkable series of media developments, and actually a good bit more, while keeping it all in broader context and without getting bogged down in the tedium of too much minutia from any one topic area.\r\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This reviewer came across no errors of fact nor any pattern of bias in presentation. \r\n","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The author of any text on this subject is faced with the challenge of achieving up-to-date content on a subject that explodes with new developments faster than any static text could ever stay fully up to date on for long. This text addresses that challenge by focusing on presenting a fully, dynamic framework that is so fully developed that it provides readers with a quite useful and enduring framework for considering crucial issues of media and culture in a manner that should give it a considerable shelf life. That framework is designed to help readers understand not only today’s media landscape but to consider what may be ahead for that landscape in terms of the future of media and culture.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text breaks down relevant concepts and terminology with lucid, accessible prose so that even readers at the most introductory level should be able to always understand the discussion. Throughout the text, it very clearly helps readers think about each concept and related elements very clearly and in context that illuminates their significance.\r\n","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This book’s use of terminology and framework is remarkably consistent. The author clearly has an instinctive, unified understanding of the essential dynamics driving the media world as it has evolved, exists today, and is unfolding going forward, and consistently discusses all topics in a context that never loses connection with that broad, fluid picture.\r\n","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Chapters are organized into small modules, short subsections that by and large can stand alone and could be reorganized as an instructor might find more useful for the purposes of particular courses. Each chapter and each subsection includes highly useful learning objectives, key takeaways, and exercises, links to source materials and end-of-chapter assessments.\r\n","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The book begins with a thorough overview that takes the reader quickly through a multifaceted assessment of the relationship between media and culture. With that foundation established, it moves into discussion of what is understood about the complex subject of media effects. Then it moves into narrower topics within the broader view considered so far, moving on to discussions of books, newspapers, magazines, music, radio, movies, and television, and then on to more recent developments such as electronic games, the Internet and social media. Then it steps back again to consider broader media influences such as advertising/PR, the role of economics in shaping the nature of mass media, ethical considerations, and government influence, before concluding with a substantial discussion of the future of mass media. The final chapter very effectively brings together the many strands of discussion from preceding chapters and synergizes them with a forward looking discussion of what the media future may hold.\r\nA table of contents within the book pdf itself would be helpful, as would content outlines at the beginning of each chapter. However, each chapter does contain very good breakdown highlights of each subsection’s learning objectives, key takeaways, and exercises, as well as extensive links to source materials and end-of-chapter assessments.\r\n","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There do not seem to be any interface problems. The book is easy to navigate and the images/charts are displayed clearly, without distortion. Display features are presented quite distinctly and effectively throughout and should present readers with not distractions or confusion. The layout is somewhat visually plain, compared to many websites and even many traditional textbooks with more graphically elaborate designs, but the simple layout is easy to negotiate. The number of images/charts is not abundant, but is sufficient.\r\n\r\n","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Grammar is used correctly throughout -- including use of the term “media” as a plural noun, which even too many academics have begun to use incorrectly as a singular term. It even includes an explanation of why it is incorrect to make that term singular, despite its popular usage in such manner. The text is very well written throughout, lively and to the point, with an easy flow that should enable readers to move through it almost effortlessly.\r\n","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Over the course of this 761-page book, the reader is taken through an extensive range of discussion examples that span a multitude of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. This reviewer did not detect any instances of cultural insensitivity or offensiveness.\r\n","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"\tThis book is written well enough to be of general interest as a stand-alone read, apart from the context of its use as a textbook.\r\n","created_at":"2015-01-12T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2015-01-12T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":264,"first_name":"Nick","last_name":"Marx","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Colorado State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text is a broad and comprehensive overview of all relevant forms of media today.  Although this is a common organizational approach for survey textbooks of media, this particular volume utilizes it in a particularly clear and cogent manner.  Instructors approaching media and culture from a mass comm/journalism standpoint are much likelier to find this text useful than are instructors who approach media and culture from a perspective emphasizing critical/cultural studies, historical poetics, and/or aesthetics.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate and strikes appropriately diplomatic tones where contentious issues might arise that concern social and cultural power.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The text is quite relevant for the most part, but by the very nature of its subject matter will undoubtedly require updates every few years.  Framing the intro of the \"Future of Mass Media\" chapter with a specific device--the iPad--rather than the set of cultural protocols such devices foster, for example, might prove to be one area where instructors redirect conversations after the next new device inevitably cycles through.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is lucid and easy to follow.  The book is ideal for introductory-level courses, but is likely too survey-oriented for courses beyond that level.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent in structure, tone, and subject matter.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Here the book really excels at guiding students through a programmatic approach to studying media.  Each section of history/description is followed by useful discussion prompts and activities, easily lending itself to course adoption.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The book flows logically.  Some medium-specific chapters might arguably be collapsed into others, but their separation provides instructors with a good range of options for organizing lesson plans as they wish rather than having to proceed sequentially.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"The text is a cleanly organized PDF, but is quite cumbersome to navigate internally.  At 700+ pages, there's no table of contents and little in the PDF that allows for quick and easy browsing without intense scrolling.  I'd recommend a hyperlinked TOC and some mechanism that affords instructors/students the freedom to teach/read in a modular, not linear, fashion.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book is very clean and free of any obvious errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book appropriately qualifies and focuses on the US media context, drawing on a good diversity of examples throughout.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-01-07T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":479,"first_name":"Tom","last_name":"Grier","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Winona State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is comprehensive, covering the study of media and its intersection with culture, through an in-depth look at each of the major mediums, then content considerations, economics and ethics issues related to the mass media.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This text seems accurate. I didn't find glaring errors of fact in my reading. Though, as I will mention later in my review, many of the examples used in the text are now several years outdated, when more recent examples or case studies would be more relatable to a youthful college audience.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This is one area where I find some difficulty with the book -- as is the case with every text of this type. The world of media is ever-changing and fast-changing. The historical information about the invention, early adoption, and improvements to the mediums of mass communication (books, newspapers, radio, television, etc.) are fine. A few of the examples and case studies used to describe events related to the media feel outdated. This is most apparent in Chapters 1 and 2 on Media and Culture and Media Effects. Examples from 2010 and 2011, are not relative to college freshmen in 2016 who were in middle-school and probably not paying attention when these things happened. Therefore, the longevity of this text is limited, unless it is updated-revised at least every third year.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The author's writing style is informative and engaging. While the writing is clear and understandable, the chapters often get too deep and try to cover anything and everything in a particular content area-- or sub-chapter, when a couple statements and one case study would suffice.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I found the chapter formatting, writing style and narrative flow to be consistent from chapter to chapter.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Here, the text shines. First, it is broken into chapters that are easily identifiable and segment the content nicely. Within each chapter are several sub-chapters that allow readers to read and absorb material in smaller chunks. This will be helpful to the learning styles of younger people today.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"For the most part, I agree with the author's organization and flow. My only thought, and it's just an opinion, is: Chapter 2 on Media Effects should be moved to Chapter 14, so it comes after the major media categories and then the economics of the media, and just before the ethics and law of media. To be fair, most mass media textbooks follow this same organization. When I teach the class, I always move the \"effects\" chapter to later in the semester, after I've discussed the media types, their history and development. \n\nA second thought, I'd hold the footnoted source credits to the end of each chapter, or preferably to the end of the book. The sometimes very long list of footnoted sources between each sub-chapter stops the flow for readers that may wish to read a full chapter.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"I downloaded the PDF version, and read that. I found the interface cumbersome. I wish paragraphs were indented. I wish it was easier to navigate from chapter to chapter or topic to topic without scrolling, scrolling, scrolling. I wish there was an easy way to get to a Table of Contents with one click, and then from there click topic-anchored reference points to skip to specific information sought. \n\nI wish it had an index that had anchor links. I realize this would be a large undertaking to create and connect the links. But that would make searching and finding specific information easy and fast. If I was a college student studying for a chapter quiz or exam on the foundations of radio, I might like to scoot to the Index and click on Radio-Invention, or on Marconi and be led instantly to that content within the text.\n\nAnd, probably an easy fix, I wish it was more evenly spaced. In my opinion, there should consistently be two spaces between sub-headed sections or sub-chapters. In most places in this text, a new, bolded subhead appears on the very next line under its preceding paragraph. This looks jammed and messy.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have no problem with the grammar. It's clear, easy to follow, and written to be accessible to a college audience. I used the Gunning Fog Index to test several paragraphs throughout the text and found some of the writing aimed at an audience with 10-11 years of formal education, and in a few cases more than 15 years of education. The average of my selected readings came out at 12-13 years of education -- perfectly appropriate for a freshmen-level college course.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Other than my hope for some more recent case studies and examples, I find the text to be culturally relevant. A few of the examples mention MySpace, Napster and Kazaa as internet entities with which the audience should be familiar. In reality, today's college freshmen know almost nothing of these three internet terms. In my current Media and Society class, less than ten percent of the class had ever had a MySpace account. They had heard of MySpace, but really knew nothing. No one in the class knew about Napster or Kazaa first-hand... perhaps had heard of them in another class.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This text feels too long. This is a difficult thing. The author includes everything he feels needs to be discussed in each chapter. But it's too much for a college freshman-level class. Example: The chapter on Music is more than 50 pages long. While I agree college students should be able to read this much each week for a class, I'm confident they will not read this much. I believe the text could be condensed quite a bit while maintaining the content necessary to make it meaningful at the freshman level. It's a complete text, and would make a nice reference tool -- with better indexing and searching links within the body -- but it won't work at an entry level to the study of media. At my university, the \"Media and Society\" class is a 100-level course, used as a general education class that can fulfill a categorical credit-need for all students, not just Mass Communication majors. And we consider the class a \"feeder\" to the major, introducing students to the study of media and hopefully igniting an interest in students to consider a career in media, and therefore declare a Mass Communication major. This book, with its depth, might be more appropriate in an upper-vision media studies course.","created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":955,"first_name":"Amy","last_name":"Rawson","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Century College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Interestingly, this textbook was more comprehensive than I originally expected.  The text covered all of the major areas to be expected in a mass communication textbook: Media, Books, Newspapers, Magazines, Radio, Movies, TV, Games, Internet \u0026amp; Social Media, Advertising \u0026amp; PR, Economics, Ethics, Media \u0026amp; Government and the Future of Mass Media. However, I am giving 4 stars because there is no index or glossary which I deem especially important for a mass communication textbook. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The textbook is accurate. I also like the chapter on the future of mass media. The textbook seems to be error-free and unbiased. Each chapter section includes a few learning objectives and a few \"key takeaways.\" There are also exercise questions at the end of each chapter section.  The examples in the exercise questions are dated. It would be nice to have more current examples. However, I would prefer questions about the chapter at the end of the entire chapter or at the end of each section in addition to the objectives, takeaways and exercises. Thus, I am giving 4 stars for outdated examples. ","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"I agree with another reviewer that the examples are a bit dated (which quickly happens in a mass communication textbook). This affects the credibility of the overall text. For example, in Chapter 16.1 Changes in Media Over the Last Century the example box titled \"Pay-for-it Content: Will it Work?\" is from 2009! This is 2017. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook is written in clear and easily understood language. It is accessible and comprehensible. It would be nice to have a glossary for students for the mass communication jargon.  ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The text seems to be consistent with terminology and framework. However, the textbook seems dated overall and new terminology and frameworks could be added to make it more relevant and interesting for students.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of the textbook is good. It is easily and readily divisible into smaller reading sections that can be assigned different points within the course. I like the division of the chapters into subsections. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization/structure/flow of the textbook is good. However, I agree with another reviewer that the textbook is too lengthy. In my opinion, 647 pages is too long. Although I have used other textbooks of similar length, there are many more vivid visuals for students and more timely information and examples. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is free of significant interface issues that may confuse or distract the reader. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The textbook examples for cultural relevance could be more current. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Thank you for this opportunity. I like the idea of an open textbook and would be interested in doing more reviews in the future. ","created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1051,"first_name":"Kevin","last_name":"Smith","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Chemeketa Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is comprehensive in its coverage of all major media platforms and key general concepts related to mass media.  There are times (e.g. Chapter 2: Media Effects) when some concepts are defined vaguely, but this is not indicative of the book as a whole. There is no glossary nor index, but most terms are defined well in the context of each chapter. The review sections at the end of each chapter would also help students organize and recall relevant information as they study. There is little that I feel is missing from this textbook that would be appropriate for an introductory mass media course. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"A neutral, objective tone is struck throughout, with no apparent errors or gaps in coverage of major media and concepts. To the best of my knowledge, I believe this text to be free of errors, although it needs to be updated. ","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"While this text is outstanding in its coverage and clarity, it is now seven years out-of-date and needs to be updated. A text on mass media should reflect the most recent changes in technology and economic and political contexts. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This text appears to be written for college freshmen and sophomores. Perhaps even upper-level high school students could successfully grasp its content. Most jargon particular to the discipline is defined and illustrated thoroughly. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is rigorous throughout, with even weight given to all concepts. There are occasional overlaps between chapters in coverage of terms (e.g. media bias), but nothing that seems sloppy or out-of-place. The historical overview of media technologies blends seamlessly with the beginning and later chapters on media studies concepts. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The structure of the book lends itself exceptionally well to divisibility, while demonstrating the ability to maintain its own internal coherence. The text seems designed for a semester-long course, so those looking to use it for quarters or with students whose expected reading loads might be lighter will find it easy to pull only what they need from it without sacrificing clarity. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book's content is designed expertly, with introductory chapters leading into a chronological overview of the history of media technologies (books to social media). The text concludes by expanding its scope to cover more general concepts (e.g.media ethics) that scaffold on previously discussed ideas. This framework would greatly aid students in comprehending central ideas in media studies as they relate to specific technologies and historical periods. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not notice any problems in this area, although a cover might be helpful in identifying the text. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I noticed some minor typos, but nothing that reflects poorly on the high level of discourse and mechanical aspects of the text. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text employs examples that would be helpful to students as they seek to understand mass media in diverse settings. There was no inappropriate content noted. The text is respectful and inclusive in this sense. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"The end of chapter summaries, takeaways, exercises and critical thinking questions are outstanding and would serve any instructor well in designing a course with relevant activities tied directly to the text, while also pointing to other sources in contemporary mass media. The book is an invaluable resource that deserves the attention of a group of scholars who can update its content in order that it be more relevant to students. ","created_at":"2017-02-15T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-15T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1179,"first_name":"Elizabeth","last_name":"England-Kennedy","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Rhode Island College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is extremely comprehensive. Not only does it include all forms of mass media, but it intelligently and thoughtfully addresses critical concepts such as ethics and culture. Photojournalism (especially the work of muckrakers such as Jacob Riis) is not included, and investigative reporting is too briefly addressed, although including advocacy journalism was a sound choice.  There is no index or glossary. The lack of a glossary is surprising since key words are already highlighted in text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text is accurate and information is fairly represented and free of personal bias. No errors were found.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"This is the most concerning characteristic of the book: The information has long-term relevance and is written in a highly readable way that will enhance its longevity. However, the examples tend to be temporally but often not generationally up-to-date and positioned for longevity. For example, beginning the book with an example that is this far removed from today's undergraduates' world may lessen their interest in reading further, as opposed to beginning with more focus on Beatlemania and then moving to an example of an artist/group more accessible to their generation. Additional examples used later in the book are drawn from recent time frames, but may not be commonly accessed. This is the only aspect of the book that would make me hesitate to adopt it.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written in lucid prose that is accessible to introductory readers, though individuals whose first language is not English could have some difficulty reading independently. However, with minimal pre-reading guidance (e.g., introducing concepts that will be included in an upcoming reading assignment, instruction on how to use the Learning Objectives and Key Takeaways to best effect), these readers should also be able to understand and effectively use the text. Context is given for jargon/technical terminology, and definitions are generally clear.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent in format, terminology, framework, and tone.","modularity_rating":1,"modularity_review":"The book is clearly divided into relatively short subsections that are logically sequenced. Longer sections tend to be broken up by images, all of which are relevant examples of concepts being discussed in the section. The Learning Objectives, Key Takeaways, End-of-Chapter Assessments, and Critical Thinking Questions sections for each module are useful for guiding student reading and could be easily adapted into learning exercises and assessments such as discussions, quizzes, exams, and writing assignments. The Career Connection section at the end of chapters is innovative, and could be especially useful for students considering majors in communications-related fields. Chapters and sub-sections could be used independently in reading packets or rearranged without their being weakened, making it a more flexible resource or textbook.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization is clear. Sections are clearly labeled and of approximately the same length. Titles of chapters and subsections are logical and clear. Topics are logical laid out: An overview of foundational concepts  in the first two chapters frames the remaining chapters effectively. The remaining chapters are organized in a historically-logical order. This structure is well-designed to helps readers better understand how an increase in the number and forms of media channels impacts audiences and media effects. Chapters are also internally well-organized and could be used separately as desired.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"There are no interface difficulties. Pictures are clear and free of distortion. Navigation is clear and easy to use. Because the sections are short, reader interest should be maintained despite the low level of images included. Multiple platforms can be used.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors. A nice touch by the author is to clarify and model the correct grammatical usage of \"medium\" vs \"media.\"","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"No cultural insensitivity or offensiveness was found. The author acknowledges that the book is focused on US media and includes culturally diverse examples. Topics such as cultural imperialism are addressed specifically. Related topics such as cultural appropriation and marginalization are referenced, although these specific terms are not necessarily used (e.g., the latter is addressed in the chapter on music as an outcome of the oligopoly in music without using the term \"marginalization\"). This could have been taken further; for example, the section on \"Issues and Trends in Film\" does not address concerns about \"whitewashing\" or lack of diversity in Hollywood movies and the section on Independent films does not address movies that countered these trends (e.g., the work of Spike Lee and Robert Rodriguez). However, the book lays the groundwork necessary for a discussion of such concepts in class or for use of supplemental materials that build on this text.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The book could be used as a stand-alone for an introductory class. Sections could be used in more advanced classes as supplemental readings or in reading packets.","created_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1209,"first_name":"Gwyneth","last_name":"Mellinger","position":"Professor and Director, School of Media Arts \u0026 Design","institution_name":"James Madison University","comprehensiveness_rating":2,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covers all of the subject areas typically touched on in a media and society survey course; however, the discussions within chapters would benefit greatly from more examples and, in some cases, greater detail in explanation. I often thought the content was pretty thin. This was particularly so in Chapter 2, where the treatment of effects theories and media studies controversies required much more supporting discussion to be relevant to undergraduates. The greatest weakness in the text, and the specific reason I would not adopt it for my own course, is that the book's engagement of social and digital media is, for the most part, woefully out of date and separated into discrete chapter segments, rather than synthesized into discussions directly. A text on media and society assigned in 2017 cannot be comprehensive if it does not engage media in a way that makes sense to the students who are reading it. There is no index or glossary.","accuracy_rating":2,"accuracy_review":"There is no bias in the text and historical detail appeared to be represented accurately. Again, I question whether a book written in 2010, which lacks full context for the subject matter, can accurately reflect media and society for students in 2017. For example, in 4.6, online journalism is represented as blogs and online newspapers. That is an accuracy issue for today's students.","relevance_rating":1,"relevance_review":"The book is out of date. Examples and context stop at 2010, and many cultural references will not resonate with current students, which is the point of examples and cultural context. The Beatlemania example early in the book and the references to 2009 in the opening paragraphs advertise the lack of currency. Significantly, the book cannot be easily updated in its current form because its approach and perspective are also out of date. By failing to integrate social media and the Internet into the central narrative, the book emphasizes legacy media in a way that is no longer relevant.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The book is clearly written, though additional examples and context would be helpful in places.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The narrative is consistent in terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of the text would allow use of sections of the text at different points in a course.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"The content in Chapter 11 on evolution of the Internet and the impact of social media belongs near the beginning, not the end, of the text. In addition, the impact of media economics on content is downplayed by sequestering this discussion in Chapter 13. Each chapter on legacy media ends with a section on the impact of new technology on that medium. These sections feel tacked on.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"There were no interface issues. That said, the book lacked the visual engagement used by many media and society texts to capture and maintain the interest of today's students.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The text is clean. Of note, the text correctly uses \"media\" as a plural noun. There was, however, this awkward subheading at 1.2: \"What Does Media Do?\"","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text is not culturally insensitive. It acknowledges cultural imperialism and the digital divides as issues. There are examples of media content that would be deemed inclusive. That is not to say, however, that today's students would find the examples culturally relevant. The book is written from their grandparents' perspective.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"Without irony, the unknown author of the text includes in a media literacy checklist and discussion (1.8) the advice that students should scrutinize the identity and credentials of authors. This same section warns against anonymous online sources. This is a conceptual problem with this particular online text. It's not clear why the author wants to distance her/himself from the project, but it creates a question of credibility.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1289,"first_name":"Shearon","last_name":"Roberts","position":"Assistant Professor of Mass Communication","institution_name":"Xavier University of Louisiana","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook hits the standard areas for a typical Introduction to Mass Communication course: evolution of media industries, media and society, media effects and theories, media law and ethics, the digital age, and global media. It is comprehensive in its case studies and historical events that are typically taught for an Introduction to Mass Communication course. The text is current as there is a chapter on the Internet and Social Media and several chapters look at the digital revolution as it impacts media industries. There is no glossary or index, however. Instructors will have to rely on chapter sections for lesson planning.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"From Gutenberg to Apple and Google, the book provides content that is accurate on the development of media. The author thoroughly cites case studies and provides questions for critical thinking about issues affecting media industry trends and on the impact of the media on the public. Statistics, data and trends are appropriately cited for reference check on accuracy of estimates.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Case studies and citations stop at 2010. However, the author makes projections for media trends up to 2020. Since media industries are most vulnerable to yearly change, the information in the book holds for now, although the positions of some of the digital media players have changed since the book has come out. However, the author is careful to clarify dates for events that were transformative for media industry changes, at the point in which these events occurred, even if changes have occurred since the book was published in 2010. Within another 5 years, the book is likely to need some updates to digital age developments.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The language used is accessible for a first year student taking an Introduction to Mass Communication course. The theory, ethics and law chapters are broken down for a 1000-2000 level course. The case studies and critical thinking boxes are useful in helping to break down and apply a wealth of information in the text for students to conceptualize the importance of historical events and their social or cultural impacts.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The author is clear on defining media industries, digital convergence and common theories in mass communication.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Instructors can easily use the text as is, or piece together sections on history, digitization and media and society from several chapters, depending on the instructor’s preference.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text follows the standard logic for media introduction courses moving students through print, to audio, to film to broadcasting and to the digital age. The author wisely weaves in the impact of new media in each of these phases of evolution so the student does not have to wait until the end of the text to see the impacts of the changes of the industry, as they understand media to be today.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"While the interface is simple, all graphics and text boxes, as well as assignments are designed similarly throughout the text and easy to locate as an e-text for student work.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Sentences throughout the text are concisely written and the text appears thoroughly proofed.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"It was important for me to see examples of race, gender and global dimensions of the media represented as case studies, assignments and critical thinking in the book. From using The Birth of a Nation and its outcry from the NAACP in the film chapter to the rice of BET, or the understanding stereotyping of African Americans in TV, this book has relevant examples that relate to minority students or for a Historically Black University. I did however see no mention of the black press, or the work of alternative media in introduction narratives left out of the mainstream media. However, most introductory media textbooks, also leave this out. If this is an interest area for diverse students, unfortunately instructors are left to source that information themselves. But the most prominent case studies for diverse groups can be found in this text.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"It was surprising to discover such an open-textbook as the cost of Intro to Mass Communication textbooks are typically over $100 and students only use this textbook once. This is a valuable resource. I hope the author would consider updating in a few years for recent developments and important case studies such as the #BlackLivesMatter movement and President Donald Trump's election for an examination of media literacy.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1381,"first_name":"Suzi","last_name":"Steffen","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Linn-Benton Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is rather comprehensive, at least for the time it was published. It covers pretty much any topic one might want to cover in a Media and Society or introductory media and communications class, though for those interested in topic areas like journalism, advertising, and public relations, this textbook is much more about the history of those areas than how they are surviving and functioning today (and that's fine with me; I can update with information that's more recent). There is no index (at least in this form), and there is no glossary, but terms are well-defined within each chapter and within pull-out boxes as well. It would be incumbent upon the professor and students to keep some kind of glossary or wiki, which is not a bad idea for a media history/media and society class in any case.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Often in a textbook for media and society or media history, one can see the author's world view shining through - is capitalism too much for media? Should media creators take an \"unbiased\" view of the world? How is a medium influenced by the way it is funded? The book has a solid conversational tone and is authoritative on its history, but I might prefer a little more analysis of media ownership and consolidation. As for accuracy, yes, the facts seem quite accurate to the best of my knowledge, and the text is written (and edited) by someone with a journalist's view of language - it's useful, it's best done well, and occasionally it lends itself to some essayistic moments.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"I'm not sure there's a way to write a book like this that can keep it relevant past the month in which it was written, much less seven years later. Many of the examples the author uses to illustrate music, social media, books, newspapers (some of which don't exist anymore), magazines (ditto), etc., are simply no longer relevant. It *is* interesting to read about what the author thought was relevant at the time, and what the author thought would last, but this kind of book needs almost constant updating during this time of constant media churn and reinvention. I am giving it a 3, but really it's more like a 2.5 as any instructor would need constantly to find new examples that students will understand.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is accessible and lucid, absolutely. As with any history of a large discipline, the book contains a fair amount of jargon that is relevant to each portion of the subject matter covered, and the book is good about not only giving context and giving definitions but also setting aside boxed or special areas for examples that reinforce what it's talking about. The key takeaways at the end of each chapter, added to the exercises that are meant to help the students understand what's important in the dense historical detail and context of each chapter, are helpful as well.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This book is wonderfully consistent with terminology and the framework it employs to discuss media across a wide range of areas. From the beginning of each chapter, where an introduction lays out the plan of the chapter, to the end of each chapter - where a box of \"key takeaways\" explains what students should have learned - the book keeps a tone of very slightly amused detachment, mixed with earnest passion for certain topics, throughout, which is utterly consistent with how media people actually live their lives.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is definitely modular. It's written in a way that could easily be read in various chunks as the instructor or professor wishes to assign it. Blocks of text are broken up with images, a few charts, and a few stories that are boxed and that illustrate examples of topics within the chapters.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I think it's hard to know how to organize a media history/media and society textbook. Do you start with the printed word? But then, what about radio? Should radio come closer to magazines or closer to movies and TV? In that case, where do audiobooks and podcasts go? So, even as any instructor would grapple with these sorts of questions, the book is laid out in a way that made sense to the author - and that can be ripped apart and reassigned by each instructor. There's no need to read economics at the end of the course; perhaps, despite the fact that it's at the end of the book, it should come at the front end of the course  - and because it's modular enough for flexibility, that's not a problem.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I read the textbook on my desktop Kindle and on my phone. It's not super with the images or charts, and the boxed questions and exercises at the end are especially hard to take. This interface could use a little attention, at least in the Kindle applications area. It's not impossible; it just needs some work.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No errors that I saw, though a textbook without at least a few grammatical errors is a miracle.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"It's hard to say whether it's culturally insensitive or offensive because, well, I'm a white woman. I note that it talks about U.S. media's places (different for advertising, PR, newspapers, etc.) in the Civil Rights Movement and to a certain extent it discusses the ways that major media have been controlled or run by men, by white men, by straight white men. But I don't think the text addresses any of these things in the depth or with the clarity of thought that one would like to see in 2017. (Yes, it's a 2010 text.) In gaming, in Twitter discussions, in talking about newspapers or online media, the book is simply behind the times, and that makes it culturally problematic if not insensitive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I am reluctant to adopt this book with students who really need more recent examples to make sense of how things are going now, today, in 2017, though it's also relevant for them to learn the history of how we got here (if anyone can really understand that at this point). I'd love to use a newer edition if one comes out. I might use or adapt parts of it along with other readings for my media and society class in 2018, but I'll be cautious about that.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1640,"first_name":"Joel","last_name":"Gershon","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"American University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"\nThe book should be the perfect fit for my course Understanding Media, as it indeed covers all of the subject matter of the course. The problem is that it is not up to date and therefore detracts from the complete picture that each one of these topics delves into. For example, the music section poses the question: How do the various MP3 players differ? It refers to Spin as a magazine (it ceased its print operations in 2012). Or in the section on television, there is a question about the war between satellite and cable television. I think the winner of that is neither, as streaming a la carte is what people are talking about in 2017 as the direction TV is going in.\n\nThis criticism, of course, is obvious and easy. It's actually an exhaustive book that does contain a wealth of useful information, although no glossary or index – glaring omissions. Unfortunately, it suffers from not being up to 2017, when we are living in an up-to-the-second world. Especially in a field like media studies, it makes this book unusable in its entirety. The chapter ethics and economics aren't as badly out of date. \n","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"It is accurate for the time it was written in, but in today's world, much of this doesn't hold up. Just one example, there is the claim that Reader's Digest has the third highest circulation of all magazine, which is no longer the case in 2017. It is not in good shape. Even the references to \"President Obama,\" obviously show that it was written a different era with a very different landscape for the media world. Still, the great majority of it appears to be represented fairly, albeit in an outmoded way.  It's just that the trends and latest innovations in 2010 won't even make sense to a college freshman whose frame of reference likely came about three years after ","relevance_rating":2,"relevance_review":"Content is up-to-date, but not in a way that will quickly make the text obsolete within a short period of time. The text is written and/or arranged in such a way that necessary updates will be relatively easy and straightforward to implement.\n\nObviously, this is a major weak link of the textbook. I've already commented on this, but I think any time the textbook is referring to MySpace or Friendster in a way that suggests that they are viable social media sites, it makes itself into a caricature of an outdated guide.\n \n","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"No real problem here. The book is fully clear, well-written and to the point. The problem is that the point was made in 2010. That said, there is no glossary or index.\n","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"Again, this book is solid as a foundational textbook to get students the basic information regarding the history and meaningful cultural highlights of different forms of media. From radio to media and democracy, the lessons are thorough and contain useful and important information. It's just that some of this information is outdated.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The book is quite easy to read, the organization is fine and reads like any typical textbook. I will say that there have been advancements made, and that this book should be more interactive and multi-media if it wants to keep up with the Joneses.\n \n","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"\nIt's fine in this regard. The writing itself is great and it's broken up nicely. Very readable and I wish it was up to date because it's a solid textbook.\n","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"This is fine for 2010, but there is no interactivity or video or things to let us know that we are in 2017.It's basic and fine, but nothing stands out are particularly innovative.\n \n","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Written well. No issue here at all.\n","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"\nAgain, this is the fatal flaw of the book. It's just not going to be persuasive if it doesn't manage to maintain the sensibilities of someone in 2017. Between politics and technology there have been extreme shifts in the media in the past few years and a book like this would need to be updated monthly to stay relevant. It could work as a historical document to see how people thought in 2010, but not really as a relevant book today.\n \n","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1933,"first_name":"Kateryna","last_name":"Komarova","position":"Visiting Instructor","institution_name":"University of South Florida","comprehensiveness_rating":2,"comprehensiveness_review":"The title Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication suggests that we are looking at a comprehensive introductory text. In my opinion, this book is the most valuable to GE courses and entry level courses across Mass Communication disciplines, as it does excellent job in covering the fundamentals of mass communication. The textbook is heavy on history, which is a great thing. \n \n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I found the content to be accurate and, to my knowledge, error-free.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"In comparison with other introductory texts, the content is generally up-to date with current trends. \nYet, the distribution of attention towards various forms of media tends to be slightly disproportional. For instance, print magazines alone (essentially, one of many forms of print media that’s experiencing a stable continuous decline) receive as much attention as all forms of social media altogether.\n As a communications practitioner and an instructor, I was pleased to see information on the merge of paid media and social media (content partnerships and native advertising being the prime examples, albeit these particular terms were not used by the author). On the other hand, some aspects of current media landscape (such as the role of mobile apps, for instance) could be explored further.  ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written in simple, easy-to-understand language and would be appropriate to non-native speakers. ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"I find this text to be consistent in terms of terminology.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book is organized in rather non-trivial fashion, without a unified approach to chapter categorization. Yet, I found this approach refreshing. I loved that the author suggests specific learning outcomes for each section (example: \"Distinguish between mass communication and mass media\"), key takeaways, and practical exercises. The question bank provided as part of this textbook is a treasure box! It’s a great resource that allows me to have more fun in the classroom by asking interesting questions that wake up the students and generate some amazing answers. \nThe chapters are designed to be used selectively, in no particular order. Big plus. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The content is presented in chronological pattern: from past to future. Other than that, I did not trace much consistency in the material. For instance, Media and Culture is followed by Media Effects, after which the author switches to reviewing various forms of media (Radio, Magazines, Newspapers, etc.). The chapters to follow are Economics of Mass Media and Ethics of Mass Media. I find to be an advantage, as the subsections may be used selectively, and the order may be easily redesigned.  ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I read the textbook online via the Open Library portal http://open.lib.umn.edu/mediaandculture/chapter/1-2-intersection-of-american-media-and-culture/ . I found the navigation to be very easy. Good interface. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not spot any grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"I found the content USA-centric. For this reason, it may have limited application to global courses (such as Global Citizens Project courses offered at USF). The majority of case studies are drawn from the United States; much attention is paid to the history of mass media in the USA and current U.S. legislation safeguarding privacy. In today’s increasingly globalized culture and economy, a broader outlook on media and culture may be expected.\nMore international references would enhance the points made by the author. It is important for students to understand that major trends in mass communication, such as convergence of the media, are not unique to the United States. Similarly, increasing media literacy should be positioned as a global, rather than national, priority.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"It is a great introductory text that provides a current overview of various forms of media and highlights the role of mass communication in society. ","created_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2103,"first_name":"Craig","last_name":"Freeman","position":"Director","institution_name":"Oklahoma State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covers all of the topics you would expect in an inter/ survey course. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book does a good job of accurately surveying mass communications.  Good job sourcing information.","relevance_rating":2,"relevance_review":"The most recent citations are from 2010.  That's just too far in the past for a rapidly changing subject like mass communication.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is clear and easy to read.  Well written.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is internally consistent, with recurring sections.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book does a good job breaking the information down into smaller reading sections.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book follows the standard structure and flow for introductory texts in mass communication.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The interface is fine.  It's a big book.  Would appreciate active links to help skip chapters.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"I would appreciate a little more diversity in the examples used.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Really wish the authors would update this a bit.  It does a great job with the history.  Needs updating on the modern issues.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2108,"first_name":"Stacy","last_name":"Fitzpatrick","position":"Professor","institution_name":"North Hennepin Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The presentation of the historical context of media evolution in the US is clear and reasonably detailed, providing a good foundation for an introductory level course. As other reviewers have mentioned, this text was published in 2010 and is out of date in multiple areas, particularly with respect to media laws and regulation, social media, and newer developments of technology (e.g. preference for streaming television, technological and social advancements in gaming). Beyond needing updates to reflect newer advancements in media, this text would benefit from more attention to global media structures, including how they vary across political systems and how they impact how citizens use media to communicate. Additionally, an index and glossary would be helpful for navigation.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I am basing this on the fact that this was published in 2010. Considering the publication date, the factual content for that particular time frame is presented accurately, clearly cited, and reasonably unbiased. There is perhaps an unintended gender bias in the presentation of some content (e.g. Sister Rosetta Tharpe is absent in the music section, as is Nina Simone), though this could be a result of a broader, societal gender bias. Images, charts, and graphs are used well and clearly explained.","relevance_rating":2,"relevance_review":"The historical content is fine, but the text is almost 9 years out of date and there is a great deal of content that needs to be updated. Making the necessary updates may take some time since the content is tightly written and there are reflections of the date of publication throughout the examples used, images presented, and media discussed. Using this text in class would require the instructor to provide supplemental content on newer advancements in media.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This text is appropriate for a freshman/sophomore level course and reads well. Important terms are defined and each section includes an overview to set a context and clearly defined learning objectives.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The language, terminology, and organization of the text is consistent throughout. This makes moving between chapters easy since they follow a similar format.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"With a few exceptions (chapters 1 and 2), the text lends itself well to using different sections at different points. Where there are self-references, there is typically a hyperlink to the section referenced. This is useful for those reading the text online, but less useful if printed sections of text were used.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Chapters 1 and 2 clearly present a structure that the following chapters follow. The only chapter that seems to really break that flow is Chapter 16, but that is more a result of the text being so out of date than a significant change in structure.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I found the online reading format the easiest to navigate. The Word and PDF versions are somewhat more awkward to navigate without using a search keyboard function. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There were a couple minor typos, but no significant grammatical errors that might impact comprehension. The readability assessment (via MS Word) indicated a reading grade level of 13.1, which is consistent with lower division college coursework.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"There is a heavy focus on US media, which is acknowledged early on in the text. More integration of content related to global media would strengthen the text. There should be more examples that integrate multiple forms of diversity, such as gender, ability, age, sexuality, race, and ethnicity. Additionally, without an update, younger students may not understand some of the references. For example, younger students in 2018 don’t know Napster as a file-sharing site since it has rebranded to become a streaming site more similar to Spotify.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"It would be great to see an update in the content of this text for 2018 that also incorporates broader perspectives of multiple identities and global perspectives. As is, I would use sections of the text and supplement that content with more current examples and issues. Balancing the cost of textbooks in this field with the quality and recency of the content is an ongoing challenge.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2135,"first_name":"Stacie","last_name":"Mariette","position":"Mass Communication instructor","institution_name":"Anoka-Ramsey Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This OER is very comprehensive. I used it for an online course as a PDF textbook. While this discipline evolves faster than any other communication area I teach, this book remains solidly grounded in a wide variety of resources and foundational theories.  \n\n \n\nAs I use it more often, I find myself wanting to update it only for examples regarding the evolution in technology/platforms and the societal/cultural changes that result – not to change the historical content of what is already there.  \n\n ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I haven't come across any factual errors at all.  ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The examples in this book are often dated. This is my one very mild criticism of this text and only reflects the nature of the information. As we grow into new media and adapt as a society to those delivery methods, it's only natural. I actually use updating the examples in the textbook as an assignment for students. \n\n \n\nSome closer to up-to-date examples that I have added into my teaching of the course and to the materials are:  \n\n \n\n\"Fake news\" and social media's role in spreading it, especially in terms of Facebook and the last election \n\nData mining and algorithm practices  \n\n\"Listening\" devices and digital assistants, like Siri and Alexa  \n\nThe subculture of podcasts  \n\nBusiness models – both for artists and consumers – of streaming services across all media \n\n \n\nThe chapter on convergence is short and could be a text all on its own. Information relating to this topic is sprinkled throughout the book, but the concept itself is so important to analyze that I like to think about it on its own. This is an area I will beef up in future semesters for my own students. \n\n \n\nStreaming services and online journalism overall are two areas that I have noted to update and reference in nearly every chapter. \n\n ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The short segments and snippets of information are very helpful and clear for students. It's all very digestible and the vocabulary is at just the right level.  ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The discussion questions and further reading/information are placed in logical places in each chapter. And this consistency helps the reader understand their prompts and what to do next – and additionally the important topics to take away.  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I love how this text can be reordered very easily. Since it's so comprehensive, I actually omit a couple of the chapters (radio and magazines) to take the info at a slower pace and have never struggled with remixing other chapters.  \n\n \n\nIn fact, I plan to blend Chapters 11 and 16 (Social Media and New Technology) for my upcoming semesters and have no doubt the text and materials will allow for this.  ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I like how the chapters primarily focus on one medium at a time. From there, the structure of evolution, technological advancements, social/cultural implications and then a look at trends and emerging controversies helps to build to exciting and relevant discussions and for students to have the backdrop to bring their own insights. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is reliable and easy-to-use. I deliver it as a PDF within my online classroom software. I have never had issues with students downloading and reading on multiple devices – or even printing and referencing – based on their preferences.  ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"This book is very concise and grammatically crisp. It's clear that the authors of the version I am using valued precision in their language and it helps students to see this resource as high-quality!  ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Cultural and societal relevance are important in this discipline and it's purposely covered in each and every chapter. However, as I mentioned earlier, the examples are outdated in many cases. So I layer this into class discussions and supplement with further readings and assignments.  \n\n \n\nSome of the topics I add are: \n\nRepresentation in entertainment media, like TV and film, for example how the #MeToo movement gained ground based on the film industry \n\nWays that online gaming culture is permissive of the communication of –isms, like sexism and racism \n\nWays that social media and screen time are impacting attention spans, interpersonal relationships/communication and child development  \n\nHow citizen-sourced video and reporting differs from that of trained journalists and how important the differences are \n\n \n\nThe section on media effects is helpful and thorough. I always include a key assignment on this topic. It's also an area I plan to emphasize even more in the future – particularly the idea of tastemaking and gatekeeping. There are many crossovers to many examples that are more up-to-date than the version of the text I have been using. \n\n ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I love this book and it is on-par with many others I have reviewed for my Introduction to Mass Communication class.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2195,"first_name":"Randy (Rachel)","last_name":"Kovacs","position":"Adjunct Associate Professor","institution_name":"City University of New York","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I like the way that the author has broadened the scope of the book to incorporate so many aspects of culture, society, politics and economics that some people would be inclined to distinguish from the mass media, when in reality, all these aspects of contemporary life are intertwined with and influenced by media messages. It provides an historical retrospective but also shows how convergence and constantly-evolving technologies have driven the way consumers use the media and the way producers will use those technologies to rivet the attention (and influence the purchasing choices) of today’s consumers. The text incorporates the most salient areas of media’s evolution and influence.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The book appears to be objective and adopts a critical but non-partisan perspective. It presents data, including media laws and policies, accurately, and the cases it cites are well documented. The author provides sufficient references to support the facts he states and the conclusions he draws. Caveat--The media landscape and technologies are constantly evolving, so the book is accurate for its time of publication but needs to be updated to include new developments.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The way that the author integrates the historical perspective with current roles of social media in is a clear indication of its relevance. The dates may change, as may the celebrities, industrialists, spokespersons, and there may be geopolitical and cultural shifts, but the author’s explanation of theories/principles and the cases selected show how mass media power and influence are here to stay. The author advances the salient issues at each juncture and contextualizes so they we can relate them to current events. The book could be updated but is still has relevance/longevity.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is written in a language that is accessible to the layman/beginning student of mass media. The cases that are boxed, and key takeaways at the end of each chapter further distill what is already explicated. There are many concrete facts but a minimum of jargon and any terms used are adequately explained.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The framework and the terminology are consistent. There is also a consistent structure in terms of the visual layout and breakdown of each chapter’s sections, which makes the material far more accessible to students. It’s reassuring in a way, because students know where to go in each chapter for clarification of terms and restatement of the major media developments or areas of impact.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book’s content is broken down within chapters into (pardon the expression) digestible chunks. The way each subsection is organized makes sense. The major sections where media, developments, policies, etc., are first introduced are illustrated by boxed portions and then reiterated clearly at the end of the chapter with small, chunked takeaways and questions that challenge the students to ponder issues more deeply. The modules are distinguished by color, typset, size of font, etc. which is aesthetically appealing.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization makes sense and the topics segue smoothly from one area of media focus to another. Also, the way the book opens with an overview of mass media and cultural is a good starting point from which to document specific historical eras in the development of communication and to transition from one era of communication to another within a context of technology, politics, industry and other variables.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":": The text does not have any interface issues, as it is easy to navigate, all illustrations, charts, and other visuals are clear and distortion-free. All features of the book are legible and all display features are legible and functional.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book is grammatically accurate and error-free.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book represents a range of cultural groups in a sensitive and bias-free way. Its discussions of media with regard to both dominant cultures and various minority cultures is respectful, bias-free, and non-stereotypical. It is culturally relevant and inclusive.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"For many years, I have used a textbook that I have regarded as very high quality and comprehensive, but as it has become increasingly expensive and out of reach financially for many of my students, I find it hard to justify asking my struggling students to add another financial burden to them. Why should I when they can use this OER textbook? I am seriously considering using Understanding Media and Culture in future semesters and recommending it to my colleagues.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2267,"first_name":"Hayden","last_name":"Coombs","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Southern Utah University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Perhaps the best quality of this text, Understanding Media and Culture is a very comprehensive textbook. I have used this text in my Mass Media \u0026amp; Communication course for two years now. Each chapter focuses on a different type of medium, starting with the earliest books and working its way up to the latest technological advancements in mass media. Other beneficial topics include: Media \u0026amp; Culture, Media Effects, Economics of Mass Media, Media Ethics, Media and Government, and the Future of Mass Media. These topics provide a solid base for a 100 or 200-level introductory communication course. They also were written in a way that each chapter provided sufficient material for a week's worth of discussion.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This book was written in a very unbiased manner. It is completely factual, and not much room is left for subjective interpretation. The discussion questions allowed multiple themes and schools of thought to be explored by the students. Because this book is intended for an introductory course, the information is fairly basic and widely-accepted.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"My biggest issue with this title was that the latter chapters were not written with the same quality as the first ten or so chapters. However, that was the thought I had after the first semester I used this text. Since then, multiple updates have been written and the entire text is now written in the same high-quality throughout. Because this title is being constantly updated by its authors and publishers, the text is never obsolete.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Terminology is clearly defined, and students have little trouble finding definitions in the glossary. Because this text is written for an introductory course, there are not many intense or confusing concepts for students to understand.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"As previously mentioned, the biggest struggle I've had with this text is the fact that the latter third was not written to the same quality of the first ten chapters. However, this issue seems to have been remedied in the latest edition of this text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity was the biggest selling point for me with this text. Our semester runs 15 weeks, the same number of chapters in this text. I was able to easily focus our classroom discussions and assignments on the chapter theme each week. The text also provides plenty of material for two or three discussions.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"The text starts by introducing some basic concepts like culture and effects. From there, it focuses on ten different types of media (books, newspaper, radio, television, etc.). The concluding three chapters go back to concepts such ethics and the future of mass media. While not a major issue, there was a major difference in the tone of the two types of chapters.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"This text is available in .pdf, kindle, .epub, and .mobi formats, as well as in browser. While nothing fancy or groundbreaking in terms of usability, it is simple and all of my students were able to download the format that best suited their individual needs.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contained no grammatical errors that I noticed in the latest edition, a tremendous improvement from the first semester I used this text.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not find the content to be culturally insensitive or offensive in any way. It used a variety of examples from the world's history, but I found none of them to be inherently offensive. The subject matter and the fact that this is an introductory text probably assist with the cultural relevance because it is easy to understand, but the themes rarely get into \"deep\" discussion.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is a fantastic text. Comparing it to other texts for my COMM 2200 Mass Media \u0026amp; Society text, this textbook was not only easier for my students to understand, but it was written and compiled in a way that made teaching the material enjoyable and easy. I have recommended this book to the other instructors of this course because it allows our students to save money without sacrificing anything in terms of content or learning.","created_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2298,"first_name":"Heather","last_name":"Lubay","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Overall the book is comprehensive, covering everything from books to radio to electronic media \u0026amp; social media. Each topic has a descent amount of information on both the history and evolution, as well as where we are today (though, as tends to be the nature of the industry, the “today” piece gets outdated quickly.  However, the text covers the topics that most other texts of this subject cover as well. I would have liked to have seen just a bit more depth and analysis, instead of the broad, surface-level coverage.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The text is fairly accurate, though, with the rapid rate of change, it’s difficult to be accurate shortly after publication. Using sites such as MySpace as an example, or only looking at movies put out through about 2007, impacts the accuracy as society has changed and moved on. Students in 2018 are given more of a historical perspective from when they were kids more so than having a representation of what media means in today’s world.","relevance_rating":2,"relevance_review":"This is a hard one because the historical information stands the test of time, but many of the examples fall short for today’s students. The Social Media chapter still references MySpace and Friendster as current platforms and only goes as far as FaceBook \u0026amp; Twitter. The author makes it a point to clarify when the book what published, which helps, but, again, it’ll be hard for a current student to see past that when they’ve grown up with the platform being discussed as “new” and have moved on.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is fairly fast-paced and easy enough to follow for lower level or beginner students. Examples are easy to follow and the key takeaway boxes and exercises help further basic understanding.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The chapters are fairly consistent, covering the basic history, evolution, and influence/impact.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text can easily be used as formatted, or broken up into sections and moved around.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization is fairly straightforward. Earlier forms of mass communication are covered first, moving on to newer forms. Once students have a basic understanding of each form, they can then move on to topics like ethics, government, and economics, which need that basic understanding to fully grasp the larger concepts.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The book is easy to navigate with had no issues viewing the photos or charts.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book is well written and free of any gratuitous errors.","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"The book does a good job of focusing on US media and society. It uses pretty typical examples, though it could incorporate more relevant examples to today’s students. Some case studies reference minority groups, but it would have been nice to see even more examples featuring minority groups. Also, Using YouTube as a “new” viewing outlet and discussing “The war between satellite and cable television” and DirectTV versus Dish makes the cultural relevance more towards older generations than younger ones.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Overall the book does a great job with the history of mass communication and society. It would work for any lower level course. However, the examples are fairly out of date and the instructor would have to present more recent and relevant examples in class.","created_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2426,"first_name":"Hsin-Yen","last_name":"Yang","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Fort Hays State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Understanding Media and Culture: an Introduction to Mass Communication covers all the important topics in mass communication and media history. It also provides case studies, Key Takeaways, Exercises, End-of-Chapter Assessment, Critical Thinking Questions, and Career Connections in every chapter. Although this book does not provide a glossary, the comprehensiveness of the book still makes it a great textbook choice.  ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"While the information was accurate and the discussions on key issues were supported by good references, it was odd to see the questionable formatting and quality of the first reference on page 3: Barnum, P. T.” Answers.com, http://www.answers.com/topic/p-t-barnum. --\u003e First of all, Answers.com is not considered as a credible source by many scholars and the other half of the quotation marks was missing. ","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The major weakness of this book is the fact that many of the references were outdated. For example, on page 479, the statistics in the section, \"Information Access Like Never Before,\" the cited reports were from 2002 and 2004. When discussing topics such as Net Neutrality, digital service providers, new policies and technologies, the urgency for updated information becomes evident.  However, as the author correctly pointed out: \"Although different forms of mass media rise and fall in popularity, it is worth noting\r\nthat despite significant cultural and technological changes, none of the media discussed throughout this text has\r\nfallen out of use completely.\"","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing in this book is very clear and easy to understand. The colored images, figures and tables should be very helpful in terms of student comprehension and engagement.  ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The framework and terminology are consistent throughout the book.   ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Each chapter can be assigned to students as a stand-along reading, and can be used to realign with other subunits should an instructor decide to compile reading within this book or from different sources. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Each chapter follows similar flow/ format: the history, evolution, economics, case studies and social impact of a mass medium, followed by  Key Takeaways, Exercises, End-of-Chapter Assessment, Critical Thinking Questions, Career Connections and References. It was easy to navigate the topics and sections in this book. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I downloaded the book as a PDF and had no problem to search or navigate within the file. The book can also be viewed online or in a Kindle reader.  ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"I spotted a few minor formatting or punctuation issues such as the missing quotation marks stated earlier, but no glaring errors as far as I know. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"While it mainly focuses on American media and culture, this book contains statistics and cases from many countries (e.g. Figure 11.7), provides many critical thinking exercises and is sensitive towards diverse cultures and backgrounds.  ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this is a high-quality textbook and it contains almost all the key issues in today's media studies in spite of the somewhat outdated data and statistics. The strengths of this book are: Excellent historical examples, critical analysis and reflections, clearly defined key issues and in-depth discussions. Even when using the most recent edition of textbooks, I always research for updates and recent cases. This open resource textbook makes an outstanding alternative to those high-priced textbooks.  ","created_at":"2018-11-29T22:35:57.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-11-29T22:35:57.000-06:00"},{"id":2642,"first_name":"Bill","last_name":"Bettler","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Hanover College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is comprehensive on several levels. Theoretically, this text echoes the framework employed by Pavlik and McIntosh, which displays sensitivity to convergence. However, this text understands convergence on multiple levels, not just the three employed by P and M. This text is well-researched, with ample citations on a whole host of media topics. Each chapter has multiple ways that it tests the reader, with \"Key Takeaways,\" \"Learning Objectives,\" etc. And finally, the text features chapters on the history and development of key historical media, as well as key emerging media.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Some students find Pavlik and McIntosh a bit too transparent in their Marxist assumptions. While this text certainly introduces Marx-based theories about media, it seems to do a better job of contextualizing them among several other competing perspectives.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Some of the popular culture texts felt a bit dated--for example, opening the \"Music\" chapter (Chapter 6) with an extended case study about Colbie Caillat. Unfortunately, this is the nature of mass media studies--as soon as books come into print, they are out of date. But I have a hard time imagining my mass communication students being inspired and engaged by a Colbie Caillat case study. I'm not sure what the alternative is; but it seemed worth mentioning. Other examples are much more effective and successful. The historical examples from different types of media are well-chosen, thoroughly explained, and insightful. Also, this text discusses emerging media more successfully than any other texts I have used.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The style of this text is straightforward and scholarly. It seems to strike an effective balance between accessibility and specialized language. For example, key concepts such as \"gatekeeper\" and \"agenda setting theory\" are introduced early and applied in several places throughout the text.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Like Pavlik and McIntosh, this text uses the concept of \"convergence\" to explain several key phenomena in mass communication. Unlike P and M, this text understands \"convergence\" on more than three levels. Like P and M, this concept becomes the \"glue\" that holds the various topics and levels of analysis together. As mentioned before, this text is especially effective in that it introduces foundational concepts early on and applies them consistently across succeeding chapters.\r\n","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"On one hand, this text rates highly in \"modularity,\" because I could imagine myself breaking its chapters apart and re-arranging them in a different order than they are presented here. This is in no way meant as a criticism. I routinely have to assign chapters in more conventional texts in a different order. The fact that the technology involved in delivering this text makes it easier to re-arrange is one of its best selling points. The reason I scored this as a \"4\" is because some of the chapters are quite dense, in terms of volume (not in terms of difficulty). Therefore, I could see students perhaps losing focus to some degree. I might combat this by making further breakdowns and re-arrangements within chapters. This is not a fatal flaw--but it does seem like a practical challenge of using this text.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"As mentioned above, some of the chapters are quite dense, in terms of volume. Chapter One is such a chapter, for example. I could easily see Chapter One comprising two or three chapters in another textbook. Consequently, there is a likelihood that students would need some guidance as they read such a dense chapter; and they would likely benefit from cutting the chapter down into smaller, more easily digestible samples. On the other hand, the Key Takeaways, and Learning Objectives, will counteract this tendency for students to be overwhelmed or confused. They are quite helpful, as are the summarizing sections at the ends of each chapter.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not encounter any problems with interface. In fact, the illustrations, figures, charts, photographs, etc. are a real strength of this text. They are better than any other text I have seen at creating \"symbolic worlds\" from different forms of media.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The writing style is professional and free of errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This is a genuine concern for mass media texts. Media content is a direct reflection of culture, and today's culture is characterized by a high level of divisiveness. I did not detect any examples or samples that were outwardly offensive or especially controversial. But, perhaps, there is a slight bias toward \"the status quo\" in the case studies and examples--meaning that many (but certainly not all) of them seem to be \"Anglo,\" Caucasian artists. Looking at the \"Music\" chapter, for example, some popular culture critics (and students) might lament that Taylor Swift is an exemplar. While this choice is undeniable in terms of the popularity of her recordings and concerts, some might hope for examples that represent stylistic originality, genre-transcending, and progressive ideas (Bruno Mars, Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, etc.).","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I have been using the same text for seven years (Pavlik and McIntosh). I have decided to adopt Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication. It is simply more thorough in its sweep of history and contextualization of culture, more multi-layered in its theoretical perspectives, and more rich in its examples and insights. This books is recommendable not just as an open source text, but as it compares to any conventional text. Students will benefit greatly from reading this text.","created_at":"2019-03-08T19:57:41.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-03-08T19:57:41.000-06:00"},{"id":3207,"first_name":"Emily","last_name":"Werschay","position":"Communication Studies Instructor","institution_name":"Minnesota State University System","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Overall, this textbook is quite comprehensive in covering various channels of media, particularly from a historical perspective, and would work well for an introductory course. It features the same focused areas of content that are in my current publisher textbook and incorporates elements of culture as well. It does not provide a glossary or index, which would be helpful, but key terms are in bold.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text contains accurate research with clearly-cited references that give credibility to the content.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The historical content is well-crafted. The text provides a clear and informative introduction to the history of media and does well with the rise of newspapers, television, and movies. You will not, however, find a reference more recent than 2010, which means any advancements in media and technology in the past decade are not covered. An instructor using this text would have to supplement content on current types of media such as streaming television and music services and the current debate of social media shifting toward news publishing in terms of content delivery. While the text includes culture and political climate of the past, much would need to be supplemented for the last ten years.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is professional and well-written. It is well-suited to a college reading level.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The chapter format, writing style, and overall presentation of information are consistent throughout the text. I appreciate the defined learning outcomes and key takeaways pulled out in each chapter.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is divided into clear chapters focusing on one medium at a time, much like other publisher texts for mass communication. For example, books, newspapers, magazines, music, radio, movies, and television each get their own chapter. Each chapter begins with clearly defined learning outcomes, and features key takeaways, exercises, assessments, and critical thinking questions at the end, as well as a section on career connections.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics are presented in chronological order from the history of mass communication, through the various mediums, and finally to the future of mass communication (though most will find the content particularly about recent and current trends will need to be supplemented as it is outdated).","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I didn't find any problems with the interface as it is a standard text that can be viewed as a PDF, but an index would really help navigation. I will say that it's not particularly user-friendly, so I may try integrating the online format chapter-by-chapter into D2L so that I can break it up by modules and add links to make it more interactive with supplemental resources.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Professional, well-written text with no errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I don't believe readers will find any of the text culturally insensitive or offensive. The text is focused on U.S. media, however, so some supplemental content may be needed.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This textbook is very comprehensive and will work well for an introductory course. It covers the same focus areas as my publisher text, so I feel comfortable switching to this textbook for my Introduction to Mass Communication course with the awareness that it does not cover the past decade. I will need to provide supplemental information to update examples and cover current topics, but that is generally accepted in this particular field as it is continually changing with advancements in technology.","created_at":"2019-10-22T20:36:03.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-10-22T20:36:03.000-05:00"},{"id":4231,"first_name":"Elizabeth","last_name":"Johnson-Young","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"University of Mary Washington","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"Comprehensive text regarding mass communication, culture, and effects. The historical perspectives are helpful for understanding, particularly as it goes on to focus in on convergence throughout the text. A more complete glossary or index would be helpful for terms for an introduction text, but key terms are highlighted and defined throughout. Extra examples would help throughout, particularly with theories and research methods.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Accurate, up to date information on history, concepts, and theories.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The information focuses on important historical moments, theories, cultural impacts, and moves to the present with ideas and examples that will likely remain relevant for quite some time.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clear, easy to read text that would benefit introductory students of mass comm.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Introduces terms and concepts and then utilizes them throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The separation of the larger text into smaller sections is incredibly helpful and makes reading and assignments of readings easy, leading also to the ability to separate into sections that would be appropriate for any course organization.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Organization is logical and easy to follow. Importantly, because of the modularity, it would also be easy to re-organize for one's course.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Navigation works, images clear and detailed.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No glaring grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The examples and images demonstrate diversity in race and also provides examples outside of the United States, which is important. There is some diversity in terms of gender and sexual diversity, more of which would be beneficial and various sections would be appropriate for that inclusion.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is an excellent and comprehensive text for intro students that includes important historical moments and thorough coverage of main concepts and theories in the field, with a diverse set of moments and examples.","created_at":"2020-07-06T10:12:58.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-07-06T10:12:58.000-05:00"},{"id":4726,"first_name":"Dong","last_name":"Han","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Southern Illinois University Carbondale","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"It covers all important areas and topics regarding media, culture, and society.  Different media forms and technologies from printing media to social media all have their own chapters, and academic inquiries like media effects, media economics, and media and government also receive due attention.  This textbook will meet the expectation of students of all backgrounds while introducing them to theoretical concerns of the research community.  Its chapter layout is properly balanced between comprehensiveness and clarity.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Its content is accurate and unbiased.  The textbook is written with ample research support to ensure accuracy and credibility.  References at the end of each chapter allow readers to track sources of information and to locate further readings.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"It is up-to-date in that the major cultural and media issues it identifies remain highly relevant in today’s world.  However, since it was first produced in 2010, some more recent occurrences are not part of the discussion.  This is not meant to be a criticism but a reminder that an instructor may want to supplement with more recent materials.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"It is written with clear, straight-forward language well-suited an introductory textbook.  The chapter layout, as mentioned earlier, is easy to access.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent in terms of terminologies and its historical approach to media growth and transformation.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Each chapter is divided in sections, and sections in turn have various reading modules with different themes.  For undergraduates taking an introductory course, this textbook will work well.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics are presented in an easy-to-access fashion.  The textbook starts with a general overview of media and culture and a persistent scholarly concern with the media: media effects.  Then it moves through different media in alignment with the chronological order of their appearance in history.  The last few chapters focus on important but non-technology-specific topics including advertising and media regulations.  For an introductory textbook, it is very accessible to the general student body.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The textbook does not have significant interface issues. Images, charts, and figures all fit well with the text.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The textbook has a number of examples of minority cultures and ethnicities.  It does not, however, have ample discussions on media and culture phenomena outside of the US, except those that have had significant impact on American culture (e.g., Beatlemania).","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"All considered, this is a very good textbook to be used in an introductory course.   It is comprehensive, easy-to-read, and can help prepare students for future in-depth discussions on media, culture, and society.","created_at":"2021-03-30T20:11:44.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-03-30T20:11:44.000-05:00"},{"id":4884,"first_name":"Brandon","last_name":"Galm","position":"Instructor in English/Speech","institution_name":"Cloud County Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"One of the strong suits of this particular resource is its comprehensiveness, with topics ranging from specific mass comm mediums to the intersections/impacts of media on culture, politics, and ethics. There's enough here to easily cover a full semester's worth of material and then some.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is well-sourced throughout with a list of references at the end of each chapter. The hyperlinks on the references page all seem functional still. Hyperlinks within the chapters themselves--either sending the reader to the reference list or to the articles themselves--would be helpful.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"As of this review writing, some of the content is relatively up-to-date. However, with a quickly changing landscape in mass communications and media, certain chapters are becoming out-of-date more quickly than others. The information discussed is more current than most of the information cited. The structure of the book lends itself to easy updating as technologies and culture shift, but whether or not those updates will take place seems unclear with the most recent edition being 5 years old at this point.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"All information is presented in a way that is very clear with explanations and examples when further clarification is needed.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"For a book covering as many different topics as it does, the overall structure and framework of this textbook is great. Chapter formats stay consistent with clearly stated Objectives at the start and Key Takeaways at the end. Visual examples are provided throughout, and each chapter also includes various questions for students to respond to.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Chapters are broken down into smaller sub-chapters, each with their own sub-headings hyperlinked in the Table of Contents. Each sub-chapter also includes the above-mentioned Objects, Key Takeaways, and questions for students. Chapters and/or sub-chapters could easily be assigned in an order that fits any syllabus schedule and are in no way required to be read in order from Chapter 1 to Chapter 16.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I would like to have seen the book laid out a bit differently, but this is a minor concern because of the overall flexibility of assigning the chapters. The book starts with broad discussions about media and culture, then shifts into specific forms of media (books, games, tv, etc.), then returns to more broad implications of media and culture. Personally, I'd like to see all of those chapters grouped together--with all of the media and culture chapters in one section, and all of the specific forms chapters in another. Again, this is a minor issue because of the overall flexibility of the book.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"As mentioned above, hyperlinks--including in the Table of Contents and references--are all functional. I would have liked to have hyperlinks for the references in the text itself, either as a part of the citation or with a hyperlinked superscript number, rather than just in the references page. All images are easily readable and the text itself is easy to read overall.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors that immediately jumped out. Overall seems clear and well-written.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text provides lots of examples, though most do come from US media. The sections dealing with the intersections between media and culture are similarly US-centric.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, a solid introductory textbook that covers a wide range of topics relevant to mass communications, media, and culture. The text is bordering on out-of-date at this point, but could easily be updated on a chapter-by-chapter basis should the publisher/author wish to do so.","created_at":"2021-05-04T15:00:33.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-05-04T15:00:33.000-05:00"},{"id":33343,"first_name":"Adria","last_name":"Goldman","position":"Assistant Professor of Communication","institution_name":"University of Mary Washington","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text nicely breaks down different forms of mass communication. The text provides some historical background and discussion of theory to provide context for discussing mass media, which is all useful in helping students understand media and communication. There is not much discussion about the cultural significance of media. If using the text in a course, supplemental readings on the significance of culture and diversity, the importance of media representation, and media influence on an individual level (ex: impact on identity), would be especially helpful for a course exploring media and culture. The text does not feature a glossary or index, however the bolding of key concepts throughout the text is helpful in defining key terms.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The content is error-free. More discussion on culture would provide a more accurate account of mass communication and its significance.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The subject is very relevant and the book features topics important for a discussion on mass communication. As mentioned in other parts of this review, there is not much diversity featured throughout the text, which can impact the relevancy of the material to audiences and impacts the relevancy of the content in discussions on mass media and society. Updates would be straightforward to implement.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is clear and easy to follow.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent in its use of terms and its framework. Since the book title mentions a focus on culture, an interesting add-on would be to have each section (on a specific type of mass communication) feature a discussion of culture and its significance.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text's modularity is useful. It looks like it would be easy for students to follow and for instructors to re-structure in order to fit their course design.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The information follows a logical order, beginning with a discussion on the significance of mass communication and then going into each type.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No issues with interface noted.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"No glaring grammatical issues noted.","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"There is not much focus on the significance of culture.  More discussion on the role of race, class, sex, gender, religion and other elements of identity would be helpful in exploring mass communication--past, present, and potential for the future. The text could also use an update in images and examples to include diverse representation and to further communicate the role of culture, diversity, and representation in communication and mass media.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"The book provides an understanding of mass communication that would be easy for undergraduate college students to follow. The optional activities would also spark interesting discussion and give students the opportunity to apply concepts. Students using the text would benefit from (1) more discussion on culture's significance in media and communication and (2) more diversity in the images and examples used.","created_at":"2021-07-11T20:23:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-07-11T20:23:00.000-05:00"},{"id":33484,"first_name":"Lisa","last_name":"Bradshaw","position":"Affiliate Faculty","institution_name":"Metropolitan State University of Denver","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook, downloaded as a 695-page PDF, contains 16 chapters and covers a variety of media formats, how they evolved, and how they are created and used, as well as issues related to media impact on society and culture. It is quite comprehensive in its coverage of media for the time of its writing (copyright year 2016, “adapted from a work originally produced in 2010”).","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Content seems accurate for its time, but as technology and media have evolved, it omits current references and examples that did not exist when it was written. There does not seem to be bias and a wide variety of cultural references are used.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"As mentioned previously, this textbook’s copyright year was 2016, and it was adapted from a 2010 work. It’s not clear how much of the content was updated between 2010 and 2016, but based on the dates in citations and references, the last update appears to have been in 2011. Even if it had been updated for the year 2016, much of the information is still out-of-date. \r\n\r\nThere is really no way to write a textbook about media that would not be at least partially out of date in a short time. This text’s background and history of the evolution of the various media forms it covers is still accurate, but there is much about the media landscape that has changed since 2010–2016.\r\n\r\nDue to the textbook’s age, references to media platforms and formats such as MySpace, Napster, and CDs seem outdated for today’s media market. The textbook refers to previous political figures, and its omission of more recent ones (who were not on the political landscape at the time of writing) makes it seem out-of-date. To adapt it for modern times, these references need to be updated with fresh examples.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The writing level is relatively high. A spot check of the readability level of several passages of text returned scores of difficult to read, and reading level 11-12 grade to college level. The author does a good job of explaining technical terminology and how different media work. If adapting the text for students with a lower level of reading, some of the terminology might need to be revised or explained more thoroughly.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent in its chapter structure and writing style. The order of topics makes sense in that chapters are mostly structured by media type, with beginning and end sections to introduce each respective media type in general, and conclude with a look to the future.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"If adapting and keeping the same structure (intro to media in general, coverage of different media types in their own chapters, and main issues related to media), this 695-page textbook could be condensed by eliminating some of the detail in each chapter. There are a number of self-referential sentences that might need to be removed. If adapting the text to a more specific subject, the instructor would need to go through the text and pick out specific points relevant to that subject.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Each chapter introduces the respective media type and concludes with a summary that reflects on the future of that type and how it might evolve further. The chapters overall follow the same structure for consistency: overview, history, the media in popular culture, current trends, and potential influence of new technologies, with end-of-chapter Key Takeaways, Exercises, Assessment, Critical Thinking Questions, Career Connection, and References.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is well written and logically structured and sequenced. Despite its length, it’s easy to find information, as it’s ordered by chapters that address each media type and major issues related to media, and each chapter has a parallel structure with the others, all following mostly the same pattern.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice grammatical errors. The text is clearly and accurately written, and appears to have been thoroughly copyedited and proofread.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not notice cultural insensitivity in the text. A wide variety of cultural references are used. Examples from around the world and from many different cultures are included, including discussions of digital divide and inequity issues related to media access in disadvantaged populations.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2021-11-26T12:38:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2021-11-26T12:38:00.000-06:00"},{"id":33760,"first_name":"Kevin","last_name":"Curran","position":"Clinical Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Loyola Marymount University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is one of the most comprehensive media studies books I’ve read.  It attacks each media platform separately and with sufficient depth.  That is followed by economics, ethics, government/law, and future predictions. \r\n\r\nTakeaways attend of each section will aid comprehension.  Exercises at end of sections could be jumping off point for discussions or assignments.  Chapters end with review and critical thinking connections plus career guidance. \r\n\r\nThe Chapter 2 rundown on both sides of media theories and summary of research methods was well-done. \r\n\r\nEverything about this tome is good, except for its dating.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book is well-researched and provides valuable, although often dated, information.  The author used a variety of sources, effective illustrations, and applicable examples to support the points in the book.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"It can be very hard to keep up with constant changes in the mass media industry.  This book was reissued in 2016, but it has not been revised since the original copyright in 2010.  The dated references start on page 2 when it speaks of Ringling Brothers and Barnum \u0026 Bailey as existing, when that circus ceased in 2017. The medium-by-medium exploration is well done, although the passage of time affects the end of each chapter.\r\n\r\nAdoption of the book as-is will mean developing an update lesson for each chapter.  For example, while smartphones are mentioned, they had not achieved saturation status at the time this volume was published.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The points are presented clearly.  References with hyperlinks are available at the end of each section for those who still have questions or want more information.  However, it is possible that because of the age of the book, some of those links may no longer be available.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The media chapters each follow a similar pattern in writing and order.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This will break up easily.  The first chapter gives a good taste of what is to come.  The book provides a comprehensive look at the history and influence of each medium individually.  The last group of chapters necessarily contains many flashbacks to the medium sections.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"It follows a logical pattern from the introduction to the individual medium chapters to the “big picture” chapters.  That does require signposting between the two sets of chapters that some might find frustrating.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"The book is a standard PDF with links.  The scan could have been better, as there is a lot of white space and illustrations are inconsistently sized.   Users hoping for lots of interactivity are going to be disappointed.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book is well edited.  It is hard to find errors in writing mechanics.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The authors took a broad view of the mass media world.  The music chapter was very well done.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2022-03-21T15:03:05.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-03-21T15:03:05.000-05:00"},{"id":33795,"first_name":"David","last_name":"Baird","position":"Professor of Communication","institution_name":"Anderson University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I don’t know if any intro textbook can cover “all areas and ideas,” but this text was adequate to the task—basically on par with any other textbook in this space. I didn’t see a glossary in the chapters or an index at the back of the book. On the other hand, the text is searchable, so the lack of an index is not a major problem as far as I’m concerned.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"When the text was published, it would have been considered “accurate.” The content was competently conceptualized, well written and reflective of the standard approach to this kind of material. I didn’t notice any egregious errors of content aside from the fact that the book was published some years ago is no longer very current.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The primary weakness of the book is that it was published more than a decade ago and hasn’t been updated for a while. The text is relevant to the focus of the course itself, but the examples and illustrations are dated. For example, the book uses a graphic from the presidential election of 2008 in a treatment of politics, and “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?” is an example of current television programming. \r\n\r\nI conducted a text search that tabulated the number of references to the following years, and these were the results:\r\n \r\n2010: 588\r\n2011: 49\r\n2012: 8\r\n2013: 4\r\n2014: 0\r\n2015: 2\r\n2016: 0\r\n2017: 0\r\n2018: 1\r\n2019: 1\r\n2020: 0\r\n2021: 1\r\n2022: 1\r\n\r\nThe references to the more-recent years tended to crop up in forward-looking statements such as this one: “With e-book sales expected to triple by 2015, it’s hard to say what such a quickly growing industry will look like in the future.”\r\n\r\nThe second part of the question referred to the implementation of updates. I doubt that any updates are planned.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is well written and meets the usual standards for editorial quality.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The framework and \"voice\" are internally consistent.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The chapter structure provides the most obvious division of the text into accessible units. Each chapter also has well-defined subsections. Here’s an example from one chapter, with page numbers removed:\r\n\r\nChapter 13: Economics of Mass Media\r\n\r\nEconomics of Mass Media\r\nCharacteristics of Media Industries\r\nThe Internet’s Effects on Media Economies\r\nDigital Divide in a Global Economy\r\nInformation Economy\r\nGlobalization of Media\r\nCultural Imperialism","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"This aspect of the text makes sense and is largely consistent with similar textbooks in this area.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is available in these formats: online, ebook, ODF, PDF and XML. I downloaded the PDF for purposes of my review. The formatting was clean and easy to work with. I didn’t notice any problems that made access challenging.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I can’t say with certainty that a grammatical error or typo can’t be found in the textbook, but as I noted above, the writing is strong. I’ve seen much worse.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text seems to be around a dozen years old now, so it doesn’t include discussion of some of the high-profile perspectives that have surfaced in more recent years related to race, ethnicity, sexuality, etc. However, the book does discuss examples of media issues “inclusive of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds,” and this material is presented with sensitivity and respect.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is a reasonably good resource for basic, intro-level definitions and explanations of some of the major concepts, issues and theories in the “Mass Communication” or “Media and Society” course, including:\r\n\r\n•\tfunctions of the media\r\n•\tgatekeeping\r\n•\tmedia literacy\r\n•\tmedia effects\r\n•\tpropaganda\r\n•\tagenda setting\r\n•\tuses and gratifications\r\n\r\nThe textbook also offers the standard chapters on the various media—books, newspapers, magazines, radio, television, etc. These chapters contextualize the various media with standard accounts of their historical development. My feeling is that much of the historical background presented in this book is more or less interchangeable with the material in newer textbooks.\r\n\r\nHowever, the media industries have changed dramatically since the textbook was written, so all of the last decade’s innovations, developments and controversies are entirely missing. Of course, even a “new” textbook is going to be somewhat dated upon publication because of the book’s production timeline and the way that things change so quickly in the media industries—but a book published in 2021 or 2022 would be far more up-to-date than the book under review here.\r\n\r\nThe bottom line for me is that if one of an instructor’s highest priorities is to provide a free or low-cost textbook for students, this book could work with respect to the historical material—but it would have to be supplemented with carefully selected material from other sources such as trade publications, industry blogs and news organizations.","created_at":"2022-04-18T17:35:38.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-04-18T17:35:38.000-05:00"},{"id":33942,"first_name":"Elizabeth","last_name":"Johnson-Young","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"University of Mary Washington","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Appropriately comprehensive. Having some more up-to-date citations, particularly in the media effects theories criticisms section (with some more explanations) would be beneficial--perhaps supplementing with some ways these have been updated would help a class.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Overall, content is clear and accurate.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Mass media may always need updating, but this is appropriate and up-to-date.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Is an accessible text in terms of clarity and provides necessary definitions throughout in order to provide the reader with an understanding of the terminologies.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Text introduces terms and frameworks and uses them consistently throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Small, easy to read blocks of text--could easily be used in a variety of courses and be reorganized for a particular course.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Topics presented clearly and in an order that makes sense.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Easy to read through and images clear and displaying readily. It would help if there was a way to move forward without having to click on the table of contents, particularly in the online format.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No errors that stick out.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"While appropriately comprehensive for an intro text, more examples and/or acknowledgment of who has been left out and those impacts could be helpful  in the social values or culture discussions.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this is a great text and one that could be used in full for a course or in sections to supplement other communication/media studies courses!","created_at":"2022-07-01T06:23:18.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-07-01T06:23:18.000-05:00"},{"id":34154,"first_name":"David","last_name":"Fontenot","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Metropolitan State University of Denver","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text comprehensively covers forms of media used for mass communication and includes issues towards emerging forms of mass communication.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"In some places there is nuance missing, where I feel brief elaboration would yield significantly clearer comprehension without bias or misleading associations about media's influence on behavior.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Still relevant and up-to-date with a valuable emphasis on issues related to internet mass media.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Very readable, with little jargon.  Definitions are presented clearly and used in subsequent discussions.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Internal consistency is strong within the chapters.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The majority of chapters can be taken independently, with only a few larger structural pieces that lay the foundation for other sections.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book takes an historical approach to media, which lends itself to a logical progression of topics.  I might suggest, however, that for most students the material that is most accessible to their daily lives comes last with such an approach.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The downloaded file has some very awkward spots where images seem clipped or on separate pages than the content that reference them.  I only viewed this textbook in the online downloaded PDF format.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors have jumped out at me in sections read so far.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"There are quite a few opportunities to include discissions of media and culture that don't seem so anglo-centric but they are passed up.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I am using this textbook as the basis for an interdisciplinary class on media and the criminal justice system, and in that regard I think it will serve very well for an introductory level textbook.  It provides a concrete set of core ideas that I can build off of by creating tailored content to my students' needs.","created_at":"2022-11-15T14:07:46.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-11-15T14:07:46.000-06:00"},{"id":34294,"first_name":"Ryan","last_name":"Stoldt","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Drake University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication thoughtfully walks readers through popular media and connects these media to questions about culture as a way of life. The book undoubtedly is comprehensive in its scope of American media but largely fails to consider how media and culture relate in more global settings. The book occasionally references conversations about global media, such as the differences between globalization and cultural imperialism approaches, but is limited in its engagement. As media have become more transnational their reach and scope (due to technological access, business models, and more), the American focus makes the text feel limited in its ability to explain the relationship between media and culture more broadly.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text is accurate although it has limited engagement in some of the topics it explores. As such, this would be a good introductory text but would need to be paired with additional resources to dive into many topics in the book with both accuracy and nuance.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Many of the sections of the book are relevant, as the book often contextualizes media through a historical lens. However, the more current sections of the book (such as the section on the Internet and social media) have become outdated quickly. These, once again, would be useful starting places for classroom conversation about the topic but would need to be paired with more current readings to hold a deeper conversation about social media and society today.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Some terms could be further explained, but the text is overall well written and easy to understand.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book pulls from multiple approaches to researching and discussing media and culture. The introductory chapter draws more heavily from critical media studies in its conceptualizations of the relationship between media and culture. The media effects chapters draw more heavily from more social scientific approaches to studying media. The author does a nice job weaving these approaches into a consistent conversation about media, but different approaches to studying media could be more forwardly discussed within the text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The author has made the text extremely easy to use modularly. Chapters are self-contained, and readers could easily select sections of the book to read without losing clarity.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book employs consistent organization across the subjects discussed. Each chapter follows a similar organizational structure as well.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Because the text is so modular, the text does not flow easily when read on the publisher's website. Yet, downloading the text also raises some issues because of strange formatting around images.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have not seen any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"As stated previously, the book is extremely biased in its international representation, primarily promoting Americans' engagements with media. The book could go further in being more representative of different American cultures, but it is far from culturally insensitive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Understanding Media and Culture would be an extremely useful introductory text for a class focusing on American media and society. A more global perspective would require significant engagement with other texts, however.","created_at":"2022-12-15T17:25:53.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-12-15T17:25:53.000-06:00"},{"id":34905,"first_name":"Jenny","last_name":"Dean","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Texas Wesleyan University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is pretty comprehensive, but it is getting old in the media world where things are changing at a great pace. The basic text is good, but needs supplementary materials to truly keep pace with technology today.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"I am sure the book was accurate when it was published, but the world keeps changing, and it isn't as current as it needs to be. But, it still isn't bad for a free book to access.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Once again, same issue. The book is almost seven years old and hasn't been updated. The issue is that the examples and illustrations are getting to be a bit dated. I suspect that there aren't any updates of this book planned, which is unfortunate. If updated, this would be a fantastic read for students.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"It is simple to read and is easily accessible. It meets the needs of a young college student.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Yes, the textbook is internally consistent in terms of terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"It is well-subdivided and easy to access. Good use of subheadlines. It is a smooth read, and easy to find information through headers, subheads, headlines, and blocks of type.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Everything is presented in a clear and concise manner.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"This textbook comes in a wide variety of formats and can be accessed by almost everyone through one method or another. It was super easy to access.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text is clean and clear of errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"I don't think this book is as inclusive as the typical book written today. This is simply because times have changed, and the need for inclusive and culturally sensitive books has escalated exponentially from the time this book was written. It needs more culturally relevant examples. I wouldn't say that anything in the book is culturally insensitive or offensive, but it isn't as diversified as it needs to be.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This is an excellent book for an introduction to mass communication or an introduction to media and society course. It covers all the basics that I would expect to cover. It just needs some updating which can be done through supplementary materials.","created_at":"2024-02-27T16:48:14.000-06:00","updated_at":"2024-02-27T16:48:14.000-06:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/understanding-media-and-culture-an-introduction-to-mass-communication","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:27:02.000-06:00"},{"id":238,"title":"Information Strategies for Communicators","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2015,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":null,"license":"Attribution","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"Written by two nationally recognized experts in information strategy, Information Strategies for Communicators leads students step-by-step through the information search and evaluation process for news and strategic communication message production. The book includes a conceptual model of the information strategy process, case studies to illustrate the process in action, and links to current examples throughout. The definitive text for the information search and evaluation process as practiced by news and strategic communication message producers. Currently used at the University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communication; JOUR 3004W/V, Information for Mass Communication.","contributors":[{"id":3146,"contribution":"Author","primary":true,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Kathleen","middle_name":"A.","last_name":"Hansen","location":"University of Minnesota","background_text":"Kathleen Hansen is a professor and director of undergraduate studies at the School of Journalism \u0026 Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota. She received her M.L.S. and M.A. degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her research centers around the preservation of digital and print news archives, information access and serious games in the news."},{"id":3147,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Nora","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Paul","location":"University of Minnesota","background_text":"Nora Paul is the Director of the Institute for New Media Studies at the School of Journalism \u0026 Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota. She received her M.L.S. and B.A. degrees from Texas Women's University."}],"subjects":[{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":190,"url":"https://www.lib.umn.edu/publishing","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:37.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:37.000-05:00","name":"University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing"}],"formats":[{"id":149,"type":"Online","url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/infostrategies/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1671,"type":"PDF","url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/infostrategies/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1672,"type":"eBook","url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/infostrategies/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2254,"type":"XML","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/infostrategies/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2255,"type":"ODF","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/infostrategies/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4.5","textbook_reviews_count":4,"reviews":[{"id":573,"first_name":"Fred","last_name":"Reeder Jr.","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Miami (OH) University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"It's difficult to try to cover, in one text, the basic roles of journalists, advertisers and other professional communicators. However, the authors cover these various professions well, providing examples in each chapter to help students see these roles.\n\nThe authors explore each topic thoroughly. An example: the authors detail what a public library is. While this might cause eye rolls from instructors of a certain age, the authors realize that the audience -- college students -- might very well not have the context that we might expect them to have.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The authors provide accurate information, supplying sources when necessary (although they use Wikipedia for one reference).\n\nThe authors present each subject in an unbiased manner.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The authors start the book by providing the basic attributes all employers seek when hiring people -- attributes that will never be obsolete. The analogies and references used by the authors ensure minimal updating of the text will be necessary. \n\nI would suggest more moments from journalism, PR, etc., that would engage students and present fodder for class discussion -- whether it's Time magazine's decision to alter OJ Simpson's mug shot on the magazine's cover, or PR person Justine Sacco's tweet that got her fired, these examples highlight real-world decisions and consequences.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The authors write in a breezy narrative, creating easy-to-read sections. The authors provide graphs when necessary to help students visualize concepts, and any jargon / technical terminology is explained clearly.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text maintains a consistent tone, and the authors provide a framework that never alters, giving comfort to readers, who like to know what to expect.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"All chapters first begin with key concepts: bulleted items detailing what students will learn. The next section highlights learning outcomes: what students will be able to do. These two sections offer a clear understanding for students in a concise format.\n\nThe authors keep the chapters -- and the sections within each chapter -- short, bowing to today's audience. The shorter sections make reading palatable, even when students might find some of the content dry (the light at the end of the tunnel is never far away).","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The authors begin the textbook with life skills before detailing any specific writing, research or interviewing skills needed by professional communicators. This strategy helps answer the question all students ask when introduced to a text: \"Why should I care about this?\"\n\nThe authors then logically present their topics, following the opening section with the various types of media messages, before getting into the specific skills that great communicators must possess. The format does allow for instructors to jump around if they desire -- the text doesn't have to be presented in linear fashion.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"There were no interface or navigation problems in this text.","grammatical_rating":3,"grammatical_review":"The authors struggle at times, mainly with:\n\n* commas after introductory phrases\n* the Oxford comma\n* pronoun agreement with the subject\n* relative pronoun use\n* weak sentence structure (e.g. \"There are\" sentence constructions)","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text isn't culturally insensitive or offensive in any way.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2016-08-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":874,"first_name":"Sarah","last_name":"Faris","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Virginia Commonwealth University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"A strong introductory text. The content is well-rounded and takes diligent care to address concerns from multiple perspectives without making assumptions about culture or the students' baseline knowledge. Some elements fall short of addressing communications challenges with an audience who do not understand the nature of information, or who have been systematically misinformed. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The authors go out of their way to present unbiased perspectives, and take diligence to describe the nature of bias. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Some elements fall short of addressing communications challenges with an audience who do not understand the nature of information, or who have been systematically misinformed. Greater address of educational challenges, 508 compliance/accessibility, and confirmation bias would be helpful.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Well written with overarching ideas presented first and details rounding out the picture.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Ideas, language, and scope are consistent.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Readers are not compelled to skip around to tie information together due to implementation of accessible language. The lessons behave well in modular fashion. Instructors who teach communications courses for specialized fields/industries will find this very helpful as a supplement to texts that address more specific content areas. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"While each lesson moves from large ideas to smaller supportive concepts and details, a stronger approach to doing this with the entirety of the book would add another layer of precision. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The PDF version is less comprehensive than the online versions; table of contents and appendix not included, but resources available with the online version are well structured. Images in the PDF version are glitchy in the page layout.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"Minimal grammatical errors. Some sentences read awkwardly, but in some places it encourages the reader to review the content to positive effect.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Authors establish trust and credibility by building a humanistic lens that embraces psychology, ethics, and responsible stewardship.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall a strong text for an introductory course in communications, or a supplementary text to communications related coursework. ","created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":3949,"first_name":"Burton","last_name":"St. John III","position":"Professor, Public Relations","institution_name":"University of Colorado Boulder","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book provides extensive conceptual and some applied understandings to strategic communication as regards three fields: PR, Journalism and Advertising. It does a more than adequate job of showing the readers how to progress through applying such things as careful audience analysis, deliberative message creation. There is no considerable discussion of message delivery or how to garner feedback after message delivery. It does not offer an overarching glossary of key terms, not does it have an index. The Table of Contents, however, is well developed and helps mitigate the lack of an index to a small extent.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content does not display bias, In fact, the authors treat carefully and equitably the fundamentals of strategic communication across all three fields they address (PR, Advertising and Journalism). Some areas where the book could run the risk of being inaccurate due to new developments, for example in the legal or ethical arenas, are kept very short and fundamental, which minimizes the risk of inaccuracies.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"This book is full of evergreen and fundamental information in such areas as researching, idea formation, message creation and message delivery. Since its 2015 inception, it displays no considerable \"dated\" aspects. The book does not provide specific case studies that could become quickly dated. The book's technical structure -- short sections within chapters that focus on fundamentals -- make it easy to update.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The prose is straightforward and jargon free. Any particular terms, for example within the research sections, are clearly contextualized.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Yes. This is a strong suit for the book as it clearly aligns relevant terms consistently with the three fields it speaking to.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This is a strong point for the book. As I teach in only one of the three fields it covers (PR), I find that the book clearly lays out particular understandings and applications to PR in clearly divided sections. It speaks to specific strategic communications aspects for that field that the reader does not necessarily have to read across other fields or other sections.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"Yes. It importantly talks first about thinking of your aim, then understanding how that aim can align with various relevant audiences. Then how you distill that process down to the message and the sources used to inform your message. It then goes into several sections of how to better research (which is a real problem in PR campaigns, for example). The one weak spot is that the book does not discuss in detail aspects of dissemination and how to gather feedback after the dissemination.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No interface issues detected.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"I saw no pattern of grammar/technical issues.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I saw no insensitive depictions. Many of the photos used seemed to disproportionately show white people, but that may be a function of what was freely available for the authors to use at the time they created this book.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2020-06-11T15:26:22.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-11T15:26:22.000-05:00"},{"id":34262,"first_name":"Cayla","last_name":"Thomlinson","position":"Communication Associate Professor","institution_name":"Garden City Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Covers content as expected. The 'contents' expand and lists sections, but it is the closest you get to an index, minus it being in alphabetical order. No glossary or collection of key terms or definitions.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Provided relevant and accurate information and examples.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Should be fairly easy to go in and replace links and examples.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I could tell writers composed the book and had no problem reading and understanding it.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This text is divided into section that are easy to read and navigate. Some lengthy blocks of text are present, but none are too outlandish.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The inclusion of personal/professional skills of successful communicators is valuable addition, especially based on the careers it is addressing.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Dislike that many hyperlinks are to subscription sites. Also wish all the links opened in new tabs.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not see any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The information is based on U.S. legal and ethical expectations.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This book introduces and explains how journalism, advertising, and public relations majors are expected to identify, find, manage, and develop information. Appreciated the organization and choices the authors made in order to create this comprehensive and straightforward text.","created_at":"2022-12-09T17:38:46.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-12-09T17:38:46.000-06:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/information-strategies-for-communicators","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:23:28.000-06:00"},{"id":274,"title":"Communication in the Real World - An Introduction to Communication Studies","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2016,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":"9781946135070","license":"Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies overviews the time-tested conceptual foundations of the field, while incorporating the latest research and cutting-edge applications of these basics. Each chapter will include timely, concrete, and real-life examples of communication concepts in action. A key feature of this book is the integration of content regarding diversity and organizational communication in each chapter through examples and/or discrete sub-sections. Discussions of diversity are not relegated to feature boxes. Also integrated into the content are examples that are inclusive in terms of race, gender, sexuality, ability, age, marital status, religion, and other diverse identity characteristics.","contributors":[],"subjects":[{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":307,"url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/communication/","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:38.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:38.000-05:00","name":"University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing"}],"formats":[{"id":488,"type":"Online","url":"https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Introduction_to_Communication/Communication_in_the_Real_World_-_An_Introduction_to_Communication_Studies","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1624,"type":"PDF","url":"https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Introduction_to_Communication/Communication_in_the_Real_World_-_An_Introduction_to_Communication_Studies","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1625,"type":"eBook","url":"http://open.lib.umn.edu/communication/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2272,"type":"XML","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/communication/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":2273,"type":"ODF","url":"https://open.lib.umn.edu/communication/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4.5","textbook_reviews_count":49,"reviews":[{"id":783,"first_name":"Samuel ","last_name":"Cook IV","position":"Adjunct Lecturer","institution_name":"UNC Greensboro ","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"As compared to similar texts in the traditional textbook market, this book provides just as much comprehension for an introductory communication course/curriculum. All of the general concept areas taught in an introductory hybrid communication course are thoughtfully present, including chapter content geared to modern communication technology concepts and influences on social media. After teaching the hybrid course for almost fifteen years, I would have no issues using this text, relative to including the required concepts of such a course.      ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"In reviewing this text, I have not found any major errors or issues with presented content. Not to say that I could not have missed a model or diagram that was incorrectly presented. Overall, I found the text error-free in my review. But I have found that errors in texts are usually discovered when actually applied in teaching situations. As for bias, there is no discernible concern in my view of a particular philosophy or worldview that would distract from the learning objectives of the text used in a class. Actually, I found myself really enjoying the style of writing, and to my chagrin, realized the textbook author was a graduate of my same MA program!          ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"This text areas focusing on traditional content in the hybrid communication course are up to date, and any changes to field theory would likely occur over a span of years (allowing for effective inclusion in this text, assuming the author will continue to update the text). The chapters that likely will need to be updated sooner of course deal with social media and technology.           ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writer presents theory and concepts in a straight forward fashion, without requiring the reader/student to have prior grounding in communication theory. It’s easy to understand, and even enjoyable to follow!             ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The text follows a consistent pattern for each chapter, with learning objectives noted at the start of each chapter, followed by chapter content, case studies, concept review questions, and exercises. I did find a few examples of printing errors across a few sections, with extra spaces between sections.                  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Yes, this text could be applied or configured using specific chapters for instruction, leaving out several areas and/or focusing on specific chapters by topic area.                   ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"This text is well organized, with learning objectives presented the start of each chapter, followed by chapter content, case studies, concept review questions, and exercises. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":" I did find a few examples of printing errors across a few sections, with extra spaces between sections.                  ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"From my review, I could not find major grammatical problems in the text.  ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"There is nothing offensive or culturally insensitive in this text so far in my review of it. The text is sensitive to diversity and provides excellent examples of situations where people from various background could find challenges in communicating within diverse cultural environments.                 ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Again, as compared to using a traditional textbook from the market, this text, as far as relative content, could be just as effective. It could help in saving students on costs for another textbook, especially one used for an introductory course. My two concerns: \n1.\tThere are no boldfaced or italics key terms identified in text, which could leave the student not seeking out the concepts/theories for class discussion or application in activities or tests. While the learning goals at the start of each chapter (just about) provides this service, I feel the author should include a key term or concept summary for each chapter.\n2.\tGiven the emphasis today (actually, make that requirement) in colleges on taking the traditional hybrid communication course and applying the course in completely online or partly web-based classes, it would be helpful to have some consideration for a delivery platform for speeches or online discussions. And, that is probably where the open textbook concept, at least in this case, has to rely on the school’s default learning management system platform or other learning software platform.               \n","created_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":886,"first_name":"Amandajean","last_name":"Nolte","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"University of Northern Iowa","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is a comprehensive text that rivals textbooks in the traditional market. It contains the concepts often covered in a hybird/intro communication course. Having taught this course for ten years and reviewed dozens of textbooks, I would have little hesitation in using this textbook in my oral communication course. Often these textbooks feel redundant of each other and being able to choose one that has the information and the best price point is persuasive.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"In my estimation, I believe this text is accurate and error free. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The theory and concepts related to the course content are up-to-date and will most likely remain that way for a long time. Any shift in this area would occur for all texts in this area and would require updating all literature in the communication field. The examples and videos are currently great, but I can't help but think those will feel outdated very quickly. Same with any reference to social media that is constantly changing and evolving.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text does a nice job of defining terms and offering relevant examples while formating the text in a way that makes it easy to read. I also found myself connecting to and enjoying sections, which is a bonus in the reading of a textbook.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The terminology follows itself consistently through chapters and there are frequent references to and from other chapters. One of the benefits of an online text like this one is the easy clickability between chapters and concepts that are much less disconnected than our organizational structure of chapters leads us to believe.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of the text lends itsself well to the particualr focus of an instructor teaching an intro communication course. It would be simple to piece out the chapters or sections based on one's specific focus.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization is consistent from chapter to chapter, which allows for a logical and clear reading of the text.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"My biggest concern with the interface is the formatting of the outline chapter and therefore the references. I am a stickler for format, when it comes to this piece of my course and the improper outline numbering format and lack of hanging indent in the references is frustrating. Granted, I could say this is true of other books as well, and I could always supplement this chapter if need be.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no major grammatical probelms in the text.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This text does a respectable job of referencing multiple races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. It also does a nice job of not allowing analysis of any of these groups to be locked into stereotyping.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":982,"first_name":"Tamara","last_name":"Watkins","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook provides a good overview of communication as a discipline. Notably, this text has two chapters that discuss media--\"Media, Technology, and Communication\" and \"New Media and Communication.\" This in particular is an asset because it provides further discussion of an important topic.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I found no major errors or issues in this text. It is written using inclusive language.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text's content is fairly up-to-date and is unlikely to be rendered obsolete within a short period of time. Any advances/changes in new media and/or communication theory and research could be easily inserted into the text. Specifically, the \"New Media and Democracy\" chapter should be updated to include information about the promotion and presence of \"fake news\" on social media, and how one can develop skills to assess sources. However, as this issue (fake news on social media) has been of significant interest due, in part, to the 2016 US Presidential election, the omission of this information is understandable, and instructors could easily supplement the text with additional resources. The text's authors could also easily edit the content to include this update.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written in a conversational tone that is accessible to readers.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is logically and consistently laid out, and each chapter follows the same general structure.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The content of this text could easily be divided into smaller readings assigned at different points during the semester without disrupting the students' progress in the course.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text is organized in a logical manner that presents content in a way that is easy to read and understand. Chapters end with lists of key ideas, exercises for students to practice what they've learned, and references to cited texts.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Overall, the interface is good. However, some issues might cause reader confusion. For example, key terms (for example, \"discriminative listening\" in chapter 5) are in red. This is also the color of links in the text, but these terms are not links. Additionally, the use of red can present some issues with respect to accessibility.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"This text contains no significant grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This text is written with inclusive language, and it includes examples with a variety of perspectives.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":993,"first_name":"Kyle","last_name":"Tusing","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"University of Arizona","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text covers the expected topics for an introductory hybrid (communication and public speaking) text, and in the order that those topics are customarily covered (1. introduction, 2. perception, 3. language, 4. nonverbal, etc.). The history of communication going back to ancient times is covered briefly in chapter 1, but not in as much detail as I would prefer. However, few introductory communication texts cover the history of communication in much detail and many ignore history altogether. There are multiple chapters addressing public speaking, which is appropriate for a hybrid text.\n\nThe text does not have a glossary or index, but given that the text is available as a searchable .pdf file, a printed index would be redundant. I searched for a few terms and the search function worked well.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The accuracy of the book is excellent. In my reading there was nothing I encountered that caused concern as far as accuracy is concerned. The author(s) are objective, inclusive, and egalitarian in their treatment of topics, so it is fair to say the content is unbiased. The authors also do a nice job of representing communication scholarship from both a social scientific and humanistic perspective.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This version of the text was published in 2013 and the content is currently up-to-date as of early 2017. There are a number of specific instances that will need to be updated in coming years/decades to be accurate as a function of the passing of time, but those cases should be fairly easy to change out with new examples. On page 46 the text refers to the \"first presentation\" in this class, which supposes that speeches/presentations are a component of the class that uses this text. Other cases of information that may go out of date are references to \"google\" being a new term, pay stubs, the \"recent\" Obama/Romney presidential election, and the current ages of individuals who are members of the various generations (p. 678). The text uses a number of URLs. The vast majority of the URLs that I checked worked as intended, but a few of them redirected or were no longer working (e.g., the author's blog in chapter 16).","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The clarity of the prose is good. At no point in my reading was there confusion with regard to communication content due to a lack of clarity. One meta-clarity issue concerns the identity of the authors. The authors have withheld their identity, which may present confusion due to the frequent use of the first person by the author(s). In chapter 16 the name of one of the authors is available in a URL that claims to be the author's personal blog. That URL no longer works. Perhaps a standard name could be assigned to the author (e.g., Alan Smithee) and references to the individual authors in the text could be removed.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The consistency of the text is remarkably high. Despite there being multiple authors of the text, the voice throughout the difference chapters and sub-sections is similar. The framework of the chapters is similar, which each chapter being broken down into multiple sub-sections, followed by the references. The photos used to supplement the text have a common theme - realistic, gritty, compelling.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The text rates high in terms of modularity. Each chapter is divided into a minimum of three distinct sub-sections. Within the sub-sections, headings are used frequently to divide up the ideas. The text does refer to/mention other chapters frequently. This occurs most frequently in chapter 1, which refers to all the other chapters, but it also occurs in other chapters (e.g., chapter 3 refers to chapter 1, chapter 15 refers to chapter 1, and chapter 16 refers to chapter 15).","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization is typical of introductory texts, starting with an introduction and moving through perception, verbal and nonverbal communication, moving on to interpersonal communication and relationships, and then on to public, small-group, and mass communication. This order is logical as the text flows through the forms of communication in order (intrapersonal to mass).","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Reading the text on a computer display took a little bit of time to get used to, but after getting used to it the reading went well. The fact that the text is searchable is a great advantage. All the graphics, photos, models, and figures displayed properly.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The grammar is excellent. It is written in a scholarly format but does not confuse readers with undefined jargon or superfluous words. Some texts are too conversational; this text is easy to relate too but does not do so at the expense of credibility.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Multiple potentially controversial topics, such as race, hate speech, disability status, and sexual orientation are covered by the text and are done so in an even-handed, fair manner. The text even points out how using certain specific terms (e.g., handicapped instead of disabled) can have an undesirable effect. Photos are inclusive in that people from various races and ethnicities are pictured, not to mention that people with tattoos (and without tattoos) are also featured.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"All in all this is an excellent introductory communication text that would be ideal for a hybrid (introduction to communication + public speaking) communication class. It is comprehensive, well written, and well sourced. It could be used by either a social scientist or a humanist. The text would also work well in an introductory communication course that does not have a public speaking component; the multiple public speaking chapters could be covered in less detail. The text covers a number of recent events and technologies that will need to be updated in the coming years.","created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1035,"first_name":"Denise","last_name":"Tallakson","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"University of Northern Iowa","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Comprehensive Individualized Curriculum and Instructional Design: Curriculum and Instruction for Students with Developmental Disabilities/Autism Spectrum Disorders covers a wide range of topics related to working with students with developmental disabilities and ASD.  There is no index or glossary but the chapter titles are clear and relate to the overall topic of the textbook.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content in this textbook is accurate and research based.  There are many reputable sources that are referenced and the information supports current information on the Autism Spectrum Disorder.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is up-to-date, but many of the links were not accessible, which made it hard to get the additional information needed.  If those links were updated it would make the text more relevant.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is clear and easy to follow, in particular Chapters 1-4.  There are some technical terminology used but there are always explanations included.  The specific behavioral examples given helped bring clarity and made it easy for teachers to see how to implement the plan with their own students. The templates and charts provided would be useful for educators to use as provided or to adapt to meet their individual needs.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The first part of the textbook was very consistent and had a nice flow.  It seemed to change with the information regarding the use of technology.  Chapter 5 read more like a technical manual with directions of how to use the technology for adaptive purposes.  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The textbook is set up very well so that smaller reading sections could be used in courses.  Each chapter has a complete topic that could be used in isolation.  Together they offer a cohesive picture of working with students with special needs.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The textbook has a nice flow and starts off with the most comprehensive chapter that sets the tone for the rest of the book.  The last two chapters seem the most different, but do offer important information regarding communication and technology.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The only interface problems I found is that some of the links are not live and may be inaccessible.  For some chapters that seemed to be a lot of content that may be missing.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There were no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text was very culturally sensitive and shared strategies in a positive and productive way for working with students with developmental","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This textbook is full of detailed strategies related to Curriculum and Instruction Design for students with developmental delays and students and ASD.  Chapter 4 Developing Function-based Interventions is especially beneficial for teachers seeking management strategies.","created_at":"2017-02-15T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-15T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1064,"first_name":"Galyn","last_name":"Carlile","position":"Currently Adjunct Professor, Dean Emeritus, Former Chief Academic Officer","institution_name":"Rogue Community College, Grants Pass OR 97527","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I currently teach both SP100 Basic Communication and SP 218 Interpersonal Communication and I feel the material is comprehensive enough that with modification and shuffling of chapter modules I could manage to use it for both courses.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I feel the content is quit accurate the only concern is that many of the references are to somewhat dated material.: Example: \"In fact, since the systematic study of communication began in colleges and universities a little over one hundred years ago, there have been more than 126 published definitions of communication (Dance \u0026amp; Larson, 1976).","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Actually I think that the material is very well written in such a way that the instructor using it could rather easily  con-temporize the content with supplemental material.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I very much like the content for the fact that it uses contemporary speak rather the egocentric academic jargon.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Very good flow from topic to topic!","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Very well compiled and I could easily cherry pic content and flow.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Easy to follow transitions with well defined connections.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Same as stated above - well put together.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Seemed fine to me -but I may not be the judge!","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I found no problems here!","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I really do believe I could use this material in both intro and interpersonal courses.","created_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1068,"first_name":"Shelby","last_name":"Bell","position":"Faculty","institution_name":"North Hennepin Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is designed for an introduction to communication course, but I am reviewing it as a possible text for an introduction to Interpersonal Communication course. For this purpose the text provides a useful foundation in communication theory in research, covering communication models and various skillsets. For an intro to IP comm course the book, when compared to texts designed for that purpose, lacks research on specific fields of interpersonal communication, such as \"Family,\" \"Friends,\" \"Workplace,\" and \"Romantic Relationships.\" Even without these chapters I would use this book for an IP comm course as the benefits of an open textbook outweigh the missing chapters and I feel I could use supplemental materials to cover that information. \n\nThe text book does not have supplemental materials, an index, or glossary, which might make it more difficult to use for an intro to IP comm course if one is new to the material. However, the text is downloadable in several formats and is thus searchable negating the need for an index or glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book includes the key information on communication research and theory for an introduction to communications course. Much of this information would overlap with the needs of an Introduction to Interpersonal Communication course, though some specific terms, concepts, and theories may need to be supplemented by the instructor to adapt the text for that purpose.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"This book may not be the most \"up to date\" but in many senses I don't think it should be as an introduction to the field. Most major perspectives in Comm are covered and an experienced instructor could easily build on the foundation laid out in the book to discuss recent research and developments. In this way, I believe the book presents a solid foundation for communication studies students.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"I think the book it quite accessible. In comparison to the more expensive books it lacks the up to date media and cultural examples that make reading more engaging for many students. Overall, I actually see the lack of these examples a strong suit of the book as it is not easily dated.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The framework of the book is internally consistent, though I think it takes on too much to have true consistency. Compared to similar books on the market for introductory textbooks I think it may cover a bit too much to provide real consistency. For example, Chapters 1-8 provide common topics for an intro to comm course and cover different places/venues for communication, then Chapters 9-12 serve as a public speaking manual before returning to the kind of overview format for Chapters 13-16. However, as the book is totally free for students this would not at all prohibit me from assigning the book as I can easily choose not to assign those chapters.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"Each chapter has 3-4 subheadings, but the chapters span as many as 50 pages. I think more sub-headings would make the book more approachable, especially for students still learning study skills or who are returning to the classroom later in life. I would mitigate this by discussing reading strategies with my students and assigning the chapters in smaller pieces.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I think the text is as logical and organized as a very broad overview can be. The problem is one of all texts which cover such a broad field.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I downloaded a PDF file of the text and have had no interface issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have not noted a distracting number of erros.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book is not culturally insensitive or offensive. As an instructor I would add examples  to present the topics with more emphasis on social and racial justice than that text.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I think this book could be adapted for many intro-level communication courses. One concern I have is that I would want a hard copy for myself and at 752 pages printing is cost-prohibitive. I've read about instructors working with bookstores to loan out hard-copies of open texts when the copyright allows but with this text the sheer number of pages would make that difficult.","created_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1147,"first_name":"Mackenzie","last_name":"Krzmarzick","position":"Communication Instructor","institution_name":"Anoka-Ramsey Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Overall, the comprehensiveness of this text is one of the main characteristics that attracted me to it. When teaching the communication studies basic course (interpersonal + public speaking + small group), textbooks often fall short in one or more of the three topics usually taught in the course, perhaps due to limited space. This text is quite a bit longer than other texts I have used for the basic course, which gives it a greater chance to cover topics in more detail and provides me the opportunity to choose which topics (and how much of which topic) I want to cover in my courses (more so than other texts that only offer a limited discussion of topics). I also appreciate the inclusion of Chapters 15 and 16 about media, which are not always a part of similar texts from publishers.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I did not come across any info that contradicted what I know to be true about the field of communication studies. In addition, I appreciate the care the author took to incorporate credible outside sources and document them (in-text and reference page at the end of each chapter section).","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Most of the chapters in this text likely have a reasonable level of longevity. The main chapters that I think will likely need revisions sooner than others are the chapters about media. However, it would be difficult to address the topic of media without needing revisions in the near future, so I do not see this as a weakness of the text. In addition, a few examples in the public speaking chapters (such as a sample speech outline about \"going green\") could use updates later on, as well.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The author's choice to use words such as \"we\" and \"you\" while explaining concepts helps the prose to be more understandable to the reader. However, more complex vocabulary is also used throughout, which can be a benefit or a deterrent, depending on the student population. Because I teach at a community college, my students have a wide range of reading comprehension. For example, they may look at pages 455-456 of the text and see the headings \"systematic desensitization\" and \"cognitive restructuring\" and feel overwhelmed, thinking that if they don't understand the heading, then they won't understand the rest of the text in that section. Contrastingly, students with higher reading level may enjoy this feature of the text.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Even though interpersonal/group communication are topics that are often discussed in a different way than public speaking, this author did a nice job of maintaining a consistent writing style throughout. Likewise, reading one chapter gave me an idea of what to expect when reading another.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of this text was designed in an effective manner. Because this text is longer than many texts produced through publishers (a nice benefit of this text), the length of the text required that the longer chapters be broken into smaller sub-chapters. I find this useful because I may not use the entire chapter and having the chapters broken into sub-chapters helps me to tell students on which parts of the chapter they should focus their attention. It appears as though the author has taken care to determine which sub-topics within chapters make the most sense to be their own sub-chapters.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"If I were to use this text to teach my intro to communication basic course, I would likely teach the chapters in a different order than they are presented here. For example, I would teach Chapter 8 after Chapter 2 and Chapters 15/16 after Chapter 8. It's not too much of a problem to just around in the text like that, but I have found that it does tend to confuse students a little. \n\nAside from the order of the chapters, the content within the chapters does flow well and has been organized with care.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I appreciate that this text can be read on a cell phone (I think that will motivate more students to read it). I printed the text and noticed that students will need a 3\" binder for it (something I would want to point out in my syllabus if I were to adopt this text). I did notice that when I printed the text, some of the pictures were too dark and printed in such a way that it was difficult to tell what the picture was showing.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not come across any grammatical errors during my review and the writing is done in a very professional manner.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"While the content does not appear to be biased or insensitive/offensive, only about 1/3 of the photos of people in the text represented racial diversity (which likely isn't the author's intention; there may have been limited options for open-source images to use in the text). However, this representation of diversity was actually higher than some of the other texts I have been sent by publishers recently. In fact, the explanations and examples throughout the text show that the author has taken care to discuss culture in a fair and accurate manner.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Now that I have reviewed this text and considered each of the items in this review, plus the benefit to my students, I have decided to adopt this text for Fall 2017. I appreciate the hard work and efforts of this author to provide such a high-quality open education resource for students to use.","created_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1187,"first_name":"Scott","last_name":"Dunn","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Radford University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook covers virtually all of the main topics I would expect to see in an introductory communication textbook. The only exception I noted is that there is no chapter on organizational communication, although they do discuss communication in organizations throughout other chapters. \n\nIf anything some sections of the book are a little TOO comprehensive. The book itself is quite long, as are the individual chapters. Some chapters go into so much depth they almost feel like they don't belong in a general introductory textbook. For instance, the chapters on media feel like they could come from an introduction to media textbook. Of course, it's a good thing that the book is so comprehensive, but I could see students getting overwhelmed by the length of the chapters.\n\nLikewise, the four chapters on public speaking would be the good basis for a public speaking textbook, but they feel a little out of place here. The rest of the book feels like it's designed for a lecture-based survey course, but the public speaking chapters are very prescriptive, seemingly designed for the kind of class where students are giving their own speeches. I wonder if the book might be too much of a survey for standard basic courses, but with too much emphasis on public speaking for survey courses.\n\nIn the PDF version, there is no glossary or index.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I did not note any outright factual errors or bias. There are, of course, some things that are open to interpretation, such as when the author goes into a historical perspective. Some people would likely disagree with the way the author divides up the eras of human history, but the book does make a good argument for the way it divides them up.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"There are a few minor instances of outdated information. For instance, Table 8.3 provides a history of acceptance of the LGBT community, but stops with the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell, suggesting that it was written before the recent Supreme Court cases recognizing same-sex marriages. Of course, that's not the author's fault, just the result of the book being a few years old.\n\nI actually expected that the media chapters would have outdated information, but they turned out to be surprisingly up-to-date. The author must have been up-to-date enough at the time the book was published that it hasn't gotten dated.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is generally clear and easy to follow. It can be a little dry at times, but no more than any other textbook.The book does a good job of introducing major communication theories, but not nearly enough to overwhelm the students.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I didn't note any inconsistencies in the book.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I have actually used chapters from this book to complement another text in a media-heavy introductory class, so I can say from experience that the chapters work fine on their own. Even within chapters, the shorter subdivisions could be used to direct students to exactly what you want them to read.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Besides the chapters possibly being too long, I don't see any organizational problems.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Using the PDF version, I did note occasional white space between text and pictures, but I think that's unavoidable. I also noticed at least one instance in which a pictures was on one page and its caption was on the next page.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No problems that I saw","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I found the book to be culturally sensitive. The book acknowledges the importance of culture to communication throughout.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I think this is about as good as any of the other introductory textbooks on the market. The coverage of media is much better than I've seen in other similar books. If you were using the book in a lecture-based survey class, the public speaking chapters probably wouldn't fit, but since it's an open textbook that's no loss.","created_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1507,"first_name":"Jessica","last_name":"Martin","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"After reviewing this text, I believe that it does provide an effective index and glossary. The table of contents are easily able to be found at the very beginning of the online textbook. What is especially nice is that you can easily click over back to the table of contents when you are in the middle of the textbook, making it easy to flip around and move from section to section. I found it helpful that at the beginning of each chapter, the textbook provides a \"Learning Objectives\" section, where one can easily read what the expected learning outcomes are for the chapter. This will make it easy for both the Professor and the students as to what they are expected to get out of each chapter. I also believe that this textbook accurately covers all necessary areas of Comm 100, as I currently teach this class with a physical book copy that covers the same chapters.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"After reviewing the online textbook, I do believe that the information to be accurate. The text accurately covers all of the same type of content that is also covered in my textbook. I wasn't able to notice nearly any errors at all within the text, which was great. What I do especially appreciate about the accuracy of this text is that at the end of each section within each chapter, it has a \"Key Takeaways\" section, as well as a section for \"Exercises.\" The Key Takeaways section discusses specific terms for students to remember, and the Exercises section is helpful for Professors, as they can use these exercises to create in-class activities.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I do believe that this textbook is up to date, especially because it has incorporated the Chapter titled \"New Media and Communication,\" which a lot of the physical copies similar to this text (Comm 100) have incorporated as well based off of the evolving technology.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I believe that the text is written in lucid, accessible prose, and also provides adequate context for any jargon/technical terminology that is used. They stuck to the appropriate content for the text and everything flowed well.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I compared this text to the other text that I am using to teach my course, and it appeared to be consistent to that. There were no confusing terms that were used and everything made sense.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"There are definitely no enormous blocks of texts without subheadings for this textbook. Each section is divided up appropriately and is also easy to follow along with. I found that everything flew together very nicely. Any time that the author goes into discussion of something new, there is a clear header to identify that.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"This text is divided up similarly to the physical textbook that I am using to teach this course this summer. Everything is organized well and is easy to follow along with.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I do not believe that the text has any type of navigation issues. The navigation is easy to use, and it is simply to get from chapter to chapter. One thing I did notice is that it would have been more effective to have more charts available for different topics such as the communication process, non-verbal communication, and so fourth.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"I was not able to identity any grammatical errors within this textbook.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I believe that this textbook is not culturally intensive in any way. The chapter that focuses on culture and communication included a variety of examples that are inclusive to a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. All of the other chapters were culturally sensitive as well, as they did not include any inappropriate terminology.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1589,"first_name":"Jade","last_name":"Olson","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"University of Maryland","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book offers a comprehensive treatment of key areas of communication studies. It is an appropriate introduction to the discipline, and would be suitable for an introduction to communication theory course, a public speaking course, or a hybrid model. It covers foundations of communication theory (perception, language and meaning, etc.) as well as a chapter each on listening, interpersonal, nonverbal, verbal, small group, leadership, media, and new media. As well, it offers several chapters oriented toward public/presentational speaking, covering the preparation and delivery of oral presentations in a variety of contexts. It does not contain an index or glossary, but given that most students will access it in a format that allows for a text search, this is not necessarily a major issue. It would benefit from a chapter on communication apprehension/anxiety -- this is treated very briefly toward the end of Chapter 1.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book is accurate when it comes to objective aspects of communication theory and practice -- in other words, I found almost nothing to be blatantly incorrect, and did not perceive any overt political biases. (The one blatantly incorrect sentence is: \"The term transgender includes other labels such as transsexual, transvestite, cross-dresser, and intersex, among others\" in Chapter 8). I appreciate that there is a chapter dedicated to communication and culture, prompting students to consider the rest of the book's contents (as well as their own work) through the lens of social constructivism and to think critically about their own biases. Yet, it (like most communication textbooks) is reflective of the dominant western worldview when it comes to concepts like persuasion and reasoning.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The book is relatively up-to-date, though some political references are already somewhat outdated. For example, the first subsection is entitled, \"From Aristotle to Obama: A Brief History of Communication.\" Updating references like these would be very easy to implement. The book's author offers to supplement the chapter on new media on his personal website, but when I followed the included link the site did not load. This chapter in particular already feels a bit outdated -- in the section on new media and interpersonal relationships there is no mention of Snapchat or Instagram (Twitter and Facebook are referenced), and I suspect that students may already find the book to be out of touch in this regard. Table 8.3, displaying \"Developments Related to Sexuality, Identity, and Communication\" needs to be updated to include the 2015 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges and other recent events.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing is clear and accessible for students who are reading at an appropriate college level. Jargon is explained well. My students enjoy the author's use of the first person in many cases, telling anecdotes in plain language that illustrate and animate the concepts being discussed in a more immediate way.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text maintains consistent vocabulary and structural frameworks. I have not found any internal inconsistencies in the book's language use or explanation of theories/concepts. There are a couple of minor inconsistencies that should not impede student understanding (e.g., references to the \"Gay Rights Movement\" and also to the \"gay and lesbian rights movement\").","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book is highly modular. I have adapted it for use in a public speaking course in which my students are reading the chapters related to presentational speaking as well as those on listening and culture. They have read the chapters, and in some cases the sections, out of order with no problem. The book is rarely self-referential, and when it is, the reader does not need to have internalized much of the section being referred to in order to understand the present section.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The structure flows logically. It can be understood as unfolding in six major sections that make sense sequentially or in modules: foundations (Chapters 1-2), basic components of the communication process (Chapters 3-5), communication in context (Chapters 6-8), presentational/public speaking (Chapters 9-12), communicating in groups/organizations (Chapters 13-14), and media (Chapters 15-16). ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I have not encountered any problems with the book's interface. I have read it online and downloaded the PDF with no such issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors that I am aware of.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book strives for cultural relevance and, for the most part, achieves it. In the photographs, people depicted are overwhelmingly white, which is a strike against it in terms of representing communicators from a variety of racial/ethnic backgrounds. I would like to see updates to the section on sexuality, as the standards for inclusive language in this arena change rapidly and the text does currently utilize terms that many consider to be problematic such as \"homosexual\" (the text explains that this word \"can be appropriate in some instances, but it carries with it a clinical and medicalized tone\" -- I would argue that the word is not considered appropriate in any context except an historical one). I would also suggest that the large image of the Confederate flag is not a necessary inclusion in section 8.3 -- as a hate symbol, this could be jarring to many readers, to say the least. Finally, the text does occasionally utilize ableist language (e.g., an example speech topic in Chapter 9 is \"My Craziest Adventure\").","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"My students have expressed positive reviews of this text. On the whole, they find it to be relevant, accessible, and straightforward. They especially appreciate the author's use of personal observations and stories from the classroom. I have identified in my comments above a few changes that I think would be useful in bringing the text up-to-date and making it more inclusive, and I think instructors who value inclusivity and recency can easily supplement their syllabi and lessons to fill these gaps. In general I do recommend this text, and I find it superior to comparable books from for-profit textbook companies that I have reviewed.","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1777,"first_name":"Candice","last_name":"Thomas-Maddox","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Ohio University Lancaster","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text contains 16 chapters that cover all of the basic content typically included in most of the well-known hybrid introductory communication textbooks currently on the market.  Each section/topic area within each of the chapters begin with its own set of objectives that provide students with an overview of the topics to be covered - these could also serve as useful study questions for exams.  In addition to the concepts and theories presented in each chapter, the text includes text boxes that encourage students to apply content to contemporary examples - each box concludes with Discussion Questions that could be assigned as homework or utilized in online course formats for virtual discussions.  Each of the 3-4 sections within each chapter concludes with its own summary (Key Takeaways) and 2-3 suggested activities for students to apply the content during in-class assignments or completed out-of-class.  The format of the text provides sufficient content to cover a 16-week class in either face-to-face or online contexts.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"All of the content included in the chapters appears to be accurate.  Information from both a historical perspective and contemporary research is included to provide students with a comprehensive overview of the topic.  At the conclusion of each topic area within each chapter, 8-20 references are provided to allow students to conduct additional research on the topic.  These sources range from scholarly journal articles to contemporary news articles published in the popular press to expose students to a variety of sources on each topic area.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Descriptions of the concepts and theories are relevant and applicable to the majority of students - regardless of their status (traditional/non-traditional), age, or other demographic distinctions that contribute to class diversity.  Areas that may need periodic updates include the text boxes that are dedicating to providing contemporary examples of topics covered within the chapter.  Overall, the text provides a solid foundation of the core concepts that instructors could easily apply contemporary examples as they tailor the course to meet the specific needs of their own student populations. While the discussion questions are written in a way that appeals to a diverse student population, they may occasionally need to be updated to address contemporary issues.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The clarity of the writing style of the text is one of its strongest selling points.  Concepts are defined/described in layman's terms that most students can easily relate to their own experiences.  Examples that are provided are relatable to the the majority of students. While the key concepts are highlighted in blue font, it would be useful if the text also included a Glossary that students could quickly access by clicking on hyperlinks within the chapters.  A unique feature of the book is that topics covered in later chapters (e.g., Media) include a discussion of how the information is related to topics covered in earlier chapters in the text - hyperlinks are provided within the text to direct students back to the earlier chapters for a review/recall of content.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Students will be pleased to find that each chapter is organized and presented in a consistent manner.  Each chapter begins with Learning Objectives, followed by content (with key terms highlighted), and concludes with a contemporary example highlighted in a textbox with discussion questions and a chapter summary.  Topics are presented in a way so that they build on one another - there is a logical progression from one chapter topic to the next.  As mentioned before, chapters that appear later in the text include hyperlinks to direct students back to earlier content - this helps showcase the connections between content areas.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"A unique feature of this text is that each chapter is organized into distinct subsections that allow instructors to \"select/choose\" which topics they want to include in their class.  For schools where students may also be taking a separate public speaking class, there is just enough information in the four (4) chapters on the topic to provide them with the necessary foundation to understand the key elements of speeches.  Instructors can pick and choose the sections within these (and other) chapters to include.  If an instructor wishes to alter the order in which the chapters are included in the course schedule, they can be interchanged or assigned in any order without altering the flow of the text.  ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"While most introductory human communication texts place the public speaking chapters at the end of the book (to allow instructors to skip over them if students are already required to take a separate public speaking class), this text includes the speech chapters in the middle (Chapter 9-12) before covering topics such as small group communication and media in the last four chapters.  While the chapter/topic order may not strictly adhere to the typical format of most communication textbooks on the market, this is not a \"deal-breaker\" when adopting this text because chapters can be presented in any format desired without impacting the readability and flow of the text.  ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"All of the charts, hyperlinks to articles included in the reference lists, and the photos appeared to be clear and in working order.  Some of the photos appear to be somewhat dated, but this could be viewed as a positive feature for ensuring the longevity of the book.  It does not require frequent revisions to the photos.  It might be beneficial to include more \"SmartArt\" that graphically represents/lists/summarizes the core concepts to appeal to visual learners using charts or tables.  ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The writing style is clear and concise without excessive examples or confusing details.  It is written in a conversational tone that students can easily relate to as they consider how the concepts apply to their own personal examples. No writing or grammatical errors were discovered during my review.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Examples and content covered in the book are respectful of diversity.  I would not consider any of the content to be culturally insensitive or offensive.  Topics that are of a sensitive nature are presented in a fair and objective way to encourage students to think critically about the communication implications (e.g., hate speech, culturally sensitive language choices, ethical decisions associated with communicating with diverse others). The core content provides a foundation that instructors can build upon as they address diversity topics that are directly relevant to their own student populations. While there is diversity represented in the photos included in the text, it could provide a more comprehensive reflection of diversity (cultural, racial, age, economic).  ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1914,"first_name":"Courtney","last_name":"Anderegg","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"George Fox University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text appears to cover all general areas and ideas within the communication field appropriate for an introductory level course. Although the goal of an introductory text is to provide just that -- an introduction -- I felt as though some topics were too surface-level and could have benefitted from a bit more detail. There is not an index or glossary, but I cannot speak to how often those are used in online texts, particularly when the text can be downloaded as a PDF and searched. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text appears accurate and includes credible, relevant sources. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I feel as though the textbook content is up-to-date and has high relevance, as well as potential for longevity. Some areas of the text will need to be updated (e.g., current examples used), but that is par for the course. It seems as though the text is arranged in such a way that necessary updates will be relatively easy to implement. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written in lucid, accessible prose with a college student audience in mind. Jargon is adequately defined. In teaching my students the benefit of using non-technical language in their essays and speeches, I point to the language used in the textbook as a good example. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text appears to have high internal consistency in the terminology used throughout. Additionally, I appreciated the consistency in chapter organization from start to finish. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I appreciate the ability to assign smaller sections of this text without it reading as if my students have missed something. Given that the PDF of the text is 800+ pages, I do not want my students reading this text from cover to cover. Therefore, assigning small sections has been beneficial to making it more digestible for my students.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The overall organization, structure, and flow of the text is fine. However, I do not like how closely formatted some of the headings/subheadings are. It can often be difficult for my students to determine whether a section is a heading or subheading (or sub-subheading). ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I really like the online interface. The PDF is a bit unwieldy, but that's to be expected due to its size. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammatical issues during my review.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"In general, I did not find the text to be culturally insensitive or offensive. However, it could strive to be a bit more diverse in its examples and in choosing the individuals to include in photographs throughout the text. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2022,"first_name":"Heidi","last_name":"Croatt","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Anoka-Ramsey Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I appreciate the comprehensiveness of this text. In addition to including all of the typical topics taught in an introductory hybrid course, the text includes chapters on mass media and technology, as well as how new media impacts our self and our relationships. These topics are increasingly important for students in Communication courses, and I'm happy to see it included in this text. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"All content is consistent with well-known and credible research for each topic. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is relevant for today's students. There are some examples that might date the content to the 2000's and 2010's, but I don't anticipate that being a problem in the near future. While I appreciate the addition of the media chapters, those will need to be updated more frequently to reflect our evolving technological and social world. Finally, some links throughout the text do not work which can be frustrating for students and give the perception that the text is not up-to-date.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The accessible prose is one of the most attractive features of this text. For students in an introductory course, the text needs to be readable and interesting. The language used to discuss most of the topics is academic yet informal. I think students will appreciate and enjoy the colloquial approach throughout the text. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"There is consistency throughout this text. Each chapter is framed similarly which makes it user-friendly and easy to read. I like the learning objectives to start each chapter, and the key takeaways and exercises at the end of each chapter. Some chapters have more images and links than others. The ones with more included media are likely preferred by students. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This is a big textbook, with some long chapters. However, the sub-headings make it easy to assign certain topics at different points throughout the course. It would be fairly easy to rearrange chapters, and even some topics within chapters, without disrupting the reading flow for students. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I am used to teaching the Introductory course in a different order than it is presented in this textbook. I think many instructors rearrange the topics in this course to meet their scheduling needs, assignment needs, and individual preferences. So while I would reorder the chapters, I find this textbook to be in line with existing Intro textbooks. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I appreciate the interface of this text and the different options for reading. Moving from chapter to chapter, or topic to topic is easy with this interface. Some of the links do not work, though. ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no significant grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"A variety of perspectives are included in this text, and the language is inclusive. Like most other texts, it could include more diversity in authors quotes, images used, and videos presented. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is a very good option for an Introductory course textbook. I would have no hesitation adopting this book and I believe students would benefit from the comprehensive content, user-friendliness, and cost savings. ","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2145,"first_name":"Stacie","last_name":"Mariette","position":"Mass Communication instructor","institution_name":"Anoka-Ramsey Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook is very comprehensive. I have used it in my Intro to Communication Studies (both seated and online sections) for two semesters. I always omit a few chapters because it is so comprehensive and is too detailed for this particular course in the timeframe of a single semester.  \n\nAnd that's a great thing! \n\nAdditional details and thought-provoking comments come up in class discussions and papers, based on the depth and context of the textbook. It also prompts thoughtful research into the solid concepts that are covered in our reading, week to week. I really like this textbook for this reason!","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This textbook is very accurate. I used a hard-copy resource previously and all the theories, models and concepts – and then some – are covered in this book... and covered quite thoroughly!","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This textbook is fabulously relevant in terms of the tried-and-true concepts and the bulk of it will hold up quite nicely, I predict. But some examples and language are a bit dated when it comes to technology as our language evolves so quickly for our online culture (e.g., \"flaming\" vs. \"trolling\"). The technology references often are not embedded in the text, but rather in the discussion questions at the end of each chapter and as standalone chapters toward the end of the textbook. A savvy move, making it easy for those of us who may update/remix the OER itself, but the core chapter readings occasionally seem a bit flat without the inclusion of these up-to-date examples.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The writing is clear and very easy to follow. The bulleted lists and charts with tips and guidelines for real-life communication scenarios are definitely the easiest to follow.  \n\nIn fact, the information is a bit dense/prose-heavy in the chapters without these visual aids, which may be intimidating for some students (despite the ease of reading overall). The subheads do break up the topics well and the images lighten things up, as well.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The consistency of this book is great. I knew just what to expect from the beginning in terms of the format of the chapters/sub-chapters. I like the end-of-chapter discussion questions and summaries and use them frequently when refreshing my memory from semester-to-semester or after a break as I head into lectures.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I teach this textbook in a different from the textbook and that's OK! I only do it because I teach public speaking early in the semester. This book is so modular, though, it's very easy to tailor to the flow of your own course. It does refer readers to different chapters within the text itself from time to time, so beware of that if you remix the chapters in your PDF (or other type of file) to be in the same order as your syllabus.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The book is easy to follow and the sub-chapters make it easy to assign reading to line up with specific  topics/class presentations or to mix and match the content for tailoring your own readings.  \n\nThe only thing on my wishlist is that technology topics be more integrated into the core of each chapter, rather than at the end of each. (Though I see the practical reasons, for update purposes, with how quickly technology evolves.)  \n\nFor example, Chapter 2 covers online self-presentation in a call-out box at the end of the chapter, but online personas on Instagram/Facebook are often the conversation starter my students need on the topic of impression management. Chapter 6 handles social media and self-disclosure in a similar way – and, again, these online examples are where my students most often and most readily draw comparisons to their real lives when we chat in person.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Online use is very easy. My students typically review the PDF because they can view it on their phones. The links within the Table of Contents easily jumps them from topic to topic. The PDF file itself is a quick download in most cases. I haven't ever had an issue providing it on my learning portal to my students.  \n\nThe images are black-and-white-print-out-conscious and don’t lose any of their meaning when my budget-conscious students don't want to pay to print a color copy. I love this … it's the small things, right?","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I was a copy editor for many years so I am hard-wired to notice grammatical errors. I haven't seen any in this textbook. This makes for an added level of credibility and expertise and clearly indicates that the authors put in the time and care needed.  \n\nI also appreciated the tips in the textbook for editing written communication, as they're the same tips I have always shared with my students.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This book does an excellent job of being culturally aware and relevant – and not just in the Cultural Communication chapter. For example, Chapter 2 covers self-perception in individualistic vs. collectivistic  societies and over racial/gender differences. Chapter 3, on Language, covers neologisms and slang (an important, fast-moving part of my students' lives). Chapter 4 covers language as culture examples from many countries – some that I hadn't heard before! The book also covers accent bias, code-switching and other real-life examples that my students (particularly those who are bilingual) experience daily.  \n\nThe LGBTQ+/same-sex marriage sections are a bit outdated, due to the publication date of the version of this book that I've been using.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"If you have previously used any of the most popular and often-used Comm Studies books, you won't be disappointed. I love this book, both for how it supports the courses I had previously developed and also for how it adds to them with new concepts and examples. The online availability is a big benefit for my students and they let me know how much they appreciate the free option every semester. Even those who print hard copies find that the cost is comparably low, as well.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2420,"first_name":"Yuxiang","last_name":"Du","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Fort Hays State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook is more comprehensive than the ones I have used in my basic course classes. It is an ideal textbook for these hybrid courses (interpersonal and public speaking). I am very impressed with its scope and comprehensiveness. Within each topic (chapter), you can find most of important and relevant concepts and theories covered. The challenge for instructors and students might be getting through all the materials in each chapter within a week. However, it is better to have more materials to choose from than having less. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The authors did a great job in achieving accuracy in the text. Theories and concepts covered in the book were accurately cited and discussed. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"It is clear to me that the authors made an effort to make this book relevant for students by including examples and stories that the students could relate to. Many of these examples are real world ones which could help students to apply what they learned in real life. These “getting real”, “getting critical”, and “getting plugged in” sections are quite helpful in this regard. As for longevity, there are some dated references and historical timelines in the book that should be updated in the future.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The authors were very clear and straightforward in their writing. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book showed great consistency in writing, chapter characteristics (length, details), tones, and flow. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Other than the first chapter, each chapter covers a different topic with chapters covering related topics located together. It is easy to pick a chapter or a group of chapters for a particular topic. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Placing public communication related chapters in the middle of the book is somewhat different from the ones I have used before. Usually you would find these chapters located at the end of the book. I also find four chapters are not enough for public speaking centered courses. At least, separate informative and persuasive speaking in two chapters. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I am satisfied with its interface. The only problem I have experienced is the hyperlinked materials in the book. I used a digital PDF copy and found that after I clicked and viewed a photo or a video, it could only return to the title page, not where I clicked in the text.  ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have not detected grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The authors’ effort in promoting cultural relevance in the book should be praised. The chapter on culture and communication was well written and consisted of important concepts and examples that could help students to build their cultural competence. The notion of culture and culture as a context was also frequently mentioned and discussed in other chapters such as verbal communication and communication in relationships.  ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This book is a good textbook option for communication basic courses especially hybrid courses. Its comprehensiveness and real world examples can help students to understand basic communication concepts and apply them in real world situations. My only suggestion is to increase the portion on public speaking. ","created_at":"2018-11-29T12:14:30.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-11-29T12:14:30.000-06:00"},{"id":2428,"first_name":"Kelly","last_name":"Young","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Wayne State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text does a nice job of discussing most of the common communication areas covered in other similar textbooks. I wish the text would include discussion of health communication and public and personal persuasion or influence, as I feel that the book is rather light on humanistic (critical/rhetorical) and social scientific perspectives on persuasion. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content appears to be accurate and error-free. The examples are benign and do not suggest any bias.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I enjoyed the numerous examples given throughout the book. I felt as though they were timely but not obsolete. The content was similarly up-to-date. Not much of the material is at risk of being dated other than the chapter on mass media and technology. However, at this moment, the material seems current, but that could change in a few years.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clarity in prose and structure is one of the greatest strengths of this textbook. The prose is straightforward and defines keywords in easily understandable ways. The short sections within each unit aids reading comprehension, as each section covers one main idea rather than several concepts or keywords. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text does not appear inconsistent in its use of terms or framework. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Another strength of this textbook is how well it is organized into smaller units. Each chapter consists of 3 or more units, which allows an instructor to include or exclude units given the flavor of the course. The internal organization of the units are very nicely broken into separate sections that focus on one central idea at a time without significant self-reference. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The individual chapters are well organized. I like how the units within the chapters are organized, in that there is usually a broad opening unit, then a discussion of key concepts, how communication problems occur, then a ‘how to improve your communication’ units. This is very helpful if your aim is to teach a broad course to improve many facets of students’ communication. I do not find this as helpful if you aim is to teach an open survey of communication theory course, but the “improvement” units could be avoided in that case.\r\nI found the placement of the public speaking chapters odd. I know the opening of the book lists 5 “forms” of communication (really, they are levels, not forms) and the organizational choice follow these levels. However, given the specificity of these units and how out of place they are with the nature of the survey of the field, it might make sense for them to be located at the end of the book.\r\n","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"In terms of its production value, the book has clean imagines and is well constructed. It is easy to navigate given its table of contents. Hyperlinked table of contents to the chapters and units would be a nice feature, but the lack of it does not seem to limit the book.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The textbook appears to use proper grammar and is free of writing mistakes.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not encounter any material that I deemed insensitive or offensive. Indeed, I appreciated that the textbook, in several of its “improving communication competence” units, went out of its way to suggest how students’ can correct their culturally insensitivity or offensive remarks. The only shortcoming of the text in this regard is that most of the communication discipline, we date the beginning of the study of communication to ancient Greece rather than earlier Egyptian culture. But that’s a much wider cultural bias of our field and not unique to this textbook.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This is a very good textbook if you are teaching a hybrid public speaking/communication competence course. Each chapter contains at least one unit that stresses how to improve communication in the 5 “forms” of communication outlined in the first chapter of the book. Also, the book would work well as an introductory survey to communication theory text if you chose to avoid the improvement units and much of the public speaking chapters. I wish the text included more about persuasion theory (either from humanistic or social science perspectives). If it did, it would be a stronger introductory survey book.  However, if you are interested in teaching an introduction to the field of communication studies course, the text’s lack of discussion of research perspectives, communication research questions, or the research process at all would require the instructor to include supplemental material in these areas.\r\nI wish Chapter 3 on verbal language included more rhetorical/humanistic notions like framing, metaphors, symbolic action, constitutive effect, etc. I was surprised that it lacked this material.","created_at":"2018-11-30T11:19:19.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-11-30T11:19:19.000-06:00"},{"id":2535,"first_name":"Jonathan","last_name":"Anderegg","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"George Fox University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook offers a broad look at communication theory, particularly through a rhetorical lens.  While the social scientific theoretical side may be a bit lacking, the book makes up for this in the breadth of topics it covers.  I appreciated the depth at which it covers issues related to public speaking, like communication competence, speech anxiety, and outline and organizing speeches.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The book definitely has some weak areas, especially as communication theory connects with other social science disciplines like psychology and sociology.  However, for introductory communication courses, there are few things that are of concern.  ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Most of the content of this text is and will be useful for all freshman communication courses for the foreseeable future.  The focus is generally on timeless ways humans have connected.","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"While the content is rich and broad, the overall sense when reading the text is that it's a firehose of content: the reader is often pummeled with term after term.  Often, I find that the best communication texts are those that are more narrative in style, which helps many freshman connect with new terms and ideas, especially when they should be connected to what we see in everyday life.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The structure of the book is solid and consistent across chapters.  Especially helpful are the key takeaway blocks at the end of every sub-chapter.  These unfailingly offer strong summary statements of the important points for each page.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"While the text as a whole is too large to be assigned in a semester-long class, the chapters are divided into easily assigned readings that can be arranged as necessary.  ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I think that as a whole the organization works, although the communication theory - public speaking sections don't seem to mesh well together.   One point that I appreciated about this book was that they included the research chapter before the chapter headings on speech organization and outlining.  It's a pet peeve of mine when public speaking textbooks begin with organization and outlining and then treat research as a supplemental procedure to support your ideas after you've decided what you want to say.  ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Overall the text interface is fine and is easy to navigate.  When it comes to images, some of the free images used are less than ideal.  I would also find a further grounding in actual data and graphs to be more useful than some of the generic imagery.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There are a few typos here and there, but nothing too shocking.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I think the text is acceptable, however there is much to be improved with the strength of examples provided.  ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This is a decent textbook for communication theory/public speaking hybrid courses.  I think it's a solid starting point, but I tend to supplement with my own materials, particularly when it comes to anything on perception or social psychology.  I also tend to supplement with a lot of my own material for the persuasion section.  However, the public speaking sections are fairly strong as well as the work on interpersonal and group communication.  If a bit more work is put into the graphics and images, this book would be much stronger!","created_at":"2019-01-16T00:13:27.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-01-16T00:13:27.000-06:00"},{"id":2537,"first_name":"Christy","last_name":"Takamure","position":"Associate Professor of Speech, CC","institution_name":"Leeward Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text clearly covers all subject areas and concepts that may be found in most communication textbooks.  It is very comprehensive and does not leave out any key terms pertinent in a speech communication course yet, it does not provide too much information to overwhelm the reader.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate, unbiased, and contains supporting research findings.   Data and information are current and contextually appropriate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content is straightforward with clear definitions.  Examples are not clearly dated so modifications or changes can be easily made to the content.  Dated information can be easily added to increase relevance to your current students.  After teaching communication courses for over twenty years, I have found this text to be all that you would need since you can add any of your own material to supplement the material.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Terms and concepts are clearly defined.  There are appropriate explanations if jargons or technical terminology are used.  It is easy to understand and straightforward.  At the end of each section there are “key takeaways” which summarizes concepts to help the reader identify and remember the main points.  It is the perfect text for students at all reading levels.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The textbook is written in the same format and organization from chapter-to-chapter.  It is clearly organized and easy to follow.   Every chapter is divided into separate sections.  Each section includes the learning objectives at the very beginning; text covering the subject; a \"getting real\" section that connects the topics to the readers to make it more meaningful and relevant; a summary of the \"key takeaways\"; and exercises to engage the reader with the information.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Every chapter is divided into separate sections that allows the reader to fully comprehend the material.  Each section includes the learning objectives at the very beginning; text covering the subject; a \"getting real\" section that connects the topics covered to the readers to make it more meaningful; a summary of the \"key takeaways\"; and exercises to engage the reader with the information.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization of the text follows a clear, consistent, and logical fashion.  Learning objectives before each section helps the reader to identify the key points so that they know what to focus on.   The reader will appreciate the straightforward structure of this text.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is clear and easy to read.   Pictures and illustrations add interest and breaks up lengthy text sections.  It is visually appealing.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text is free of grammatical errors.  Terms are clear and technical/jargons are defined.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"At the end of each section, there are exercises to possibly use in the classroom.  These exercises help to engage the reader to make the concepts more relevant to their lives to make it more meaningful.  My student population is very diverse and the exercises allows for open discussions and self-reflections.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I have been teaching communication courses for over twenty years and was ecstatic to discover this textbook that is comprehensive and satisfies the learning outcomes of my communication course.  I am certain that my colleagues will appreciate this textbook because of its simplicity, compatibility, and accessibility.","created_at":"2019-01-18T14:43:52.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-01-18T14:43:52.000-06:00"},{"id":2549,"first_name":"Valerie","last_name":"Young","position":"Associate Professor, Communication","institution_name":"Hanover College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Each chapter supports both the \"typical\" topics in similar breadth and depth as the traditional hybrid Intro to Communication text and I was pleasantly surprised to see the integration of topics within and between chapters. For example, rarely to Communication texts engage with the National Communication Association resources in the way that this one does. The chapters reference NCA's work in learning outcomes, skills, ethics, and employment in the field.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is very accurate, from my perspective and background. For instructors who find something missing, it should be easy to supplement with a journal article or two. Personally, the major content areas are fully covered and there are plenty of references to content that is omitted from other Intro texts due to space constraints. I did not notice many (any?) errors or bias in the content during my initial read. The Chapter 16 acknowledges that new tech changes occur rapidly. The author links to a personal blog (no thanks; not my favorite way to update textbook content), and the blog is not written in English.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Plenty of examples are embedded into the text, up to the Obama/2012 election era. It would be fantastic to update the political and social references again to connect with readers and contemporary examples in media. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is written in a conversational, approachable writing style that should be appealing to lower-level undergraduate students; it makes for an “easy read” even though chapters are broken down into several sections and the text is plenty lengthy. I could easily assign this text in a 100-200 level course without reservation, based on the clarity of writing. I don't love the occasional use of first-person language/writing, but that's a minor, personal annoyance.\r\n","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Like a traditional text, each chapter begins with a list of learning outcomes; ends with takeaway summaries and a list of discussion prompts, rhetorical questions, or activities appropriate for the classroom. The learning outcomes and content is consistent with those used in the broader communication field. The text provides a broader scope for the historical framework of our discipline, couching the discipline in rhetoric, as many Intro texts mention the ancient evolution of the field (including technical and mediated communication) rather flippantly. There are not as many journal article source citations as I’d like, and it would be fantastic to link some web content or other content into the citations or as video examples earlier in the text. Some of the chapters have videos embedded; others do not.\r\n\r\n","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"I appreciate that the lengthy chapters are easy to divide into sections. Each section is easy to navigate on screen and would allow an instructor to divide reading assignments by chapter subsection, based on the pacing of the course reading assignments. Sometimes, reading the entire nonverbal chapter (for example) can be overwhelming; yet dividing the content into an overview, a focus on types, then competence and context makes the chapter easier to approach in subsections. Each subsection contains subheadings for readability. My complaint here is still praise: even the subsections are very detailed and lengthy. I'd much rather have too much content than too little; however, my students may feel overwhelmed if asked to read more than one or two subsection per class period. With that said, if you've ever hesitated to assign a full chapter of reading per day for fatigue reasons, this modular format will allow you to break apart each chapter and cover content as students keep up with reading subsections.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Excellent organization and flow between topics. Very similar to the previous texts I have used for this level of class. The chapters are presented in a nearly identical order. There are two topics- culture and organizational communication- that are *typically* reserved for separate chapters in other Intro texts. Here, I appreciate that concepts regarding culture and organizational communication are interwoven into several chapters, where relevant- and cultural communication and leadership development have their own chapters, as well. Makes for seamless organization (and plenty of content!).","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"It is fairly easy to navigate through the pages and subheadings using links at the bottom of the pages. The subheadings would be easier to navigate if a list of chapter subheadings/content appeared on the upper left side of the screen and followed the reader, so that as I read subsection 4.3, I can easily click back to content in 4.2 and 4.4 without scrolling to the bottom of the page. (like the content dropdown menu bar, but one that follows the page and only pertains to the chapter open).This is a minor concern. I do appreciate the links embedded into the chapters; however, as I link backward or forward to content that is already covered (for example, Chapter 15 references Chapter 9; I click on the link and I'm tossed to the beginning of Chapter 9, but it's not simple to navigate back to the area of Chapter 15 where I was at). The cheesy stock photos could be improved. Chapter 16 ends rather abruptly. It would be helpful to have a final page/glossary that links and reviews each chapter's content or learning objectives.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No issues encountered","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"No issues encountered. I appreciate how several topics are separated out from other chapters and linked in to the chapters where appropriate. We often want our students to draw these links, but it is impossible (literally) in a print copy to do this while reading or studying. Stock photos could be improved. Additional research on under-served / under-studied and non-Western populations, also, could enhance chapters beyond cultural communication.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2019-01-25T10:57:32.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-01-25T10:57:32.000-06:00"},{"id":2568,"first_name":"Merissa","last_name":"Bunton (Brown)","position":"Lecturer of Speech and English","institution_name":"Leeward Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I plan to begin using this book for my Human Communication course. All of the topics I address are adequately covered in this text. When I began my initial review of the book, I loved the online glossary with the easy to navigate \"dropdown\" menu that quickly links users to the desired topics. Additionally, the learning objectives outlined at the beginning of each section are especially helpful. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The writer's adherence to inclusive language throughout the text demonstrated best practices in modern communication. No glaring errors distracted me from the content. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I appreciated that the book had two separate chapters addressing media and communication. The first of the two, Chapter 15, provided a general, history and overview of the development of media over time (especially as related to technology), theories associated with media, and a section on ethics. The second, Chapter 16, looked specifically at new media. Separating the chapters in this way, I believe, will make the book easier to update and media continues to evolve. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"I like that the wording is approachable for most readers. I would prefer the author(s) not use \"we\" in the discussions because that word inherently discriminates against those who do not share the same experience as the author(s). Additionally, although key words are highlighted in the text, I would also like to see those same key words defined in the margin or at the end of chapters to help students study as they build their lexicon. The \"Key Takeaways\" listed at the end of each section are nice. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The writer(s) did a lovely job scaffolding the information throughout the text. Terminology was consistent. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I really appreciate the attention to detail employed when preparing the various sections of the text. As I build my resources for both my online and face to face sections I will be able to embed links easily in my online classroom and handouts for student reading/reference/discussion. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization of the first six chapters align exactly with the way I prefer to teach. I love being able to assign chapters to students in sequential order. The division of the two chapters about media and communication, at the end of the book, is perfect for updating. Listing learning objectives at the beginning of each section and key takeaways at the end of each chapter is extraordinarily useful. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Navigation is simple, intuitive, and user-friendly for both digital natives and digital immigrants. The option to download and print a pdf of the entire book is also helpful. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Apart from an occasional error, the book is well edited for grammar and clarity. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book employs inclusive language throughout with no instances, I perceived, of direct cultural insensitivity. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I look forward to using this book for not only my introduction to human communication course, but as a supplementary resource for many of the English courses I teach as students approach group projects. Specifically, I plan to use the information from Chapter 5 (listening) and Chapter 13 (small group communication). ","created_at":"2019-02-14T15:37:45.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-02-14T15:37:45.000-06:00"},{"id":2571,"first_name":"Leigh","last_name":"Kelley","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Radford University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I use this textbook in an Introduction to Communication course that covers both Communication and Mass Communication. It does a good job providing an overview of such topics such as history, process, perception, listening, verbal, nonverbal, group and other areas that align with program objectives for our academic unit. This resource ensures all students have immediate access to the content from the first day of class, and allows the instructor to focus on supplementing the material with lectures, discussions and in-class exercises. As mine is a large class I do not use the public speaking chapters. In addition, I use other resources for the Mass Communication topics because of the nature of the discipline. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate. I have not noticed any errors, and the author has an unbiased approach to the content, with research supporting the information presented.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The text provides useful and relevant content but will need updates from those who choose to use it. Instructors need to be mindful of current events as they relate to the content. An example would be Including discussion of events such as the 2018 Charlottesville riots, during which marchers carried Nazi symbols and Confederate battle flags, which are an important coda to the \"history/past-present/future dialectic” and discussion of controversy over what the Confederate flag symbolizes in the chapter dealing with Intercultural Communication. This can be achieved by updating examples in the text and providing up-to-date content in lectures. Also worth note: I was pleasantly surprised that there were fewer 404 errors than anticipated in the links to external references.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Key takeaways, definitions, highlighted and hyperlinked text provide a great resource for students navigating an introduction to the study of communication. It makes the text accessible, clear and easy to understand. Example and illustrations help communicate key points, and terms are clearly defined.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The organization helps guide readers through the content, lets students focus and organize their studies, and facilitates instructor updates. The organization of content areas into subchapters, learning objectives, key takeaways, suggested exercises, and well-cited sidebars provides a clear and consistent format for the material presented.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"There is continuity in the way the text is structured, so that a linear progression through the text allows students to build on prior knowledge. At the same time, important topics have sufficient repetition and reinforcement so that instructors can effectively teach select chapters, and teach chapters out of sequence.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The order of the chapters themselves, as well as the content within chapters, provides a clear and logical presentation of the material. The content builds and extends ideas presented elsewhere in the text.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"While students could use any format, I used the .epub file. Charts and images were clear, and digital reading tools made it easy to mark the text, make notes, and reference content as needed. I did not notice any problems with the interface or in navigating through the content. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice nor was I distracted by grammatical or spelling errors. ","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"This text may limited by freely available photography; instructors should be aware that images in the text heavily features Caucasian subjects. Instructors using this text may want to specifically seek out presentation/lecture images that are more representative. Textual content and examples selected strive to be inclusive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The textbook is appropriate for an introductory level course in communication. This is a fantastic contribution to the field and is a great resource to ensure students have affordable access to a resource that provides a solid foundation for the study of communication. ","created_at":"2019-02-19T09:38:19.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-02-19T09:38:19.000-06:00"},{"id":2608,"first_name":"Berkey","last_name":"Timothy","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Taylor University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I appreciate the inclusion of materials chosen for this text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Well within the boundaries of discipline specific knowledge.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I do not foresee this text becoming out of date and any changes would be minimal.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I think my students will value the conversational tone set by the author.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The consistency of this text should add clarity for students.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The sections are consistent with other popular texts.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The flow fits nicely with the construction of the course and material can be presented in a nonlinear fashion well.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Very clean and easy to use.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"None noticed.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I see many attempts at cultural sensitivity.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2019-03-04T13:21:48.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-03-04T13:21:48.000-06:00"},{"id":2669,"first_name":"Skye","last_name":"Chernichky-Karcher","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The range of topics for this book is comparable to other leading textbooks of this area from popular publishers. This would be perfect for a course that seeks to cover communication studies with a public speaking component, but lacks topics that may be relevant for a course that is strictly communication studies without a speaking component. I echo other reviewers in that this book lacks emerging areas of communication studies such as health communication. This may, however, be a critique of the larger \"brand\" of introduction to communication studies textbooks and not this book specifically.  ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This textbook cites the appropriate literature for the major concepts covered. The strength here is citation and discussion of key literature that is the foundation of each topic (e.g., noise as a barrier to listening). I wish that the book would also consider adding in the most current applications of some of this literature as I will discuss below in the relevance section. Examples are unbiased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The textbook includes the necessary content for the concepts covered.  However, it lacks specific examples or current applications of some of this content. For example, in the discussion of Family Communication Patterns theory it would have been helpful to cite some of the more relevant literature using this theory. This textbook gives a great foundation for the most important concepts related to communication, but as an instructor, I need to fill in the gaps with the most relevant applications of these concepts. This is one of the major pieces that sets this book apart from the current publisher textbooks that I've used previously in my course. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook is written in a clear and appropriate tone. I also like the repetition of major concepts in each unit. For example, the chapter on family communication processes includes a discussion of two major communication processes in family communication literature: conversation and conformity orientations. The text also provides a visual image of these processes. They also come up again in the key takeaways section and are reinforced in the exercises at the end of the unit. This clarity and consistency is wonderful for students and instructors alike.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book has a consistent structure throughout the units. The book is also consistent in highlighting important terminology. Related to  modulation (below), the way that each unit was presented was consistent: learning objectives, content, key takeaways, and exercises. ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Overall the break down of the content makes sense. The topics are also appropriately split within each unit. My only suggestion would be to include a symbol for the subheadings within each unit. For example, in section 6.4 Self-Disclosure and Interpersonal Communication there are three subheadings: Theories, Process, and Effects. It would be nice if each of these sections also had a numerical indicator: 6.4.1, 6.4.2, and 6.4.3 for example. This would make it easier to assign short reading for each of these sections if I were to take more than one class period to discuss self disclosure.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The public speaking sections seems to come in the middle of the textbook. I would suggest moving these units to the end. The learning objectives at the beginning of each unit and the discussion questions at the end are very helpful.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is easy to use and visually stimulating. The mobile interface is very impressive and easy to use.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book appears to be free from grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book is very sensitive to include examples of diversity and culture throughout the textbook and was not restricted to only chapter 8 which discusses culture and communication. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is a great textbook for a class seeking to cover communication studies with a public speaking component. You could also use this as a foundation for a human communication course, but would need to supplement this book with other reading material.  I really appreciate the ease in accessing this textbook on mobile devices  - this is a huge advantage of the online platforms that publishers offer for their textbooks which I have found to not be very good. ","created_at":"2019-03-14T14:47:47.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-03-14T14:47:47.000-05:00"},{"id":2677,"first_name":"Carolyn","last_name":"Weber","position":"Communication Faculty","institution_name":"Minnesota State","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text provides what it claims - an \"an introduction\" to range of communication concepts and focuses on skills, predominantly in the area of public speaking. I chose to use segments of this text for an online interpersonal communication course - as this was the best \"OER\" that I was able to find to use for this course. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I have not encountered any glaring errors. The author writes with consistent,  inclusive language. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The examples used are current - and based on the political references the text will become outdated in a few years. Supplementing these areas with current names and analogies will not be difficult. The last \"generation group\" identified is Generation Y. Again, the concepts are relevant and supplements will provide timely data.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is well-written and appropriate for an introductory college communication course. The text appears to follow the thesis driven, North American Writing style. The author presents the information in a format that flows well and holds my interest. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is constructed in an easy to follow-format with a consistent pattern. Learning objectives followed by modules, key takeaways, exercises, and references. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Each chapter contains a consistent number of modules to help the instructor deliver the content to the learner in a systematic manner. The headings of each module provide structure and agility to the text.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Does the term \"New Media\" fit? It may, however, I think that \"the evolution of New Media\" and the discussion of this mode of communication may fit better toward the beginning of the text. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"A few of the images appear distorted or stretched. The format in which the text is available is abundant. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Well-written!","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Although the language is \"inclusive,\" as noted by other reviewers, the images are not diverse.  A variety of ethnicities are not represented in pictures.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This text has been extremely helpful and, until there is an OER developed, I will continue to use the book for interpersonal communication. I will also consider using segments of the text for an online introductory public speaking course. ","created_at":"2019-03-18T15:44:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-03-18T15:44:06.000-05:00"},{"id":2727,"first_name":"Lucas","last_name":"Hackenburg","position":"Graduate Teaching Assistant","institution_name":"University of Nebraska - Lincoln","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook includes the major ideas and topics as most other introductory communication studies texts. This text is appropriate for a 100/1000-level course. Four chapter are devoted to public speaking, so consider the structure of the course. In a class that requires a public speaking component, this would be appropriate; these sections may not be useful in large lecture settings. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"There are no major content errors. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Videos and examples are still relevant. I imagine that they will need updated within the next five years or so (i.e. \"Shows like The Office and The Apprentice...\" may not be as easily recalled in a few years). The text focuses predominantly on larger theoretical ideas and themes. Updating the examples and images would be fairly easy. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This book presents theoretical ideas in ways that could be understood easily by underclassmen. The definitions are accessible through the reading and does not require prior knowledge of the subject area. One recommendation would be to include a glossary where bolded terms are easily accessible. ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"There are several instances where the author uses \"I\" to demonstrate experiences or ideas (\"I argue... I suggest...\"). Some sections do not have any of these anecdotes, whereas other sections have several. This inconsistent shifts from theory to personal account are distracting. Not detrimental, but it does disrupt the flow of reading.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This texts is divided well. As previously mentioned, there is a significant public speaking section in this book, but that could easily be removed or altered to align with course goals. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Overall, this book is organized well and similarly to other textbooks I have used in my course. I understand why the public speaking section is positioned where it is (after intercultural communication), but it is a difficult transition from communication theory and practice to public speaking. (I have had the same complaint for every textbook I have used, so this is not a unique situation, as the textbooks I have used are organized in the same way.) Breaking the course into units may help alleviate the tension of this transition. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Overall, the interface is user-friendly. An option to continue to the next section at the conclusion of each section would be more convenient than scrolling back to the top and selecting from the Table of Contents. Links to videos and other sites all appear active and in working order.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No major grammar issues to note.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The intercultural chapter is more engaging than other similar textbooks on the market! Overall, I think it provides a great opportunity to facilitate classroom discussion, especially when helping students apply the information they are learning outside of the classroom. It is important to remember that this textbook is written from an American perspective, and instructors should be prepared to engage in conversations about privilege when using this textbook. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Overall, I would use this text for an introductory communication course. For general education requirements across majors, this text covers theoretical and practical topics which students can easily translate outside of the classroom. For communication studies majors specifically, I would recommend supplementing the material with texts specifically related to the discipline. ","created_at":"2019-04-03T12:18:17.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-03T12:18:17.000-05:00"},{"id":2931,"first_name":"Bradley","last_name":"Wolfe","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Minnesota State University, Mankato","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook covers all the basic topics for an introductory communication course.  I've used the textbook for my introduction to communication course, along with selections of the text for small group communication.  The book covers plenty of topic for a professor to customize what to cover in the semester and what to leave out.  The book is easy to read and I've heard no complaints from students.  Only positive comments about how it was free!","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book covers all the topics in good introductory detail.  I like to supplement the text with diverse perspectives, such as voices from different ethnic or cultural backgrounds.  Claiming an \"unbiased\" perspective puts a claim on what is \"true\" and what voice matters the most.  We never can be free of bias, but the textbook does well at providing foundational information that can be agreed upon as the whole.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Some additions could be made to center diverse voices and perspectives.  The information contained is relevant, but not fully inclusive to the full diversity of communication among and across cultures.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Students have no trouble reading and understanding the assigned readings.  When I have used this book, students have comprehended everything well with limited follow up explanation needed from me.  We were able to use class time apply what was learned from the readings.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The organization and flow is consistent throughout.  Some sub-chapters are longer than others, but overall students know what to expect.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book does a great job of having flexibility for what is assigned.  The sub-chapters allow professors to customize the text for their class without much hassle.  Some things I can cover myself in class so the section doesn't need to be assigned, but others I can have the students read beforehand to apply in class.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I use the textbook out of order, but the pattern is typical for introductory communication texts.  ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The textbook is easy for students to navigate.  I ensure to hyperlinks the specific assignments on our learning management system to make it easy for students to find the assigned readings.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No issues that I found.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The text is fairly basic in covering introductory communication concepts.  I've seen better work done in terms of including diverse voices and perspectives into the text.  There is some diversity represented in the text, but those concepts are isolated and not integrated throughout.  This is the one downside of this textbook.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Great book overall.  Free and easy to use for students.  I definitely recommend taking advantage of this resource.","created_at":"2019-05-21T16:06:47.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-05-21T16:06:47.000-05:00"},{"id":3005,"first_name":"Robert","last_name":"Jersak","position":"Faculty Instructor, Communication Studies","institution_name":"Century College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Communication in the Real World is fairly comprehensive.  In eighteen chapters, interpersonal, intercultural, small group, leadership and media dynamics in our field are introduced discussed in beginning-level depth.  That’s quite a breadth of topics for a single text.\r\n","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Crucial COMM concepts are included for each sub-discipline and highlighted within the text, and a citation often follows immediately to give readers a sense of the origin of that particular concept.  Discussions of these ideas are often useful and applicable to real life.  Even if readers are less-than-captivated by the text itself, this would still be a resource for exploring these core concepts further through other assigned activities.\r\n","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The text is general enough to give an overview of ideas that aren't tied exclusively to current events.  However, any text that addresses communication through mediated channels will need frequent updating as research catches up with the impact of social media channels.  As my needs for this text pertain to Interpersonal Communication, I spent less time reviewing Chapter 15.  However, the timelines featured for different mediated channels may be useful in providing historical context for those being introduced to mass media. ","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"Lucid, yes.  The book is competently written.  But accessible?  The writing truly is dry and typically textbookish.  The author has made the curious choice of occasionally speaking in first-person - “For example, I consider myself a puzzle lover” (p. 375) - but not offering a brief introductory biography or foreword.  As a result, the text feels impersonal and a bit detached - and it may be quite hard to get into for those not comfortable with academic readings.\r\n","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent, yes, but there is room here for expansion and growth.  Communication in the Real World is consistently academic in structure and tone, though it would have been marvelous to have short essays written by students/alumni who are using these skills and ideas in their \"real worlds,\" so as to bring these ideas to life and to help readers see more clearly how communication skills are a benefit in practice.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book's great strength is it's ability to be used in multiple beginning-level courses.  It will be easy for me to separate the Interpersonal Communication content that I want my students to read.\r\n","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"While there are subheadings within chapters, they aren’t quite as helpful as they could be, and instead often seemed a bit random and haphazard.  A tighter outline would have been helpful to direct students to explore, or re-review, key ideas.  I did appreciate the historical framing of the discipline itself at the start, though.  Many faculty may choose to skip the introductory chapter in order to move into the specific course-related content, but I believe it is important for students to be exposed to the roots of the discipline early on, and why Communication Studies is a vital part of the Liberal Arts.\r\n","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No significant interface issues that I could readily identify.  The .pdf version was fully functional and clear.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book appears to have been clearly written and proofread, yes.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"While there are fundamentally important issues related to intercultural interaction and diversity in Communication in the Real World, these issues are undermined a bit by the choice of images.  The book lacks representative images and voices, and often feels more like it’s talking about marginalized cultural groups, rather than talking to them or with them.  This is perhaps the book's greatest weakness.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I’m very thankful that this text exists as a starting point for our discipline, and students will greatly appreciate the no-cost option.  But I expect to do a good deal of work building supplementary material so that the negatives can be addressed and the positives can be strengthened for student learning.  If you’re unsure in your decision to adopt Communication in the Real World, you may want to stick with your trusted, affordable resources until more supplements, or an updated edition, can be created.\r\n","created_at":"2019-06-21T10:54:28.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-06-21T10:54:28.000-05:00"},{"id":3110,"first_name":"Tim","last_name":"Ball","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"James Madison University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook does cover all areas and ideas that are appropriate for an introductory human communication course (e.g., the communication process, perception, culture, verbal and nonverbal communication, listening, interpersonal and relationship communication, and public speaking). Chapters 14 and 15 focus on mass communication topics, so we would not include them in the version we would make available to our students. The textbook does have a table of contents, but I did not find a back-of-the-book index or a glossary of terms.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"For the most part, the textbook is accurate and free of overt bias. However, I found some errors. For example, in 9.4 (Outlining) of Chapter 9, the speech outline examples were not formatted correctly. Roman numerals (which identify the main points), capital letters (which identify sub-points), and lower case letters (which identify supporting details) were missing. The outline examples only used Arabic numerals. This is an important error because my students do not know how to create an outline for their speeches. I can make those formatting changes, but I wish I did not have to.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Textbook content is generally up-to-date, but some sections are already obsolete. For example, 1.1 (Communication: History and Forms) provides a brief history of communication from Aristotle to President Obama. President Trump’s use of Twitter to communicate directly with the American public is new and needs to be acknowledged and addressed if we are going to use this textbook for years to come.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The prose throughout the textbook is accessible and the author provides adequate context for any jargon or technical terminology used. Accessibility is important in an introductory human communication textbook because we do not want to turn off the students with ideas and concepts that are not understandable because of jargon or technical terms.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Overall, the text framework demonstrates an agreement or harmony of parts/features to one another. For example, every chapter has at least four sub-sections in which the author describes the main idea of the chapter in detail. Not every introductory textbook author does this.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Each chapter includes at least four smaller reading sections. Each section can be edited for length, easily reorganized, and realigned without too much trouble.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The topics in the textbook are arranged in a logical fashion. The communication fundamentals, interpersonal communication, public speaking, small group communication, and new media chapters are grouped together. I would rearrange the order somewhat by placing the culture chapter with the other fundamentals chapters.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not find any significant interface issues. Navigation was easy and no images or charts were distorted. In short, I did not find any features that may distract or confuse readers.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"For the most part, the textbook does not contain any grammatical errors. I did not find subject-verb agreement errors, sentence fragments, misplaced or dangling modifiers, vague pronoun references, or incorrect word usage. Occasionally, I would find a missing comma after an introductory element or a missing comma in a compound sentence.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I believe this introductory textbook is culturally sensitive and not offensive in any way. The examples used, especially those in the cultural communication chapter, are inclusive of a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I wish that the references and the in-text citations of sources were written according to the American Psychological Association (APA) style guidelines, but they are not. I want students to include references in APA style, but I cannot point to references in the textbook as examples. I can make those changes, but it adds to the workload.","created_at":"2019-07-24T09:03:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-07-24T09:03:39.000-05:00"},{"id":3241,"first_name":"Thomas","last_name":"Townsend","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"East Tennessee State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text is comprehensive within its publishing date.  It covers the basics of Communication Studies and two chapters of Mass Communication.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The book is accurate.  My only point of contingency was in the sample outlines which do not include traditional outlining with Roman numerals.  As we would use the text i a first year gen. ed course, were we to teach that tradiaonl outlining message, we would need to redo the examples.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The text through 2016 is updated and relevant.  In addressing the change in mediated communication from 2016, the text is obviously silent as it had not been written yet.  Instructors hoping to address contemporary issues with social media, particularly in relation to current events, will need to supplement their course.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is clear, well-organized, and clear.  Terms are well defined and presented succinctly.  The chapter reviews are particularly helpful to readers.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The author(s) has written a text that reads the same from chapter to chapter.  The information is equally accessible throughout.  The organization of the  \"getting real,\" \"key takeaways,\"  and \"exercises\" reinforce the well-written chapters and engage the readers.  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of the book makes using only selected chapters easy for instructors for adapting to any course.  ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization on the whole.  The only drawback in organization is found in the chapters on public speaking.  In the author's defense, I find the same issue with most beginning communication textbooks in that the way the public speaking chapters are included is a bit jarring  I have no suggestion on how to avoid it.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The textbook exhibits no significant interface issues.  The charts and images are not distorted.  The images are appropriate and clear.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The textbook is well-written.  I found no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The author puts forward efforts towards making the text inclusive.  The chapter on culture reinforces the tone of the text.  Cultural competence is a theme of the text.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I am recommending us to replace our current text with this one.","created_at":"2019-10-31T19:52:31.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-10-31T19:52:31.000-05:00"},{"id":3622,"first_name":"Brenden","last_name":"Kendall","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Metropolitan State University of Denver","comprehensiveness_rating":2,"comprehensiveness_review":"Subjects within the text are covered well, though the author is not particularly clear about the scope of their major sections (and reasons for those choices). Put another way, the text is framed as a neutral account of the field, when of course no text can provide a wholly complete account.\r\n\r\nThe text does not engage the major subfield of organizational communication in any way. Group and team communication are covered well enough. But the area of organizational communication is an obvious and serious omission. There are whole majors, disciplinary interest groups, conferences, and international/trans-disciplinary subjects in organizational communication.\r\n\r\nNo index, glossary, or cross-tabulation is available.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The text is accurate in what it covers, highlighting and spending appropriate time with emphasized content.\r\n","relevance_rating":1,"relevance_review":"What is covered in this text is covered accurately and in a conversational, student-friendly style appropriate to the level of course for which this text is intended. Significant, long-standing ideas are addressed.\r\n\r\nThe trouble here is that the references that form the basis of the text are quite outdated. Certainly, textbooks are not encyclopedias or literature reviews, but the major concepts and theories addressed are “classics” up until about 2000. I write this in 2020. As such, the text is somewhat imprecise when it comes to representing contemporary views on communication dynamics – the perspective is not consistent with some major recent disciplinary shifts. I think here of constitutive views on organizational discourse, representations of gender and transgender dynamics, etc.\r\n\r\nThat this text’s subsequent editions are in print with a for-profit publisher means it’s unlikely to be made more relevant or current anytime soon, nor very easily.\r\n","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"For a text to be clear at the basic level, I use Gerald Nosich’s SEE-I model for critical thinking: State, Explain, Exemplify, and Illustrate. This textbook varies in the degree to which it offers these elements of conceptual presentation and exploration. It is thus moderately good in terms of clarity. Some notes:\r\n\r\nState: the book provides clear definitions, useful highlighting of significant concepts. Subsections are of greatly varying lengths, however. This provides some confusion when it comes to which parts of the text deserve students’ greatest attention, because these differences in length seem to be relevant to the author’s interest rather than the import to the reader.\r\n\r\nExplain: I’ll note again the unevenness of the depth of attention to certain passages or ideas. Some concepts are bolded in passing, though important, and some receive detailed explanation. Not all things deserve the equal attention, sure, but these discrepancies seem problematic in the case of this book.\r\n\r\nExemplify: examples are often personal, interesting, and vivid. An update would deepen the range of examples regarding persons’ identities and lived experience (e.g., according to race, gender, socio-economic status, etc.).\r\n\r\nIllustrate: the text is clear and concrete, but does not go much beyond the standard illustrative writing of the textbook genre: the extended story at the outset or closing of the chapter. Give students metaphors, more lively diagrams, media references… any creative analogy!\r\n","consistency_rating":1,"consistency_review":"The most obvious example of problematic consistency is at the highest level, chapter organization. The media chapter addresses technology, and yet there’s also a chapter on “new” media and technologies. The team and group chapter covers some ‘workplace’ issues, but no chapter is presented on organizational communication, where there is more depth on this subject. Rhetoric isn’t present in a big way.  And so forth. The content, overall, has little balance. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Because of the text's frequent use of subsections, this book can be remixed and rearranged quite readily at both granular and broad levels.","organization_rating":1,"organization_review":"Nope. The book articulates no specific logic or plan for the organization, and offers little in the way of bridging elements of the book. But, as noted in the modularity section, the book can be usefully chopped up in this format.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The book is easy enough to read, print, etc. The use of learning objectives for minor sections, combined with its formatting can make for odd on-line reading, with movement between sub-sections sometimes feeling like transitions between chapters. On the whole, the format works and the price is right!","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"Editing seems thorough and writing is generally effective. The text assumes both a familiar, colloquial voice and a more authoritative voice in different parts. This can make for a feeling of disjuncture re: being addressed as a reader. But this is a minor issue.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The text is culturally appropriate and includes important concepts in this area through 2010 or so. But concrete examples or example fictional narratives rarely engage lived experiences of persons of color, low socio economic status, and similar kinds of common marginalization. Narrative examples are often reserved for a more generic kind of concept, an attempt at normalization and generalization that can in a subtle way reinforce hegemonic depictions of communication. The book is not offensive or condemnation-worthy on this point, but it's limited.","overall_rating":6,"overall_review":"This textbook should be used with complementary materials (e.g., borrowed chapters from other textbooks) in any class, especially for covering areas of significant omission relevant to the \"intro course\" in Communication Studies.","created_at":"2020-03-06T11:26:30.000-06:00","updated_at":"2020-03-06T11:26:30.000-06:00"},{"id":4015,"first_name":"David","last_name":"Rattigan","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Northern Essex Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is very comprehensive, and could be used in multiple classes as a supplemental text, or with supplemental texts. However, it was originally published in 2013, and there are some new developments that went uncovered particularly related to social and mass media.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"There was nothing that I could spot the was inaccurate or biased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Necessary updates may be easy and straightforward to implement, but are due.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is academic, but the ideas are introduced, organized, and supported well.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent for both framework and terminology.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This is one of the things that is most impressive. I read the text while considering whether to use it for my Mass Communications, Public Speaking, Interpersonal Communication or Public Relations classes. I found that it is easily divided into smaller reading sections.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"This book covers a wide area very competently, with a logical flow of topics that is easy to understand.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is user friendly.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I noticed no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This is an area where the information presented is excellent but a lot has happened since it was published in 2013.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"An update is due, but I like the book and will add it as a required  text for some classes in Fall 2020.","created_at":"2020-06-19T16:01:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-19T16:01:06.000-05:00"},{"id":4092,"first_name":"Carleen","last_name":"Yokotake","position":"Professor of Speech","institution_name":"Leeward Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book does an excellent job covering all areas of the subject matter except for Interviewing. Interviewing is an important aspect of dyadic communication and taught in our Speech courses as one of several important communication skills. Interviewing is only briefly covered in section 9.1 and in the context of finding sources. I would love for the author to include more robust and comprehensive coverage of this concept. \r\nThe history of communication in the first chapter was a little longer than necessary, albeit very informative.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Overall great content! The communication principles, theories, and concepts are very accurate. However, the pictures used throughout do suggest a strong bias toward white people and this is extremely problematic.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"While the concepts covered are relevant and timeless, some of the research does need to be updated. Since technology continues to rapidly evolve, more current research needs to be included as far as how current technological trends, especially social media, etc... continues to shape our interactions and ultimately, our relationships. The text is written and arranged in a way that any updates could definitely be easy to implement/insert.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This is a well-written book. It is very easy to read and many important communication concepts are explained very clearly!","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"For the most part terminology and framework contain appropriate text consistent with the topic area. I do think the Motivated Sequence Pattern did not belong in the section on organizing your main points. I consider that to be an organizational structure in and of itself.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Overall the text is divisible into appropriate reading sections, although there are some sections that are a bit too long. However, what I really like about the way the text is organized is that some concepts covered in other chapters include a direct link to the chapter the concept is discussed in. I love that!","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The chapters tended to be a bit long even though the topics were presented in a logical and clear manner. It was very helpful that the author included section breaks via key takeaways and exercises.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"For the most part all text are presented clearly. However, there were some important concepts covered that got a bit \"buried.\" Perhaps those concepts can be highlighted/bolded. For example in section 1.2 under \"Communication is a Process,\" principles such as, communication messages vary in terms of their, \"level of conscious thought and intention, communication is irreversible, and unrepeatable,\" should all be in bold.  This would make it easier to read the larger patches of text that include important terms.\r\nAnother area that could be adjusted a bit is in section 9.3 Organizing. All of the headings are the same size thus making it a little confusing and or difficult to distinguish sub points. It would be helpful the chance font sizes of headings to distinguish sub headings more clearly.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No problems here.","cultural_rating":1,"cultural_review":"For the most part the content in the text reflect inclusivity of a variety of cultures. However, most of the pictures throughout the entire book are only of white people and should be updated and/or changed.  One picture in particular in section 1.1 under the Group Communication heading, should be updated/changed. The picture shows a group of all white men and women and can be seen as biased especially given the recent events surrounding the death of George Floyd. I recommend changing this picture to reflect a more diverse group of individuals. This same issue is found in section 1.3 under the heading \"Academic\" there is a picture of three white men in regalia suggesting only white people pursue higher education. In subsequent chapters whether showing a classroom full of students or two people interacting, most of the pictures are of white people. Pictures of people of other ethnicities were grossly outnumbered. This really should be mitigated/updated.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I really like the \"Key Takeaways\" sections, it helps draw students back to the important points made in the chapter. The \"Exercise\" sections are also very helpful to stimulate class discussion or self reflection. \r\n\r\nWhile it was helpful that the author included links to chapters that covered concepts more in depth, there was a tendency to cover more information than necessary when introducing a concept that was covered more comprehensively in another chapter. For example, in Chapter one, the concept of compliance gaining was introduced. Instead of listing the common tactics used for compliance gaining in this section, a one sentence definition along with the link to Chapter 11 would have been sufficient. \r\nOverall, a great textbook, well done!","created_at":"2020-06-25T20:47:41.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-25T20:47:41.000-05:00"},{"id":4197,"first_name":"JoAnne","last_name":"Breault","position":"Adjunct Instructor of Communication","institution_name":"Bristol Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book did a great job of introducing new terms, giving a strong definition and providing a clear and concise example.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The section entitled Key Takeaways encapsulated the main points of the chapter. The timelines were very helpful in understanding how information has evolved over time.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The book was up to date on the use of new technology and terminology pertaining to social media.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing is clear and concise and easy to understand.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is easy to navigate through.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The subheadings made it easy to find the information I was looking for.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization has a logical flow. It does a great job of providing background information, weaving research and data, and presenting new information in a logical, cohesive way.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The chapter learning objectives highlight what will be covered in the chapter effectively.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no problems with grammar or spelling.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"It was very noticeable to me that the majority of photos are of white Anglo-Saxon looking people. More minorities need to be used in the photos.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This book covered a great deal of information in a very interesting way.","created_at":"2020-06-30T17:27:07.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-30T17:27:07.000-05:00"},{"id":4356,"first_name":"Amber","last_name":"Worthington","position":"Assistant Professor of Communication","institution_name":"University of Alaska Anchorage","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book provides a great overview of many areas of communication. I use this book for an introductory communication course that covers interpersonal communication, public speaking, and small group communication. This book also covers more introductory areas including, for example, culture and communication, leadership, and media/technology and communication. I am not sure if there is an index/glossary, but the Table of Contents page is very easy to follow and navigate.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I believe most of the content in this textbook is accurate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I think the textbook uses relevant and up-to-date examples. Any necessary updates can be included as additional examples, and I also think the text is organized in a way that will allow easy and straightforward updates to content areas as well.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I think the text is written clearly and in a way that is accessible to students.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I believe the textbook is internally consistent and follows a consistent framework and use of communication terminology.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I think the textbook does a great job dividing the sections into smaller subsections and so on. I assign many different subsections to my students, which I think works really well with this text. I think it is especially easy to navigate to different subsections when reading the textbook online. The PDF version of the textbook is somewhat more difficult to navigate to particular sections, but it is not too complicated and a simple \"search\" is often effective to jump to the correct section in the PDF.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I like the way the textbook is organized. I do, however, have my students read some chapters of the textbook out of order to align with my particular course, but I think that works quite well.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I have not had any problems with this. Students also seem to like the book and have not had any interface or navigation problems.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have not found any major grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I think the examples in the text could include more examples that integrate diversity, but, generally speaking, I think the text does a good job covering culture and communication.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I think this is a great book for an introductory communication class.","created_at":"2020-10-21T19:21:31.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-01-10T16:00:01.000-06:00"},{"id":4377,"first_name":"Scott","last_name":"Makstenieks","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Winona State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"For any institution or educator looking for a textbook that covers both communication theory and skill-building, this book is an excellent resource. Beyond the initial discussions of communication as a concept and phenomenon, the text covers various forms and contexts of communication that are necessary content in an introductory communication studies course.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"On the whole, the material in each chapter is clearly drawn from established communication research and theory. Quite obviously, as communication technologies and cultures change, some aspects of the material may need to be supplemented in class discussions or through supplemental readings. Likewise, chapter 8.2 (in the Culture and Communication section) is a bit problematic in its discussion of race, gender, sexuality, and ability, mainly in terms of its causal logics. In other words, the chapter seems to make an essentialist claim - race is itself a cultural identity, rather than being a product of culture (or discursively shaped by culture).","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"As noted above, the textbook covers a wide breadth of communicative forms and contexts, making it relevant for students, irrespective of the major or career trajectory. Likewise, the sections on mass communication do address the evolution of media, along with a sense of old versus new media technologies, but some minor updates in response to new trends may be helpful for students. In terms of public speaking skills, the textbook does include a section on speaking on radio and television that can be adapted to discussions about speeches and interviews via Zoom and other online platforms.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook is certainly accessible to a range of learners, using vocabulary that retains complexity without losing conceptual integrity. In various ways, diagrams and images throughout the chapters often help to illustrate basic concepts, and sample outlines/speeches are provided in the later sections on public speaking.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Each chapter is structured well and organized in a consistent manner, generally begin with broad concepts and then covering more specific topics or theories. Chapters then end with clear summaries and discussion questions for class prompts or for homework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The textbook is exceptionally divisible into a weekly or even daily units, and the subdivisions within chapters allows instructors to take a deep dive into a topic area (assigning all sections of a chapter) or lets them introduce basic concepts quickly (assigning only the first one or two chapter sections).","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization of the textbook fit perfectly into the flow of my introductory communication studies course, splitting the semester into one half about theory and topics and the second half about public speaking skill-building. Within those sections, the structure makes sense as broad concepts first and then specific topics (or speaking genres) second.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I have only used the pdf version of the textbook, but the integrity of the document seemed perfect - text is clear, and images are not pixelated. The table of contents is also dynamic, allowing readers to click on page numbers and jump to sections of the textbook (without scrolling through entire document manually). Other versions of the text are available on the U of MN OER page, which would seem to allow for even greater functionality as well.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammar errors noticed.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"As noted above, the chapter 8.2 section does have some potentially confusing or problematic discussion of race, gender, sexuality, and ability. However, throughout the textbook, it is clear that the author(s) is trying to include context and culture as a significant factor in human communication. The 8.2 section also seems to be intended to give time to these important identity positions, but it needs some revision or some class discussion to clarify the complexity of these subjects.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2020-11-11T11:37:24.000-06:00","updated_at":"2020-11-11T11:37:24.000-06:00"},{"id":4879,"first_name":"Nancyruth","last_name":"Leibold","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Southwest Minnesota State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook is an undergraduate-level textbook that is comprehensive about introductory communication with five primary types: intrapersonal, interpersonal, group, public, and mass communication. The contents were precise in the PDF version. The online version had a sidebar that included a clear list of the contents. An index and glossary would improve the comprehensiveness. The learning objectives at the start of each chapter are fabulous.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The textbook includes mostly accurate communication information with supporting evidence citations and references. Including more representation of cultures would improve the accuracy.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The textbook is up to date for the most part. Some of the media communication areas that are quickly evolving in society could use an update. The author could add detailed tips and information about web-based professional interviews and meetings could be added. An overall section about interviews would be helpful.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The Introduction to Communication textbook is clear and well-written.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Terminology, framework, and navigation are internally consistent in the text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The format of the chapters throughout the Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies is consistent. Each chapter includes headings with sub-sections to organize the content into easy-to-read chunks of information. Each chapter starts with an introduction, then learning objectives, content, pictures, and ends with key takeaways, exercises, and references.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics in the text include a logical presentation. The text consists of a Table of Contents page that is helpful and easy to follow (sidebar on online version and front of text in PDF version). The learning objectives at the start of chapters are fabulous. Vocabulary words in the text are bolded. I like the use of videos per video link. Other strengths are the key takeaways, exercises, and references at the end of each chapter. Tables, images, and figures used are helpful to communicate the information.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is free of significant interface issues, including navigation problems, distortion of images/charts, and any other display features that may distract or confuse the reader. The links were all in working order.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The text does include passive voice diction and split infinitives. Some nouns lack a determiner. However, writing styles vary from one discipline to another.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Cultural responsive pedagogy is an area for improvement. Some of the references to gender and race are less personal in the text than perhaps in reality. The images used of people are biased as most are of White people. Revising the text with the incorporation of a diverse mix of people in photos is a suggestion.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies is overall a good introductory textbook. Increasing the images to be diverse would improve the book overall. Many thanks for the work to create this text!","created_at":"2021-05-03T16:58:57.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-06-01T11:09:47.000-05:00"},{"id":5023,"first_name":"Madeleine","last_name":"Costa","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Bristol Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is very thorough and comprehensive as it begins discussing communication since 3500BCE up until today's new media components. It had areas that discussed how students could use this information in specific other courses and in the business world. I thought this was very effective. Each chapter had subsections that delved into the details of the overriding chapter topic. However, I did not see an index nor a glossary. These would have been very helpful if they had been included. I also would have liked an entire chapter written on the informative speeches and demonstration speeches since these are an important parts of my classwork.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I found the book's topics to be accurately discussed and error-free. It was also unbiased and offered chapters that covered ethics and sensitivity to culture and how to understand, communicate and appreciate diversity at all levels.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"For the most part this book was very up-to-date. In the past I have had communication books directly quote current USA presidents or other popular political leaders of the time. I didn't see that here as much which in one way would make it less important for updating to more current political times. There was one mention of a popular TV program, law and Order which ended in 2010 so perhaps a more current reference could have been utilized.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I really enjoyed how clear the writing, chapter divisions and other components of this text were presented. The text provided many interesting features that kept my interest and would also keep the interest of students.  There were clear explanations/definitions of terms especially in the chapter on new media. Key new phrases or terms are in bold and followed by definitions and more detailed explanations of the terms. There are also special sections entitled Getting Critical or Getting Competent where personal stories from the author are included to make the information clearer yet. In these sections there are questions for students to think critically about and respond to that would help clarify concepts and their application in various circumstances.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I like the way that each major chapter is divided into either 3, 4 or one includes 7 sub chapters that delve into more detailed information. Most of the chapters had four sub chapters. This made the book very detailed and comprehensive as mentioned before and the way it was divided into these specific frameworks made it consistent. Each chapter ended with a section called Key Take Aways which I thought was a great review of what the important concepts of the chapter were. Also,  the chapters had \"Exercise\" sections where students were given activities and questions to help further their understanding.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"As mentioned previously, the main chapters had 3, 4, or 7 sub chapters within them. Even these had many section divisions that were clearly indicated by a topic title in bold, larger font letters such as \"Interpersonal Communication\" or \"Intrapersonal Communication\" that would be followed with plenty of detailed information about those highlighted headings. This made the text easy to mentally digest as the smaller, clearly indicated sections were not too lengthy with too many new concepts introduced. I believe these could be easily reorganized and realigned within the course itself.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I found the book very well organized since it started with the historical background of communication and ended with new media, technology and communication in today's world. You could go to any chapter and be sure that it would be appropriately divided into the various sub chapters and headings that would further explain the major topic. There were 16 chapters that covered a multitude of communication circumstances, usages, situations and strategies that were all clearly and logically laid out for easy student comprehension. Each chapter had colorful photos, images or charts/graphs to further assist in students understanding.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not find any interface issues that would distract the student reader.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammatical errors in the text as far as I could see.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book actually had chapters/sub chapters that dealt with handling diversity in audiences, groups and workplaces, so it was culturally sensitive. It had quite a few of the photos and images that included people of color although I think the majority of photos were of white people. The examples that included different ethnicities, races and backgrounds often had to do with actual topics that were covering race, biracial and interracial issues.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I think this would be a great book for a general communication course that dealt with the wide variety of communication types/topics as it provided a very detailed and broad coverage of many areas since 3500 BCE. However, I would not choose this book for my class on Public Speaking since it did not have enough detailed information on the various speeches that I teach, visual aids and components to be used in speech creation and delivery. It did have some of this particularly for the information and persuasive type of speeches, but I do more than those.","created_at":"2021-06-01T14:35:51.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-06-01T14:35:51.000-05:00"},{"id":5136,"first_name":"Denny","last_name":"Morell","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Massachusetts Bay Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook fulfils the objective of explaining effective and ethical communication as well as describing the function of the communication process.\r\n\r\nThe exercises at the end of each chapter engage students in developing self-awareness and stimulate critical thinking and perception.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The images and photographs do not represent the cultural diversity of dominant and non-dominant groups.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Gender identity and perception in cultural and social settings should be included in the textbook The chapters should be revised to reflect current social and economic circumstances and practices.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook is written in a clear and concise manner. The theories and examples are well constructed for reading comprehension.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The layout of the textbook connects the chapters in a logical order","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The units are organized and consistent with specific descriptions, examples, and exercises for successful learning outcomes.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The chapters are arranged in a logical order and transition smoothly from the introduction to speech preparation and presentation.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The formats are easily accessible to the reader.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are no grammatical errors in the textbook.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The images and photographs do not represent the cultural diversity of dominant and non-dominant groups.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2021-06-23T12:11:36.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-06-23T12:11:36.000-05:00"},{"id":33532,"first_name":"Art","last_name":"Khaw","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Kirkwood Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The Communication in the Real World text is an effective textbook for students in two-year programs and introductory communication courses at four-year institutions.  Too often, texts try to accomplish too much in one course.  This textbook allows for a greater understanding and growth in the discipline of communication studies. One advantage of the text is the assessments, cases, discussion questions and exercises can be accomplished in a semester.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The major content areas are fully covered in an introduction communication studies course. The book is accurate, research-based and up-to-date with communication information supported with citations and references. The communication concepts, principles and theories are accurate which includes relevant sources. The text provides a nice foundation for class discussions and lectures. Sources are referenced at the end of every chapter. The author writes with consistent, inclusive language. There was no evidence of bias or errors that I detected, perhaps more diversity in photographs are encouraged.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The textbook includes the necessary content for an introductory communication course. The framework and organizational structure of the text is arranged in a manner that any updates could easily be implemented. Political and social references can easily be updated through contemporary examples and issues in media.  Instructors can supplement contemporary information to increase relevance for their students.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Communication in the Real World - An Introduction to Communication Studies is a well-written text.  The textbook’s approach helps students transfer and apply the skills learned from the text to their future academic and professional environments.  In addition, the textbook emphasizes practical application and is written in a manner that is easily understood.  The design of the book is inviting.  The writing style is reader-friendly and the presentation is appropriate for my students. The major strength of the text is the user-friendly, conversational method/style of the text.  I stress the need for my students to become critical consumers of communication, as well as producers, and this text helps with that task.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"There is consistency in the layout of this text. The chapters are consistent in flow, language, organization and structure. Each chapter is arranged in a way that is well-organized. Each section is clearly labeled and begins with Learning Objectives and ends with Key Takeaways, Exercises, and a bibliography (references).  I like \"Exercise\" sections where students are given activities and questions to promote application and understanding.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The outline of the book is impressive. The textbook is broken down into logical and manageable sections that could be divided for instructors and students. The text is readily divisible with reading sections and sub- headings that are precise and uncomplicated.  The headings of each module provide structure to the text. The text has several headers and sub-headers that are logical and consistent across chapters, as well as \"key takeaways\" at the end of each section. An instructor could easily break down a chapter into smaller assignments for students without causing high levels of confusion. The text is divided into sections that can easily be reordered as desired, and the chapters make sense as arranged in each module. There are no areas with large “sections” of text with an overload of written material that require further subdivision. The learning objectives are implemented with ease and flow.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book is thoughtfully organized with a clear and simple structure.  The textbook is in line with existing Introduction to Communication textbooks. The book nicely aligns with how I already structure my own class. This is an effective book as it will allow you to provide information that consistently builds upon the information before it.   Finally, the learning objectives at the beginning of each chapter and the discussion questions and key takeaways at the end assist with applying theory into practical application.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is user-friendly. The textbook exhibits no interface issues. Images, illustrations and pictures are not distorted. They are appropriate and clear. Links are active and in working order at the time of review. Furthermore, illustrations and images add interest and divides lengthy text sections. The text is visually appealing. Navigation was easy and user-friendly.  In summary, the book is well constructed and the various formats available are easily accessible to the reader.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text is thorough and well-written. I did not note any grammatical errors during my review of the text.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book is inclusive and is fairly appealing to all races, ethnicity, and backgrounds.  The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Students of, and practitioners in, the field of communication studies will find this text a valuable learning tool.  The work is easy to follow and understand.  Also, valuable information and learning arenas are presented.  The exercises allow enough opportunity for the mind to expand and the student to become creative.  Overall, this is a very good text for students enrolled in an introduction to communication studies course.  I highly recommend the text.","created_at":"2021-12-13T16:19:08.000-06:00","updated_at":"2021-12-13T16:19:08.000-06:00"},{"id":33738,"first_name":"Michele","last_name":"Mahi","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Leeward Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Communication in the Real World is a comprehensive textbook for an introductory communication course. The textbook includes the standard topics addressed in typical 100-level speech courses. Something this textbook lacks is an index or glossary; however, I did not find this to be an issue.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content reflects current communication research. This textbook provides a nice introduction to major communication concepts, theories, and principles and provides a solid foundation for class discussions and activities. I found the content to be error-free and unbiased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This textbook was published in 2016, so an update with more contemporary examples would be nice. For instance, I think Chapters 15 and 16 (media, technology, communication) could use an update. A lot has changed in 6 years. However, instructors can easily develop supplementary materials with contemporary examples to increase relevancy for their students.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing of this textbook is clear and concise. All course terminology is properly explained.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The textbook is consistent in terms of terminology and framework. Additionally, I appreciated the consistent layout of each chapter. I liked how each chapter opened with the learning objectives and closed with key takeaways and exercises. I also liked how each chapter included a section that addressed real-world applications.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Communication in the Real World is divided into chapters with multiple sections. Instructors can obtain links for the entire textbook, specific chapter, or even specific sections within each chapter. I appreciated this functionality. I liked that the textbook is divisible and customizable. In addition to allowing instructors to choose with sections they address, instructors can easily reorder the sections to their liking.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The textbook uses a clear and consistent organizational pattern for each chapter. However, I think informative speaking and persuasive speaking should have been separate chapters instead of combined into one chapter. Additionally, I think this textbook would have benefited from an index or glossary.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I found the interface user-friendly. I thought the textbook was easy to navigate. All links worked and I did not experience problems accessing the material. However, I think the textbook could be more visually appealing.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Generally, I found the textbook culturally appropriate. However, I think the textbook could use benefit from more inclusive examples.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, I think this textbook is an appropriate choice for an introductory communication course.","created_at":"2022-03-11T13:10:35.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-03-11T13:10:35.000-06:00"},{"id":34194,"first_name":"Brian","last_name":"Healy","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Metropolitan State University of Denver","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is an excellent foray into Communication Studies. Communication in the Real World runs the gamut from Intrapersonal Communication to Mass Communication while presenting content that reflects historical and current research trends. This textbook provides the reader with myriad opportunities for entrance into Communication theory. This book is acceptable for fundamental courses while also maintaining relevance as a companion reader to higher-level courses in communication. It is an excellent resource for any student moving through the discipline.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I find the book to be relatively accurate throughout. The foundational Communication theories are helpful and connected to the reader's lived experiences. However, I believe there are a few Intercultural Communication and Gender Communication terms that could use a touch-up and reexamination. This is to be expected as the cultural milieu changes over time, and I look forward to future iterations as the text continues to grow and develop.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text, as a whole, speaks to the student well while maintaining its academic and terminological integrity. The overarching communication principles are presented in ways that are as relevant today as they were when I first learned them. As commented above, as the world shifts and our experiences and understandings deepen, so will the text, hopefully.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing in this textbook is accessible for all level students while maintaining an intellectual acuity. In addition, the terms are interconnected throughout the text allowing the student to grasp the more important terms, ideas, and theories at play as a whole. Each bold term presented is clear and well-defined.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text follows an evident organizing pattern that makes referencing the text in class easy for students to recognize. The text also makes each important term bold so that the student can easily identify the key terms for each section.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"With clear headings and short, consumable chapter sections, this text makes reading assignments comprehensible. Students can maneuver through each chapter section by section with ease.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text is traditional in its information organization, from foundational communication theories in the first few chapters to practical applications in the latter chapters. This step-by-step style allows for a clearer understanding of how communication forms, shapes, and maintains our relationships with others in the myriad relationships students encounter.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The layout of this text is easily accessible and intuitive. Working through the text, the terms, supplemental images, and references are clear and easily discernible.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text is grammatically clear and consistent.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This text provided a snapshot of the cultural time when it was compiled. As with any text in this ever-evolving and changing world, there are aspects like technological use and identity markers that will need updating soon and could use the support of more research as it becomes available.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"After implementing this text in my class, students' responses have been very positive. I find the application of this text within differing web-based learning management systems to be a game changer as an instructor. My students have one space they need to go to read and do their homework, each working synergistically with the other. This text creates many opportunities for innovation in the classroom.","created_at":"2022-11-26T13:23:11.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-11-26T13:23:11.000-06:00"},{"id":34395,"first_name":"Ibrahim","last_name":"Yoldash","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Prairie State College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text is very comprehensive, although there is not an in-depth chapter dedicated to ceremonial/commemorative speeches.  I did like the sample speeches and topics that were offered within the chapters. I also think that students can benefit from what I consider to be \"additional\" chapters 6-8, 13-16 that focus on subjects that some public speaking textbooks do not.  Overall, I think it's very thorough and would be an excellent choice to utilize in the classroom.  My only suggestion would be to include a chapter about ceremonial/commemorative speeches.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"From what I perused, it is well-written without errors.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"I think relevancy is subjective (\"Aristotle to Obama\" instantly dates this textbook), and too many present references will date the text in the years ahead.  This textbook does a good job at staying relevant while maintaining traditional communication pedagogy.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I feel, that, as educators in higher education, we cannot continue to \"water down\" information to make it \"easier to digest.\"  I think it is the student's responsibility to seek guidance if there is something that he/she is having difficulty understanding.  This textbook is well-balanced between providing correctly defined terminology while also avoiding being too lofty and overwhelming.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Some may view this text as organizationally distinct, since it does not address speech organization and preparation until Chapter Nine; yet I find it appropriate in giving students the necessary foundation of communication history, concepts, and its applications before having them begin on speech presentations.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Perhaps Chapter Eleven could be divided into two separate chapters, one with Informative Speaking and the other with Persuasive Speaking.  It is a very lengthy chapter, and I think students may benefit from separating the two.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Even though the chapters do somewhat build upon one another, I feel that they are also standalone in the sense that you do not necessarily need to understand the chapter unless you have read all of the ones before it (like its own self-contained unit).","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I haven't had any issues with this.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Again, I haven't noticed any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"It does a good job of being objective by presenting information from a neutral standpoint instead of trying to take sides of an issue, historically or otherwise.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I would see no reason why this textbook shouldn't be used by many educators in this area of study.","created_at":"2023-02-08T13:14:22.000-06:00","updated_at":"2023-02-08T13:14:22.000-06:00"},{"id":34448,"first_name":"Pleasant","last_name":"Karen","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Rogue Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook covers the key aspects of basic communication and would serve as an excellent resource for students in an introductory course.  From the historical elements of communication to current research and trends, the book is comprehensive in its coverage of basic communication pedagogy.  Topics range from communication and perception, through verbal and nonverbal communication in a variety of relationships, to small group and media and technology in relation to communication concepts.  Several chapters present the basics of public speaking in a variety of contexts as well.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content seems accurate throughout the textbook, but since it was published in 2016 certain chapters could probably use an update.  One such chapter is the one on cultural communication and identity.  I feel additional up-to-date information about co-cultures would be pertinent to include in future editions, such as gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, political viewpoints, ability/disability, age/generation, and socioeconomic status as well as a discussion about race and ethnicity.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text is relevant and accessible to all levels of students.  It contains very realistic and relatable examples and information to keep students interested, including a section of each chapter entitled \"Getting Real.\" .  Each chapter begins with learning objectives and ends with key takeaways and exercises.  An update is needed for parts of the book since it was published in 2016.  One chapter that needs updating is Chapter 15 regarding media, technology, and communication.  It would be helpful if it included information about Zoom and online platforms.  Periodic updates will insure that the relevance of the textbook continues.  In between updates, instructors can supplement the textbook with outside readings, activities,  and more.  The chapter on communicating in relationships is very relatable and relevant because it discusses the \"Dark Side of Relationships,\"including lying, cheating, and anger issues.  This is a topic that I have not encountered in other basic communication textbooks.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is written in an easy to follow format with terminology, given in bold, that is well-defined.  It might be beneficial to have a glossary of terms.  A times, images and diagrams help to clarify the information presented.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book presents real world applications of the information in each chapter.  I like how each chapter follows the same format and starts with learning objectives and ends with takeaways and exercises.  This consistency makes it easy for both instructors and students to connect with the information while at the same time allowing instructors various opportunities for innovation in the activities they utilize in the classroom or online.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Readers can maneuver easily through the chapters and don't need to follow them in order.  Each chapter includes foundational information and practical applications.  However, I would like to see separate chapters for informative versus persuasive public speaking.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Each chapter can stand alone and they don't need to be followed in order for students to benefit from the book.  As I've previously mentioned the consistency of the chapter organization lends itself well to making the book easy to navigate.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The layout of the book, and each chapter, is user-friendly and easy to access.  The book is available in several formats as well, such as e-book, PDF, and more.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I didn't notice any grammatical issues as I perused the book.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The relevance of the cultural chapter would improve with the inclusion of information about co-cultures.  It is important to keep up-to-date about intercultural and gender communication terms, too.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"The title of the book, Communication in the Real World, is a very appropriate title for this book as it includes so many real and relatable communication issues.  I think both college instructors and students would enjoy using this book as their classroom textbook.  I am going to adopt it for my Basic Communication class.","created_at":"2023-03-10T16:41:26.000-06:00","updated_at":"2023-03-10T16:41:26.000-06:00"},{"id":34544,"first_name":"Yejin","last_name":"Shin","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Northeastern Illinois University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook includes important aspects of basic communication courses. Chapter 1 - Introduction to communication studies highlights the history and different forms of communication, which should be the basis of a basic communication course. Overall, the chapters were well-developed in different fields of communication, which can be used for 100-level courses, and encouraging students to take higher-level courses in different areas of communication (e.g., verbal, nonverbal communication, culture and communication, media). One caveat for some instructors - chapters 9-12 focus on public speaking, so if your institution has a separate class for it, it might not be helpful. Overall, good coverage of topics.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I do not have any problem with the accuracy of the textbook; References were used well, and most were from well-established journals or books. Even though there is a need for an update for better relevance, it is understandable, as it was published in 2016. Besides this issue, I found all the information accurate and provided accurate, effective discussions and exercises at the end of each sub-chapter. The contents were not biased, but the images should represent more diversity.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This book was published in 2016, and some areas change rapidly (e.g., intercultural communication, gender, new media technologies); some examples or terms should be updated. As this is not an issue of the textbook itself, the instructor can develop supplementary materials to encourage a discussion about \"new\" concepts or examples they experience (e.g., Tiktok, Zoom, gender identity, LGBTQIA), it will actually make the class more engaging.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This is one of the strengths of the textbook - the writing is not complicated and straightforward, precise for students who have never been exposed to any communication courses. I liked how new or essential terms were in bold and well-defined for the target students. If instructors were using this book for a basic communication course, students would understand the terms and why it is important to understand them as they are explained well with in-depth information or examples.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is internally consistent with a logical order; the first chapter is the introduction to communication studies and then provides the different fields in communication. I wish the public speaking chapters (Chapters 9-12) were separated to recognize the differences or more of an application framework, but in general, the terminology and the flow are all consistent. I also found key takeaways at the end of the sub-chapters beneficial for students to understand the sub-chapters separately.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of this textbook is great - each chapter was divided into small(sub) chapters, which were well divided by the objectives. Each sub-chapter has its learning objectives, so it was clear to readers how each has specific ideas and can be connected well across chapters. For example, it will not be a problem for the instructor to cover Chapter 1.4 (communication apprehension) and Chapter 10.1 (managing public speaking anxiety) together, as this text was easily divisible into smaller chapters.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"This textbook is well-organized. It uses a simple but logical structure; it starts with the history of communication studies and ends with new media. All sub-chapters were also organized well within the frame of the chapter; each highlights the important concepts or ideas, breaking down into at least 3 or 4 sub-chapters.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I had no problem with this textbook's interface. It was user-friendly, and the layout (e.g., picture, different background colors for exercises or key takeaways, \"previous\" and \"next\" buttons on the bottom) was great for focusing on reading. The online version was easy to navigate; hyperlinks worked great for examples or supplemental materials. For example, students could take PRPSA online as the link was provided in Exercises: http://www.jamescmccroskey.com/measures/prpsa.htm. PDF and e-book forms are also available for students who prefer the printed version.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The textbook used effective grammar and was free of grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Generally, this textbook is culturally appropriate; it is not offensive. However, as this is a communication course textbook, I think the communication field has strengths in acknowledging and appreciating cultural differences, which is why this needs to be updated. Again, the images, photos, and examples should include more diverse perspectives to enrich what we value.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this is a good textbook for a basic communication course; it covers a wide variety of topics and fields, and covering them will guide students in which specific area they will consider taking classes at a higher level. It is also easy enough for the gen edu course. If your institution had combined basic communication and public speech courses, this book fits the purpose well. Students will take advantage of it, using different versions at no cost. Some areas need to be developed, such as providing more recent examples or concerns about diversity, but if instructors are prepared for open discussions with students, this book will do fine. One of the great, effective books Open Textbook Library.","created_at":"2023-05-05T21:02:45.000-05:00","updated_at":"2023-05-05T21:02:45.000-05:00"},{"id":34897,"first_name":"Parameswari","last_name":"Mukherjee","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Metropolitan State University of Denver","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook is highly recommended for introductory-level Communication Studies courses. It provides a comprehensive overview of various topics, including verbal and non-verbal communication, listening skills, interpersonal communication, conflict resolution, and various types of speeches. While the content is excellent, I've rated it four stars because some chapters tend to be overly lengthy.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The textbook delves into concepts such as the significance of finding common ground and comprehending diverse worldviews, which are influenced by various cultures. This inclusion of diverse perspectives makes the textbook inclusive.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"I find certain sections and exercises within the chapters remain highly relevant (such as handling communicative aggression/bullying at work, developing intercultural communication competence), despite the book being written approximately ten years ago. Additionally, I try to enhance its relevance by incorporating supplementary materials from both academic and non-academic sources.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"My students have expressed appreciation for the textbook's ability to elucidate complex communicative phenomena in a clear and easily understandable manner.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text maintains internal consistency both in its use of terminology and its framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"In terms of modularity, every chapter is structured into manageable sections and subsections, each accompanied by key takeaways and exercises identified with a \"Getting Integrated\" label. This encourages both students and instructors to delve into how these concepts intersect across different aspects of our personal, professional, and public lives.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text organizes its topics in a logical and coherent manner, beginning with an exploration of the history of communication studies, followed by discussions on models of communication, different forms of communication, and advancements in communication technology and new media. Additionally, each chapter includes concrete and pertinent examples drawn from various relationships (e.g., familial, friendly, professional, romantic) and communication contexts (e.g., interpersonal, organizational, academic, mediated, civic), enriching the understanding of diverse communication dynamics and contexts.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is devoid of any notable interface issues, such as navigation difficulties, distortion of images/charts, or any other display elements that could potentially distract or confuse the reader.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Communication in Real World covers important topics such as intersectional reflexivity, critical listening, voice/representation, marginalization, communication and ethics, which contributes to its inclusivity as a textbook.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2024-02-21T16:05:31.000-06:00","updated_at":"2024-02-21T16:05:31.000-06:00"},{"id":34955,"first_name":"Laura","last_name":"Seroka","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Berea College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook covers everything that should be standard in an Introduction to Communication textbook. It has basic topics such as identity through communication, media, and foundational info which give a solid base for more specialized upper-level courses in small group communication, interpersonal communication, and rhetoric. More introductory information to prepare for organizational communication and social media would be helpful.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text is easy to read and contains accurate up-to-date concepts. Some examples are becoming dated, however, they were accurate for when the book was written.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This book is now becoming dated with examples. The world has changed a great deal since it was published and students are sure to notice the omission of discussions of the rhetoric of former President Trump and current President Biden. Several new social media platforms are out and Twitter is now X making the language clearly dated within this text. There is also new information about microagendasetters and the role of influencers which are now important communication concepts to include. Instructors could still easily use this text, however, they would need to provide updated examples and possibly some additional readings to give current relevancy.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This is very easy to read and digest and vocabulary terms are clearly labeled, explained and easy to look up again if needed.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This book meets the standards of other texts, has quality sources, and utilizes a clear epistemology.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book has good modularity and would be easy to chunk out when creating a schedule. The chapter on Informative/Persusive Speaking is the most challenging due to its length. As many students will be doing each of these speech styles independently, it may help to separate the chapter. However, having it in one chapter means either presentation style could be done first.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I wish that culture as well as new media were integrated throughout the text rather than assigned to specific chapters. For example, the chapter on culture comes in the middle of the text, after verbal, non-verbal, and interpersonal communication. As culture is deeply embedded in other topics, I think culture coming first or being discussed throughout the text would improve students' knowledge and they way they identify with the text.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not have any issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I see no blatant errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"As with many other texts, this text tries to provide inclusivity in examples and end-of-chapter questions. I think my previous comments about including cultural communication throughout would improve this as well as using content from more BIPOC authors.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2024-03-25T12:43:20.000-05:00","updated_at":"2024-03-25T12:43:20.000-05:00"},{"id":35118,"first_name":"Elizabeth","last_name":"Johnson-Young","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"University of Mary Washington","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text provides excellent coverage of a variety of foundational communication material, subjects, and concepts. Easy to find what you need throughout the book and would serve well for an introductory course as a stand alone text or to be used in part for a variety of courses.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Accurate information and various viewpoints provided when necessary.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Content is up to date both in examples used and in the historical portions of the text. The chapter on new media covers a variety of content and can likely continue to be used even as we move to other forms of new technology and serve as a starting point for understanding context and then for further discussion.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Very clear with examples and explanations of terminology. Relatable to students in many of courses.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Uses consistent terminology throughout, which makes for ease in understanding.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The modularity of the text is strong. I can easily see, and plan to, using various portions of the text in different classes, from campaigns, to health communication, to seminars when I'd like to cover some media history and theories. It's easy to find the material and chunking it into smaller sections is provided and simple to do.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Structure is clear and logical from beginning to end. The order makes sense--if one wanted to use the text as is they could and have a great course.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"All components seem to work well with no errors.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Inclusive, diverse examples and photos.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2024-06-14T12:23:15.000-05:00","updated_at":"2024-06-14T12:23:15.000-05:00"},{"id":35480,"first_name":"Elizabeth","last_name":"Cantu","position":"Residential Faculty","institution_name":"Estrella Mountain Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" is a well-structured comprehensive textbook that aligns strongly with the course competencies within my community college system for someone who is teaching Introduction to Human Communication. The textbook covers a wide array of topics relevant to an introductory communication course, and provides a solid foundation of the communication discipline. The inclusion of a glossary is a strength. The areas where I felt this textbook could be improved are the attention to communication theories. I found, at times, that the textbook could have delved deeper into specific theories and their application. I also think that with communication being such a dynamic topic/disciplines, it would be important for an instructor using this textbook with students to update examples and case studies to reflect the latest trends in topics like communication and technology.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook demonstrates a strong commitment to accuracy. While it presents core communication concepts, theories, and principles accurately, I found that new research and/or the discussions on technology and changing social dynamics was not as robust to keep pace this emerging technologies and the evolving field of communication.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook is relevant by focusing on core communication principles and theories that remain relevant across time. The area of communication and emerging technologies could use work to address areas and dynamics that are evolving rapidly. Some examples could also be updated to reflect current events and cultural contexts to enhance the text's relevance to students. The good thing about the textbook's modular design and organization is that it makes it easy for instructors to update, add, remove, or modify content that would not disrupt the entire text.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\"  textbook is written in a clear and accessible style, which makes it suitable for community college and undergraduate students taking an introduction to human communication course.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook demonstrates a good level of consistently in its use of terminology and framework. For example, when discussing different types of communication like interpersonal, group, public, it uses a similar structure to analyze and describe each type. This contributes the textbook's clarity and coherence.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook has a strong degree of modularity, and it can be adaptable for various course structures and instructor preferences. The structure of the textbook allows for flexibility in how instructors organize their course. For example, the chapters are organized around key topics like verbal communication and listening, which would provide instructors opportunities to teach the topics in various sequences without causing confusion or disrupting the flow of the content.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook's organization is a strong point. It is logically structured with consistent and clear headings and subheadings within chapters that help break down information into management segments. Not only does the organization improve readability and make it easier for students to navigate to find specific information, the a degree of modularity provides flexibility for instructors to customize the order in which to present the material.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook was easy to navigate. The table of contents is well-structured and provides a good overview of the material. The content progresses in a logical manner, which makes it easy to follow the development of ideas and concepts throughout the textbook. There were some images and charts that appeared slightly distorted or of lower resolution. The textbook would benefit from some interactive features to enhance the interface.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook is well-written and uses clear, concise, and correctly structured sentences. It demonstrates a good command of standard English grammar.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook includes diverse examples and addresses cultural and gender variables in communication. It addresses issues of culture, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and ability, and there are dedicated sections that discuss cultural identity and intercultural communication. These sections encourage the use of inclusive language and careful selection of terms to not reinforce stereotypes or marginalizing certain groups. The textbook would benefit from more depth and consistency when integrating cultural examples and discussions throughout the whole textbook.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"\"Communication in the Real World\" textbook is a valuable resource for an introductory communication course. As a textbook it provides a solid foundation for students to develop their communication knowledge and skills. It has a good balance between theoretical concepts and practical application. It offers key theories and includes examples, exercises, and real-world scenarios to help students apply what they are learning from the textbook. The textbook's organization and modularity would make it easy for an instructor to include new research on emerging technologies and communication and to further enhance the textbook's effectiveness with ancillary materials.","created_at":"2025-05-16T11:46:16.000-05:00","updated_at":"2025-05-16T11:46:16.000-05:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/communication-in-the-real-world-an-introduction-to-communication-studies","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:20:11.000-06:00"},{"id":344,"title":"Graphic Design and Print Production Fundamentals","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2015,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":null,"license":"Attribution","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"This textbook -- written by a group of select experts with a focus on different aspects of the design process, from creation to production -- addresses the many steps of creating and then producing physical, printed, or other imaged products that people interact with on a daily basis. It covers the concept that, while most modern graphic design is created on computers using design software, the ideas and concepts don't stay on the computer. The ideas need to be completed in the computer software, then progress to an imaging (traditionally referred to as printing) process. Keywords are highlighted throughout and summarized in a Glossary at the end of the book, and each chapter includes exercises and suggested readings.","contributors":[{"id":3816,"contribution":"Author","primary":true,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Wayne","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Collins","location":"British Columbia Institute of Technology","background_text":"Wayne Collins completed his Bachelor of Arts in English Language Studies at the University of Regina while concurrently completing a traditional five-year trades apprenticeship in pre-press with the Graphic Arts Union. He moved to Vancouver in 1985 and worked at Zenith Graphics, first as a film stripper and camera operator, and later as a computer systems operator and manager. He moved to Creo in their formative years and helped champion their computer to plate systems across North America. Before starting the Graphic Communications Diploma Program at British Columbia Institute of Technology in 2006, Wayne managed the pre-press department at Hemlock Printers in Vancouver for 15 years."},{"id":3817,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Alex","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Haas","location":"Emily Carr University","background_text":"Alex Haas is a multidisciplinary designer, illustrator, and artist. Her design practice encompasses art direction, typeface design, and image creation. She has a special fondness for book design. She has partnered with Canadian publishers, art galleries, artists, universities, furniture makers, filmmakers, First Nation educators and historians, musicians, the CBC and the National Film Board in her design projects. Alex studied illustration and art direction at the Alberta College of Art and Design, received her design degree in visual communication from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University, and her Master’s in Applied Art, media stream, from Emily Carr University. She has taught various aspects of design at Emily Carr University, Simon Fraser University, and British Columbia Institute of Technology for the past 18 years."},{"id":3818,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Ken","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Jeffery","location":"British Columbia Institute of Technology","background_text":"Ken Jeffery instructs in print technology and communication design for the Digital Arts Department at British Columbia Institute of Technology. He holds a Master’s of Arts in Learning and Technology from Royal Roads University, where he researched strategies for effectively implementing social media in the classroom. Prior to a move to the world of higher education, Ken spent over 18 years in the printed communications industry. Starting out composing hand-set type for letterpress, he moved quickly to adopt digital design and web2print workflows. As a business owner working on all aspects of business from sales and marketing to production and fulfillment, he brings hands-on experience to today’s modern classroom, and he is eager to share his experience with the next generation of visual communicators."},{"id":3819,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Alan","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Martin","location":"British Columbia Institute of Technology","background_text":"Alan Martin has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in printmaking from the University of Victoria. He has been involved professionally in the graphic arts since 1977, first in traditional film assembly and then in electronic pre-press from its early days in the 1980s onward. For the past 11 years he has worked for Kodak, supporting their pre-press workflow products. Alan is currently product support manager for the InSite family of web-based review applications. He teaches several courses at British Columbia Institute of Technology, including Colour Management Systems."},{"id":3820,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Roberto","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Medeiros","location":"Ricoh Canada","background_text":"Roberto Medeiros is a production print solution engineer with Ricoh Canada. His career in the copier and digital printing industry began in 1988 as a copier technician. In 2000, his role was transitioned to exclusively supporting colour and production print solutions. In 2012, Roberto joined the Graphic Communications Technology Program at British Columbia Institute of Technology as a part-time instructor teaching Advanced Digital Imaging. In 2015, he achieved his Idealliance Color Management Professional – Master certification."},{"id":3821,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Steven","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Tomljanovic","location":"British Columbia Institute of Technology","background_text":"Steven Tomljanovic has been recognized as a leader in web2print and variable data with over 15 years of experience in IT and almost 10 years of experience in the print industry. He was a part of the first graduating class of the British Columbia Institute of Technology GTEC printing program. Upon graduation, Steven helped companies build their online business presence with great success. He has been honoured with PrintAction magazine’s PA35, awarded to the top 35 industry leaders under the age of 35 in Canada. Steven shares his passion by teaching e-commerce, web2print, and web marketing courses at British Columbia Institute of Technology in the GTEC and New Media \u0026 Design Programs within the School of Business. Steven currently works as the web2print specialist at MET Fine Printers, located in Vancouver BC."}],"subjects":[{"id":29,"name":"Arts","parent_subject_id":6,"call_number":"N85","visible_textbooks_count":56,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/arts"},{"id":3,"name":"Computer Science","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"QA76","visible_textbooks_count":137,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/computer-science-information-systems"},{"id":6,"name":"Humanities","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":null,"visible_textbooks_count":418,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/humanities"},{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":258,"url":"https://opentextbc.ca/","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:38.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-07-24T19:44:01.000-05:00","name":"BCcampus"}],"formats":[{"id":427,"type":"PDF","url":"https://opentextbc.ca/graphicdesign/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":428,"type":"Online","url":"https://opentextbc.ca/graphicdesign/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1658,"type":"eBook","url":"https://opentextbc.ca/graphicdesign/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"3.5","textbook_reviews_count":19,"reviews":[{"id":848,"first_name":"Melinda","last_name":"Benton","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Umpqua Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":1,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book gives an introduction to some key principles in graphic design, in printing, and in design business management. It gives an introduction, not a comprehensive study of any of those three fields. Some sections are written to a beginning reader while others are written to readers with extensive background already in the subject.\n\n","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The graphic design information is accurate. The printing information appears to be accurate, but the text doesn't always mention which version of the software they are referring to. I gave the book a \"3\" for accuracy because of this concern. Since printing and design software can change substantially in subsequent versions, readers will need to know which software version is being discussed. ","relevance_rating":1,"relevance_review":"Some of the information in the book is out of order. For example, the project management information is presented with complex details in one chapter then the foundational information needed to understand those details is in a later chapter. A graphic design student would usually get the information on basic design principles, then some practice, then the really detailed info on project management. The same issue happens with vocabulary. A term is used repeatedly, then in later chapters the same term is bolded to show that it is in the glossary with a definition. Words that need definitions should be bolded the first time they are used since this text uses bolding to show words defined in a glossary. Better yet, the words should be defined in text. Also, some words like incunabula, bespoke, baseline grid, proofer, output device, output profile, color chart, natural base state, patch, option prompts, read head,  etc. are either not defined at all or not bolded to send students to the glossary. ","clarity_rating":1,"clarity_review":"Too many technical terms are left undefined, and the ones which have definitions in the glossary are not always bolded on first use (or at all). The text uses bolding of words to show that the words are in the glossary, but many readers would prefer that terms were defined at the chapter level either in text or at the beginning of the chapter. The graphic design chapter is written for a beginning student, but the printing chapters are written for advanced students. A few sentences are hard to read: \"“What happens when we project two of the three additive primaries on top of each other? This is the same as removing or subtracting one of the additive primaries from white light. Let’s start with red and green.” ","consistency_rating":2,"consistency_review":"The graphic design chapter is written for a beginning student, but the printing chapters are written for advanced students. This book would be helpful as supplemental reading for instructors, however.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"Yes. You will need the modules because the text will have to be separated for different classes. Few beginning graphic design classes will cover the advanced printing information from this text but they could use the graphic design information.","organization_rating":1,"organization_review":"Difficult vocabulary and technical terms are presented in one chapter then defined in later chapters or units. Color management information is presented in fine detail prior to readers being given the goal for color management. Sometimes foundational or background information is presented after the topic has been discussed for pages. However, in spite of the problems, I still learned a lot from chapter 5.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The images and charts that the book has are wonderful. However, this is a graphic design and printing arts book, so readers and instructors will expect many more images than the book provides. The chapter on color, for instance, is in black and white.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"complrments  is misspelled in the text","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text didn't really have any cultural references that were noticeable. ","overall_rating":5,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2016-12-05T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1576,"first_name":"Elizabeth","last_name":"Viall","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Colorado State University-Pueblo","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook covers a wide variety of subjects within it's stated purpose. In some areas, it is comprehensive - color management systems - while in others somewhat more cursory - typefaces. The book does have a glossary at the end . There is no index. The chapters discussing color management seem very detailed.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The book seems accurate and also provides sources, as well as \"further reading\" lists. Some of the directions for InDesign, PhotoShop, Illustrator may change as new iterations are released.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The chapters on current color management may need updating as soon as the programs and/or technology changes. In some chapters, this may require quite a bit of replacement text.","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"The color management section requires some technical knowledge. Some of these chapters would take a bit more background knowledge.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent from front to back.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"The earlier chapters have illustrations that provide reading \"breaks.\" Some of the more technical chapters could use this. For instance, pages 124-128 have a few subheads, but could use some visual breaks for readers.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book is organized in linear fashion, following the production time line. This makes sense for students.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I viewed the book both as a pdf and from the html file. The pdf is well organized and easy to use. The html file is rather straight forward also, but any images are only displayed flush left (rather than next to each other), which doesn't give it a \"finished\" professional quality, but is easy to access.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"I found no errors in the text. The text does use first and second person frequently.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"This doesn't really apply to this text. It does discuss designers, but pictures only one. Examples used for various parts of the book were photos of cars.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I found that this book's focus on color management in the printing process seems valuable to those more advanced students. This would not be appropriate for beginners. In the same vein, beginning students would need more information at the beginning of the book in terms of design fundamentals.","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1814,"first_name":"Eileen","last_name":"Walsh","position":"Learning Technologist","institution_name":"National University or Ireland, Galway","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book has some great chapters on the process of concept development and design, that give a great introduction to the design process. The section on design seems to speak to beginners and gives them a good introduction to design and I feel that by the time you reach the section on Printing it gets a lot more technical and would speak to someone who is a bit more advanced in their design knowledge. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The information in this book relating to design, printing and the history of design are accurate. One thing that should be mentioned is that they do not mention what version of the software they are using. For example InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator are mentioned multiple times. Without mentioning what version they are using (CC?) some confusion can happen when they are talking about specific functions within these design tools, as the functions or names of the processes being discussed could have changed, if you are using a newer version, or not be available, if you are using an older version. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The section on the history of design is one that will have longevity but I think as technology changes the ones on printing will need updating. As it currently stands the information is relevant although the information on the design process could be updated to the latest design thinking process and the terminology that goes along with it. The process mentioned in the book included the following steps: Define, Research, Develop Concepts and Implement Solutions and the new design thinking process covers more steps including: Empathise, Define, Generate Ideas / Brainstorm, Develop Solutions, Gather Feedback and Improve. The extra steps are included in the text but the new terminology is not used.  ","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"There are a lot of technical terms within this book and only some of them are defined in the glossary. It would be more useful too if they were defined within context so you didn't have to keep flipping back to the glossary page as you may need to remind yourself what a certain word means. \n\nIt was a little bit difficult reading some of the more technical chapters, like the ones on printing, as they were filled with technical jargon and were written for a different skill level than the introductory chapters were. ","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"The book seems to be split on the target audience who would be reading it. The first half gives a good introduction to the history of design and the design process for a beginner. The second half is more in depth and is very jargon heavy, and would be more suited to someone who is more advanced. In terms of using it as a teaching tool I think the first half would be a good resource to point your beginner students too and only utilise the second half for more advanced students or ones who have demonstrated a particular interest in the printing process. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is well divided and I can see how it could be split up or reorganised to suit a specific learning environment.","organization_rating":2,"organization_review":"Some work is needed on the overall structure / flow of the book. Because it is already split into blocks I think this could be easily done. Just some small edits could be done to correct these issues. Mainly the issue is that in some sections more advanced information is presented before some more basic definitions and information so that would need to be changed around. (eg the colour management section)","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"I had a number of issues with the interface, firstly this is a book about design so there should be more visuals inserted into the text. There were also issues with the layout, for example if you look at page 91 and 92. The text on page 91 is indented and the text on 92 is further in. This formatting issue appears all over the book and for me it was a visual distraction moving in and out as you went between pages. \n\nAs it is a book on design I also thought that there could have been more design involved in the book itself. Chapter pages are just text on a white page and there is no design element involved. It would be nice to see the principals talked about in the book being included in its actual design. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"On page 53 compliments is misspelled \nOn page 22 in this sentence: \"Defining goals allows you to home in on precisely what to communicate\" - Is the phrase hone in?","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Not Applicable","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":2050,"first_name":"Lisa","last_name":"Waananen Jones","position":"Clinical Assistant Professor of Communication","institution_name":"Washington State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The topics covered in this book are comprehensive, but vary in the level of detail and intended audience. It it more of a theoretical guide for the design process, and a technical guide for the printing process. The early chapters about graphic design history, process and elements provide a good introductory overview of topics that could each fill an entire book on their own for more advanced students. The later chapters abruptly turn to more technical and in-depth information about printing technologies, from the perspective of preparing completed files for printing. There is very little technical information associated with the design process, and there is no mention of some print considerations that often challenge beginners, such as margins and bleeds. A number of software programs are referenced (such as Adobe InDesign), but without any discussion of the strengths of different software programs and how to set up documents for different projects. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I did not observe any factual errors. There are a few topics where a specific workflow is presented as the best or standard way to do things, when there are other valid workflows (especially in other industries), and some of the historical information is so succinct that it oversimplifies cause and effect. There are very few mentions of web design and web publishing at all, and most of these overplay the idea that the web requires a wholly different approach.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The historic information will remain relevant, and references to software or design standards are up to date with the latest versions. This should be relatively easy to update should any standards change in the future. The final chapter about web2print technologies feels somewhat dated since the ability to order products online (including printed design products) is well-established and not a novel way of conducting business. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"A significant weakness in many of the chapters is the lack of visuals, which would greatly improve the clarity when describing visual principles and processes. The chapters with visuals have the best clarity for this reason. The writing styles vary between authors, as expected, but overall the writing is clear and understandable. There is often not enough context for jargon and technical terminology, and some of the analogies are more confusing than helpful — this seems like material that could work well in a lecture format, but is difficult to follow in the text. This is true of both the historic and technological information. It could be a good in-class exercise to have students split up the first chapter and find visuals and supplementary information for the many names and movements that are mentioned.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"There are no overt contradictions of ideas or terms, which is a strength considering the multiple authors. The perspectives are very different, however: The initial chapters are written from a creative perspective, and the later chapters are from a technical perspective. The overall structure of each chapter is consistent, with an overview followed by sub-chapters and concluding with review questions. However, there are differences with whether vocabulary terms are in bold type, whether block quotes are used, how material is cited in the text, etc.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Modularity is a true strength of this book. The later chapters on print production have a more limited audience, but the early chapters on design history and process could be relevant for many courses, and are written at a mostly introductory level. Chapter 3, about design elements, would work especially well as a standalone chapter in a wide range of courses. Chapter 2 is also an excellent overview of graphic design as an iterative process, which would be useful in many courses of different levels.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"This book is fairly well-organized, but there are some inconsistencies with the chapter organization. For example, Chapter 3 defines typography terms that are used, without definitions, in Chapter 1. The idea of \"grid\" is discussed several times before it is formally defined in Chapter 3.4. The overview of printing methods in Chapter 6 makes the information in Chapters 4 and 5 much easier to understand. There is some redundant information, such as discussing variable data in Chapter 6 and again in Chapter 7. This is a benefit for modularity, though.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The online interface is organized well and easy to navigate between chapters. The option to increase/decrease font size is a useful feature. There are some chapters without any visuals at all, which is a lost opportunity for a book about visual design.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There are no distracting typos or grammatical errors. Minor errors that other reviewers have pointed out (such as \"complrments\" in Chapter 3.2) have not been corrected yet.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book is not insensitive and does not use many examples. The design history is presented from a European and North American perspective, so that could be an opportunity for broader inclusion, but it does not compare unfavorably to similar texts on this topic. Similarly, technical information puts an emphasis on North American standards, but that is appropriate given the expertise of the authors and the intended student audience. The fact that other standards exist in the world is mentioned.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This book is primarily focused on a corporate/commercial design perspective, though this is not stated; small changes in vocabulary or examples could make it more applicable to news design, nonprofit and education design, etc. Adapting the first several chapters of this text for design thinking in different fields would be an excellent collaborative project for faculty in other disciplines.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2075,"first_name":"Colleen","last_name":"Reilly","position":"Professor","institution_name":"University of North Carolina Wilmington","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Approaching design as a problem-solving process is useful and relevant for a range of disciplines and knowledge levels. The coverage of visual elements, compositional principles, and organizational principles is very thorough and provides a productive framework for design projects. The information about color selection and production ranges from the introductory to the highly technical. While this content may not pertain to all readers, it adds depth and raises important concerns central to graphic design and may spur readers to ask important questions.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"While the text takes a different approach to the principles of design than my current text, the information provided seems accurate, thoughtful, and usable. Frankly some of the technical details about color science were outside my knowledge base; therefore, I cannot speak to their accuracy. The information about the history of design movements also seems accurate although additional examples and justifications for addressing the specific movements covered would be beneficial.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The historical, design process, and design principles content addressed in the first three chapters will not degrade or lose relevance over time. The technical information about color science, graphic production, and web2print covered in chapters 4-7 could become less useful as digital technologies change and progress over time. ","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"Chapters 2 and 3 that address design processes and principles are clear and well supported with specific examples and visuals. For example, the discussion of principles like similarity and continuation are supported by useful and illustrative graphics. The heavily technical chapters are less clear in that they assume more background knowledge and refer to equipment and terminologies, such as equipment like spectrophotometers, with which students may not be familiar. Providing additional explanations and even images of these items could benefit less knowledgeable readers. The section covering history could also benefit from examples and illustrations. For instance, this chapter could reference buildings, art, or other items created out of each design movement.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Each chapter is structured in the same manner, allowing readers to learn how to process the content. The references are formatted consistently, and all images have captions although some could be more descriptive.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The text is modular in nature. Each chapter is separated into sections of a reasonable length, making it possible to assign only some sections of specific chapters. I can envision teaching a document design course using this text, but I might assign chapter 3 prior to chapter 2. Each chapter works well independently and would allow this restructuring. Portions of the more technical chapters would be beneficial for my students. For instance, I might not use the earlier sections of chapter 4 but assign 4.11 as it relates to the applications that we are using in the course. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The information is organized appropriately within and across chapters. While I might teach the chapters in a different order, within the chapters, useful content is connected and ordered appropriately so that readers can gain the knowledge needed to grasp subsequent concepts. The lists of learning objectives, while useful in theory, are too long and overwhelming. The authors might be more selective or chunk the objectives, making them easier to process. ","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The text could benefit from many more visuals in some sections, such as the section about history. The interface provides adequate blank space, and the content is chunked effectively into sections, making it easy to skim. For a design text, the glossary is formatted in a disappointing manner. Presenting all terms in one long bulleted list makes the items very difficult to process. The items might be chunked by first letter as is typical in glossaries or indices. ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"As other reviews noted, I detected some editing errors in the text. Overall, the content is clearly written.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The text has a notably Western orientation in relation to the history of design and the design principles addressed. Little effort is made to contextualize the information culturally and highlight the degree to which there are other perspectives in alternate design traditions and principles outside of Western traditions. The text also assumes access to high-level design and printing technologies. Additionally, readers who lack access to these technologies might find the book to be less useful.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"The summary at the end of each chapter provides a useful overview of the content. However, the exercises are more like discussion questions than exercises that ask readers to apply the content. The text could benefit from actual exercises and project suggestions that could aid readers to take action based upon the content covered.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2300,"first_name":"Sasa","last_name":"Miljevich","position":"Adjunct Instructor (Fine Art)","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The Text is comprehensive in coverage of key ideas and concepts related to graphic design. First Chapters give a solid introduction to history of graphic design and design process. Latter chapters are intended for more advanced students and are focused on printing process. While there is no index, the reader may refer to the chapter titles and the glossaries found at the end. The key terms and questions list at the beginning and end of each chapter was particularly helpful.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate and clear, with no evident errors. The study questions appear to be carefully stated and relate to each chapter. More information related to each art movement discussed in the book would be helpful, as well as information that pertains to software used for certain exercises.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The most content is up-to-date and the text is written in a way to easily be updated. Chapters 4-7 will need to be updated in near future.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The concepts were clear to me as a reader, but some of that could be because of prior knowledge of the subject. For a first-time reader, some ideas could be explained better, specifically second part of the book where technical terms are introduced. Students would need to refer to outside sources to fully comprehend the book.  More visuals would be helpful.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The writing throughout is consistent and keeps a solid voice that does not confuse the reader. As stated before book seems to be divided into two parts, first part being intended for the beginning students and second part for more advanced.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book seems to be simply fragmented into small parts to provide foundational knowledge for beginning design students, as well as more advanced students.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The information within each section is generally well presented and organized, however some chapters lack the connection needed for more comprehensive reading.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There are no significant problems with interface. It is very easy to navigate thru chapters. One thing it would be beneficial is to introduce more graphics as well as references in form of video, links to websites, etc.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The text references mostly European and North American art movements and artist.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-08-02T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2503,"first_name":"Alma","last_name":"Hale","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Southwest Minnesota State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covers so much of the process that it's tough to cover any aspect with much detail. Some chapters are better than others, but this is a very broad range of topics to be covered thoroughly in less than 200 pages.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Accuracy seems good.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Relevant for today's printing tech.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Some topics covered are so technical that it's easy to get lost.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Terminology seems consistent even though there are several authors.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Each chapter is divided into modules or subtopics.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Follows a logical outline from history to production.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"It's not very visually engaging. It looks like it's a draft that hasn't yet been designed. There just needs to be more examples and more thought put into the layout.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No significant grammar issues","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I didn't detect a problem here.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"It feels like this is a good draft, but it's not very visually engaging. Well written, but not well presented.","created_at":"2019-01-09T11:35:03.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-01-09T11:35:03.000-06:00"},{"id":2630,"first_name":"Rick","last_name":"Lostutter","position":"Associate Professor of Art and Design","institution_name":"Hanover College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I feel that the text covers the key topics in design from the standpoint of defining the basic principles and concepts. Visual examples are limited and require more concentration on the theories and instructional verbiage rather than illustrating the concepts as you progress through the text. This text seems to be weighted more heavily on the print production fundamentals than on the graphic design principles. Each chapter is necessary for the student to be introduced to the processes that are available in printing, but it seems to support information for someone studying to become a technical printer rather than a graphic designer.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The accuracy of the information presented is at a high level. I cannot dispute any of the content, however the volume of content is rather limited, especially in the historical section of the text. So many more designers were crucial in the evolution of design and visual communication. As this text has dual responsibilities to the two areas of design (Graphic Design and Print Production), I understand that there is a limit to the volume of references, however, this text simplifies the origin of why and where this industry derives its need and purpose.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is relevant to design as it is studied by all design students. The technological information is currently accurate, but because of the rate that technology is advancing, some of the later chapters will become less relevant, replaced by new options and innovation I the printing industry. Given the nature of the Creative Commons structure of publishing, I can see the opportunities for updating the text as advances become standard practices. It is never wasted time to have a historical reference to better understand how the industry has evolved throughout the development of this form of communication.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is clear as a simplified introduction to design but becomes increasingly technical as the content progresses towards the printing and production sections of the book. Overall, this text is primarily targeted to a more advance course in technical printing. The glossary is most heavily weighted to the technical aspects of printing and production. This is not surprising given the greater volume of the text that is dedicated to those disciplines.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"The text is written to two levels of comprehension that is not consistent in its framework and vocabulary. You can clearly discern the different voices of the authors as their expertise is more relevant and technical in correlation to the nature of the roles that a designer and technician might focus their interests. The best example I can give is that this is a text for printers who can benefit by gaining background knowledge from the historical and conceptual elements of graphic design in order to better serve the printing industry as technicians and sales representatives. I would use the latter part of this book for advanced design students that will soon be entering the workforce and will need to interact with sales and marketing representatives sell printing services to designers and corporate institutions. This is valuable information, but by the time this content is relevant, the students have already studied the history and basics of design and the creative process.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I agree that the modularity of this text allows for non-linear use and can support the assignment of different sections at the discretion and need of the instructor. Chapters 1-3 are necessary to be grouped together, but the best of the text is not reliant on a specific and numerical progression as it is presented.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization of the chapters seem to be logical if you were to read them in a chronological order. The flow is a bit disrupted by the multiple voices of the individual authors. This is most illustrated by the division of chapters 1-3 and 4-7.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Given the lack of complex elements and examples, the interface is very straight-forward and lends itself to easily navigating through each chapter and section. The user only has to master the table of contents menu in order to progress through the text.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no grammatical errors in the text, however that area of review is not my greatest strength. If there had been glaring examples I probably would have noticed. No text is error free in my experience, but this one presents itself as a confident example of professional writing.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"I would say that this text is not culturally offensive or insensitive. I do not see examples, especially historical references, that represent anything other than a western (European) presentation of the history and the evolution of design and production. So much of the richness that we experience through the design world has been influenced by eastern philosophies and technical development and should be represented in a text that is predominantly about the printing industry and technologies.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I am guessing that a lack of comprehensive visual examples is due to licensing issues, copyright conditions and access to open sources of imagery and reference materials. That creates a challenge when choosing a text about visual content and processes that are best understood when you can see the references. Given that this is a digital platform, students could more easily jump to a web search engine as they progress through the text, but this could become cumbersome and time consuming and ultimately could discourage a student from utilizing this as a viable option in learning the content.","created_at":"2019-03-06T18:35:52.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-03-06T18:35:52.000-06:00"},{"id":2725,"first_name":"Patricia","last_name":"Childers","position":"adjunct professor","institution_name":"New York City College of Technology","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book's contents detail what to expect in a logical order.  The first chapter, history provides a cursory Eurocentric overview of a 130 year period from 1860s Arts and Crafts Movement to 1980s Post Modern.  April Greiman is the only women mentioned.  The last chapter, web2web, details the services this technology provides with a forward-think approach to the printer/client relationship.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate and with a valuable resource section at the end of each chapter and an excellent glossary. The history chapter is lacking in any contemporary relevance.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Most of the material is relevant. The book shines when it focuses on technical explanations, like color theory.\r\nHowever, the history chapter, 1860-1980, is obsolete and woefully undeveloped. As previously mentioned, there is only one woman graphic designer and no designers outside of Western Europe, North America borders. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The technical chapters are clearly written and informative. However, it is difficult to convey visual information without visuals. When visuals are provided, as in the section on Gestalt, standard diagrams used to represent the first six principles. However, the next five principles have indirect and vague examples of posters and images.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book starts weak but excels in the technical chapter. Chapter 4 and 5, pre-press and color management provide detailed explanations on the production process","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Excellent modularity with occasional call-outs.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The material flows well from section to section. Links to footnotes would help. For example, (Lupton \u0026 Phillips, 2014, p. 13), page numbers appear but on title of the book.","interface_rating":1,"interface_review":"A pdf on design should be designed. The margins which vary from page to page are very distracting. Hard to read, small tightly leaded justified type is 130 characters wide. 45-90 characters per line are standard for legibility. Images float out of context as they are centered in the page.\r\n\r\n.    ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Grammar appears fine.","cultural_rating":1,"cultural_review":"This is not at all inclusive, does not seem to include any examples of a variety of races, ethnicities, backgrounds, and genders.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"This book excels in its explanation of prepress and technical processes.","created_at":"2019-04-02T18:22:53.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-02T18:22:53.000-05:00"},{"id":2746,"first_name":"Deborah","last_name":"Cibelli","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Nicholls State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Comprehensiveness:  The textbook information on design history, design elements, typography, and design principles, found in the first third of the book, contains useful knowledge for all designers.  It has introductory material relevant for foundation courses in design taken by all art majors, not just those working in graphic design.   Subsequent chapters become increasingly technical and cover what occurs from pre-press to post press. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text has content that is accurate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text refers to software used by professionals that will continue to meet industry standards. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The material is uniformly well written and clearly presented.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The terminology is used consistently from chapter to chapter and concepts are applied across several areas of design practice.\r\n\r\n","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The chapters address the design process, design elements, design principles, and production processes and procedures.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The content is clearly organized and the sections are thematically unified.  There are clear transitions and the flow of the textual passages should be accessible to student readers.   ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The text provides a number of hypertext links for further reading.  The uniform resource locators may have to be updated after a year or two.   ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There are few grammatical errors. However, “Pre-Raphealite [sic] Brotherhood” should be changed to Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.  The spelling of Rossetti should be corrected.  The design history section has some awkward phrasing.  One example is the use of term “avant-gardes” to refer to Cubism, Futurism, Constructivism, and Expressionism.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text provides general information about design elements, design principles, the design process, and products that meet industry standards for graphic design. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The treatment of design as a form of communication and the design process as a form of problem solving, make the introductory chapters in the book accessible to students, and should help them better understand the creative process. In subsequent chapters, the authors, all pre-press and digital print professionals go beyond the concerns of desktop publishing to provide information important for using four major imaging technologies:  the inkjet printer, the toner-based digital printer as well as lithographic and flexographic presses. The technical advice they provide for resolving common problems when using different output devices for advanced study and professional application, makes this work a useful reference tool.","created_at":"2019-04-08T12:38:16.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-08T12:38:16.000-05:00"},{"id":2962,"first_name":"Sarah","last_name":"Zimmer","position":"Lecturer, Department of Humanities and Communication","institution_name":"Trine University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The first half of this textbook is a comprehensive overview of basic design history, introduces visual elements and design principles, typography, layouts, and addresses research and concept generation. This section can be used for both beginning graphic design students and non-graphic design students alike.   The second half of the book is far more technical and geared towards more advanced students that will be working within the industry. There is glossary of terms at the end of the text and links throughout of examples referenced. There could be more images used, especially in the history section. The history section could strengthen the link between past and present by adding a contemporary section. It could also include a non-western histories and examples.    ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"This text gives an accurate and concise overview of many topics. The history section stops short and does not go beyond Post Modernism. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The authors are using up-to-date terms, printing methods, and software. This will always be changing, but can be updated in the future. The history section needs to be updated to include references to contemporary trends. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Some chapters are more digestible than others. Chapter 2 on design process and chapter 3 on design elements, principles, and compositional organization do a fantastic job of walking you through both verbal and visual examples. The second half of the book is very technical and might overwhelm some students. ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The first half of the book is clearly geared towards beginning graphic design students, while the second half focuses on the relationship of the designer and the printing industry. The second half would be ideal for more advanced students. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The chapters are arranged in a way that they can be used as supplementary readings or in a nonlinear fashion. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Topics are presented in an appropriate order beginning with design history, process, and visual aesthetics (visual elements, principles of design, composition). The second half of the book focuses on the logistics of production and evaluation of content, looking at color management, substrates, and printing processes.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"This text comes in a variety of formats. I have looked at the PDF. Navigation seems to be fine, but this is a textbook on visual communication and it contains very few images or external links to examples. I can visualize the patterns produced by Morris, or punk era posters, but our students can't. If they don't see it or have a link to it, they won't connect with it and the historical summaries lose weight.     ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have not encountered any grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"This text gives an overview of Western graphic design movements, but does not mention or address any other histories or traditions. ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2019-05-31T10:17:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-05-31T10:17:06.000-05:00"},{"id":3601,"first_name":"Adam","last_name":"Strantz","position":"Assistant Professor of Emerging Technology in Business and Design","institution_name":"Miami University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"Overall the textbook covers a variety of important topics related to graphic design including history, process, and basic principles. This is followed by a few chapters on print specifically that focus on technologies, software, and the printing process itself. The initial sections on graphic design cover details like history and basic principles quickly, but I could see using this textbook as a great blueprint for introducing those concepts to students and inviting them to investigate further. Sub-sections like typography and color get further details, although are again fairly brief introductions to the concepts. The print fundamentals sections are very technical and walk readers through the steps more substantially, although their relevance to a particular course is more narrow. Overall I felt the textbook was comprehensive in the topics mentioned regarding graphic design fundamentals, but topics were mostly covered in brief. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Overall content presented in the textbook is accurate, especially on the graphic design side of things. I am less knowledgeable about the print fundamentals side, but all the content is supported by references and a variety of technical illustrations. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"I love that the textbook started with a quick run through the history of graphic design. That section, alongside the graphic design process and principles, provides a solid fundamental understanding of the field. I’m not as familiar with the print publishing side of the textbook, but I do wonder if the technical details may fall out of relevance much in the same way a graphic design book with specific tools/software tutorials can become outdated. If those sections could be updated due to the CC nature of the book then I could see the strength of publishing via this model. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Visual examples are used throughout, but sparingly. Sections are well-organized and clear, making it easy for a student to follow along, but I could definitely see the instructor wanting to add additional visual examples to supplement and help explain the topics. The textbook kind of skips to the technical printing material in the second half, which is a bit at odds with the introductory nature of the first half. The technical details of printing, including the software and devices needed, would definitely need to be a part of the course to find those sections relevant. ","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"Framework and organization of chapters is consistent throughout the textbook. The writing in the textbook, however, differs significantly from author-to-author. You can tell it was written by 5 different authors as the chapters have a different tone and focus from the first half to the second. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The textbook is easily modular by following the split between authors. The first 3 chapters serve as a graphic design introduction and could be supplemented by various additions of the latter chapters depending on their relevance to the course. By themselves, though, the first 3 chapters would only serve as a very brief introduction to graphic design. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Overall the organization of the textbook is well done with chapters split by author and grouped together in a logical order moving from graphic design fundamentals to more specific applications of print/graphic design. Each chapter opens with an introduction and provides learning objectives for the chapter. Clear headings and sub-headings allow the reader to quickly navigate the chapter or skim for relevant information. Each chapter then closes with a summary, questions for discussion prompts, references, and further suggested readings. The organization/structure of the book itself is a bit stratified, but the organization of each chapter is very cohesive and provides an excellent guide for those instructors hoping to discuss the reading with students in-class. I also liked that the references and suggested readings were a good mix of academic and more popular sources. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Menus and links are easy to find and navigate to move through the book. Pictures and technical illustrations are included at sufficient size to see the details needed. I appreciate that the textbook has an introductory statement/section on accessibility features of the document. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammatical errors in the textbook. ","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The textbook is not culturally insensitive or offensive in its presentation of design. On the other hand, the design history presented is very Euro-centric and discussions of intercultural design and cultural awareness are not included. ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Overall, I found the textbook to be a good introduction to graphic design basics with some supplemental chapters focusing on print technologies. The organization of the textbook is clear and includes good introductions, summaries, questions, references, and additional readings that help guide students through the text. The textbook is a bit lacking in visuals, so I would recommend an instructor using the text to supplement the readings with additional visual examples (or have students find such examples as part of using the text). ","created_at":"2020-02-28T19:19:41.000-06:00","updated_at":"2020-02-28T19:19:41.000-06:00"},{"id":4052,"first_name":"Jerrie","last_name":"Hildebrand","position":"Adjunct Faculty/Graphic Design \u0026 Integrated Media","institution_name":"North Shore Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"There are areas missing that designers must know. Things like copyright, permissions, trademarks, and the legal issues of being a designer. This is especially important in regards to so much imagery on the web these days.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"In the history section is would be good to share about design before the industrial revolution and how things like the new printing methods, inks, paper and so on impacted the changes in the design industry. There are things in some of the sections that make the book seem disjointed. Such as put all information about Color under a heading about Color. It seems to be all over the place. For students in introductory design classes this book would have too much technical information and some early students would be over whelmed.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"This does not seem like an easy straight forward book. It is missing the following....bindery methods, green design methods, branding considerations. planning workflow, the various kinds of imagery (good photography, reflective art, vector art, etc.), measuring type, leading, scanning, repurposing print for web, story boarding, thumbnails, mocks, comps, book maps, and a few things about what jobs are available in the industry if one learns all of this.","clarity_rating":2,"clarity_review":"There is almost too much jargon and no glossary.","consistency_rating":2,"consistency_review":"There is consistently a lack of imagery for an industry that is very visual. For English as a Second language the writing style would possibly be difficult.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"It does offer smaller sections to for breaking out and if for instance I was teaching about color I would need to breakout several sections and jump around.","organization_rating":2,"organization_review":"There is little logical flow in my opinion.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"To use  the instructor would need to have back up imagery.","grammatical_rating":2,"grammatical_review":"it does not seem to. What is hard is the text is weighty for art and design students who what to see things visually.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The quote at the beginning of the Dada movement could be misinterpreted if not read over and over given the current climate of our world.","overall_rating":5,"overall_review":"As a seasoned designer of 40 years I understand the book and it would be too much for most of my first year design students. It is missing too much information and I would need to add too much extra for students to read. It needs simplification.","created_at":"2020-06-23T14:57:16.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-23T14:57:16.000-05:00"},{"id":4173,"first_name":"Melanie","last_name":"Mowinski","position":"Professor of Art","institution_name":"Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"To represent graphic design comprehensively would require countless books, but for an entry-level book or as a book to review design concepts while really focusing on print production fundamentals, this book provides an adequate introduction. It is NOT a book about history or the specifics of the elements and principles of design. There are chapters devoted to those topics as summaries. Instead this book really digs into to print production fundamentals--an area that needs to be taught but is often left for the last minute. This book would help minimize that and make it easier for an instructor to teach color management, how to create files for print and web publication, and other techniques related to pre-press.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The authors express some bias by the historical choices made in the Design History section. In choosing the various movements to highlight, they are making choices that give a generic sense of the arc of design history in the 20th century. There are no images to support these choices, although they are easily found online. It would be great to have a list of designers from each era in an appendix, and a list that would try to represent the diverse field of designers in the world. \r\n\r\nWith Print Production--really the heart of the book, it appears to be accurate. At least enough that I would dive in and use it in one of my design classes. Having a resource that defines color management to the degree that this book does is a welcome resource. It is something that I have always struggled to understand. I love having definitions and examples to support learning outcomes not only for myself, but for the students of mine that might use this book.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Print production has shifted immensely over the past 10-20 years, and will undoubtedly do so again. Our role as teachers of design is to give our students the skills to know how to look for the best and newest information, knowing that elements will definitely change. This book does that. I would be inclined to use this book for chapters 4-7. Every design book will have an introductory section, this one lacks images, but they are easily found to support the content provided.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"I have no idea how someone who is not familiar with design would read this book. There is a ton of jargon and technical terminology! But I am familiar with design, and see this book as a tool for teaching students that jargon and technical terminology. The authors do a good job at giving the big vocabulary and providing the necessary evidence to support and define it. It would just be great if there was more visual support of the written content.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Given that this book was contributed to by six people, the consistency in writing and ideas is clear and flows from one chapter to another using consistent terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Yes. Totally easily to divide into smaller reading sections. The table of contents links nicely to the various chapters in the book in an effect and supportive way.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Most design books begin with an historical overview, a presentation/summary of the elements and principles of art and design, and a nod to the design process. This book does that and then dives into print production. The flow of print production moves through the steps that one would take as a designer when prepping a file to reproduce through print or web media.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Seems fine, with what is included. I would love more images. There are some chapters that have relatively few--and I'm sure that is because of permissions and licensing. Regardless, it would be great to have more visuals to support the text heavy content.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Seems fine.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Design is a really tough field. This book isn't really about a cultural representation, yet, in the introductory design history section the selections focus on milestones by white men. Unfortunately, this is the case with pretty much all design media. Women and BiPOC are often left out of design history. One has to dig and research deeply to find representation, and even then, it's really hard. The fact that it appears that only men have contributed to this book also underlines this.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I'm grateful to the authors for the work they have put into this book as well as that it even exists. Finding quality resources online for design is really challenging. I often have to piece things together to create what I want my students to learn. This brings together some of the concepts that I previously had to link together using various resources. I look forward to using it in one of my classes.","created_at":"2020-06-30T12:03:34.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-30T12:03:34.000-05:00"},{"id":4401,"first_name":"Elisabeth","last_name":"Kvernen","position":"Assistant Professor, School of Media Arts \u0026 Design","institution_name":"James Madison University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"I approached this text as a possible option for my introduction to print production class in an undergraduate BA program focused on creative advertising. I found that the content varies widely in technical level - from very introductory topics like design principles and elements to incredibly complex print production concepts like how to calculate the difference between lab colors using Delta E. Some of the later chapters cover content far beyond what I would expect my undergraduate students to know. \r\n\r\nIt’s clear that each author is an expert in their respective field, but I’m not sure all the topics fit together as one cohesive textbook aimed at undergraduate students. If the book was geared towards students learning to be print production specialists (own their own print shop, for example), then much of the content feels more relevant (except for the first three chapters, which may not be as relevant since they deal with design history, process, and design elements/principles). \r\n\r\nChapter 1: Design History presents a very Euro-centric version of history. As the design industry is grappling with its overly colonized/Western-focused approach to design history, there is a lot of room to grow in this area. If this textbook is chosen, it should ideally be paired with readings that supply additional historical context from non-privileged perspectives.  \r\n\r\nThe glossary and table of contents is well-crafted and useful, particularly in the online version. One thing to note is that this textbook uses Canadian/British spelling.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I didn’t have any issues with content accuracy. See note above about Euro-centric design history in chapter 1.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Most of the content in this book is still up to date. Overall, the content could be greatly improved with the addition of supporting imagery. I know that obtaining rights for images is a challenge for open textbooks, but even some commissioned/author-generated graphics would have greatly enhanced understanding of many of the concepts in this book. When this book shines, it is in areas where the text is supported by graphics.","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"Overall the text was clearly written, though there was a clear difference between the tone used by various authors. The addition of a glossary helps clear up the definitions of technical terminology. \r\n\r\nThere were several places in the book (particularly in the print production section, chapter 4-7), that discussed terms without first defining them. It felt like this text may have been intended for an audience that was already familiar with what terms like, “substrate,” or “imposition,” meant. \r\n\r\nIt would’ve helped if images used were captioned with information about why the image illustrated the point in the text, and also included information about the context of the image (each image was referenced at the end of the chapter, but the reader may have lost interest by then).","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"There is overall consistency between the topics and terminology of this book; the addition of a glossary was a nice touch. See my comments on “Organization/Structure/Flow” below.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book is divided into clear topics and sub-topics, and the table of contents clearly outlines those topics and sub-topics so that they’re easily accessible. Professors could easily assign particular portion of the text to students.\r\n\r\nTopics that really stood out to me as well-done were the description of the design process (chapter 2), basic type classification that focused on the capacities of the printing technology at the time (chapter 3) a good overview of gestalt principles (chapter 3), and the overview of how to choose paper (chapter 6). There are many other discrete topics that could be of use in the classroom in this book, and since the book was written by multiple authors each chapter mostly stands on its own, and could be assigned individually.","organization_rating":2,"organization_review":"To me it felt like there were two distinct parts to this book – a very general broad overview to the history, process, and principles/elements of design (chapters 1-3), and then some very specific information about the print production process (chapters 4-7) that was highly technical and didn’t seem to be written for the same audience as the first few chapters. It’s possible there is an audience out there who could use both of these different knowledge sets, but the two parts did not feel like a natural pairing to me.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"There are several different ways to read this book – online, or in multiple downloadable formats including a PDF. The PDF download is very minimally formatted, counter to many of the design principles and elements discussed in chapter 3 (it could use more hierarchy and careful attention to space; text lines were too wide, and there weren’t any call-outs.) The web version is better and includes helpful interface items like a “next chapter” and “previous chapter” link, as well as a button to go to the top of the page (and a sidebar with links to all the book’s contents.)","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There were a few spots where an extra space in the middle of a word or in-between words snuck in, but other than that I didn’t notice many grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"As mentioned above, the history in chapter one could use some additional cultural perspectives to round out the Euro-centric narrative. \r\n\r\nI agree with another reviewer that the quote starting out Chapter 1.5 (the section on Dada) should probably be removed/updated.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2020-11-23T13:16:32.000-06:00","updated_at":"2020-11-23T13:16:32.000-06:00"},{"id":4655,"first_name":"Tao","last_name":"Huang","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Southern Illinois University Carbondale","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I reviewed this book as a potential textbook for my sophomore Graphic Design courses. This book provides comprehensive introductory to the practice of graphic design, especially in the print production sector of the profession.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I have not found any factual error in this book. However, some of the links might be directing to the wrong pages. For instance, on page 34, the link to the Manchester Dog Street Life example only directs to the agency's main page, not the project itself. Because websites are changing constantly, it might be better to include some of these images in the book. I understand due to copyright concerns, this might not be possible in all cases. But including more details regarding each examples will at least help readers find them on their own if need be.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Most of the book's content will stay relevant for a long time because it covers many fundamental principles of design. The later chapters (5 through 7) can be updated when new printing and web publishing technologies become available.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This book can serve as a textbook for the undergraduate students because it is written in very clear and straightforward language. I found it easy to read and comprehend. Chapter 5 \u0026 6 contain a lot more jargons and technical terms but they are explained well.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"It is clear to me that the book was written with students in mind. Its language is consistently clear, though it was written by different people with different specialty. Chapter 5 through 7 could use more examples though, such as screen captures of certain concepts such as kerning.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book can be used in several of graphic design courses because each chapter is self-contained. They don't reference to each other and can be used as separate units.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The chapters and subtitles are clear and logically arranged. However, some parts of chapter 3 should be put in front of chapter 2, as they discuss basic visual elements. There should also be some discussion of different collaterals that need to be printed as solutions to design problems, before jumping into the technical details of print production.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The PDF version of this book is minimally designed, which is a bit disappointing as a textbook for graphic design.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I've found no grammatical erros.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"As some other reviewers said, this book has not touched upon any design history outside of the western sphere. It does use some design examples from other culture, but provides no explanation to them. However, as a technically oriented book, I don't find this to be a deal breaker.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2021-02-26T16:00:56.000-06:00","updated_at":"2021-02-26T16:00:56.000-06:00"},{"id":4758,"first_name":"Candace","last_name":"Butler","position":"Lecturer of Writing \u0026 Design","institution_name":"Emory and Henry College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Glossary and contents are both comprehensive in that they cover all main terminology and chapters of the text.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This is my specialty, and all of the information included is accurate.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"As someone who works in the print design industry, I feel that there is a superfluous amount of information on color-matching technologies but a lack of information on industry-standard software and its importance in sections 2.6 and chapter 4.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The straightforward, conversational tone of the prose is well-explained for the target audience: those seeking an introduction to the topic.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"As might be expected with a book about design and print production, all design and composition elements are clear and consistent.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Hierarchy of information and arrangement of subtopics is clear and intentional.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I might have reversed the order of Chapters 5 and 6 so that \"Imaging\" preceded \"Pre-press,\" though this comes from my natural inclination to see Pre-press as the natural end of the production process and \"Imaging\" better-suited alongside chapters on \"Design Elements, Design Principles, and Compositional Organization\" and \"Colour Management in Graphic Technologies.\"","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"There is no confusion regarding included visual elements; all examples and illustrations are included in the appropriate areas of the text and none seem extraneous.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are no grammatical or typographical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The language, photographs, and examples used are not culturally insensitive or offensive. In terms of inclusivity, this task would take far more research than I have time to conduct, including determining whether the chosen design pieces herein represent a wide range of designers from various backgrounds--nothing stood out to me while exploring and navigating the text.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This is a nice overview of how both traditional and unconventional print design is created, from ideation to file preparation. The real strength of the text is the inclusion of historical, theoretical, and technological considerations needed aimed at those who are relatively new to the design process.","created_at":"2021-04-12T15:02:43.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-04-12T15:02:43.000-05:00"},{"id":33622,"first_name":"Cate","last_name":"Simmons","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Huntington University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Overall, the text is straightforward, following a pattern in each chapter of introducing a concept before diving a little deeper in the next section. This is especially true for the first half of the book. While the language of this book uses British/Canadian spelling, it does not hinder comprehension and does a great job of acknowledging differences between both North American terminology and standard practice vs. that of the rest of the world (especially in Chapter 6 when discussing Imaging and detailed paperweight terminology). In some sections, the terminology is used without first defining/introducing them. For instance, in section 1.5 Constructivism and avant-garde are mentioned as a part of giving context to Dada, without having previously defined or fleshed out those concepts first.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Content that covers the more technical processes (especially preflight) is well-detailed and accurate. I found myself connecting a number of troubleshooting and setup examples to real-life experiences in the design process that I would want students to understand. \r\nAs someone coming from a design background and not a press operator background, I can’t speak for some of the more detailed technical processes explained. Even so, I can still say confidently that the basic presentation of content such as color science and color space in Chapter 4 and parts of Chapters 6 \u0026 7 would be beneficial and accurate. Some links (particularly in Chapter 2) are no longer active; two in Chapter 2 are “Life’s Too Short for the Wrong Job Marketing Campaign” and “Manchester Dogs’ Home Street Life”","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Earlier chapters easily hold longevity, whereas later chapters covering processes would definitely need updates as technology advances and limitations of the technology are gradually overcome.","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"Overall, this text is clear in its content. If using this for a course, I would definitely want to supplement the content with supporting images, examples, and diagrams. Chapters 1 and 3, in particular, could benefit from this – while this text is more technically focused, I believe students would benefit greatly from having more visual examples to display different styles from history, font concepts, and also more visual examples when introducing the elements and principles. The text does a great job in areas where charts \u0026 diagrams are present to aid content. This is especially true in Chapters 5-7. \r\n\r\nThe only other minor peeve of mine was that processes and steps are written in paragraph form. If these were broken down into listed or numbered steps, that would be ideal, although I understand there may be reasons for keeping the layout of those processes as they are.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The content and terminology were consistent in each chapter.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Students do not have to first read one chapter in order to understand the next. I would say this text is very versatile in that some chapters and sections could be easily utilized in a more technical-focused course while others can be used in a course focusing on theory and study.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I have no problems with the organization of the content. On the PDF version, the glossary is referenced but is blank with no terms. I am not sure if this is true for all PDF versions or simply an issue with my viewing experience.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The PDF version is easy to navigate, but the layout is also a bit dull with little use of color and visual imagery.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"No errors besides an extra space between words maybe twice throughout.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I realize this is really meant to be a more technical text and not a Graphic Design history book. The movements and individuals have mere paragraphs or a sentence of coverage, with no visual imagery associated with them. If Chapter 1 could better tie the movements in with individuals with examples it would be a stronger section. I do wish there were more contemporary references as well, such as Paula Scher, Alex Trochut, etc.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I reviewed this book as a potential textbook for my undergraduate introduction graphic design courses for freshmen/sophomores.","created_at":"2021-12-31T11:04:56.000-06:00","updated_at":"2021-12-31T11:04:56.000-06:00"},{"id":34091,"first_name":"Sam","last_name":"Hayes-Hicks","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Southern Oregon University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book as a great overview of graphic design history in the first half of the book. The other topics are well explained but don't give clarity on the platforms in which the topics build up from. This is a beginner book but the color management, prepress and imaging are not explained in a way that makes sense for a new designer with little experience with the software. Also the information is dated.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Information is dated.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Information is dated, the info on pre-press and color management still hold true but new software and updates have changed the work flow. Again thinking about the intended audience for this book. Brand new designers need a little more software training ion the front end for these sections to make sense.","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"Chapters 1-3 are great, very linear and easy to digest. the other chapters get into more complex design or production ideas and processes and skip over the main part... Making the design work.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent in language.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Easily broken up.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"Chapters 1-3 are great. There is a jump from the history of graphic design and design fundamentals to production of the work in a printing house environment. Missing a lot of fundamental graphic design theory and work flows before the production and packaging phase.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"Dated and not visually pleasing. This is a book about graphic design, a very visual field and this book is visually flat. There needs to be more images that show what the author is talking about.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Grammer is good.","cultural_rating":1,"cultural_review":"This falls under the lack of information in the design process. How to be culturally aware and inclusive as a designer. This is also an issue with the text being out dated.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"This book as some good information, I would use the first three sections in a class along with supplemental handouts. Then I would find other texts that are current and do a better job teaching the design process.","created_at":"2022-10-31T11:38:32.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-10-31T11:38:32.000-05:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/graphic-design-and-print-production-fundamentals","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:25:36.000-06:00"},{"id":360,"title":"Writing for Strategic Communication Industries","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2016,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":null,"license":"Attribution-NonCommercial","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"Good writing skills are important in today's competitive work environment. This is especially the case for communication-related professions such as public relations, brand communication, journalism, and marketing. Writing for Strategic Communication Industries emphasizes practical application of academic inquiry to help readers improve their writing skills. This book gives readers: Straightforward chapters that use real-world examples to illustrate key points. Discussion of different writing styles and techniques. Examples of communication materials such as press releases, creative briefs, feature articles, and more. Embedded videos of insights from communication professionals. Tips on pitching to the media. A collection of popular sources for further explanation.","contributors":[{"id":3848,"contribution":"Author","primary":true,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Jasmine","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Roberts","location":"Ohio State University","background_text":"Jasmine Roberts is a strategic communication lecturer in the School of Communication at The Ohio State University. She teaches classes in public communication campaigns, writing for strategic communication, persuasive communication, and public speaking. Roberts earned her bachelor’s degree in communication studies and Spanish at the University of Michigan and her master’s degree in communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has experience as a marketing and public relations professional for nonprofit, entertainment, and banking industries in the United States and Spain. Roberts is also the contributing author of “Effective Public Speaking–A Top Hat Interactive Text.” Her current pedagogical interests include project-based learning and global education. She specifically enjoys assisting undergraduate students in applying theories and skills to real-world projects and problems."}],"subjects":[{"id":6,"name":"Humanities","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":null,"visible_textbooks_count":418,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/humanities"},{"id":33,"name":"Literature, Rhetoric, and Poetry","parent_subject_id":6,"call_number":"PE1408","visible_textbooks_count":124,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/literature-rhetoric-and-poetry"},{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":412,"url":"https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-01-03T09:27:14.000-06:00","name":"Ohio State University Libraries"}],"formats":[{"id":701,"type":"Online","url":"https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/stratcommwriting/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1756,"type":"PDF","url":"https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/stratcommwriting/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4","textbook_reviews_count":22,"reviews":[{"id":1182,"first_name":"Rebecca","last_name":"Curnalia","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Youngstown State University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is a brief introduction to the professional standards for and types of strategic communication careers. It covers a few of the most essential aspects of public relations and advertising to give students a sense of what they will need to know and be able to do to be prepared for these careers. I would like to see a bit more discussion of the important role that data plays in writing for PR, marketing, and advertising as well; perhaps outline and define the types of data professionals collect, analyze, and report in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of campaigns.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate and incorporates some of the recent scholarship on PR and advertising and highlights recent industry trends.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The text makes use of recent examples, such as Trump's campaign and Volkswagen's emissions scandal. If the book is updated regularly, then it will remain relevant.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is well-written for undergraduate students in an introductory communication course. It is also written in a style that reflects the conventions and tone of professional communication.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Throughout the text, the content is presented using consistent format and voice. It would have been helpful to have activities or discussion questions more consistently throughout the chapters.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This textbook is organized into brief segments and each chapter is a clear, self-contained explanation of a writing style or career option. Thus chapters could be reordered or omitted to meet the needs of a given course.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book is well organized in its current format, moving from essential specific writing skills to different career paths.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I appreciated that the book included links to examples, links to additional resources for more-indepth reading, and videos from professionals. One of the videos that covered copyrighting was missing at the time of this review (p. 65).","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not see any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The textbook covered a range of professional ethics violations, current events, PR successes and failures in different platforms, celebrities, and products as examples.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This book would be a good read for students in their first week or two of a PR, media relations, professional communication, or strategic communication program of study. It would be useful to students who are considering a career as a communication professional to help orient them to the skills they will need to develop throughout their coursework and internship experiences in college.","created_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1240,"first_name":"Carol","last_name":"Madere","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Southeastern Louisiana University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The information the author has included is very good, especially augmented as it is with videos. However, it is described as \"a practical writing guide for those interested in a public relations, marketing communication, or advertising career\" and there is no chapter dedicated to marketing communication. The ethics chapter lacks information on protecting privacy and I think there should be a chapter on web writing. Also, in Chapter 11, the copywriting page still has \"insert video\" instead of the actual video.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content appears to be accurate, error-fee and unbiased. It also seems to be very current.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content is relevant and up-to-date, especially with its chapter on social media messaging. Necessary updates should be relatively easy to implement.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This is actually one of the book's best features. It not only describes how to write well, but also exemplifies how to write well.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Both the text and layout of chapters are internally consistent. The reader finds exactly what s/he expects to find.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text would be easy to assign as smaller reading sections during the course.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"There is definitely an internal logic to the organization/structure/flow to this text. It is clear and coherent.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The text is free of interface issues (with the exception of the mission video I mentioned previously). The navigation is simple and logical. Charts display beautifully.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find grammatical errors, nor would I expect to with a writer of this quality.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I was impressed with the cultural relevance of the text. There is one example of Starbucks' campaign to initiate conversations about race and how the public reacted to that. Another example regarding Malaysian Airlines offered some international cultural relevance.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I would use this book for online strategic communication classes. I like its contents (though I would like to see more on marketing communication), its presentation and its videos.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1534,"first_name":"Joe","last_name":"Staniunas, Jr.","position":"Special Purpose Faculty","institution_name":"Radford University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"As a broad, basic primer on communication in news, public relations and advertising the text provides a solid overview of contemporary rules and guidelines in these fields. Devoting a whole chapter to ethics is a bonus. What a teacher would have to add is how to do it, and do it well. For example, writing clear, simple messages to an audience is a main theme; just how the student is supposed to do that, such as using words of a single syllable as much as you can, isn't spelled out.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The author's done her homework. It's clear that she did a lot of research and made sure the text had no miscues.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Most of the case studies come from the past 1-2 years and are relevant to the topics being discussed.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clear, simple language shows up throughout the text. No inside baseball, nor long-winded academic mush.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Very consistent. The main themes stated in the opening overview are referenced throughout the text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Each chapter is about the same length, has the same number of pages and sections, with lots of subheads. A teacher could also move modules around; each is self-contained, yet still consistent with the main ideas and themes. It is a short book to base an entire semester on, but could work as the focus of the first quarter or half of a semester.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The progression works well: from broad overview of the field of strategic communication to the specific disciplines focused on different messages for different audiences.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The charts and other graphics are comprehensive but not too busy. The links to supplemental materials opened smoothly. One video in the copywriting section was missing. A couple of the videos that had music beds needed better balance, I think, with the voice track; the music tended to overpower the narration and was somewhat distracting.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammar or spelling issues appeared.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The images, videos and examples showed diversity, though most of the video commentary comes from people at the author's university or the immediate area.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"More examples of good writing...and bad!...would be of great help to any instructor who might use this book. Some suggested exercises would be handy as well. But it's a very effective piece of work, a text that would give communication majors a solid foundation in strategic communication.","created_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1550,"first_name":"Joanne","last_name":"Gula","position":"Assistant Professor/Ph.D","institution_name":"Colordo State University/Pueblo","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook covers most areas of journalism and public relations writing and covers the basic introductory principles needed in strategic communication writing . It does not cover the strategic communication skills needed in advertising writing and skills needed to conduct comprehensive and effective strategic campaigns.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate, hover all of the video examples are from the Ohio State University. Also the references are mostly from the internet and do not include references from the most prominent textbooks that are utilized in the strategic communications industries in public relations and advertising. These  main sources are excluded in the textbook. It seems to be very biased.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The content is only relevant up to date to 2016. There are many out dated sources used in the references. There should be more social media included as the strategic communication field is constantly changing with the technology and relevance. I believe this text will become obsolete. Also, it is solely based on Ohio State videos and outdated examples . The Malaysia incident  happened years ago. Many things are happening now and there needs to be more current.There needs to be more ways to stay current. As I said, this is a basic introductory level for types of writing for journalism and public relations. It is a writing book. Not for advertising at all.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is written very clearly. The chapters are short and concise. It is easy to understand. It is an introductory level. It is very basic and easy to follow. ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent. It is something that would be used in a 100 or 200 level. It offers all the basics for an Introductory journalism writing or public relations writing class. I would not use this in an advertising copywriting or campaigns class. The new buzz word for these writing classes is now called strategic communications. However, this is very basic and introductory in nature.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"I would break this into two modules. One clearly for Journalism and one for Public Relations. It does not warrant a third module for advertising. There is not enough information. It merely skims the surface. It does not even give an introductory level of advertising.I am not even sure I would call this book strategic communications writing.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The topics for journalism and public relations are presented in a very clear and organized manner. The chapters flow and have structure. They are presented in a manner that is easy to understand  for the beginning student in this field.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"This text is simple to follow and use. It is easy to connect to the videos that are used for examples. The videos are clear and short. The reader should not get confused with any examples that are related to the content.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The grammar is correct and basic. The examples given for mistakes are common with most students and clear to follow. The grammar is simple and word choices are easy. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"There are no offensive or insensitive cultural content utilized in the content of this text. It is politically correct and non biassed. There are no stereotypes .All examples are clear and relevant.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"The book is clear and easy to follow for an introductory level writing course in journalism and public relations writing.","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1556,"first_name":"Kimberly ","last_name":"Cowden","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Colorado State University Pueblo","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I appreciate the macro to micro organization of the chapters, especially the section on social media. I felt a chapter on risk and crisis communication would further enhance this work. I felt information about PRSA and PRSSA would be helpful when discussing ethics.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The author uses both industry and academic sources. I felt the content was accurate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I appreciate the organization of the material. This text is relevant and has longevity. The section on social media channels will obviously have to be updated, but that is with any text, open or not.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The material is easy to read and engaging. It is much more reader-friendly than the book I am currently using.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I feel the book is structured consistently and I appreciate her use of industry and academic sources.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The sections are relatively short, but I would bolster the chapters with interactive media...I did really appreciate the videos. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Excellent. I can use this text for my introduction to integrated communication next semester.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There are a few open pages at the beginning of the PDF, but that isn't a deal breaker.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammar errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I appreciated the attempt to address diversity, but it could certainly be it's own chapter.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I plan to adopt this for my Intro to Integrated course.","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1632,"first_name":"Andrew","last_name":"Pyle","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Clemson University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"As a professor who focuses on public relations (as opposed to advertising or marketing), the book provides a good general overview for the areas relevant to students in the courses I teach (in particular, my principles of PR course, or as ancillary material for my PR writing course). I would say that this text has been more useful for me in my courses for its examples and how concepts are illustrated and applied, rather than for its theoretical foundations. I've been using this text in conjunction with another text to fill in the gaps in theory. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content in this text seems to be right on track with what I would expect in a strategic communication text. In my reading of this text I have not noticed errors (other than some missing content in a couple of places, though I've reached out to the author about those issues directly and she has indicated that she is working on correcting those). So, other than errors the author has already corrected, I believe the text is well written and accurate. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"I've marked this text as 4/5 on relevance/longevity because it is relevant and timely right now - but will cease to be within the next couple of years if it is not regularly updated. This is the challenge with this type of text, of course - part of its value is the up-to-date, timely examples. it will need to be updated every couple of years to maintain its relevance. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is clear and concise. If anything, there are points where it's more concise than I would like it to be! Author does a good job of defining terms. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Book style is extremely consistent. Well done on this. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Each chapter can be broken out as its own section, and within each chapter there are individually labeled and indexed sections on specific subtopics. The text could reasonably be split out into 12 independent min-texts on each subject (again, as ancillary material in many cases rather than as comprehensive content presentation) - but the modularity is quite helpful. Compared to the other text I'm using in my classes right now, the modularity and indexing of this text is much better. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"This is mostly a result of my bias as a PR professor, but if I were building the text for my own classes I would restructure it to suit my individual course needs. Aside from my own bias, the flow of the text works well. The flow is logical and reasonably builds as the text progresses. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Other than small errors mentioned previously (that have, to my knowledge, been addressed), the interface is quite functional. In several months of use neither my students nor I have had problems with the interface. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have noticed no errors in the text, it is well written. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The author uses a wide range of examples from a variety contexts in the text. I have noticed no strong bias toward or away from any particular perspective, and I've certainly not seen anything culturally insensitive or offensive. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"As should be clear for anyone who has read my entire review, I'm currently using this text in my class (I'm using it as ancillary  material in my PR writing course). I'm also using a Saylor OER titled \"Mastering Public Relations\" - the two texts together work quite well for covering both the theory needs of my courses and the practical application to help my students make sense of the content/context. I'm actually planning (in the future, maybe as a summer project), to integrate content from the two texts to create one cohesive text for my courses. This is, of course, the beauty of creative commons. \n\nI'm really pleased with the text, and will continue to use it. Thank you for your work, Jasmine! ","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1689,"first_name":"Maggie","last_name":"Farley","position":"Adjunct Professor of Communications","institution_name":"American University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text is a wide-ranging overview of the key topics in strategic communications, ranging from the conceptual (\"Defining Strategic Communications\") to the practical (\"Creating a Writing Portfolio\".)  It is a short text at 126 pages, and the topics are supplemented with video interviews by experts in the field. The treatment of each topic is a little light, and sometimes the videos carry the weight of the explanation. Taken as a whole, the text and videos provide a good framework to launch a more in-depth lesson, but teachers will have to supplement content and create their own exercises. The text is relatively recent and provided real-world examples.\n\nThere is no index or glossary, but the chapter subsections are quickly scannable, and the terms are internally defined. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I did not note any factual errors, though the author surely could have found a better example for a victim of defamation than Bill Cosby.  ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is recent and relevant, and included examples of PR efforts that backfired, such as the 2015 Starbucks \"Race Together\" effort that fell flat, or the Malaysia Airlines \"Bucket List\" campaign that launched not long after 500 people died in a Malaysia Airlines crash. These examples will inevitably become dated, but will still be illustrative. \n\nThe links to other content are in danger of becoming obsolete if they are not constantly checked and maintained. There is a dead link to a webpage in the PR section, and a non-functioning link to a video in the social media section. The author should archive the webpage and link to the archived version. This can be done at archive.is.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing is very clear and accessible. The author defines industry jargon and refrains from academic lingo.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The structure and framework are consistent, with the main themes clearly stated, and references at the end of each chapter. ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The chapters have similar structures and the order of topics can be moved around, as each topic is self-contained. The subsections are clear. A good deal of content is contained within the videos, however, and that content is not indexed or described in detail, so a teacher must watch the videos to know what they contain and how to supplement them.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization is intuitive, starting with a broad overview, and narrowing the focus to specific topics. The structure is consistent. I wished there was more depth on? several of the topics. The content was pretty cursory in some sections, and relied on links to outside sources. I didn't check for fair use of the outside sources, like Business Insider and The Washington Post, but assume that the publisher has approved the links for educational fair use.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"As noted earlier, there were two dead content and video links in the textbook. Otherwise, the word-based interface was fine.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text hit all the main points, and was written recently enough to be relevant. The speakers in the videos represented people of color and both men and women. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, the text was a useful, quick overview, but a bit thin on detail and depth. Some sections felt dashed off  -- the example of a feature lead was particularly disappointing, as there are so many examples of riveting or suspenseful anecdotal leads. There was one page addressing writing skills, and the points were all fine, but one wonders how the author selected that handful of specific skills.  The text is a good jumping-off point for teachers or for students who want a cursory look at Strategic Communication.","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1902,"first_name":"Joan ","last_name":"Conners","position":"Professor of Communication Studies","institution_name":"Randolph-Macon College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I appreciate the breadth of coverage of this book, to focus on news writing (hard \u0026amp; feature news), as well as strategic writing in public relations and advertising.  I could see adopting this for a Media Writing class that covers both newswriting as well as strategic communication areas. The one area that wasn't in that lineup though was any focus on broadcast writing--the newswriting focus is toward print media.  Ch. 5 on News Values applies to both print and broadcast, while Ch. 6 seems to only address print news.  So to use this text for that type of class, one may still want to supplement with some readings about broadcast news, as the storytelling style, use of attribution, etc., are different than in print news.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"No errors found.  The chapters have a wide range of timely examples to support the points made, and no bias is apparent. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text is very timely in its examples, and media context for the areas of writing in it.  Media convergence continues to change, so I think the longevity of this type of book is always going to be a challenge.  For example, Ch. 10 on Social Media seems quite up to date, but now that Twitter is permitting tweets longer than 140 characters, that might need updating.  I would hope that in the online open textbook world, such updates would be fairly easy to do.  I think updates to this text would be quite straightforward.  The examples used to discuss media ethics were also quite up to date--I don't think it needs to go so far as \"flavor of the month\" timeliness, because there can also be a timelessness to some ethics cases.  I still talk about ABC News vs. Food Lion (1996) and the use of hidden cameras in investigative reporting when discussing media ethics","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I thought the text was very accessible.  The media writing class I teach and might use this type of text for is a lower division undergraduate course with no prerequisite course.  The use the industry jargon, from public relations or advertising, was appropriately defined and explained.  That helps students understand the industry, and \"talk the talk\" in possible internships.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Given that the chapters focus on different types of writing, some more strategic than others, I don't think the chapters can be, or should be, too formulaic and \"cookie cutter\" in their style and organization.  Having said that, the chapters are fine in terms of consistency.  There are none that are overly long or developed in minute detail compared to others.  My only suggestion about consistency would be to have examples to demonstrate the different types of writing in each chapter--otherwise, an instructor might need to find some to present when covering that reading in a class.  I'm not sure, for instance, if there were examples in the chapter on advertising, but there were examples in the chapter on public relations writing and the chapter on social media messages.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The chapters all seem quite self-contained within themselves.  I rarely follow the order of chapters in a textbook, and this can be an issues when making that change.  Good use of subheadings too--helpful to direct the reader, but not overdone.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Even though I've just noted in the previous category that I rarely assign chapters in the order they appear in a textbook, Writing for Strategic Communication Industries has a logical organization overall, as well as within the chapters.  For this type of book (and class), to cover some of the basics of news writing makes sense before addressing public relations writing, because much of the style in PR writing is influenced by news writing practices.  ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I appreciated the examples overall, the visuals included (photos as well as charts), and the links to videos.  I think one of the video links wasn't active--p. 107 (on social media writing).  I'm not sure if there is a way to change the visual appearance of those links--perhaps more like the \"further reading\" box on p. 93 to call the reader's attention to them.  ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No issues or concerns noted while reviewing this text.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"No issues or concerns.  Good range of examples and cases incorporated in the chapter.  ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This book is very accessible to students, covering a broad range of writing areas that are relevant for a writing in strategic communication course.  If I was to adopt this text for a media writing class, I would supplement it with some content on broadcast writing.  Other textbooks in media writing often include some exercises at the end of chapters, which can be good material for in-class activities; that might be helpful to add if this text is revised into another edition. ","created_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1942,"first_name":"Kelli","last_name":"Burns","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"University of South Florida","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book not only covers news writing and writing for public relations, advertising, and social media, but also how writing functions within various industries. The public relations chapter could include more variety in public relations writing formats, such as pitch letters or media alerts. The advertising chapter could also provide additional detail on writing for advertising. Early chapters on news values and ethics are important and the information provided here is comprehensive. This book could also be improved with the addition of writing exercises for students.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content provided is accurate.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The social media chapter contains information that will likely remain relevant for a long time. Most recent social media information, such as platforms, would be useful here too and could be easily updated. Some of the examples will be need to be updated over time.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The content is broken into short, easy-to-read sections, but I suspect that students will skim academic research cited in the book.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book offers several videos, but additional videos could provide more consistency in content. The ethics chapter contained a case study, and I would like to have seen more case studies throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book offers embedded videos, graphics, and images as well as links to additional content. Additionally, the content is organized into readable chunks of material.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book flows through the content the way I usually cover it in class, starting off with an introduction to the field, followed by a discussion of ethics and news values, and then presenting journalistic writing. Finally, writing for the various strategic communication industries is presented.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The book is easy to interact with arrows to the next section and links embedded in the text. I would like to see internet content linked in the reference lists.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any typos.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This book draws on some current examples to illustrate main points. I did not see anything that was culturally offensive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1977,"first_name":"Amy","last_name":"Simons","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"University of Missouri","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text offers a comprehensive look at the roles and responsibilities of professionals in the strategic communications industry. The index clearly outlines the topics covered, broken down by macro and micro subject areas. As an educator, I find this to be helpful when making reading assignments. While it’s not likely I would use this text in its entirety, I can easily spot and pull out the most relevant chapters. There is no glossary included in the text, but I have found terms to be well defined within the manuscript.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"To the best of my knowledge, the material in this book is accurate and unbiased. As a journalist by trade, and a professor by choice, I appreciate the approach Roberts takes to the reliance reporters have on strategic communicators and vice versa. It is easy to make jokes about reporters or editors going to “the dark side,” but this book makes very clear the need we need for strategic communicators and that they need for us.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"At the time of this reading, the book feels current and as though it has a shelf life. I do think that it will need to be updated with new examples in the next year or two, though, to keep the examples up to date. When we’re talking about the need for public relations and crisis communications, United Airlines and Facebook and Harvey Weinstein and the March for Life will prove to be more timely examples than Malaysia Airlines’ bucket list promotion, the Boston Marathon bombings or sexual assault claims against Bill Cosby. That said, I firmly believe replacing some of the aforementioned examples can be done seamlessly without affecting the structure, integrity or feel of the book.\n\n","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Roberts walks the walk. The book has entire chapters devoted to the need for clear, concise and conversational writing and it’s written in a manner that reinforces that message. It is an “easy” read that can be easily comprehended on one or two passes. There is an appropriate amount of professional and technical jargon used throughout, but it is defined using laymen’s terms. The use of graphics and video help enhance understanding for learners who need a slightly different style to absorb the information. This text is written at exactly the level I’d want to use with first and second-year college students.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent in terms of terminology and framework. The chapters are all constructed in the same way and offer readers an expectation of what will come in those that follow. There are no surprises in terms of structure.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"One of the things that pleases me MOST about this text is its modularity. It can easily be broken down to fit into units within a course and/or to complement other reading materials. I really like how Roberts broke each main area of strategic communication into its own chapter – and did the same with writing, law and ethics. This could make this text incredibly useful in a combined survey course that looks at the professions of journalism and strategic communication. I love that it includes the importance of AP Style, news values and inverted pyramid storytelling. It succeeds in driving home the point that strategic communication and journalism are hatched from the same egg. Students need to see and hear that message. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I have only one comment on the structure. I felt like some of the chapters could have been grouped together differently. I would have liked to see the media relations chapter in closer proximity to the sections on news writing, news values and grammar and usage. That would have even further reinforced the notion of the symbiotic relationship between journalists and media relations specialists (and pointed out ways they could all work together better). I would have also considered putting the law and ethics sections toward the end. I think a student needs to have a clearer picture of the rights and responsibilities typical of a specific role before being able to work through legal and ethical dilemmas facing them. I like the idea of building a portfolio at the very end, but I also wonder how quick I’d be to use that chapter at the level I’d consider using this text. I might consider it a little early to begin producing a professional portfolio. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is clean and clear. I downloaded the PDF version. The text was easily legible. Images appeared as I would assume they were meant to be (no stretching, distortion), and links to YouTube videos worked without problem.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There were no noticeable grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This text is a comprehensive look at strategic communication using culturally relevant examples, including brands, celebrities, locales and news stories that will be easily recognizable to most undergraduate students. As mentioned earlier, there will be a need to update examples in the near future to maintain that cultural relevance.\n\n","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is the first open textbook I’ve examined and I am beyond impressed with the quality of the materials. Students who consume (because they’ll be watching as much as they’re reading) this text will walk away equipped with a literacy-level understanding of media relations, public relations and social media. For many journalism/editorial students, Writing for Strategic Communication Industries might be the only exposure they ever have to strat writing – and it might be all they ever need. ","created_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2225,"first_name":"Jennifer","last_name":"MacKenzie","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Lehman College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I was skeptical at first that a textbook with such a broad scope could adequately cover writing practices across three separate fields. However, this book does an excellent job in terms of both differentiating between media, PR and advertising (which can be something that intro students have a hard time grasping) and articulating and reinforcing the ways in which they interrelate. The conceptual overviews are briefer and more summary than the instructional \"how-to\" sections for each field, and there are very few student exercises, which would help students apply definitions and instructions to actual work. The final section on how to create a portfolio is especially useful across multiple disciplines.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text is accurate, error-free and unbiased. My one issue is that the definitions of “media” and skills required to work in the media are fairly vague and brief. Not inaccurate per se but could be greatly expanded to add more precision and depth.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Both the conceptual frameworks and practical instructions will remain solidly relevant. Many of the examples used to illustrate best practices and pitfalls will become less engaging as they age out of students’ memories, but these could be updated from year to year without altering the overall organization of the text. The one area that seems both outdated and sparse is the section on social media, which only very summarily glosses over Facebook, Twitter and YouTube without going into current trends, differences between how these are utilized in various sectors, and contemporary examples.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing is clear and straightforward throughout. In fact I would prefer to see the inclusion and definition of more discipline-specific terms (ROI, nut graph, SWOT analysis, etc.) for all fields covered. Comprehension of and fluency with these terms could then be incorporated into writing exercises similar to the steps outlined in the headline section. However, overall, this text is definitely not obscure or overly laden with jargon.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Throughout the text fundamental definitions and distinctions such as the inverted pyramid are consistently made and reinforced. The chapters and sections reinforce the scaffolding of both concepts and practices in a way that builds logically across the entire text. On the other hand, the length of various sections and the depth and detail of coverage given to topics seems somewhat inconsistent. The sections that give an overview of media, media relations and public relations are quite brief compared to the more in-depth instructional sections on how to write in each field. Also, while marketing is addressed in a few sections it is not fully fleshed out and distinguished as clearly in relation to advertising and PR.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The division of chapters and sub-chapters is excellent. I appreciate the inclusion of ethics early on, as this is applicable in all fields addressed and is very often missed or glossed over in textbooks. The breadth and careful sectioning of the text lends itself to teaching a number of different courses, from news and feature writing to advertising and of course PR.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Sections on attribution and headlines are excellently detailed, as is the coverage of news and feature writing overall. Overall the how-to sections are particularly thorough, especially those on how to pitch a story and write a press release. The section on news values is great but would benefit from an update to include some examination of fake news and misinformation. The writing tips in the first chapter could be expanded to include more instruction on sentence structure. Instead of stopping at \"use correct grammar:, it would be more useful to analyze parts of speech, particularly verbs and adjectives, to give students more tools to work with. It would also be nice to have more sample assignments throughout, not only in the final section on creating a portfolio, especially in the news/lead sections. The hyperlinks of articles would benefit from more follow-up explanation, discussion questions and activities or assignments.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The text including all links provided functions without glitches. One overall weakness is that it is quite visually bland and would be more engaging with more visuals—charts, images and “quick break” boxes—included. Also, many of the videos are somewhat wooden; it would be great to see more videos from outside of the Ohio State University included, to give a wider set of reference points.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text is culturally inclusive in its examples. It would be great to see inclusivity, cross-cultural competencies and messaging and types of bias specifically addressed in relation to media, PR and advertising. Also more examination of the expanding global contexts of these fields.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall this textbook does a good job balancing breadth with accuracy, precision and thoroughness. While the conceptual sections that introduce each field are somewhat brief, the instructional, how-to sections are satisfyingly detailed. Instructors can create assignments and exercises around these modules for a wide variety of communications courses. This is an excellent choice for some portion of an introductory level course in communications, media, journalism, PR or advertising.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2650,"first_name":"Joslin","last_name":"Pickens","position":"Dr./ Department Chair","institution_name":"Southern University Shreveport","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Communication industries is such a broad range of career fields and types. However, I was impressed with how the text organized them and ultimately placed some of the universal aspects together. For example, the portfolio is useful in many fields. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I believe the text to be free of errors, and accurate to the best of my knowledge. My only concern was that there may some biases when using only one source for supplemental information.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Mass Communication is a field in which information changes quickly. This information is still accurate, but will need to be updated quite frequently. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This text is very clear and quite concise. These attributes are important for the topic matter. Students tend to look for clear definitions and information presented in a straightforward manner. The author did a good job of maintaining this throughout the text. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This book is consistent in terminology and framework for an introductory level mass communication writing course. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Since there are a wide range of areas expound on in the text, it can be broken into other subsections. Covering one part of the text in a class builds for the next section, and does not take away from the order. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The chapters flow well, both in journalism and public relations sections. They are presented in a logical fashion and structured well. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There were videos that I had to hover over for them to be accessed. However, the content was well done. The videos were clear and professionally placed. There were no major interface issues. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"To my knowledge, the text contains no grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Although, I did not see any culturally insensitive or offensive examples, as a person of color, I look for more diversity. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I am not currently using this text in my class. However, I am interested in developing an online course that adopts this text. My background is in public relations and although we do not offer PR at the university, this is a way to show a connection to other types of mass media writing. This text is easy to follow and understand. I recommend it. ","created_at":"2019-03-11T10:57:37.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-05-06T11:38:17.000-05:00"},{"id":2777,"first_name":"Elif","last_name":"Guler","position":"Dr./Professional Writing Coordinator","institution_name":"Longwood University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Yes, the book covers a rich variety of areas related to writing for strategic communication industries, ranging from its conventions and cultures to its ethics and varying genres. It really presents a broad range of information.\r\n\r\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is pretty accurate. The language can sound informal at times but this can possibly better relate to its intended audiences--which I'd define as undergraduate students up to junior level. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content covers strategic written communication as it relates to a variety of print and digital platforms. Since these platforms (e.g., Twitter) are likely to remain in use for a while, I think the content will be useful for a considerably long time. Also, even if platforms change, the book includes content (such as, how to determine one's purpose for communication, define one's audience, etc) that will apply to most communication situations.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is written pretty clearly. Any jargon/terminology used is defined and explained in a manner relatable to undergraduate students. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Yes, the book presents consistent language.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book is provided in accessible, easily readable modules.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book is organized pretty well.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface is usable. The content is easily readable in general. In order to read some of the captions/labels for graphics, it might be necessary to enlarge the page, when some text can be just a tad bit distorted and hard to read. But this is not a pervasive issue.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The grammar looks good.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I have not noticed any significant cases of cultural insensitivity. Of course, sometimes it's possible to find a cultural negation (for example, in statements with Western-centric implications) in any textbook. But considering the context for which this text is written and where it the examples will be used, the book doesn't seem to have significantly problematic content.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Effective written communication skills are essential to most professions, especially those related to organizational communication. This open textbook covers strategic written communication as it relates to a variety of print and digital platforms. The book presents some of the best practices in professional writing situations. Some real-world examples in the book are very useful, while some chapters focusing on different professional writing genres could use more models/examples. While using the book might still necessitate teachers to bring in their own examples, the book provides a good framework for strategic writing in general. Given that it is freely available and its language is pretty accessible to undergraduate students, I think it will definitely be useful to include this book as a resource for my upcoming Professional Writing and Organizational Rhetoric classes as well as my current Citizenship Writing class, which includes a \"professional communication\" component. ","created_at":"2019-04-12T11:27:59.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-12T11:27:59.000-05:00"},{"id":3641,"first_name":"Ellen","last_name":"Brain","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Raritan Valley Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book has a heavy emphasis on journalistic technique and not the strategic aspect of how one either develops or communicates a strategic message.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"What was communicated was well informed and accurate.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Much of what was included has been re-packaged; i.e., what is public relations??, how does it deffer from advertising, ......not new material.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clearly stated. I thought that the videos were very clear, but the subject matter was elementary for this level of 'strategic' communication learning.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Yes, it is consistent. Language and ideas are accessible to the entry level student. Not sophisticated for a 'strategic' audience.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Yes, the text is modulated well. Some chapters are unnecessarily longer than others, while some do not receive enough scope.","organization_rating":2,"organization_review":"I think that the organization of the text needs changing. The more general information is toward the end of the book and I would consider moving up front.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No issues in navigating the text.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Both written text and spoken text were free from grammatical mistakes.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"No inappropriate boundaries were crossed. Text was geared to job type, not cultural distinctions.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"As the title is about Strategic Communications, I feel that more attention should be placed on the team development of the strategic message as messages are shaped within an organization and not the creation or responsibility of a single writer. The team aspect of the message creation and the skill necessary to understand the focus of the organization were not developed to the extent that I believe was sufficient.  Any writer, other than a sole proprietor,  who is responsible for messaging needs to realize that they are part of the team whose job it is to reflect the values derived by that team for the desired audiences. The media and platform discussion is useful once the message and audience are designated.","created_at":"2020-03-10T15:17:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-03-10T15:17:06.000-05:00"},{"id":3653,"first_name":"Nathan","last_name":"Rucker","position":"Term Instructor","institution_name":"Marshall University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Writing for Strategic Communication Industries is comprehensive in many ways when considering the work's laser focus on \"strategic communication industries\" which author Jasmine Roberts defines as \"an umbrella term meant to include a variety of communication-related professions, such as public relations, brand communication, advertising, and more.\" Though the book may rely too heavily on journalistic practices for many, the other parts apply to a wide variety of workplace and professional writing areas. I teach a workplace writing course that serves as a core part of the curriculum of all business majors and I could see much of this book serving my students well. How well it would serve your students will depend on the subject of the class, but I think what matters more is your teaching style. While Roberts' text does cover many topics, many of these chapters are very brief and while she includes many links to outside articles and sources, I found several that existed behind a paywall. Once more, this book offers some examples, but few, if any, exercises for students to practice. Roberts does link to many free videos that can help students further think through concepts. \r\n\r\nIf you are an instructor who likes to use a textbook to supplement your material, this book is great since many professional writing textbooks I find to be overwhelming to students. However, if you prefer a more thorough textbook that provides you with more material to work with then this book may not be as useful. Roberts has written a text that gives students a great starting point to then dive deeper through supplementary readings or lectures.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book is accurate in how it describes and differentiates writing in different professional situations. The author offers detailed information and examples in the news-centered parts of the book which comprise roughly one-fifth of the book. While the information in the first parts (focusing on introducing the topic, general media writing, and ethics) is strong, it also isn't as detailed as the news-centered parts or the more focuses latter half of the book. In the final parts, the author provides many examples and explanations of how to write an email pitch, for example, if your business is offering a new product.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The author clearly understands her audience and offers examples to illustrate points using contemporary examples from social media and Twitter and email. While the book covers press releases and other material as well, Roberts' book is up-to-date yet not in a way that will cause it to be obsolete anytime soon. Additionally, Roberts organizes the book in such a way that each chapter stands alone to some extent, allowing instructors to pick and choose parts of the book that best fit their needs.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"I found the text to be clearly written and would be appropriate for a sophomore-level class. Roberts provides enough context for the student to start thinking about a topic and she defines these topics well. When introducing terms, often the author places these terms in bold and provides a thorough explanation. Due to how brief these discussions are in the text, I do think instructors would need to supplement the information to help clarify concepts. That being said, several of the articles Roberts uses or references as well as the embedding of short YouTube videos on most of the topics help clarify concepts.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is internally consistent with the approach the author is attempting. Terms and concepts are aligned throughout the text and there is an obvious progression, or scaffolding, of information. The book begins with more general overviews of ideas that apply to many of these writing situations, before using the news writing-centered parts to help establish a groundwork to explore the more varied genres covered in the final sections.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"While many of the chapters connect, few are written in reference to other chapters. The text could easily be reorganized to fit different instructor needs. For example, I could see using this text in my writing for the workplace course and skipping the news writing sections. I could also see using specific chapters from the news writing-centered section being useful for students without having to read the chapters in that entire section. Roberts seems to have tailored the book for such an approach since each chapter is numbered throughout the book (1-12) and each section of each chapter has its a consistent numbering throughout the book as well (1-71).","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Similar to the internal consistency, the book is presented in a logical order. While it may seem out of order, it is clear to me that Roberts organized her book to begin with more theoretical sections so that she could then shift to news writing to lay down a framework for students. This foundational theoretical and practical material allows students to build on this information to the various topics such as public relations, media relations, and advertising that fill out the final sections of the book. The final chapter on \"Creating a Writing Portfolio\" could be helpful in most any professional writing class that covers a variety of genres.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I found no major interface issues in the text. Roberts embeds videos and images throughout and these appear on both the website version of the book as well as the \"digital pdf\" version of the book. One thing to keep in mind is that the \"print pdf\" version of the book wouldn't allow me to open links or videos on my device. Therefore, an instructor would want to stress which version students were supposed to access if the instructor wanted to make use of Roberts' supplementary resources.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any grammatical errors in the text and the YouTube videos looked professionally shot and edited as well.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text was culturally sensitive and not offensive. The author occasionally used examples that not only clarified points but touched on issues of sexism and racism as well. Again, these examples are not deeply discussed, so an instructor would want to supplement more material if they desired exploring these issues further.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I appreciate how clear the text is written, the inclusion of embedded links and videos, and that each chapter is brief. I am a fan of concise textbooks that I can use to supplement student learning but that provides me room to tailor the material to what I want to cover in my class. This book is written and structured in a way that I could use it to design a course yet not feel like the book was designing the course for me. I appreciate that approach.","created_at":"2020-03-12T17:55:33.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-03-12T17:55:33.000-05:00"},{"id":4004,"first_name":"Thea","last_name":"Prieto","position":"Adjunct Writing Professor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Roberts covers various forms of media writing, including news writing, public relations, advertising, and social media promotion, as well as discusses industry applications for diverse forms of writing. Each chapter is broken into multiple sections, and each section is articulate, well organized, and often links to outside resources. Each section is brief, which makes the textbook ideal as a guide for classroom discussions, and although there are opportunities for writing exercises, it is mostly on the instructor to extrapolate writing assignments or exercises from the reading. This text is a great starting point for both students who want practical knowledge about how to compose and apply different forms of writing in the workplace, and it is a great jumping-off place for teachers who are building their curriculum from scratch.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book accurately defines different forms of writing for a variety of workplace situations.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The chapter regarding social media reads relevant to me, since the overall book is mostly interested in helping writers effectively engage diverse audiences—as a result the cultural impact of social media is only discussed briefly and generally. I predict, though, that the examples will have to be updated and the \"impact of social media\" section expanded in the future.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The chapters are split into short sections, and often the sections contain clickable links to outside information. Important terms are written in bold and well defined, so I believe this textbook could be assigned to and easily understood by students who are reading independently. However, because of the brevity of the sections, the case studies, and the clickable media that open up opportunities for discussions, I use the chapters as supplements to my class lectures.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent throughout. My students were most engaged with specific case studies and linked videos, so I did notice when those elements were present in some sections and missing from other sections.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This textbook can be easily reorganized to fit different teaching styles and curriculum, as the chapters build upon each other without being dependent on one another. For example, I might use a majority of the chapters for my media writing classes, but I might only use chapters 5 and 6 for my magazine writing course.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Overall, the book is organized into thirds, starting with general or theoretical information about strategic communications, then transitioning to more specific forms of media writing, and then narrowing to different industry applications. The sections within the chapters also tend to move from the general to the specific. This, plus the “Creating a Writing Portfolio” section at the end, allows students to build a variety of practical skills out of theoretical knowledge.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The table of contents operates like a clickable menu, clearly organizing the book and making it easy to navigate online.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not notice any errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I did not read anything that was culturally insensitive. Roberts does reference instances in the media that deal with issues of racism and sexism, but these examples are employed more to discuss, say, ethical journalism than the prejudice itself. The instructor may wish to supplement the examples with further readings on a case-by-case basis.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The brevity of the content per chapter ended up complimenting my teaching style, as this book gave my classes overall structure while also allowing plenty of space for me to tailor my curriculum to specific topics or classroom communities. I enjoyed the flexibility and openness of the book’s content in this regard.","created_at":"2020-06-18T18:37:54.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-18T18:37:54.000-05:00"},{"id":4372,"first_name":"Julie","last_name":"Walker","position":"Assistant Professor, Assistant Director of Forensics","institution_name":"Southwest Minnesota State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"So the table of contents includes the following sections:\r\nI. Chapter 1: Defining Strategic Communication\r\nII. Chapter 2: Media Writing--Conventions, Culture, and Style\r\nIII. Chapter 3: Strategic Communication Ethics\r\nIV. Chapter 4: News Value\r\nV. Chapter 5: News Writing Basics\r\nVI. Chapter 6: Feature Writing\r\nVII. Chapter 7: Public Relations Industry\r\nVIII. Chapter 8: Media Relations\r\nIX. Chapter 9: Public Relations Writing\r\nX. Chapter 10: Social Media--Uses and Messaging\r\nXI. Chapter 11: Advertising Industry\r\nXII. Chapter 12: Creating a Writing Portfolio\r\nThere is no index/glossary for the book, but with CTRL + F, the students should be able to find topics they seek.  I really love that the text is available online OR in PDF format to give students options. This way students with accessibility issues have a chance to still access the text at home.\r\n\r\nI do wish there were separate sections for different types of social media. The way we write for some types (like Facebook) are different from others (like Instagram captions), so addressing in more depth different writing styles in social would be appropriate (and timely) in my opinion. \r\n\r\nI also believe more of a focus on visual communication would benefit this book, but I simply supplement with additional resources. Not something that can't be overcome.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The book's accuracy is exceptional. I am grateful for a fairly modern text to use. So many texts, even with editions supposedly updated in strategic communication areas, are out of date so fast. Thus far, this text is still very accurate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Relevance is central in strategic communications. While some areas of the content, like feature writing, are not as time sensitive, having information that is not up to date about social media (for instance, Twitter now having 240 characters) is important as this fundamentally shifts the way we create for this area. While I would like more breadth of information, the information is more timely than any other text I've found (that doesn't cost $300 for students).","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This text makes complex, heady topics easy for students to understand. I also appreciate the clear, concise explanations and samples.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is well written, and the consistency adds value for students.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Especially with writing, we need to teach students the concepts and then give them chances to try writing. I appreciate the shortness of so many areas and the focus on process to aid them getting to the \"try it\" phase.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I do wish there were a few more introductory concepts (e.g., breaking down and writing to publics), and I wish there was less time spent on writing in journalism-focused settings, the organization pattern makes sense to me.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I love Press Books. Great text, and I REALLY love that when you open the breakdown of chapters, you get very specific concepts you can break out of the text to reinforce ideas or add to particular weeks. I love that you get that option!","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I expect no grammatical errors in a textbook, and this book has none that I've found.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"I don't see this text making a particular focus to include culture in meaningful ways. However, I did not notice instances where the text was insensitive or offensive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I use this text in my Media Writing class. Students seem to find the book relatable and understandable, and I find students appreciate much more having cost-effective textbooks. I used a new textbook a few years ago and I still feel guilty about the $300 each student used on the class. This text, in combination with others, provides what I need for that class!","created_at":"2020-11-05T16:38:13.000-06:00","updated_at":"2020-11-05T16:38:13.000-06:00"},{"id":4892,"first_name":"Linnea","last_name":"Ward","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Colorado State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"A true strength of this book is its breadth; it covers a wide variety of communication industries. Slightly more detail could be included in each chapter, but this is a useful survey text of the field.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Based on my understanding of the field, the content included is accurate.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The most recent reference I found in the text is from 2016. The social media section, in particular, needs updating.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing style is clear and easy to understand.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Based on my understanding of the field, the text is consistent.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I find the headings and subheadings descriptive and helpful.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text’s organization is obvious and helpful. I find the descriptive headings particularly useful.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"As far as I see, there are little to no distortions.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"As far as I see, there are little to no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"An effort is made to showcase diverse voices both in the examples selected and in the subjects included in interviews.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I teach a class that contains both journalism and non-journalism majors. The focus of my class is not on writing, per say, but the final project does require students to create a final news feature article. I assign certain chapters from this textbook as optional resources for students. It is an ideal fit for this purpose. This resource is quite valuable because it ensures that all students--regardless of if they are majors or not--have the background information necessary to successfully complete the final course assignment.","created_at":"2021-05-06T18:42:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-05-06T18:42:39.000-05:00"},{"id":33713,"first_name":"Cherri","last_name":"Sinclair","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Howard University","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers a lot of areas but it doesn't go into much depth for important elements of communications. For example, media pitching, press releases, media kits, blog posts, etc. Those are key communications tactics when it comes to strategic communications planning as well as writing. I think it's also important for the text to provide examples of comms strategies and when is it best to use these tactics. The text does a good job with laying out what goes under strategies but I think it needs to go more into depth about how strategies are created. Maybe more examples would be helpful. But I also think a key piece is discussing (in depth) the importance research plays in strategic planning.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate but a lot of the hyperlinks which provide important examples for the context, are broken. That really needs to be updated. Also, there are a few areas that I think need to be reconsidered or discussed more. For example, in Chapter 3.14, I think the \"reflection point\" needs to be updated. Maybe it should include that many PR professionals offer free items to journalists in efforts to receive media exposure. That's not necessarily a conflict of interest unless platforms have their own policies against this.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"While most of the content in this text is still relevant, I do think their are certain areas that need updating. The main thing is updating all of the hyperlinks in the chapters and sections. They mostly provide examples for the section but a lot of the links no longer work or are hidden behind a paywall. I also think the social media section needs updating, and more examples. I didn't see anything mentioned about a social media calendar or ways to be more organized with writing and posting social media content. Also, I think there needs to be better examples in the Ethics section.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The contact is clear and easy to understand. Provides some good examples but I believe they should be written and not hyperlinked to other sources.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent in terms of terminology and framework. It is easy to follow.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is broken down very well. But if I used this text in my class, I could easily reorganize the chapters according to my syllabus without any issues. The information is very relevant.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The structure of the text flows well.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The main issues are the broken hyperlinks and links that are behind a paywall. Many of them are supposed to provide examples and resources to support the content. It's very important that those get updates ASAP.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"Overall, the grammar in the textbook is fine. There were minor issues I saw like large spacings ans some misspellings.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I think the cultural references were vast and provided many examples that ranged between different races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. It will be relatable and understandable to students.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I really liked this textbook, and would like to use it for my class. For a text that was published in 2015/16, the information is still pretty relevant.","created_at":"2022-03-03T18:35:13.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-03-03T18:35:13.000-06:00"},{"id":33749,"first_name":"Veronica","last_name":"Hefner","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"St. Mary's College of California","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is moderately comprehensive in terms of topics covered, but very light in terms of the depth of each topic covered.  Most chapters are only a few pages and the book would benefit from more examples and detail when describing each type of strategic writing.  For example, there is a great model about the difference between PR, Marketing, and Advertising, but there is also a missed opportunity to unpack the various documents and strategies that could be used in each of these examples.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The book is accurate for when it was written.  The book could benefit from an updated edition that takes into account the changes in the strategic communication world, specifically in social and digital media platforms.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The book is in need of an update.  That said, the format and content of the book lends itself to an easy update, should the author choose to do so.  I would recommend including more writing examples and expanding each example to include both traditional formats (e.g., print brochure) and digital formats (infographic).  If a student read this book as is, in 2022, the student may not learn the most up-to-date best practices for contemporary strategic communication writing.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"This book is very clear, very straightforward and largely lacks any jargon.  In some ways, it may be too clear and simple to be useful for college-level readers.  This book would be great for a short workshop at a weekend event, but would need to be supplemented for an undergraduate course.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"The length of each chapter varies, as does the use of outside references.  I do not recall seeing a traditional published book be formatted like this.  In other words, other textbooks are generally overflowing with information, graphics, and outside references, but this book reads more like a brief.  Due to this inconsistency, both among the chapters and when compared to other publications, I cannot give a higher number in this review.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The book's modularity is wonderful.  Very short, concise chapters that can be read very fast.  With this modularity comes a weakness, and that is the lack of depth.  There are some parts (such as the discussion of media relations in one section and news writing in a different spot.  It might make more sense to have media relations be a chapter that bridges news writing and public relations, as media relations is a combination of these two areas.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"The book has average organization.  Some of the chapters seem out of order (e.g., why does the ethics section split the sections of media writing basics and news writing basics? Or, why does advertising come after social media when it is originally mentioned during the public relations section?).","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"There is not enough information to distract the reader.  If I compared this book to another Open Access book from 20 years ago, I would say it is pretty good.  But, if I compare it to traditionally published textbooks in 2022, I would say this book lacks the depth and sophistication needed for an undergraduate textbook.  The book needs more examples, more graphics, more discussion questions, more outside sources, and more content in general.","grammatical_rating":3,"grammatical_review":"The word media is a plural noun.  There are some errors related to the use of that word.  Another problem is that one of the chapters is entitled, \"What is media relations?\"  It should read: \"What are media relations?\"  Other minor grammatical errors exist, which is problematic for a book designed to teach readers how to write.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Other than the ethics section, cultural statements are largely missing.  The book would be vastly improved with more examples in general, and with more minority examples specifically.  That said, there is nothing offensive or insensitive in this text.","overall_rating":6,"overall_review":"I will be using the proprietary image the authors created that is posted on page 73 when I next teach Strategic Communication -- thank you for this comprehensive visual!","created_at":"2022-03-17T13:49:04.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-03-17T13:49:04.000-05:00"},{"id":35001,"first_name":"Mindia","last_name":"Whittier","position":"Specialist","institution_name":"University of Texas at Arlington","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is limited in its scope of addressing what are widely considered to be the four key pillars of contemporary strategic communication (Paid, Earned, Shared and Owned). It primarily touches on two forms of Earned Media, with limited instruction on Shared/Paid and no instruction on Owned Media. Additionally, the content is limited to high-level introductory information rather than a deep-dive on best practices for the various mediums. It feels more suitable for a an introductory course, rather than one designed to develop writing expertise and sophistication for various strategic communication platforms.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate to the profession of strategic writing.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Many of the links to industry examples are no longer active and in need of updating.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The content is highly readable and approachable for emerging strategic communication practitioners.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Terminology throughout the book is consistent with industry standards.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Content is broken down into manageable and logical segments that can easily be incorporated into topical modules.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"In some areas, the flow of content felt disjointed. For example, a segment on Feature Writing appears in between chapters on News Value and News Writing Basics, which are content areas that would logically follow one another.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I found it easy to navigate and utilize the text.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text is free of grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I did not observe any elements that stuck out to me as being culturally inappropriate.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"The use of videos help make this text more engaging and aid its longevity, in lieu of linking to sources which can become obsolete.","created_at":"2024-04-12T16:29:43.000-05:00","updated_at":"2024-04-12T16:29:43.000-05:00"},{"id":35318,"first_name":"Young Joon","last_name":"Lim","position":"Professor","institution_name":"The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley","comprehensiveness_rating":2,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book provides a thorough exploration of journalistic techniques but falls short in addressing the strategic aspects of communication. While it covers a broad range of topics, it lacks depth in crucial areas such as media pitching, press releases, media kits, and blog posts. These elements are essential for strategic communications planning and writing. The text would benefit from including examples of communication strategies and guidance on when to use specific tactics. Although it effectively outlines what constitutes a strategy, it needs to delve deeper into the creation process of these strategies, with more examples to illustrate the points.\n\nAdditionally, the book’s chapters are relatively brief, and expanding them with more detailed examples would enhance the reader’s understanding. For instance, while it presents a useful model differentiating PR, Marketing, and Advertising, it misses the opportunity to explore the various documents and strategies applicable to each field. A more in-depth discussion on the role of research in strategic planning would also be beneficial.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The book remains accurate for its time of publication but would benefit from an updated edition that reflects the evolving landscape of strategic communication, particularly in social and digital media. While the content is generally accurate, many hyperlinks providing crucial examples are broken and need updating. Additionally, certain areas require further discussion or reconsideration. For instance, in Chapter 3.14, the “reflection point” should be revised to include the practice of PR professionals offering free items to journalists for media exposure, noting that this is not necessarily a conflict of interest unless specific platform policies prohibit it. Overall, the content accurately represents the profession of strategic writing.","relevance_rating":2,"relevance_review":"The book, while accurate for its time, is in need of an update to remain practical and relevant in 2024. Many of the hyperlinks to industry examples are outdated or no longer active, which diminishes their usefulness. The book’s format and content are conducive to an easy update, and I recommend including more writing examples that cover both traditional formats (e.g., print brochures) and digital formats (e.g., infographics). Without these updates, students may not learn the most current best practices for strategic communication writing.\n\nAdditionally, the social media section requires significant updates, including the addition of a social media calendar and organizational strategies for writing and posting content. The Ethics section would also benefit from better examples. Overall, updating the hyperlinks and expanding the content to reflect contemporary practices would greatly enhance the book’s value.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The book is highly readable and approachable, making it suitable for emerging strategic communication practitioners. However, the simplicity of the language may be a drawback, as it might not challenge college-level readers sufficiently. The straightforward and jargon-free style, while clear, could be seen as too simplistic for an academic setting. This book would be ideal for a short workshop or weekend event but would require additional materials to be effective in an undergraduate course.\n\nMoreover, while the content is clear and easy to understand, the reliance on hyperlinks for examples is problematic. Many of these links are outdated or inaccessible, and it would be more beneficial if the examples were integrated directly into the text. Updating the book to include more comprehensive and contemporary examples, particularly in the areas of social media and ethics, would greatly enhance its utility and relevance","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The book is consistent in its use of terminology and framework, making it easy to follow. However, the length of each chapter varies significantly, and the use of outside references is inconsistent. Unlike traditional textbooks, which are typically rich with information, graphics, and references, this book reads more like a brief. This inconsistency, both within the chapters and when compared to other publications, affects its overall rating.\n\nDespite these issues, the terminology throughout the book aligns well with industry standards, which adds to its clarity and ease of understanding. However, to improve its utility and appeal, the book would benefit from a more uniform structure and the inclusion of integrated examples rather than relying on hyperlinks.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"The book’s modularity is a significant strength, featuring very short, concise chapters that can be read quickly. This structure allows for flexibility, making it easy to reorganize the chapters to fit different syllabi or teaching needs. However, this modularity also introduces a weakness: a lack of depth in certain areas. For example, discussions on media relations and news writing are separated, whereas it might be more effective to bridge these topics in a single chapter, given their interconnected nature.\n\nWhile the text is well-organized and the information is relevant, the inconsistency in chapter length and depth is noticeable. Some chapters are unnecessarily long, while others do not cover their topics in sufficient detail. Despite these issues, the book’s terminology is consistent with industry standards, and its clear, jargon-free language makes it accessible. However, to enhance its utility, the book would benefit from more integrated examples and a more uniform structure across chapters.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"The book’s organization could benefit from significant restructuring. Currently, more general information is placed toward the end, which would be more effective if moved to the beginning. The overall organization is average, with some chapters appearing out of order. For instance, the ethics section disrupts the flow between media writing basics and news writing basics, and advertising is discussed after social media, despite being introduced earlier in the context of public relations.\n\nIn several areas, the flow of content feels disjointed, which can make it challenging for readers to follow the progression of topics. Reorganizing the chapters to create a more logical and cohesive structure would greatly enhance the readability and effectiveness of the book.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The book is straightforward and easy to follow, making it accessible for readers. However, when compared to traditionally published textbooks from 2024, it lacks the depth and sophistication expected for an undergraduate textbook. The book would benefit from more examples, graphics, discussion questions, outside sources, and overall content to enhance its educational value.\n\nA significant issue is the presence of broken hyperlinks and links behind paywalls, which are intended to provide supporting examples and resources. Updating these links is crucial to maintain the book’s relevance and usability.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The grammar in the textbook is generally correct and basic, making it easy for students to follow. The examples provided for common mistakes are clear and helpful. However, there are minor issues such as large spacings and some misspellings, which are problematic for a book intended to teach writing skills. Addressing these minor grammatical errors would improve the overall quality and reliability of the textbook.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book is politically correct and unbiased, with no offensive or insensitive content. It is geared towards job-related skills rather than cultural distinctions, and all examples are clear and relevant. However, aside from the ethics section, the book lacks cultural statements and would benefit from more diverse examples, particularly those representing minority groups. Including such examples would greatly enhance the book’s inclusivity and relevance. Despite this, the text remains respectful and appropriate throughout.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"The book is clear and easy to follow, making it suitable for an introductory-level writing course in journalism and public relations, possibly more appropriate for high school students rather than college students. As the title suggests a focus on Strategic Communications, the book should place more emphasis on the team development of strategic messages. Messages within an organization are typically shaped by a team, not just a single writer. The necessary skills to understand and reflect the organization’s focus were not sufficiently developed. Writers, especially those working within a team, need to recognize their role in conveying the values derived by the team for the intended audience. The discussions on media and platforms are useful once the message and audience are designated.\n\nPublished in 2016, the book requires significant updates to remain relevant in the current age of AI and social media. A comprehensive rewrite may be necessary to address these advancements and ensure the content is up-to-date. Overall, while the book provides a good foundation, it needs more depth, particularly in the areas of team collaboration and contemporary communication practices.","created_at":"2024-11-16T03:41:10.000-06:00","updated_at":"2024-11-16T03:41:10.000-06:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/writing-for-strategic-communication-industries","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:27:05.000-06:00"},{"id":389,"title":"Media Studies 101","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2013,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":null,"license":"Attribution","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"Media Studies 101 is the open educational resource for media studies studies in New Zealand, Australia, and Pacifica. We have constructed this text so it can be read in a number of ways. You may wish to follow the structured order of 'chapters' like you would in a traditional printed textbook. Each section builds on and refers back to previous sections to build up your knowledge and skills. Alternatively, you may want to go straight to the section you are interested in -- links will help guide you back to definitions and key ideas if you need to refresh your knowledge or understand a new concept.This text is open under a Creative Commons NZ BY license.","contributors":[{"id":3913,"contribution":"Author","primary":true,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Erika","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Pearson","location":"University of Otago","background_text":"Erika Pearson is a senior lecturer at the department of Media, Film and Communication at the University of Otago, Dunedin. She first used the internet in the days of dial-up modems and has stayed there ever since. She researches social groups, personal identity, trust, and gift networks online, and is also interested in digital media and digital culture. She has recently presented about Big Data on National Radio and at the Royal Society."}],"subjects":[{"id":76,"name":"New Media Journalism","parent_subject_id":16,"call_number":"PN4699-5650","visible_textbooks_count":14,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/new-media-journalism"},{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":336,"url":"https://opentextbc.ca/mediastudies101/","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:39.000-05:00","name":"BCcampus"}],"formats":[{"id":541,"type":"Online","url":"https://opentextbc.ca/mediastudies101/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":542,"type":"PDF","url":"https://opentextbc.ca/mediastudies101/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1767,"type":"eBook","url":"https://opentextbc.ca/mediastudies101/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4","textbook_reviews_count":4,"reviews":[{"id":1336,"first_name":"Jeonghyun","last_name":"Lee","position":"Instructor/Doctoral Student","institution_name":"North Carolina State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book covers very comprehensive topic in communication studies. Even though communication studies is very broad area, this book covers a pretty great amount of area with definitions and examples. One thing I impressed is some chapters include links to read the (part of) original text written by the author they introduce in the chapter. That helps me a lot to learn more if I am interested in a certain topic or concept they introduced. Also, using hyperlink, this book provides glossary. However, I think the definition of each concept on the glossary is too brief. Some concept are too simplified in the glossary. Other than these points, I think this is a great source to start Media Studies.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"I think this book needs to improve accuracy. Overall, it maintains some levels of accuracy. Media studies handles various controversial and/or critical issues. Thus, a great media studies book introduces various research, concepts, and scholars that have different perspective to each other. However, this book too simplifies the controversial topic or introduces just one side of perspectives. It would be enough for students who will have supplemental textbook, but, if not, it could be dangerous to learn biased perspective of media studies. In this sense, it could be too weak that use this book as the main textbook in class. Interpreting a scholar's idea as technological determinism without a clear investigation on TD could be one example.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Creating very up-to-date media studies book is very difficult because our media culture changes so quickly. Considering that, this book offers a pretty up-to-date example and theory. However, some of them should be updated. Specifically, chapters on technology are a bit out-dated. There are various new fields to study technology and agency, such as Latour's Actor-Network Theory, German Media Studies, Cybernetics, and so forth. I think technology part should be updated. Also, the latter chapters on film, fan culture, and/or gender also could be better if it has more recent example.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"There is no jargon and technical terminology. This book explain all concepts in very simple and clear way. However, some chapters too briefly explain complex concepts. In terms of clarity, there are a huge gaps between chapters. Some chapters very clearly explain all terms and theories through direct quote and elaboration, but some chapters are too weak and short to understand all terms they are explaining. I think the glossary can be helpful if it is updated a bit.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"First three parts (Part I-Part III) are very consistent. However, I cannot understand the consistency on the Part IV. Part IV includes too broad topics without a clear explanation of consistency. Some of them are not very related to media studies. I think it could be improved if they provide the chapter outline in the beginning of each big part and write paragraph of connection in every chapter to make a consistency of overall flow.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This book has a great modularity. Even though most of chapters do not have subheading and subchapter, it can be easily divisible and editable. Overall structure and text are very concise and not overwhelming. Also, each information have separate paragraph, so it can be easily used by its parts. All texts in this book can be divided in a small chunk.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"It is helpful to all chapters pose possible discussion questions in the end. Also, the first three parts have pretty good organization and structure between each chapter. However, the book's overall flow seems like to be updated. It is related to consistency category in that some chapters seemed alien. For example, some chapters on Part IV are a bit overlapped with chapters on Part I. I think most of chapters on Part IV could be incorporated into different chapters in earlier part. Also, some of discussion questions harm the book's logical flow. Some of questions are irrelevant with media studies. I think discussion questions could function as a connection between chapters, if the last question brought some issues that can connect to the topic of the chapter with the next one.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"This book doesn't have any interface issues. This book is a great example to use online interface for the textbook. Some chapters incorporate links of original text, artworks, interviews, and so forth; and all links work without interface issue. Their usage of images also are very appropriate to understand concepts on chapters. I think incorporating various hyperlink and multimedia texts in this book is the biggest strength of this book in that this is media studies book.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There is no significant error on this part.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Since this book clarify that this book is written by and for New Zealand and Australia culture. In that I am not familiar with those cultures, I cannot give an useful feedback on this part. However, it seems like culturally relevant in terms of their interpretation of each theory and its application. Also, some of theories and chapters are culturally relevant with the american culture and other worldwide issues as well. One big part they missed is a topic of race and ethnicity because that is very significant topic in media studies in history. I think it could be okay for New Zealand and Australia; but incorporating those issues could be helpful to the American readers or other countries.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"No additional comments. I think this could be a great guide book to people who start to study Media Studies. As I mentioned, however, I wish this book develops more in structure (logical flows between chapters) and consistency. Also, I hope this book adds more worldwide and contemporary example for each topic. I think chapters on technology could be an exemplar for this part. Lastly, I suggest to use this book with other required textbooks or original texts of the scholar they introduced. Using only this book could be a bit biased and weak media studies class. If you want to know a big overview of media studies, I highly recommend this book!","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2310,"first_name":"Katrina","last_name":"Blau","position":"Media Center and Emerging Technologies Coordinator/Academic Faculty","institution_name":"Lincoln University of Missouri","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"One of the things I really enjoyed about the textbook is that it breaks the concepts into sensible chunks, but provides the linkages to other concepts within the text via hyperlinks. It's very reflective of how we naturally pull ideas and concepts together, which also does bring me to the glossary, which I thought was very clear and easy to use. I think the text also had enough complexity to keep it informative and interesting.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I thought the book was both informative and accurate; also useful and fact-based.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content remains academically relevant throughout the text. Since it is a Media 101 book, the comprehensiveness balances well with the ideas being presented at a level that is easy to understand.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"While it is dense in the sense that there is a lot of information to process, it is presented in such a way that it is clear and connected. If a person is just learning a concept for the first time, the context provides the relevant information. If a person is reviewing concepts, the context provides the link that refreshes the current understanding. It has been a while since I've dug into a Media book and I found it easy to follow.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The textbook is consistent with the terminology adopted for all the chapters.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Given that I read the text online, I feel pretty solidly that the modularity was one of the considerations in its development. It is broken down into blocks of information that could easily be \"mixed\" into an instructor's online course, but it's not so chunky that it would feel like a mental hamburger had been swallowed whole.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Given the modularity of the content, the flow is definitely there. Other instructors might want to address certain topics at a different place, but in the context of the text, everything flows in an organized way and stacks well.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"As for the interface, it was very straightforward and not at all difficult to follow. Visual elements worked with the text without being clunky.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Given my own grammar and the fact I need to rely on Grammarly for my commas and the times I double up on \"the\", I hesitate to think of myself as an expert. However, the text reads well and is consistent. It's legible and clear. I did not spot anything overt.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"A good part of the book is about culture and media, which means that has to be culturally relevant. However, the book is several years old now, so some content could stand to be updated.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Media Technology is one of those areas of rapid change, yet there are current themes that remain constant. Human beings are multi-sensory, with a strong visual and auditory bent. Media relies on those senses, on the cultural context and on the technology available to convey information. Storytelling and instruction has long relied on symbols, action, and examples to provide context to understanding Current technology reframes this for the needs of the modern, or rather the new age of technology and it's only going to get more complex (or simplified, depending on who you talk to) as we go on. Real holographic technology is here and it'll get more and more available. Emojis are becoming more than a quick visual howdy, but we rely on them to convey moods and meaning. Languages are blending and understanding is crossing cultures. Understanding how media fits into all of that is imperative. Media 101 may not be perfect, but it's a solid textbook for adding to our understanding.","created_at":"2018-08-28T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-08-28T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2599,"first_name":"Kevin","last_name":"Smith","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Chemeketa Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"As an overview of a Birmingham School Cultural Studies/Structuralism and semiotics/Critical theory+ approach to media studies, this textbook is excellent. It does branch off into more distant ideas of continental philosophy (e.g. Jurgen Habermas) and traditional communications studies (e.g. uses and effects) concepts, but its bias is clear. It makes no attempt to hide that bias, nor should it in this reviewer's opinion. It's good to know exactly what one will be serving up to students. The discussion questions at the end of each section, however, likely would not allow for a wide range of opinions in a diverse classroom. It is also the opinion of this reviewer that more emphasis should have been placed on the actual technologies that assume a critical role in studying media. For example, there is no discussion of VR/AR, and mobile phones are only mentioned in passing. For that matter, even brief histories of TV and radio are excluded. When they do engage in discussions of specific technological concepts, such as the digital commons, the brevity of the sections hampers their effectiveness in conveying the complexity of the ideas. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This reviewer found no major issues with accuracy in any of the multi-varied topics (which is quite an accomplishment on the part of the contributors, as the scope is so broad). Topics ranging from the fields of rhetoric to cognitive neuroscience are covered with appropriate accuracy. However, there is a strong emphasis on the culture and history of New Zealand, so, as an American, this reviewer can't be certain that that information is wholly accurate.  For example, this reviewer knows nothing about the New Zealand (or even UK) Green Party. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This book might be updated to cover recent technological developments (or any, really) and cultural movements (e.g. the #MeToo movement) that could make it more interesting and relevant to traditional college-age students. However, in general, the book does an outstanding job of breaking down complex ideas (e.g. globalization, technological determinism, semiotics) and showing why students should perhaps find them relevant. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The book is written in clear, fluid prose that would be easy to understand for community college students, even given the difficulty of most of the concepts borrowed from critical theory (e.g. postcolonialism). The decision to break the book down into small, 4-6 page modules was a good one, as students would likely find the material less intimidating, even if the entire book were assigned and especially if not all of it were. (However, as mentioned above, this brevity does come at the expense of thorough explanation (e.g. p2p networks and their social significance for the old media industry and therefore as part of that evolving history). The discussion questions at the end of each section are placed well and easy to find. ","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"For the most part, absolutely. What the contributors set out to do (again, to clarify a complex idea briefly and then move on relentlessly until the entire field of media studies has at least been mentioned within 150 pages) has been accomplished, and they should be commended for it. One of the texts shortcomings is its relative dearth of the visual mode (not that it's barren), especially in the latter two thirds of the text. One other specific problematic issue is that YouTube videos were not available in the digital PDF used for this review, and the hyperlinks to the website for the textbook delivered pages where thumbnails weren't even displayed. ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"This is a double-edged sword because (at the risk of sounding like a glitchy MP3), the module idea is brilliant so that the book is approachable for both students and instructors. This 150-page text seems like it could be used in a four-week crash course, a standard 11-week quarter, a semester or even over an entire academic year (with supplemental readings or just by following the plentiful hyperlinks provided). Again, though, this does mean that a concept like Creative Commons (which the authors even point out this book is a product of) is glossed over. Even Raymond Williams, one of the key figures in media studies (who gets more attention than almost any other single figure in the text, save perhaps McLuhan) has to be rushed off-stage quickly in order to get the next sets in place. Depending on the interests of the instructor, additional readings could be assigned, making this quick intro formula handy. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"This is perhaps the text's greatest strength. The book is organized into four main parts, each with about 13 short modules that can either be used as scaffolds that aid in a deeper understanding of subsequent modules or skipped over depending on the aims of the instructor and/or the time frame of the course. The table of contents and glossary are also helpful. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The hyperlinks this reviewer followed in the digital PDF all worked. However, as mentioned above, the online version that the PDF linked out to sometimes contained missing thumbnails making navigation to multimedia content a little difficult at times (e.g. the YouTube video of Julia Gillard's misogyny speech). It's a shame that the videos couldn't have been embedded in the digital textbook, creating one less barrier for accessing content. text could have been formatted in relation to images in a more visually appealing manner. ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"This reviewer didn't find any major issues, but there are a few minor typos, such as in module 35, where one of the discussion questions reads \"Do you agree with Donna Haraway’s aim that we are all cyborgs (part biological part technology)?\" when the authors ostensibly meant to write \"claim.\" They should also proofread to catch things like the lack of italicized titles of books at the end of module 7. Another possible problem could be Commonwealth nations tendency to place commas and end punctuation outside of quotation marks. It's difficult enough to get American students not to do that when they're reading it all the time. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This reviewer found nothing offensive or insensitive (although this reviewer is perceived as a white, upper-middle class male). On the contrary, the coverage of issues of race, sex and identity, especially later in the book (although even at beginning before the topics become narrowly focused) seem appropriate for a course that has some sort of cultural diversity curriculum requirement. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this textbook is excellent for all of the reasons listed above, and this reviewer found that it would be easy to supplement and/or direct students to the plentiful external materials linked to. However, teaching in the United States, this reviewer would not use this textbook due to its heavy focus on historical and cultural issues of New Zealand and Australia (for example, how many U.S. college students would understand the significance of the All-Blacks and be able to meaningfully engage in the discussion activity in module 1?) without significant cultural adaptation that would help American students apply the concepts under discussion. ","created_at":"2019-03-02T15:52:26.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-03-02T15:52:26.000-06:00"},{"id":2811,"first_name":"Ka Man Calvin","last_name":"Hui","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"College of William \u0026 Mary","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"N/A","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"N/A","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"N/A","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"N/A","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"N/A","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"N/A","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"N/A","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"N/A","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"N/A","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"N/A","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"N/A","created_at":"2019-04-19T21:00:25.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-04-19T21:00:25.000-05:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/media-studies-101","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:30:09.000-06:00"},{"id":411,"title":"Exploring Public Speaking","edition_statement":"4th Edition","volume":null,"copyright_year":2016,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":null,"license":"Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":"","accessibility_features":[],"description":"In Exploring Public Speaking, especially in its second through fourth editions, we have attempted to create a usable, zero-cost textbook for basic public speaking courses or courses that include basic public speaking skills as one of their primary learning outcomes. The free, open nature of the text means that instructors are able to use all or part of it, and add their own materials. We believe this text addresses all the subjects that traditional publishers’ books would address in an appropriate writing style and with appropriate college-level learning theory in mind. The appendices address some additional topics that might be excluded from most texts, but that we believe add to the experience: learning theory, plagiarism, speaking online, speaking to diverse audiences, and humor in public speaking. In the third and fourth editions we have added “case study” examples and some different outline samples. We think this book is especially useful in coverage of PowerPoint, audience analysis and responsiveness, ethics in public speaking, persuasion, special occasion speeches, and structure of speeches. Because it was written by communication professors with decades of experience in the classroom, we are aware of the needs of basic public speaking students. Three ancillaries are currently available: electronic “flash cards” for study, PowerPoint slide decks on the 15 main chapters, and test banks for the 15 main chapters. As the website is developed, it will include videos of student speeches.","contributors":[{"id":4022,"contribution":"Author","primary":true,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Kris","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Barton","location":"Florida State University","background_text":"Dr. Kris Barton (Ph.D., Mass Communication, Florida State University) was Chair of the Department of Communication and Associate Professor of Communication at Dalton State College from 2008 to his sudden passing in May 2016. He was a well published and respected scholar in pop culture and mass media as well as the author of trivia books. His legacy at Dalton State included the initiation of the Bachelor of Arts in Communication, the development of an undergraduate research program and introduction of many students to scholarly conferences, and making an indelible mark on the hundreds of students he taught."},{"id":4023,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Barbara","middle_name":"G.","last_name":"Tucker","location":"University of Georgia","background_text":"Dr. Barbara G. Tucker (Ed.D., Organizational Leadership, University of Georgia) is current Chair of the Department of Communication and Professor of Communication at Dalton State College. She holds master’s degrees in public address and writing from Ohio University and the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, respectively. Her 38-year teaching career, especially of the basic public speaking course, informs this textbook. She has served as president of the Georgia Communication Association and Interim Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs as DSC."}],"subjects":[{"id":6,"name":"Humanities","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":null,"visible_textbooks_count":418,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/humanities"},{"id":33,"name":"Literature, Rhetoric, and Poetry","parent_subject_id":6,"call_number":"PE1408","visible_textbooks_count":124,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/literature-rhetoric-and-poetry"},{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":451,"url":"https://oer.galileo.usg.edu/communication-textbooks/1/","year":2019,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-10-21T19:07:53.000-05:00","name":"University System of Georgia"}],"formats":[{"id":772,"type":"PDF","url":"https://oer.galileo.usg.edu/communication-textbooks/1/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1828,"type":"MS Word","url":"https://oer.galileo.usg.edu/communication-textbooks/1/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":1830,"type":"eBook","url":"https://oer.galileo.usg.edu/communication-textbooks/1/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"4.5","textbook_reviews_count":46,"reviews":[{"id":1001,"first_name":"David","last_name":"Edwards","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"South Central College, Faribault campus","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"A very good textbook for an introduction to public speaking course. Contains fifteen chapters of reasonable length and has all of the topics one would expect for this course. Book has minimal pictures and graphics, so it is not \"flashy\" by any means. Has an excellent chapter on ethics. However, would like to see a bit more attention on speech anxiety and listening. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Overall, very good. However, Chapter 5 (Research) is customized for Dalton State College in Georgia. As a result, anyone using this book will need to supplement their course with additional material on research. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Most references are generic enough for this book to be used for several years without having to update editions. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Very \"conversational\" and clearly written. The book is obviously written for college students, using words, expressions, examples, and situations that are both real and relatable to a young college audience. \n\nOnly a few things are unclear. For example, General purposes needs a bit more explanation in Chapter 4 (perhaps with its own subheading); Appendix A could be moved into a chapter within the book; and Figure 4.1 is unclear. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Each chapter is laid out in a consistent manner with learning objectives and chapter preview coming first. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The length is good. Each of the fifteen chapters is approximately 20 pages long, which makes it quite manageable for most college students. The overall length (317 pages) is much better than another 622-page public speaking book which is also included in this open source library. One suggestion is to eliminate all of the \"blank pages\" found in the book. For example, the blank pages for \"notes\" found at the end of each chapter. It is very doubtful that students would actually print out the book and then use those pages for notes. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Overall, the organization/flow of book is good. It is good that audience analysis and listening comes before the construction of the speech and helps emphasize that public speaking is audience centered. \n\nTwo suggestions for improvement. First, speech anxiety is only discussed on five pages in Chapter 1. It should have its own chapter and include some tips for overcoming speech anxiety. Second, listening is only discussed on four pages in Chapter 2. It requires a more extensive discussion. ","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"PDF only. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Very conversational. No issues with grammar. ","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Would rate this as \"average\" and suggest that the authors attempt to infuse the book with more cultural references, when possible. Book has limited pictures, but some do contain people from diverse backgrounds. ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2017-02-08T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1152,"first_name":"Amanda","last_name":"Grier","position":"Public Speaking Instructor","institution_name":"North Carolina State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text has a detailed index of book chapters and sub chapters. The book covers an extensive amount of information about public speaking. This book would be helpful for an introductory course in public speaking or as a second resource for students.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I believe this book gives accurate information about public speaking. It is also helpful that the book gives definitions of key terms on the margins.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"While this book has relevance and longevity, some simple updates might be necessary after a few years. These updates should focus on examples of speeches that are relevant to current issues and popular topics.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text explains necessary jargon.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The textbook is consistent and includes learning objectives and preview for each chapter.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The chapter headings and sub headings are helpful.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text chapters are divided so it is easy to assign them in the order that is relevant for your course.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I think more examples and pictures to help break up heavy text would be helpful.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammar mistakes.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I think it is culturally relevant. Examples of purpose statements include relevant topics and includes a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I think this book is a helpful tool for public speaking classes.","created_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-04-11T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1227,"first_name":"Taylor","last_name":"Simpson","position":"Public Speaking Instructor","institution_name":"North Carolina State University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all necessary areas on public speaking education appropriately, but I would have organized the material in a more logical way. The table of contents, index, and glossary are all adequate and up to standards.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content of this book is accurate and error-free  to the best of my knowledge. It is also bias-free for the most part, and offers differing view points on a number of subjects that are debated in public speaking education.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Everything in this text is up-to-date as far as I am aware! The layout of the book is organized well, so editing new information should not be an issue at all.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written at a level that any college student should be able to read and comprehend. The text is the right amount of formal and conversational and explains any and all jargon used.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This text is internally consistent.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Some of the sections could be broken up a little more to increase modularity, but for the most part it is very easily managed. Most headings/subheadings make sense in-context and are easy to identify.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"The organization is not terrible in this text, but I would have rearranged some to the chapters -- especially when concerning research and organization.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Interface issues are non-existent as far as I am aware.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are no grammatical errors in this text.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"As far as I can tell, there is nothing that could be considered in this text. Cultural references are relevant as both historical examples and current affairs, but some will need to be updated every few years to remain relevant.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this would be a fine book to use as the basis of an introductory public speaking course!","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1262,"first_name":"Amy","last_name":"Rawson","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Century College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"There are fifteen chapters in this open textbook covering most of the areas of a typical introductory public speaking text appropriately. There are sufficient pictures to go with the chapters and the overall length of the text is good. However, I would have liked to see more information on persuasion and informative speaking (this chapter was only 7 pages long). It would be nice to have a chapter dedicated to group speeches. In addition, there could be more elaboration on listening and public speaking anxiety. The text did not include an index, but did provide an effective glossary.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content was accurate, error-free and unbiased. However, I agree with another reviewer that Chapter 5: Researching Your Speeches is focused entirely on Dalton State College, so this chapter would need to be replaced and supplemented with other more relevant materials to instructors teaching the course who are not teaching at Dalton State.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content of the text is up-to-date with the most recent references from 2015. The text is written in such a way that updates should not be needed too frequently, and if so would be relatively easy and straightforward to add to the text.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook is written in an accessible and conversational tone throughout the entire text. There is a good flow to the text and it is easy to read and comprehend.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The textbook is consistent in framework and terminology. The glossary at the end of the textbook is comprehensive. There were not any errors and the text has a pleasant consistent conversational style.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is readily and easily divisible into smaller sections for reading that potentially could be assigned at various times within a course. The text could easily be reorganized if the instructor chooses to do so. Each chapter contains several subheadings. There are fifteen chapters that are reasonable in length. Chapters vary in length anywhere from 7-34 pages.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The text has good organization, overall structure and flow. All the topics in the text are presented in a clear, and logical manner.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The text is only presented/offered in a PDF so that could potentially cause some interface issues as other open textbooks in the Communication discipline have presented/offered text in multiple formats.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text has sufficient cultural relevance but could offer even more diverse pictures and examples.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Thank you for this opportunity.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1328,"first_name":"Matthew","last_name":"LoJacono","position":"Public Speaking Instructor","institution_name":"North Carolina State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book covers every aspect of public speaking, from the Ancient Greek origins of public speaking theory, to the modern day technologies often used to present in group environments. Additionally, the focus is not only on how to be an effective speaker, but the authors also explore the ethical aspects of public speaking. This work is combined to create a comprehensive look at the fundamentals of public speaking and serves as a great resource for instructors looking to create a deep curriculum. \n\nI was particularly impressed by the sample outlines included in Appendix B. I often find that my students benefit the most from seeing examples of effective speeches, and the authors were wise to include them. I imagine these samples will be some of the most useful parts of the entire book for many students.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I did not find any errors or biases within the text. In fact, I appreciated the inclusion of ethical implications of effective public speaking. The authors are smart to emphasize the responsibility of public speaking, not just the methods of speaking well.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"At first glance the book seems daunting for an undergrad at 300+ pages, but the authors do include illustrative examples as well as clear subheadings that organize the text well. With wide margins and short, digestible sections it is really an easy read and by no means too much for a college class. There is no particular topic that is over-explained or boring and the authors do a great job of keeping a brisk pace for a undergrad audience.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The authors use common language that is not full of confusing jargon. Any terms that might be new to the readers are clearly explained and referenced additionally in the glossary. Students should have no problem understanding the concepts of ethos, pathos and logos as well as reference to rhetorical concepts explained throughout. The tone is friendly and instructive, clearly written by authors who have an understanding of the audience.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The authors are consistent with their terms and perspective. They have common threads throughout that help bring the text together. For instance, the particular focus on audience analysis and understanding brings several of the aspects together. Additionally, the organization of speeches is consistent throughout with no instruction contradicting another. Finally, the examples used in Appendix B are consistent with everything that is taught within the book and crystallize well the concepts that are taught in the previous 300 pages.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"There are tons of sub-headings and everything is broken up into easily readable (and teachable) sections. I did not find any particular section that was overly long or boring. This is particularly useful for a young college audience and it makes chapters much easier to read in smaller chunks. Students and instructors can easily reference anything within this book through the excellent table of contents and clearly marked subheadings throughout.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I have just one minor suggestion in organization of the text. In my experience the students need to learn how to organize a speech early on in the process so I would perhaps move Chapter 6 up just a bit in the order of things. The content of this chapter is excellent and I think would serve as a good foundation before exploring other aspects of the speech. Otherwise the structure and flow are wonderful and easy to follow from chapter to chapter.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The book read perfectly in .pdf form on both a laptop screen and iPad. I found no problems with the interface or any of the images and everything scaled well to the device I was using. I did not try reading this document on a phone, but I imagine the tablet interface and phone interface are similar and problem free. \n\nI do suggest that the web links on page 123 be made active. I believe this is an included picture, but if it were somehow made into a table that had clickable links that would be useful. Each of the websites listed on this page are useful and I think making them easier to access would be ideal for students and instructors.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any particular grammar issues or errors within this text. The writing is very welcoming and easy to understand for a student audience.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book contains references that are timely and cultural relevant for an American audience. I'm not sure that any of the pop culture, political or historical American references would be understood by an international audience, but they are well placed for a domestic audience of students. The authors also include the importance of understanding diverse perspectives in not only the readers, but also the audiences of speaking opportunities.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I am recommending to my department that we immediately switch to this text next semester! I think it is comprehensive, includes wonderful examples of effective speech outlines and tactics, and has a general tone that is friendly and helpful to a (possibly nervous) undergrad audience. Thank you for creating it and making it free for students!","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1334,"first_name":"Janine","last_name":"Pate","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is very comprehensive, covering all of the topics I address in my Public Speaking classes, and in more or less the same order that I structure my curriculum. It is easy to follow along with, with a clear table of contents and index. I have have two small issues with the content: the research section is focused on a specific university and how to use their online database, so that information would have to be supplemented for each school, and the section on ethos/pathos/logos in persuasion could have been fleshed out a bit. I would have to supplement more information and examples.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"From what I have read, the content is very accurate. The authors use personal experience as well as research and theory.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is very up-to-date, written in a conversational way that most students would respond to. I would like to see a bit more emphasis on technology use and/or influence of technology on students' presentations and perception of public speaking.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The writing of this text is very clear, as I mentioned previously. It is written in a good balance of conversational and informative tones. It does not read like a dry, boring textbook, but rather like a professor speaking during a lecture. Specific communication/public speaking terminology/vocabulary appear in bold with additional  definitions within the margins.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text appears very consistent throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This book's modularity is very easily modified, and also readable. There are pictures and examples throughout, with easy to navigate chapter and section headings.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics in this text are presented in much the same way in which I present the topics to my classes. A specific example is the inclusion of Audience Analysis appearing prior to topic selection, which is something I emphasize in my classes. The current book I use does not address audience analysis until chapter 7, which never made much logical sense to me. All the other chapters flow and build on each other as students would logically build a speech.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"A few charts or picture do appear out of proportion, but not enough to be very distracting. A few also appear blurry.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"I did discover a few typos once I began to read the text carefully. They are not frequent, but do appear.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The only real cultural references I see are in the audience analysis section, which is important, but I would like to see some more diverse examples throughout the book in reference to race, age, gender, and ability.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I would definitely implement this text in my public speaking courses. It is not the MOST perfect book I have ever used, but it IS comparable to other texts. If it is comparable, then I do not see a reason not to implement it and pass those savings on to the students.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1367,"first_name":"Franklin","last_name":"Williams","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Tidewater Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text does a great job breaking down each important component of public speaking.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The content is very accurate and straightforward with its content.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"This text is one that will hold its relevance for many years to come.  Great examples of real life speakers and speaking situations will go a long way in helping connect with the students.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"This text is written in a way that almost anyone can comprehend and illustrate speaking practices from this text.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The text is very consistent with its body of work and how it's terms are shaped for maximum comprehension.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"I'm pleased with the how the text is easily and clearly sectioned and not.  Some texts are often clunky but this text avoids that which makes for an enjoyable book to read and study from.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The items in this text are well organized and outlined.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"This text has no interface issues.  It is pleasantly easy to navigate.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"This text has no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Culturally this text could use a little more diversity, but overall it should reach most audiences","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Overall I felt that this text is one of the best I have read in regards to the art of speaking in public.  Some textbooks tend to loose students with too many miscellaneous things rather than get to the true essence of being a public speaker.  I will surely use some parts of it in my class in the future!","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1529,"first_name":"Marina","last_name":"Whitchurch","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Rogue Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"super detailed. I love the use of applicable research to describe such as the of Griffin’s communication process to three games.\nethics...highly comprehensive section. I really enjoyed that read for my own!\nentire text is highly detailed...much more so than any other public speaking text that I've read","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"the link on page 20 did not work for me - the online self inventory","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"a few of the cultural references are a bit dated “the simpsons” for instance is a show that I haven’t heard anyone watching recently\n\nthe use of GALILEO for research is great for students at Dalton State, but if I were to adopt this text for my classes, how would this fit for me? the information is still great...a and i can definitely use it much of it for my own classes, I would just have to transfer everything that is GALILEO related to RCC","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"i found this text to be very clear and easy to follow. the language used was explained, if necessary, and at a level that any first year college student should understand with comfortable challenge.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"consistency was great","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"modularity was great","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"chapters 6 and 7 should be switched putting 5 and 7 next to each other and 6 and 8 next to each other","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"why, on page 18, is there a photo of two women one of which is holding a tool? that seems odd to me...lol\ni like the spaces for notes!\nwhat is page 130 about?  I get the question and the photo but it comes out of nowhere...to me.\nphotos do not add to the text","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"grammar rocked...and i can spot a typo from a mile away.....!","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"anxiety section should include meditation and mindfulness. students are not interested so much in discussions of fear as they are in calming and centering their already overwhelmed brains to focus on speech giving.\n\nunder demographics....please don’t confine sexual orientation to one paragraph and move on. this group is becoming more vocal on campuses nationwide and deserve more than a paragraph. Discussion of ‘partner’ and ‘spouse’ is important, however movement toward understanding pronouns and inclusivity of all fluid genders and sexualities is important.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"great text...should I have to opportunity to adopt open text books in my department, I will come back to this for sure.\nthank you!","created_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-08-15T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1611,"first_name":"Sandy","last_name":"Hanson","position":"Senior Lecturer","institution_name":"University of North Carolina at Charlotte","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"1. This book does not have an index; this is problematic.\n2. The glossary seems complete.\n3. Chapter two spends way too much time explaining simplistic concepts like the eight demographic characteristics covered but then doesn't spend enough time explaining how to use the information. I do like the explanation of planned redundancy, however.\n4. The chapters cover the topics a typical PS text would cover. \n5. I like chapter 4 overall.\n6. I like chapter 6 overall.\n7. I like that chapter 7 includes the lengthy discussion of perception and attention. This is a good inclusion in the text.\n","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"1. The section on plagiarism is disjointed. It describes research showing the lack of understanding about plagiarism but then doesn't define/describe/explain it for the reader. The way the information is offered could actually lead the less than careful reader to plagiarize. Finally, there are exercises for the reader but no examples or samples for the reader to follow.\n2. Page 18 in chapter one discusses senders and receivers but doesn't capture the essence of transactional communication. Sounds very linear.\n3. There are no page numbers associated with quotes or ideas from sources (example, Watzlawick, Beavin \u0026amp; Jackson are cited numerous times, but if the reader wanted to know more about the specific concept, he/she would be lost.\n4. Chapter two says they will discuss ten demographic items when they only cover eight.\n5. What the authors call \"sneaking\" is most commonly referred to as \"patchwork plagiarism.\" I, personally, have never seen the \"sneaking\" term used this way.\n6. The description of \"fair use\" is not reflective of Fair Use regulations and would misinform the reader.\n7. Need to clarify the difference between the way a transition is defined and exemplified with what was written about internal previews and internal summaries. Not clear about the difference.\n8. Most books include \"direct questions\" along with \"rhetorical questions.\" Chapter 8 only offers rhetorical questions, but speakers often DO want an answer to the question they ask.\n9. I don't like that they don't include \"transition to the body\" as part of the introduction but they do include \"signal the end\" as part of the conclusion. (chapter 8). \n10. The review of attention-getting and concluding devices is thorough.\n11. This sentence in chapter 9 needs to underlined or bold or in italics or something: The key is that each presentation aid must directly express an idea in your speech.\n12. Chapter 9: “Sequence-of-Steps charts” are called “flow charts” by most people. But the authors then discuss \"Decision Trees\" which are also flow charts. Combine these two under a heading called \"Flow Charts\" and discuss the two types.\n13. This sentence makes students think 43-seconds is short when, depending on the length of the speech, it could be extremely long. Chapter 9: “…so you could easily show a forty-three second video available on YouTube to demonstrate the part of the surgery.”\n14. I like the example created by figures 9.24-9.28.\n15. I like the discussion about language up to section 10.2. \n16. Chapter 10: “…get off the high horse?” (which I admit, is a cliché!)” There are TWO textbook authors.\n17. Overall, the Language chapter (10) is good. Topic selection is thorough and treatments are accurate.\n18. Chapter 11 suggests speeches will be 5-8 minutes. It is also factually stated that the reader’s instructor will want extemporaneous delivery. Don’t make assumptions about other instructors.\n19. Rather than saying to “film” yourself, why not use “record” or “video” or something more up-to-date.\n20. Chapter 12 offers five categories of informative speeches. These are not commonly used and I think beginning speakers might have trouble differentiating between some of them (eg., history vs. biography is explained, but is the difference so large they demand their own categories (“Type 2,” etc.)?\n21. The Learning Objective for chapter 12 doesn't reflect the amount of space dedicated to topic selection.\n22. I like the sample outlines at the end of chapter 12.\n23. “Two-tailed arguments” are more commonly referred to as “refutation.”\n24. I like the inductive and deductive reasoning sections in chapter 14. Many intro texts don’t discuss enthymemes, etc. Actually, I really like the whole chapter 14. Material is offered that is not often covered in other texts (Argument from Silence, Post hoc ergo propter hoc, Ad Misericordium, etc.)\n","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"1. Chapter one references Pictionary and Google Images. Certainly students today know Google Images but most are probably not familiar with Pictionary.\n2. Chapter two refers to Facebook.\n3. Shows like \"The Walking Dead\" won't be popular forever. (chapter 4)\n4. The \"strange facts\" website in chapter 8 may or may not be around long.\n","clarity_rating":2,"clarity_review":"1. I think early college students will find the writing style to be comfortable and easy to understand.\n2. Section 1.5 (\"Getting Started in Public Speaking\") is a hodge-podge and includes topics I wouldn't consider the first things to think about when \"getting started.\" In addition, it lacks clear direction: when \"PS Requires Muscle Memory\" is discussed, the authors never actually use the word \"practice!\" Students need to hear that word over and over.\n3. Cicero's canons seem like an afterthought and will probably confuse rather than help the reader.\n4. I like the way this section is done: Section 2.4 – Contextual Factors of Audience Analysis.\n5. I like the section on judging internet resources in chapter 5.\n6. The example about ice cream flavors in chapter 6 needs a better explanation.\n7. I would never use an example of something the authors don't recommend, even if it's an easy way to explain something. There has to be a better way! Example: Chapter 7 - \"2. Expectations. If a speaker started a lecture with “In this\npresentation I am going to say the word ‘serendipity,’ and\nwhen I do, the first person who jumps up and says ‘gotcha’ will\nget this $100 bill.” The audience is expecting to hear something\nand tuning in for it. Of course, this is an extreme\nexample (and we don’t recommend it!) but when a speaker\ngives an introduction that sets up for the audience what to\nexpect, attention can be helped.\"\n8. The discussion on anecdotes in chapter 8 has a \"second type of anecdote\" but not a \"first.\"\n9. The heading \"Quotation\" on page 164 in chapter 8 should be in blue and bold italics like the other items.\n10. Need to fix this: \"Element 4: Preview Your Topic/Purpose/Central Idea \nThe second major function of an introduction after getting\nthe audience’s attention is to reveal the purpose of your speech to\nyour audience. \" (Element 4 but calls it the \"second\" in chapter 8.)\n11. It would help if the authors labeled the different parts of their sample introductions in chapter 8.\n12. I think \"visual\" and \"auditory\" are more common aids, but they aren't in bold, while \"olfactory\" and \"gustatory\" are in bold. (Chapter 9)\n13. This the discussion following this heading in chapter 9 includes other things like timing, ease of use, etc.: “9.1 - What Are Presentation Aids?”\n14. Good tips on impromptu speaking.\n15. Chapter 11: explain that Steve Martin took audiences outside of the venue before you offer the p. 168 selection from his book.\n16. Chapter 11 gives a good list of things NOT to do when trying to make eye contact, but doesn’t give the reader suggestions of what TO do.\n17. Section 12.1 – Can’t have a “second” without a “first.”\n18. Lucas’ definition has no blue box while Perloff’s does. Does this mean the authors are placing more significance on Perloff? The text seems to support their inclination toward Perloff, but they did spend a lot of time writing about Lucas.\n19. Chapter 15 offers good, solid advice about special occasion speeches.\n20. I love the appendix on “Becoming a College Student.” Many students don’t ever get this kind of information.\n","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"1. Some concepts have the definitions in blue boxes while others don't. Beginning students may think, because a concept doesn't have a blue box, it's not as important as those that do. A great example of this is in chapter one: \"people,\" \"context,\" \"message,\" and \"outcome\" lack blue boxes while all the other concepts discussed at that point do. Confusing.\n2. This section in chapter 4 uses the same terminology discussed under General Purpose but throws that language in with a lot of other terms. \"To _______________\nSpecific Communication Word (inform , explain,\ndemonstrate, describe, define, persuade, convince, prove,\nargue)\"\n3. Need to differentiate or combine the chapter 8 discussion of anecdotes versus stories. (Fables are used as examples in each!)\n4. Chapter 8: Proof the part on “Conclusions.+ The opening sentence says there are 4 parts but they only discuss three. Also, \"Element One\" is not in blue and larger font like the other elements.\n5. Chapter 10, Section 1 begins with the five canons of rhetoric, but only pulls one of them out (style), briefly discusses it, and then leaves the canons behind. The canons are too important to only be used as an introductory tool.\n6. “Two-tailed arguments” are more commonly referred to as “refutation.” (chapter 13)\n7. Chapter 13 treats the organizational patterns for persuasion differently from most books on the market (based on the type of proposition). It’s an interesting treatment but I would have to use the book in my class to determine if it works.\n","modularity_rating":2,"modularity_review":"1. Plagiarism is covered as an appendix and in chapter three. Why not cover it all in one place. Students rarely look at appendices anyway.\n2. On page 69, the reference is made to the audience in chapter 2, but on page 74 that section called \"The Audience\" is really where the reference to chapter two should be (for ease of reading).\n3. The section in chapter 5 on \"What To Do With All These Sources\" is redundant to the earlier \"fair use\" discussion. This needs to be fixed.\n4. Sentences like this one on page 120 are useless: \"There are examples of the different\nversions of full sentence outlines provided at the ends of some\nchapters.\" Is the reader expected to stop the train of thought and search those examples out?\n5. Need a transitional device on page 167 going into \"Element 2.\" It's been too long since the reader was given the list the things the authors are covering.\n6. Chapter 2 references logical fallacies (which are actually covered in chapter 14). Do this in parentheses in chapter 2, rather than main text. \n7. Chapter 14 introduces reasoning fallacies for the second time in the book on page 324. However, the authors still haven’t covered them. Again, use parenthetical remarks for topics that are not directly concerning the current topic. Logical fallacies are finally defined in 14.4. If they need to be discussed in the previous sections of the book, then at least define them back there and then refresh the reader’s memory in 14.4\n","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"1. The fact that \"delivery\" isn't discussed until chapter 11 is concerning. Students will need information on this long before they get to chapter 11.\n2. Need to fix this: Element 4 but calls it the \"second\" in chapter 8.\n3. Try to place the figures with (same page) the discussions in chapter 9.\n4. Chapter 9: from p. 195-199. These examples should be placed in the text along with (same page) as the discussion regarding each. This whole chapter is confusing due to the placement of the figures. The same thing happens in chapter 11 where the authors have to reference three figures (11.1-11.3) that are four pages away from the discussion. \n5. What does the picture of the woman taking someone’s heart rate have to do with language?\n6. Reverse order of extemporaneous speaking and memorized speaking, especially since the last portion of the extemp. discussion refers to the rest of the chapter.\n7. Lecterns are discussed at three different locations in chapter 11! Consolidate.\n8. There is an entire chapter on topic selection (chapter 4) but then chapter 12 spends a great deal of time on it.\n","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"1. Chapter one references \"figure 9.2\" and the reader has no way to locate that figure. I actually looked at the table of Contents (since there’s no index) to determine the topic of chapter 9. When I saw it was Presentation Aids, I immediately decided there was no way a communication model would be discussed under Presentation Aids. It wasn’t until I got to chapter 9 that I realized the authors relegated a communication model to an example of a presentation aid.\n2. I don't know if this counts as interface, but chapter one assumes the instructor using this book will require \"4-5\" speeches. Every class is different.\n3. There sure are a lot of photos of people speaking. Try getting pics that are relevant to the topic under discussion. For example, you have a photo of a bridge when the discussion is about bridges as transitional devices. That works.\n4. I had no problem with any of the links.\n","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"1. Chapter two offers this mixture of grammatical and punctuation errors: \n\n\"Most audience will be\nheterogeneous, or a m ixture of different types of people\nand demographic characteristics, as opposed to homogeneous,\nvery similar in many characteristics (a group of single, 20-yearold\nfemale nursing students at your college). Therefore, be\nsensitive to your audience members’ identification with a culture.\" \n\nIn addition, the content suggests most audiences will be a mixture of cultures but then asks the reader to be sensitive to the culture. The section doesn't suggest how a beginning speaker might do that.\n2. This sentence uses the preposition \"for\" incorrectly: \"Values are goals we strive for and what we consider\nimportant and desirable.\"\n3. Is this the last sentence in chapter two: \"Conclusion\nThis chapter has looked at the psychological and physical\nprocesses going on inside the audience during a speech. Being\naudience-centered and adapting to your audience involves\nknowing as much as is reasonably possible about them. Addressing\na diverse audience is a challenge, and audiences are, in\ngeneral, becoming more diverse and more aware of their diversity\"\n\nThere's no period at the end but it seems like they would write more of a conclusion.\n4. This sentence in chapter 6 needs punctuation work:  They can be short (as anecdotes usually are. Think of the\nstories you often see in Readers’ Digest, human interest stories\non the local news, or what you might post on Facebook about a\nbad experience you had at the DMV).\n","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"1.\t\"Cultural Diversity\" is included as an appendix! This should be woven throughout the text and discussed explicitly early on in the semester. Unfortunately, many students don't even know what an appendix is, much less actually read one.\n2.\tThe chapter on introductions does discuss not offending the audience with inappropriate humor, but I really think cultural implications need to be included in every chapter.\n3.\tThe section on “clichés” and the language chapter reflect diversity of audiences.\n","overall_rating":6,"overall_review":"1. Anti-PowerPoint argument is one-sided.\n2. More dedicated space should be given to nervousness.\n3. Outlines are shown, but Standard Outlining Format is not formally discussed. It should be.\n4. The hostile, neutral, and friendly nature of audiences should be addressed.\n","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1737,"first_name":"Staci","last_name":"Kuntzman","position":"Senior Lecturer","institution_name":"University of North Carolina at Charlotte","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text does is very thorough and does an exemplary job of including many communication theories as they relate to public speaking.  Chapter 10 on language offers perhaps the greatest coverage I’ve seen in a public speaking textbook.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content for intended audience is accurate, error-free and unbiased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Most content is up-to-date and includes relevant examples that are timely.  However, Chapter 2 will need to be updated pretty quickly as Donald Trump is now president, which should also provide some good additional support and examples that can be included regarding ethics and communication. As mentioned by other reviewers, information about Galileo Scholar in Chapter 3 is specific to students at Dalton State College.\n","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook is written in professional yet easily understood language that includes common communication terminology. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":" The content has great consistency throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"As with most public speaking textbooks, this text could be easily rearranged.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Organization for this Public Speaking textbook is very easy to follow and all topics and chapters include appropriate headers, summaries, and so on.  The chapters align pretty much with how I organize my syllabus, except for chapters 6 and 7 which are inverted since it works better for me when I discuss support before how to organize that support.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The hyperlinks do not open in a new window, so you lose your place in reading every time you use a hyperlink.  Otherwise, the graphics and other visuals included are very good.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not see any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Additional coverage of the LGBTQ community is needed for Chapter 2 and the discussion of the audience.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I have really enjoyed reviewing this open source public speaking textbook!  I had no idea that such resources existed and really appreciate my university and the Open Textbook Network for making me aware of this valuable resource!","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1798,"first_name":"Amy","last_name":"Sauertieg","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Penn State University Harrisburg","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book discusses all the material I would want to cover in an introductory public speaking class. It follows the traditional topics of most speech textbooks.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I do not see any evidence of bias or inaccuracy in the book. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is very current in terms of the examples it uses, within the traditional material for a public speaking text. References to the most recent presidential election will age relatively quickly, but that seems easy to update.\n\nI think the section on how to use the Dalton library should be removed, as it is not relevant to any other school.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The book explains topics in an easily understandable style and makes all technical terms clear. It is accessible in the sense that it is understandable and uses language that students will not find difficult to interpret. It is a little long-winded, however, and not particularly exciting (although that is hard to do with this kind of material).","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The terminology used is consistent throughout the text and concepts covered. Equal and/or appropriate weight is given to each topic.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The arrangement of material using headers and subheads is appropriate. Breaking the text into discrete reading assignments would be easily accomplished.","organization_rating":2,"organization_review":"All the material covered is what I would expect to be covered, but I would not do it in this order. If I use this book, I would definitely reorganize the chapters.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I don't see any significant visual issues, although the photography quality and subject matter could be greatly improved. A few of the charts were a little blurry. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not see any grammatical errors in the book.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text is not insensitive or offensive. I did note, however, that while there are many photos throughout the book, there were only 3 African American students shown, and no students with visible disabilities.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I think this book is adequate for an intro public speaking class, although I found the writing a little dull. However, given the price of many current popular texts, this seems like a reasonable choice. Considering that I don't think many of my students are buy the book at all anymore, perhaps this would be a way to get them to read. I will seriously consider using it.","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1803,"first_name":"Shay","last_name":"Jones","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Penn State Harrisburg","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"At first glance I was concerned that this textbook would not measure up to the one I so dearly love to use now, \"Public Speaking Matters\" by Kory Floyd. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the text is indeed comprehensive, addressing all aspects of public speaking. Actually it has more to offer than the one I am currently using in the areas of diversity with the added benefit of introducing college life and learning in the Appendix sections.  The more I read and consumed, the more excited I became!","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":" I believe the authors did a good job on keeping the content free of writing and accuracy errors while also paying attention to any bias that is often encountered when exploring public speaking.  I did happen upon a few typos and grammatical errors but they are minimal.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":" The authors included historical and current information that would continue to be useful to students in the future.  Also, the textbook can be updated without too much difficulty and much of what is included is simply basic to all public speaking success.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The authors use a variety of formats for defining and explaining the content without \"dumbing it down.\"  They also provide many references that can be utilized for further clarification.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"Overall, I find the book to be consistent, however, I would have switched some of the chapters from their original order. For example, I would place Chapters 5 and 7 together and Chapters 6 and 8 as well.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":" The modularity of this textbook is fine; I have a tendency to assign later chapters earlier in the semester or assign smaller reading portions at different points in the semester depending on how that book's information is organized. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":" The only comment I would have regarding organization/structure is that I incorporate delivery into my course much earlier than what the majority of textbooks seem to do.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"  I find there to be a good balance between text and graphics with especially a number of good examples in the Visual Aids chapter of how to avoid the pitfalls of including visual aids and how to develop them properly and effectively.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":" Generally, I did not come upon grievous grammatical errors and I am always checking grammar.  What I did locate seem to be more akin of typos.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":" This textbook does more with cultural relevance than most of the ones I have used or considered using, thus bravo to the authors.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":" In closing, I would point out that I especially liked the key terms defined displayed in the margins; the Appendix variety and amount of good information that is helpful to the student; the inclusion of Speaking Spaces in Chapter 11; the sample speeches and outlines that were included; the relevant examples used in Chapter 4 like the use of the television series \"The Walking Dead\"; the use of information from Stephen Lucas whose textbooks and media I have used faithfully in the past; and last but not least the terminology as in Central Idea replacing Thesis Statement which I am a fan of!!  Thank you for the opportunity to find a cost-effective yet engaging and comprehensive public speaking textbook for my students!","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":1963,"first_name":"Alane","last_name":"Presswood","position":"VAP/Director of Oral Communication","institution_name":"Hollins University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text provides a solid introduction to all the fundamentals of oral communication, and actually does a better job than many similar text at balancing theoretical and practical information. For example, Chapter 9 (visual aids) goes beyond the usual discussion of font choices, color theory, and digital versus analog presentation aids to discuss the effect that visual aids actually have on presenters and audiences – this kind of discussion pushes students to think about how the skills they are learning apply to a myriad of contexts, not just their graded classroom life. The authors also include an excellent (and rare) discussion of how to budget time inside a presentation and handle paraphrasing well. They use a wide variety of examples throughout the book to help students break down and explore the concepts.\n\nIf anything, I think the text becomes TOO comprehensive at times, considering the number of presentations and the amount of class time generally taken up by those presentations in a typical public speaking class. The discussion of statistics in Chapter 7, for example, feels out of place to me, but individual instructors can choose whether their class time is better devoted to a review of basic Algebra or rehearsing presentation skills based on the needs of their own students.\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This text mirrors commonly accepted disciplinary standards for accuracy in an intro to public speaking text. The authors make a consistent effort to include names of theorists when introducing ideas and guide students toward recognizing the history and background of the concepts they are learning, which reinforces good studentcraft for those of us with general education requirements on the line.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The basic tenets of good oral presentations, sound arguments, and clearly structure presentations haven’t changed in two thousand years, and I doubt they’ll radically shift in the next 5 or 10; as such, this text is a safe bet for planning out the next few iterations of your public speaking course. What disappoints me, however, is a relative lack of attention to how communicators might need to address audiences in the digital realm. From establishing a personal brand on Instagram to conducting job interview on Skype, speaking publicly in a computer-mediated medium is becoming an increasingly integral part of graduates’ lives, and this text pays little-to-no-attention to such needs. In the next five years, I see this becoming an even more pressing exclusion.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text overall is clearly written and pitched at an appropriate level for introductory college students; I have seen some public speaking texts that treat college freshmen like high school freshmen, and this text does not fall into that trap. A few minor exceptions: attempts in Chapter 1 to cover the entire communicative process and other content feels rushed. Ideally, I’d suggest one general introductory chapter and then a separate chapter on the communicative process of the theoretical backing of public speaking.\n\nThe layout of appendix D is odd; there’s some good information on plagiarisim in there, but no logical reason why it’s not folded into the chapter on ethical speaking.\n\nFinally, a warning to potential adopters; as a text created specifically for Dalton State College, some of the information in the text is extremely specific to DSC students. The research chapter is the most obvious example, with an entire section devoted to using the Dalton library. I certainly don’t fault the authors for this, but other instructors should be prepared to use supplementary materials for these sections.\n","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"The authors maintain a consistent, helpful focus throughout the text on public speaking as more than just the skill of standing up in front of a crowd without feeling nervous (emphasizing also the values of being a good audience member, anticipating the needs of listeners, sourcing and citing your information appropriately, et cetera). Again, this focus pushes students to consider the validity of oral communication beyond the classroom; particularly with the inclusion in every chapter of a variety of examples, positive and negative, that students can delve into to help craft and hone their own thoughts.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Individual chapters occasionally drag on; some increased subdivision would definitely increase overall comprehension (again, see my earlier point about the introductory chapters feeling rushed). The chapters do refer to each other, but more as reinforcement of concepts than as a requirement for comprehension. Instructors should be able to assign chapters out-of-order without too much trouble (which is good, since I anticipate many instructors needing to cover Chapter 12 before Chapters 9-10, or Chapter 14 before 13, or move Chapter 15 up as an introductory activity…).","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"I agree with previous reviewers that the lack of an index in this text is a hindrance. The authors provide a glossary, but students have no ability to look up all the instances or references to a specific concept.\n\nI don’t personally think that reserving all the organizational/genre chapters (informative speeches, persuasive speeches, epideictic speeches) for the end of the text is the strongest choice, but instructors should be able to shuffle chapters at their will without much trouble.\n\nOccasionally subdivisions within chapters become too long-winded; I can see some students losing the overall thread of what and why they are reading.\n","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"I appreciate that the authors use embedded video links; this is a great way to take advantage of digital technology and make good use of ebook format, rather than simply shifting a paper text online.\n\nVisually, I find this book awkward. Rather than wrapping the text around the blue boxes for concept definitions, there is just a permanent enlarged margin on the interior page gutters. So, when no concepts are pulled out to be highlighted, there is just an ocean of blank space on the page. It’s off-putting.\n\nOne note on the visuals in the text – I find the infographics generally helpful, but there is a preponderance on photographs f students or instructors in beige classrooms that do not add anything to the book. (Incidentally, blonde women are also disproportionately represented in these photographs). While I’m well aware of students’ preference for reading books “with pictures,” I’d rather see this space dedicated to content.\n","grammatical_rating":3,"grammatical_review":"The book has noticeable typos in every chapter – they’re not overwhelming, but they’re present. I have found this to negatively impact students’ level of faith in the text.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The book shows a great focus (particularly in early chapters but also throughout) on breaking down negative stereotypes in oral communication, one of the bigger hurdles for public speaking students.\n\nWhile generally inclusive and free from any overtly stereotypical assumptions about protected classes, the authors do demonstrate a bias throughout the book towards the traditional student. Students who are returning adults, working full-time, parents, veterans, or who otherwise do not fit the 18-year-old first year vibe won’t see themselves addressed in this text.\n","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"Overall,this is a solid text that stands up to the commonly used analog titans (with a few minor adjustments when adapted outside its originating context of Dalton State College). ","created_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-03-27T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2038,"first_name":"Nichelle","last_name":"McNabb","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Otterbein University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The textbook is comprehensive.  It covers all of the major areas that I would like to see covered in a Public Speaking textbook.. There are, however, some specific subjects I would add or subtract if I decided to use the book. I would delete the section that addresses how students specifically locate library resources at the Dalton library. I appreciate that it is specific to their school, not mine.  I would also add: Topic selection criteria, tests of evidence, and a third type of outline (formal). ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate and examples are unbiased. I liked, for example, the discussion of how Donald Trump appealed to some audiences but not to others.  That is basically all it said.  ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content is both historical and it also includes up to date examples and citations. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook is written in a manner that is accessible to beginning students.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Yes.  I particularly like the section at the beginning of each chapter that tells students what they should know as a result of reading the chapters.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book does not have long sections without subheadings. ","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"I struggle with this, but I would likely arrange things a little differently.  There are a few places where I find myself wondering, \"Why is that there?\" For example, we are quite a way into the book before we get to intros and conclusions. I would like for students to have that information pretty early so that they can be using it all semester. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Images are clear and readable.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The book appears to be free of grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"I don't know what the rules are on sharing excerpts from speeches, etc. in open source documents might be, but I think it is really important to demonstrate to students that effective speakers come in all genders, ethnicities, and ages. I think this book could really do better here. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I think it is generally good.  I think it is usable.  But, I do not think it is my ideal example of a Public Speaking textbook.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2040,"first_name":"Muhammad","last_name":"Khan","position":"Communication Faculty","institution_name":"Linn-Benton Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book does a good job of covering all of the necessities and even goes beyond this. It's actually very likely a bit too comprehensive at-times. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I think the textbook largely focuses on the white lens of communication and is heavily reliant upon research from solely white scholars. While content is accurate, I'm left questioning some of the inherent biases within the way the book is constructed. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The book is relevant but some of the core material is actually tucked towards the end of the book, when it should be leading the book. I actually think study skills and diversity are two of the most important skills to develop as part of public speaking. The authors should be leading with those subjects. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book is quite clear. The authors did a good job on this level. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Consistency is existent with the book and the authors do a good job of using the same framework. ","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"The text could be better in some places, especially the text boxes on the sides of page. It seems like they were added later as an afterthought rather than a consistent piece that flows within the textbook. Ch. 5 had a missing label. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics are constructed clearly. ","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"The interface could be a lot better. The pages are not visually appealing. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Grammar is good. ","cultural_rating":1,"cultural_review":"This book was really lacking in this department. There are very few photos of students of color used, and the book could use a lot more examples of cultures outside of Americans. There was a serious deficiency in this area, that made not want to use the book. The books depiction of cultural diversity could use a lot more work. ","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"I personally wouldn't use this book. The appendix chapters should be leading the book and could be better developed. The book is not reflective of the diversity that is beginning to take shape within the communication field. It's also written for a particular, when I actually think for it to be widely accepted it should be written more broadly for other audiences. ","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2045,"first_name":"Thomas","last_name":"Wright","position":"Assistant Professor of Instruction and Public Speaking Course Director","institution_name":"Temple University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Yes. Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision meets or exceeds the subject matter covered in standard (print) and OER textbooks. I have reviewed numerous public speaking textbooks for publishers and Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision covers more subject areas and includes more material than some of the commonly used public speaking textbooks. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Yes, Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision is accurate, error-free and unbiased. Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision is a widely-used OER public speaking textbook in its second revision. In viewing the content, I did not find any inaccurate information or errors. Public speaking textbooks generally cover the same information in slightly different ways so there is little variety in the content (some textbooks have more visual aids, infographics or examples, and some textbooks have fewer). I did not find any of the information or examples to be biased. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Yes, the content is up to date. Public speaking textbooks are formulaic in their content and presentation. Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision was revised in 2016. \nThere are some exceptions. First, Chapter 9 “Presentation Aids in Speaking” should focus more on the use of mediated presentation aids (e.g. PowerPoint. Prezi).  Second, there should be a chapter on mediated presentations. For example, it is not unusual for professionals to use Skype, Facetime, or other software/apps for presentations. Third, while there is an appendix on cultural diversity the ideas/approaches this material could be used throughout the book rather than being treated as additional, none essential information. In addition, a broader focus on ESL, ELL, or non-native speakers would be helpful. Finally, since it is an OER, it lacks some of the additional materials often included with textbooks from the major textbook publishers (i.e. quizzes, summaries, etc.).\n","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Yes, Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision is clearly written. Overall, it is lucid, accessible, and provides clear explanations of new concepts and/or “jargon.” Keywords are highlighted and defined in boxes offset from the main text. These are easy to read and understand. \nWhile keywords are not reviewed or listed at the end of each chapter, there is a glossary.\nIn addition, all of the examples are well explained or reference common topics from American history or popular culture.\nFinally, the amount of jargon or technical language is the same as one will find in any public speaking textbook.\n","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Yes, Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision is consistent in its use of terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"Yes, Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision generally meets the criteria of modularity. The book is divided into two .pdf files: one for chapters 1-10 and another for chapters 11-Appendix. Within each file, the reader can click on the page numbers for any section and be taken to that section. In addition, each chapter is broken into subheadings. These are easy to identify and find in the table of contents. However, it is awkward and unwieldy to constantly return to the table of contents or scroll through endless pages to get from chapter to chapter.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Yes, Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision is well organized and easy to follow. It follows the same organizational pattern as many other standard/printed and OER public speaking textbooks.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"In general, there are no issues with the interface used for Exploring Public Speaking: 2nd Revision. It is easy to read and generally easy to navigate (see Modularity above) with two exceptions. First, as noted above, the reader often has to return to the table of contents to easily access different sections of the book. In addition, like many OER textbooks, it is challenging (if not impossible) to read on a phone. It does work on a tablet but any .pdf file is best viewed on a laptop or desktop. Finally, since the book is broken into two files, it is awkward to navigate between two texts. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I did not find any cultural insensitive or offensive language or examples. In fact, the authors make a point of noting important changes in the way that language and/or examples can be used to exclude people. On the other hand, as noted above, the author’s should include some examples out of the mainstream or with a more conservative perspective to better reflect the diverse perspectives of the speaker’s audience.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2090,"first_name":"Susan","last_name":"Millsap","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Otterbein University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is a true entry level standard for public speaking.  The authors do an excellent job of covering the main concepts and illustrating how they work for anyone interested in becoming a better public speaker.  The text includes sources and some links to more in depth information if the reader wishes to pursue a more comprehensive study of any one topic. ","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"Overall the information is very accurate with up to date examples that illustrate concepts well. \n\nPage 47, (“Definition of neuroplasticity,” 2015) but never gives this definition. \n\nThe examples used in the fallacies of reasoning section of Chapter 14 are ok, certainly non-controversial, but I would use the syllogistic example of premises leading to faulty conclusions under non sequiter instead of hasty generalization.  I also introduce the Toulmin model here, which is not included, to help students evaluate arguments. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"This text follows the format of most basic public speaking classes that have existed for the last 40 or more years.  There are very current examples and appropriate updates as far as technology and audience analysis which make it useful and should be appropriate for a long time. \n\nChapter Five's section on library research is very specific to Dalton State's library and their on-line search engine.  We would need to supplement this with our own information on our library's website. \n\nAppendix C on making the transition to college is very helpful especially for a freshmen level text.  The parts that are specific to Dalton State would need to be supplemented but the overall information is very useful. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":" The writing style is very easy to read.  Good use of examples and explanations that make concepts easy to understand. Good use of student specific situations.\n\n Very good explanation and use of examples covering the different organizational patterns. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Terminology is used well throughout the text, reinforcing concepts that are introduced earlier in the text.  The voice of the text remembers the student audience throughout. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"While the order of the chapters makes sense and are connected well, the chapters can be easily rearranged if an instructor wishes to cover the material in a different order ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The book is organized for a basic public speaking course where students have little to no experience in public speaking.  This would be appropriate for freshmen level college students or others who lack experience.  The challenge of public speaking is getting students started before they have read all they need to know.  This book is no different.  Chapter 11 discusses Informative Speaking which students will need to be delivering way before this.  So, while I will cover this earlier it would be nice if the text directed them to a first presentation assignment before then. \n\nI would have liked more detail on outlining since I find students do not know how to create an effective outline and many do not know the basics of outline structure. \n\nIntroducing Ethos, Pathos, Logos, in Chapter 13 is late.  I introduce this in Chapter 1 with the history overview.  Reinforcing these here when discussing persuasion is very important. ","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The provided links worked and were helpful in providing more detail about or illustrating a concept.  I wish there had been more links to examples of different organizational patterns. The sidebar definitions are helpful for students.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"While I did notice a couple typographical errors in the text, overall it was grammatically correct. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The authors do a good job of adapting to audience and being inclusive in their examples, as well as explaining how speakers need to make their own adaptations.   ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I enjoyed reviewing this text.  The elements that are specific to Dalton State's campus can be easily adapted to any campus but you will need to clarify this with your students at the beginning and probably remind them of this throughout.","created_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-05-21T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2202,"first_name":"Beverly","last_name":"Knudsen","position":"Instructor, MA MS","institution_name":"Ridgewater College, Wilmar, MN","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text covers all public speaking topics in-depth and I was particularly pleased to see an emphasis on audience analysis so early in the book.  My only complaint (and it’s a small one) is that it might be too comprehensive (and thus overwhelming for a student) and could be more concise in areas.  That said, individual instructors could inform students to skip certain areas of the text in order to make it more manageable.\n     While there is a table of contents and a glossary, an index would be helpful.  In addition the table of contents hyperlinks only work for part one (chapters 1 -10).  Part 2 and the appendices do not have hyperlinks from the table of contents.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Considering all instructors will have their own criteria for speech length, outlining and other assignments the content is appropriate and accurate.  While all texts show some level of bias, the authors did an admirable job of remaining objective and impartial in their presentation of the material.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Based on the examples used in the text an update every year or so will keep the text fresh.  Many examples given are classic and highly relatable whether the student is traditional age or non-traditional (which we get a lot of at the community college level).  I am pleased the authors did not pander to traditional students by pointing toward flash-in-the-pan celebrities or fads.   The example of Kyle Busch at Daytona illustrates how they successfully applied a concept to real-life; even if the reader is not a racing fan the authors provided enough clarity for any reader to understand the point they were making.  Referring to the show The Office, on the other hand was distracting for me.  While I am aware of the show I never watched it and felt a bit excluded when the example was used.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is written conversationally and would be very attractive to a student.  Inclusive language like “we” is used throughout the text; the reader will most likely feel they are speaking “with” someone versus being spoken “to.”  One thing I particularly liked is how the authors explained terms which students might not be familiar with during their everyday conversations.  One example of this is from Chapter 1, page 13, with the word “malleable.”  This gives a student an opportunity to improve their vocabulary without feeling less than intelligent.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The formatting and voice of the authors was consistent throughout the text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I definitely like the smaller sections within each chapter.  Some chapter sections are rather text-heavy though and would benefit from inserting photos in order to break up the large blocks of text.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The organization is fine. I tend to rearrange chapters anyway so the order within the text does not really matter much to me.  For example, because my students do impromptu and narrative speeches early in the semester I would probably pull up chapters 10 and 11 (on language and delivery) within the first four weeks of class.  I would also likely go over chapter 12 (informative speaking) early because students present informative speeches around mid-term.  Overall the information I need can be found within the text so the sequence as presented in the text is of less importance.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"As stated earlier the hyperlinks from the table of contents to part 2 and the appendices do not exist.  In-text links from vocabulary words to the glossary would be nice.  While the text is highly readable for vision-impaired students I did not find any alt-texts on the photos. Has the text been checked with a screen reader?","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"While the use of contractions is conversational, they should be removed.  There is also an extensive use of hyphens throughout the text.  An example of this is in chapter 2, page 29, in paragraph one: “… what they do -- for example…”","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Cultural aspects related to public speaking should be incorporated throughout the whole text instead of being included as an appendix.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"a. For the learning objectives it would be helpful to have them numbered or lettered instead of bulleted.  I always discuss these with students prior to starting a chapter so it would be easier to refer to which objective we are on if they are not bulleted.  Some chapters also have different styles of bullets for the objectives (like chapter 5).\n\tb. The terms in bold were great, as were the sidebars.  I also loved the use of white space in the margins in case students want to print the text and take notes.\n\tc. While I am not a fan of an extra space between paragraphs in academic writing it really works in this text; it helps to provide more white space for readability.\n\td. The walk-through of the research process was very good. I do wish it was more generic though (not just Dalton) because this could confuse my students.\n\te. Would it be possible to eliminate all references to Dalton and the Georgia system within the text?  Perhaps the information could be an appendix.  The “becoming a college student” appendix would be very helpful for my students, but there are too many references to Dalton within in it for me to be able to use it as is.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2245,"first_name":"Bonnie","last_name":"Andrys","position":"Instructor","institution_name":"Northland Community \u0026 Technical College -- East Grand Forks","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text will serve my students and me well  All appropriate concepts and principles are covered. The text also has a functional index and glossary. Linking the glossary to pages or text would be helpful for students.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate, error-free and inclusive.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Principles and concepts of public speaking typically do not change. At this time, the examples are relevant and timely. While there is a 2016 copyright, updated materials could be added or changed quite easily as necessary.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The conversational tone is the text's best feature. It makes it easy to read and may keep students' interest as a result.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This text is consistent with many public speaking texts. I would introduce the three major appeals earlier in the text, and I use a different outlining format.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"What the text lacks in design and layout, it offers many great examples and good explanations of concepts. The use of headings is helpful, but they could be made more distinct (e.g., bolder, larger font). More graphics and images would helpful for readability purposes.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The topics are presented in a logical, clear fashion. Any changes would be due to teacher preferences.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The text is free from significant interfaces overall. Chapter 1 has some font and margin distortions but not enough to distract readers.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"A few grammatical errors exist (typos?) but nothing major to its overall effectiveness.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The text is inclusive in its examples. Individual teachers could easily enhance or update examples easily.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I would like to thank the authors for sharing their hard work. I was also hoping for some supplementary teacher materials, because I am usually curious as to how other teachers present the concepts and principles of public speaking. I look forward to using it.","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2595,"first_name":"Carrie","last_name":"Tomko","position":"Senior Lecturer","institution_name":"OhioLink","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"No worries about the completeness of the collection of information in Exploring Public Speaking (EPS).","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"No issues with accuracy.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"There is concern with pop culture references within the text.  Ideas might become outdated.","clarity_rating":2,"clarity_review":"Rambling text is evident throughout the collection of chapters.  The verbiage should not be made to read like a novel.  Content should be presented in a clear and concise manner, but unfortunately Exploring Public Speaking (EPS) often lacks in this category.","consistency_rating":2,"consistency_review":"The terms and framework are consistently rambling.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"It is possible to use the text in whole or in chapters.","organization_rating":1,"organization_review":"This is the textbook's weakest point.  Clearness lacks in the layout of chapters that drone on and on, off topic at times, suiting the author's needs of supporting outside interests.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No interface issues.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical issues found.","cultural_rating":1,"cultural_review":"I was personally applauded by the tombstone image to begin a chapter on Introductions and Conclusions for speech construction.  Without explanation, the chapter was introduced with a grave marker.  It was not until the every end of the chapter that a side note is listed, sharing that one of the authors fancies a poet, and this is the poet's gravestone.  Seemingly, this is very self-serving and confusing to a student learning about speech construction to show an image of a tombstone.","overall_rating":7,"overall_review":"In my 13 years of teaching, I was disappointed by the lack of clarity in Exploring Public Speaking (EPS).  The rambling of information was distracting and lacked conciseness, while the references to pop culture were outdated at times.  While I did applaud the concepts covered, I would not choose this textbook for fear that students would have a distaste of communication based upon the inefficient manner that communication on public speaking was delivered in this textbook.","created_at":"2019-03-01T12:21:56.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-03-01T12:21:56.000-06:00"},{"id":2715,"first_name":"Ashley","last_name":"Marietta-Brown","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"The Ohio State University- Newark","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is comprehensive and is comparable to other textbooks I have used in the past. It covers all the topics you would expect an introductory public speaking textbook to cover although a complete discussion of preparation outlines is lacking. In addition, it is lacking an effective index and glossary. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The information provided in the textbook is accurate.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"There are references to both past and present situations as examples. The current examples will remain relevant for an appropriate period of time and current event examples can easily be updated or supplemented with the instructor's own examples. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Although the text is quite comprehensive, it is also quite wordy. There are almost too many examples provided that could be cut down and concepts that are too drawn out. The wordiness does not hinder the understanding of the material, but it makes some chapters longer than necessary. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The book has internal consistency in terms of terminology that is used and the structure of the chapters.  ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The subheadings in the chapters make the book easy to navigate. Each section can easily be assigned to allow the instructor to cover material when they seem fit. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The overall organization of the textbook is consistent with other public speaking textbooks I have used. The chapters allow for freedom of movement to align with an individual instructor's course. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The quality of the images and charts is subpar. Higher resolution images should be used as the current ones are blurry. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any noticeable grammatical errors. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The book does provide diverse examples and draw on the experiences of multiple groups, but could include more cultural diversity. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2019-03-31T08:59:36.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-03-31T08:59:36.000-05:00"},{"id":3143,"first_name":"Jessica","last_name":"Papajcik","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Stark State College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Exploring Public Speaking is comprehensive text book. Its strength is in the broad categories that every useful speech textbook should have. With fifteen  chapters, chapter objectives, appendices, and a useful table of contents, a glossary and full references, this text covers most subjects adequately.  The persuasion section in particular needed to be ramped up, especially with constructing arguments and incorporating Toulmin, but that can easily be supplemented by the instructor.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content in Exploring Public Speaking is accurate and for the most part, error free and unbiased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Exploring Public Speaking does not rely heavily on pop culture examples.  The text is formatted nicely and flows logically for the most part with easy to follow headings, subheadings, and sidebars. However, many of the images and artwork are generic and poor quality.  Images should be selected with caution, balancing need with quality.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Exploring Public Speaking provides many definitions in bold throughout the text as well as in blue sidebars (and also in the glossary.)  The language is engaging and written causally without sacrificing rigor. Numbering systems and bullet points are used throughout to summarize key terms and concepts concisely. Each chapter is broken down and \"chunked\" into smaller sections that are only a few paragraphs (sometimes more) which is a benefit for students who don't have long periods of time to read robust chapters.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Exploring Public Speaking is consistent in tense, terminology, and framework. It is simple to follow and uses consistent font, coloring, and labeling. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Modularity may be Exploring Public Speaking's strongest asset.  It does an excellent job blocking or \"chunking\" the text and it well organized. Of course, each instructor has their own preference for order of topics, but that is easily remedied by individual instructors assigned chapters in different orders than presented. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Instructors often disagree on order of topics in the public speaking course and while I wouldn't have personally ordered the chapters as presented in this textbook, that is an easy fix by simply assigning and covering them in a different order. For example, Chapter 7 on Supporting Ideas should be included in the Research section of Chapter 5. The Appendix on citations should be added within the chapter on outlining and so on.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"The interface of this text looks to be error free and navigates well.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I have yet to find grammatical errors, although there are some small inconsistencies in formatting and punctuation use.","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"The weakest part of Exploring Public Speaking is its lack of inclusivity. It leaves the idea of \"cultural diversity\" to a 5 page appendix in the back of the text. This concept should be WOVEN throughout the text in every way imaginable","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, this is an adequate text for an Open Resource.  What this text lacks can be supplemented by lecture and supplemental materials. ","created_at":"2019-08-07T11:24:24.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-08-07T11:24:24.000-05:00"},{"id":3151,"first_name":"James","last_name":"Jarc","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Central Ohio Technical College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is quite thorough and covers all of the most important aspects of the public speaking curriculum. Instructors should find this resource valuable for introductory course and as a supplement for more advanced courses as well. The text will appeal to a diverse array of students.\r\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This book includes good support throughout. The material is clearly written and thorough; the terminology and concepts that are presented are generally accurately explained in sufficient depth. The text includes sidebar content that helps to clarify and further define the chapter content. Bias is generally limited, but as is the case with many materials in this discipline, is sometimes unavoidable.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"Overall, this text includes content that’s relevant and supportive of the learning outcomes for an introductory public speaking class. There are some time- and context-specific examples, but they’re still fairly recognizable.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"This book is written clearly for the most part. The material is very thorough, so in some instances language gets thick and heavy. For example, some passages dealing with theory and highly technical concepts may be more difficult to navigate than others. These instances are not critical to the course content, so instructors can use more advanced concepts to balance the fundamentals… or not!\r\n","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This resource is definitely consistent in its writing, structure, layout, and depth. Certainly some sections lend themselves to different modes of presentation, and that is evident in this book. Such an adjustment doesn’t detract from the usability of the book, and as mentioned above, allows instructors to use the book in different ways, depending on course context, participants, and level.\r\n","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The sections of this book could be easily utilized on their own if needed. The topics are well organized and content is divided into very manageable sections (that are clearly identified and linked from the table of contents).","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The materials are well organized. The flow of the text is completely acceptable, and the sections are organized in a manner that would make sense for most public speaking instructors. Some instructors might disagree with the overall arrangement of the materials, but the book's strong modularity allows teachers to easily present content in the order they see fit.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"My only critique of this book is the overall aesthetic of the content; the pages feel very busy, especially on pages with callouts, images, and multiple sections. That said, sections are clearly labeled, so navigation is easy. Table of contents is functional. Online, there seems to be only access to a very large PDF document, and no other options for accessing individual sections. That might be helpful.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are no significant errors in this text. A few minor stylistic and formatting inconsistencies, but nothing that prevents adoption.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The book includes an appendix that discusses Cultural Diversity in Public speaking, which is nice. Throughout the book, however, there are few, if any, direct references to intercultural communication or diversity issues.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This is a strong, robust, and well-crafted textbook that should be a valuable resource for instructors. ","created_at":"2019-08-16T10:19:54.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-08-16T10:19:54.000-05:00"},{"id":3229,"first_name":"Douglas","last_name":"Marshall","position":"Associate Professor ","institution_name":"SUNO","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I believe that this public speaking text is very comprehensive and includes the major subject areas that one would assume to find in an introductory textbook. The glossary is clear and effective. ","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I see no inaccuracy in the writing of this textbook. The supporting materials are selected wisely. This textbook is a true representation of the discipline. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I find this textbook to be relevant. Many textbooks either ignore technology (which makes them immediately irrelevant) or they are very specific about technology (and thus make it look old very fast). I find the relevance in this textbook is that it discusses all major areas of public speaking but also focuses on technology in an appropriate manner. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The clarity of the text is impeccable. It is written in a manner that is presentable to many levels and styles of learners. Professional/technical language is delivered in a way that invites the reader into the conversation. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is internally consistent in terms of terminology and framework and I see no issues with this. ","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"This is truly one of the highlights of the text. The reading sections are broken down into easily digestible chunks that help the reader to organize and process the material. ","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"This textbook follows the organization of most public speaking textbooks that I have read. It is presented in a logical, clear fashion that first teaches the students about the history and process of public speaking before looking into specific styles and occasions for public speaking. ","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"I think that the interface of this text is a real challenge. There is a lot of open white space that looks like it was reserved for images that were never created. Charts and photos are often fuzzy or poor quality. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The text contains no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This text is not offensive and has no issues. It is inclusive. ","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Overall, the content of this textbook was fantastic. I really enjoyed reading it and was inspired to consider how I could possibled utilize an OER like this in my classes. Visually, this text lacks. ","created_at":"2019-10-29T10:04:50.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-10-29T10:04:50.000-05:00"},{"id":3236,"first_name":"Kallie","last_name":"Gay","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"East Tennessee State University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book covers all areas typically addressed in our general education Public Speaking courses and other traditionally-published textbooks. In addition, the appendices offer insights into important and relevant topics that we often discuss in class but would have had to, in the past, compile resources from additional sources in order to share with our students.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Overall, the book is accurate and unbiased.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Content is current and maintains a modern awareness of social changes without being superficially trendy. It should be easy to update as needed.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The book's tone is clear and accessible, with explanations and examples to clarify terms which might be new or confusing to readers. Some sections would benefit from incorporating the formatting used in other parts of the book, which have key terms in bold for easier identification and serves to break up long passages of text.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The textbook maintains consistency throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Sections of this book could be easily divided into smaller reading assignments for students. The headings are clearly marked and each section has visual signposts (pictures, charts, color blocks, etc.) to emphasize important concepts.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book is clearly organized and follows a logical progression of topics for understanding, developing, and presenting public speeches.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"All book elements display clearly in Adobe Acrobat Reader.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not note any grammatical errors in the book.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The book makes a good effort to include and/or acknowledge a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"This OER textbook is well organized, accessible, and comprehensive. I think it will be a valuable resource for students. Please note: while the review category says this is for the 3rd edition, when you click to download the book it leads to the updated and revised 4th edition from Summer 2019. This review is based on that 4th edition.","created_at":"2019-10-31T09:37:47.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-10-31T09:37:47.000-05:00"},{"id":3320,"first_name":"Tim","last_name":"McKenna-Buchanan","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Manchester University","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book covers A LOT which is wonderful for someone picking and choosing the content they want to develop in their Public Speaking courses. My only critique would be that you have to get through a lot of content before you can start working on a speech, so I would be interested on what chapters are covered before the informative and then the persuasive otherwise I would worry you wouldn't be able to get through enough content to get both presentations done in the semester. However, I do love the open access.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The textbook is very detailed and accurate and I appreciate all of the time that went into creating each of the chapters. They seemed to draw from others who were experts in their fields. ","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The book is straightforward and up-to-date, I appreciate that there has been a stead stream of updated editions. They are adding to content and clarifying aspects and although I hate that in the textbook world it makes it nice since it is open access and you can come and grab new examples making it really relevant for our students. It is a great place to go to find varying examples. ","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I find that the book is easy to read and that the students to not complain, too much. Sometimes they complain about the chapter length, but when talking about clarity it is accessible to instructors and students alike without the jargon that can sometimes cloud a chapter. The students draw on the examples to help their clarity and all around it is clear and concise. ","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"What I appreciate most about the consistency of the textbook is the structure and look. Each chapter starts out with learning objectives, a chapter preview, and then jumps into the chapter. With bolded headings and sidebars with additional information and terms defined for students. I also love at the end of the chapter they have a section called \"Something to Thin About\" which gives you some talking points for class to get discussion going on the content you just covered. Those can be used for journal entries as well. ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"This may be a little harder if you are trying to divide up chapters. While the headings make it easy to differentiate sections they practically all work together to form the chapter. With that said, I do think the textbook could be reorganized and honestly should be reorganized so  you could actually not have to jump around so much to get a couple presentations done in the semester. I mean Informative Speaking is Chapter 11, how are you supposed to get a speech done and not cover it until Chapter 11. You almost have to reorganize this textbook in order to be an effective college teacher. ","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"This speaks to what I just said about modularity, but the topics are presented in a logical fashion related to skills, but not in a organizational fashion with the way a course could be taught. I understand that you will want to cover presentational aids and delivery before a presentation, but you also cannot just build for 2-3 presentations at the end of the semester. I wish they would adjust the textbook some so that it worked with a typical semester schedule. With this said, you can always pull out chapters and re-arrange them which is what I have been thinking about. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"It is pretty easy to navigate they have many sections in which you can click and be directed to the resources you need else-where in the textbook. For example, in the table of contents they make it easy to access other areas. However, in the chapters you lose the hyperlinks. With this said you can easily search for key terms and the font is easy to read and navigate. ","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"To my knowledge the text contains no grammatical errors and is easy to read for college students. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"There is an appendix that covers cultural diversity in public speaking, I wish it was more integrated throughout the textbook however I do appreciate this addition. There are some other examples in the Ethics and Language chapters. The examples are inclusive. ","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, I would recommend this textbook and would parse through it to pull out what was necessary for my Public Speaking course. It is a great resource and has some good information that could be supplemented to make it your own. ","created_at":"2019-11-26T12:48:26.000-06:00","updated_at":"2019-11-26T12:48:26.000-06:00"},{"id":3554,"first_name":"Michael","last_name":"Boling","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Oakland City University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This work covers all of the major aspects needed in an introduction to public speaking. Significant explanations are given on topics ranging from dealing with speech anxiety to need for organization in speech. Further, the glossary at the back of the work is exhaustive and is likely to provide students with a quick and easy reverence for any terms introduced. Related to that, the book does a good job of highlighting terms in the text itself that are directly tied to the glossary which would be very useful from the instructors perceptive when preparing for a quiz or exam.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content lines up very well with my experiences teaching public speaking for the past several years as well as my career in communication studies. I did not note significant inaccuracies, and they appear to overall have an unbiased approach. For instance, at one point they discuss the perception of President Trump’s ethics by varying segments of American audiences (p. 50) in an unbiased and logical way that would make their point to a student on any side of the political spectrum. It is good writing that can discuss a divisive figure in a balanced way. ","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The information needed for a textbook on this topic is all present, and it is written in a clear way that is readily applicable. Indeed, their use of examples to make the information actionable is extremely well done. However, it could be argued that some topics might be less relevant to contemporary students. Particularly, I am not sure the final chapter on special occasion speeches is needed. I think that comprehensive coverage of other aspects of speaking would equip students with the needed skills without having a dedicated chapter to speaking at funerals and awards shows. Granted, there may well be individual students who need those skills, but I think that our culture is shifting in a direction away from that level of formality. That said, I also note that these topics have been pushed to the final chapter of the work and could thus be omitted by the instructor with ease.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"In this respect, this work does an excellent job. The writer’s choice to speak in the 2nd person makes the text significantly easier to follow for a first- or second-year college student. It is also written in plain English, and when jargon is introduced, it is explained clearly.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Overall, the text does a good job of remaining consistent. Terms that are introduced in the text remain in bold text for the remainder of the work and even provide students with references to where that material is covered. For instance, on p. 195 they mention the terms denotative and connotative but then follow this with a parenthetical of where to find the definition of those terms back in chapter 1. ","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"The work does a very good job of breaking down the content in the table of contents, with major chapter headings and subheadings. In the text itself, there are further subheadings that continue to break down the information. For example, 6.2 is on “Patterns of Organization” (one of the table of content’s subheadings), but then under that heading are the types of organization, such as chronological, spatial, and so on. This really helps students to be able to follow the material. My only slight critique on that point is that perhaps the further subheadings should be included in a longer version of the table of contents as well in case a student needs to know at a glance what categorizations fall under a particular heading. I will also mention that the text can be somewhat self-referential, but not to a detrimental degree. ","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"Breaking this issue down into two aspects, in regards to clarity, this work does an excellent job. One topic leads to the next in a way that is easy to understand and follow. Where there are issues that could be problematic for some instructors are in the organization of the text. Notably, chapters on informational and persuasive speeches are near the end of the text rather than the beginning. The issue arises in that students need content (i.e. a speech goal) to work with first before they get into topics like supporting your work with research and how to create a compelling introduction or conclusion. ","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"\r\nGenerally speaking, no major problems with the PDF version. The links in the table of contents worked well, and it was easy to interact with. I also did not note any major issues with image distortion, though there are a few places where a higher resolution image may look a bit more professional. Page 117, for example, has a screenshot of a dictionary definition that has a fairly low pixel count. I will also mention, and not that it is a major issue, but most of the photos in the work appear to be students in classrooms. One or two of these are not an issue, but after a time it becomes clear that they don’t have any direct connection to the content being discussed and are there to break up the text. This, in turn, could be a distraction to some.\r\n","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No significant issues noted in relation to grammatical correctness. ","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I think the text does a good job of this in taking a real-world and inclusive approach. In particular, chapter 10 addresses issues such as ethnic identity and appropriateness in the context of public speaking and giving presentations. Depending on the student's background, this is something that is certainly needed in some cases.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"My final thoughts are that though there are a few very minor issues, this text seems as good as if not superior to the text I am using this semester. That being the case, I am planning on utilizing it next semester for my Fundamentals of Speech course.","created_at":"2020-01-30T11:43:34.000-06:00","updated_at":"2020-01-30T11:43:34.000-06:00"},{"id":3669,"first_name":"Diane","last_name":"Waryas Hughey","position":"Adjunct Assistant Professor of Communication","institution_name":"University of Texas at Arlington","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"Overall, this textbook is very comprehensive and will be useful in an introductory study of public speaking.  Key areas and ideas are included throughout, along with many good examples and ideas for students. The Glossary will be very useful to students and enables students to quickly learn or reinforce key concepts from class. The book is easy to navigate and is thorough but manageable when trying to find information.  I especially appreciate the Logical Reasoning chapter and find that material to be very useful for students in developing Persuasive speeches, and engaging in critical thinking activities generally. There are also several well detailed Appendices. In particular \"Appendix B: Succeeding as a College Student\" will be helpful for many readers.  At times discussions and sections of text can be very long and may be difficult for some readers to get through or to find information they need efficiently.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I find the content of the textbook to generally be accurate, error-free and unbiased.  The authors provide great deal of content and examples help to extend the otherwise accurate ideas presented.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This book was most recently updated in 2019.  The examples and other content including reference material included in example outlines are generally up to date and relevant.  I think that the broader structure of chapters is manageable and necessary updates would be relatively easy and straightforward to implement.  One concern I have is the sometimes very lengthy blocks of text which can be cumbersome to a reader and could also present challenges to updating the text since examples etc. are embedded throughout. There are also sometimes examples used (e.g. the number of internet users in 1980) that may not be highly relevant to today's users of OER materials.  If more contemporary examples in these instances could be employed in a future update that may help readers.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"Generally the text is written in a clear manner and offers a very detailed treatment of topics, plenty of examples and a Glossary to quickly access definitions of important terms.  The variety of examples in the text and also in example speeches and outlines should help any reader find value in the text. The text is a bit  too lengthy, is excessively wordy at times and could be streamlined which would help promote clarity of ideas for readers.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I find no inconsistencies in reading this text in terms of terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Overall it is easy to find material, quickly locate content and navigate through the text. The content is generally fairly modular and would be easy to reorder to suit needs of a particular course, or for the authors to reorder sections in future editions.  Chapters are long with extended explanations followed by examples.  I think for some readers the depth of content and explanations could seem cumbersome. The longer blocks of test limit modularity as well.  While some readers may find the depth of explanation useful to help modularity and readers, reducing wordiness of text and increasing the modular structure would be beneficial.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Overall the ideas and content in the text are presented in a logical and clear fashion. I would have liked to see a detailed Index included at the end of the book as I often see students utilizing this feature of a book and it would be useful for instructors too.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"Images can be highly valuable to readers when purposeful. Many images in this text don't seem to serve a real purpose to help promote reader comprehension of material and are generally not well reflective of the breadth and depth of diversity on today's campuses or are ill placed.  Images also tend to be somewhat blurred and occasionally unclear as to the point of the image given placement relative to nearby text.  Space on the page could be more effectively used. As previously mentioned the sometimes long blocks of text could be distracting/frustrating to readers who may not have a lot of time to read very extensive chapters or dig through many pages of content to find content specifically needed to complete course objectives.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I find the grammar in the text to be accurate and without error.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"There are a variety of examples used which do reflect a variety of backgrounds. However, the images in this text tend to not reflect much diversity which could be off-putting to readers. Future editions of the text should pay special attention to improving cultural (and all other forms of) diversity throughout the text in prose and image, particularly since there is such a trend toward using OER.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This text provides a very detailed and thorough treatment of topics fundamental to an introductory study of public speaking.","created_at":"2020-03-20T12:15:38.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-03-20T12:15:38.000-05:00"},{"id":3771,"first_name":"Rich","last_name":"Kessel","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Metropolitan State University of Denver","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text does a commendable job covering a vast literature in a reasonable number of pages.\r\nWe tend to forget that public speaking is a huge subject area and, therefore, comprehensive texts are going to be quite lengthy. Conversely, most public speaking textbooks are geared towards introductory courses taken by students who grew up in a culture of TLDR (too long, didn’t read). Finding a balance that will satisfy every instructor at every institution is an impossible task. Thankfully, the authors created a text that easily allows for customization.\r\n\r\nThat said, I could not give it the highest rating because I feel leaving out a discussion of the primacy and recency effects when discussing topical organization patterns is a significant oversight. The fact that we tend to remember your first and final points more than those in the middle is an important point to consider when organizing a speech that does not follow a natural chronological or spatial pattern.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"The text continues to perpetuate the myth that audiences can remember seven main points, plus or minus two. Like many other public speaking textbooks, they play off the title of George Miller’s seminal 1956 work, offering Miller and two additional sources to support this assertion.  While they suggest erring on the safe side of “minus two,” thereby limiting presentations to no more than five main points, they fail to mention that the research cited concerns our ability to remember digits, not fully developed main points. None-the-less, more recent research by one of the authors cited (Nelson Cowan) suggests that our ability to retain information received aurally is far more limited than Miller estimated (i.e., 2-3, four if we are really paying attention). Continued teaching of the Magic Number Seven rule is further at odds with the research suggesting that presentations with fewer main points are more effective than those with more.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Well structured, without unnecessary time-stamped references that can quickly outdate the text.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Well written and easy to read.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Agreed","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I consider this a strength of this text. There are many ways to teach this subject matter, each requiring a slightly different scaffolding of information. Unlike some of the commercial texts available, the information in this text is presented in discrete packages, allowing faculty to either assign readings in the desired order or customize the text to fit their pedagogy.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"As stated previously, no one organizational pattern will satisfy all instructors. This text makes modifying the organization simple.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Flows just like a printed textbook, but with active hyperlinks for easy navigation.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I saw just one error, and it was a copyediting mistake, not a grammatical error.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"As a cisgendered, heteronormative, Caucasian male, I do not feel I am the best to speak to the cultural sensitivity of the text. However, nothing jumped off the page as being inappropriate.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I reviewed the fourth edition (Spring 2019) of this textbook. Given the challenges of writing a general studies textbook, it seems wrong to criticize a book as well put together as this one. However, for its intended purpose, this text would be hard to beat.","created_at":"2020-04-29T13:19:08.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-04-29T13:19:08.000-05:00"},{"id":3786,"first_name":"Jeremy","last_name":"Babcock","position":"Program Coordinator/Instructor","institution_name":"Northeastern Illinois University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This is a very comprehensive text with many important elements into the exploration of public speaking. While I appreciate the broad range, there will need to be some reorganization of the chapters (for me) before utilizing this content for an introductory class. I did notice that there is an omission of some graphics that I have found helpful included in other texts when covering source/message/receiver/channels, but not a huge deal. Additionally, I appreciate the themes in the appendixes, particularly the “Succeeding as a College Student.” I would cover this in courses with first-year students during the first week. Again, there is a lot of solid material and with some retooling and utilizing some supplemental articles, I definitely feel there is more than enough meaningful content to guide an introductory course in public speaking.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I take comfort in the large number of contributors and consultants who added to the latest edition. I find the areas covered in line with a text that I am currently using in my public speaking courses, and feel the information is accurate and covers the basics quite well. I did not see any noticeable inaccuracies upon review of this book.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The material covered here has a staying power that make it relevant to any student who will be working toward a degree and subsequent career that involves public speaking. With that said, it would be easy to incorporate relevant examples into the content that could be tailored for future teachers, business leaders, social workers, etc. The fact that this is an updated edition makes it clear that this is a living document that will continue to hold true to the tenants of public speaking, but also adapt to the changes in communication as they arise.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"I really like how this book is organized. I would definitely feel comfortable using this in an introductory public speaking class. Important terminology is highlighted in colored boxes outside of the main text, a feature I feel my students will appreciate. Additionally, the “Something to Think About” questions at the end of each chapter are a great way to engage students and cultivate critical thinking.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"As stated above, I feel this textbook is organized well and easy to follow. The photos leave a bit to be desired and, while they don’t distract, I’m not sure that some are adding much to the overall content and messaging. I also find the charts to not be as effective/visually appealing as the ones in a text I am currently using in my public speaking course. This is not a deal-breaker and I still feel that this would be a text I will lean towards using, but it’s worth noting that the charts and graphs could be more inspired.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"I would definitely reorder the chapters when covering this material in my introduction to public speaking courses. With that said, each chapter is clearly set up, organized, and concluded in a way that would allow for some flexibility to do so. I currently have students give 3 presentations throughout the semester, so I would definitely move the units on informative and persuasive speeches up a bit, possibly move presentation aids back as an example.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I appreciate how much material is covered in this textbook. I would order it a bit differently, but feel that it is presented in a way that would make it easy for me to do so. I will say that I think more time and tangible solutions should be spent on public speaking anxiety. It is a subsection of chapter 1, but one of the greatest obstacles to student success in a public speaking class. Much more depth into relaxation techniques, meditation, warm-up exercises is necessary.  Again, the organization is solid, but a deeper dive into certain areas will require supplemental materials/resources","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Other than images that don’t seem to reinforce the content, I like how the chapters are set up and organized. In a way, it’s modeling the way to organize an effective speech. The learning objectives are set up at the beginning so that the audience knows what to expect, the main points are backed up and fully explained, and the conclusion of the chapter leaves you with questions to think about for future discussions. Perhaps a little more could be added by way of excitement with regards to attention getters and anecdotes, but the writing is definitely not dull.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Upon my review of this text, I did not recognize any glaring grammatical errors. It appears to be a well-edited, and written in a way that introductory public speaking students will comprehend.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"As alluded to in an earlier comment, I think the photos and graphics in this text leave a bit to be desired. Caucasian students and professors are the most prevalent images. Teaching at a very diverse university in an urban-setting, I think this is something that my students will notice and possibly bring up in class discussions. There is an appendix that touches upon cultural diversity in public speaking, which is good, but feels a bit disparate and should be integrated throughout the text. Also, potentially addressing students with accessibility needs (hearing/visually impaired, etc.) could worth noting in an additional appendix.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Overall, I feel that this is a text that I would be comfortable using in my Introduction to Public Speaking class and very happy to have found it here! I think students will appreciate the content and the way it is organized, and with a few supplemental materials, I am confident that this would provide a satisfactory guide to introducing students to the basics of public speaking. I definitely plan on spending more time to read through the text and possibly use in an upcoming semester, very glad that students will have greater accessibility to a solid, free, textbook. Thank you!","created_at":"2020-05-01T11:42:04.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-05-01T11:42:04.000-05:00"},{"id":3806,"first_name":"Maura","last_name":"Cherney","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Northeastern Illinois University","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This open access text is a more comprehensive collection of information about public speaking than any other public speaking textbook I have reviewed or used in my own public speaking courses. The book covers all the topics I cover in my class (plus some!), and other than a few details (explained below), this textbook should not require any supplementary readings to learn the skill of public speaking. The glossary is thorough, including important vocabulary from throughout the text. Interactive links to the appropriate page from which the vocabulary comes (or, at least, the page number) would help students navigate to find additional information.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content within the book is accurate and error-free. I did not notice any inaccuracies in the information presented.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The content is, overall, thorough. Chapters include all expected basic, foundational information related to each topic. Each chapter provides enough content to create basic understanding in students. Some areas could benefit from more thorough and up-to-date content. For example, in the area of public speaking anxiety, there have been some more recent strides in effectively matching individual experience of communication apprehension with an appropriate intervention, which have been ignored by this and other public speaking texts. While the text discusses interventions broadly (mental preparation, physical preparation, etc.), the book could either be supplemented by or revised to include more targeted approaches to overcoming public speaking anxiety. See work by Karen Dwyer from the University of Nebraska Omaha. Other topics, however, were explained in much more depth than other public speaking textbooks, such as the types of sources of information.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is easy to read and provides clarification, definitions, and examples as necessary. Direct quotations from other sources are used sparingly, and when used, are often powerfully-worded, entertaining, or insightful. The text often goes beyond a “how to” to include a “why.” The APA section in the appendix is a great resource, especially for early undergraduate students. It not only provides samples for references page entries, but also answers some frequently asked questions students often have about how to appropriately cite sources.","consistency_rating":4,"consistency_review":"I did not notice any inconsistencies in use of vocabulary throughout the text. Sometimes, photos are inconsistent with the surrounding text.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Chapters are divided in a way that is consistent with other public speaking texts, and sections within chapters allow for further division of content into smaller sections. For example, in the chapter about organizing speeches, it is possible to cover organizational patterns appropriate for informative speeches during one class period and cover organizational patterns appropriate for persuasive speeches during another class period because each organizational pattern is divided using its own header.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The organization of chapters is similar to other public speaking textbooks I have seen, but like other public speaking textbooks, individual instructions would likely have to assign chapters out of order to meet the needs of course assignments. For example, the informative speech chapter is placed toward the end of the book, but informative speeches are typically assigned earlier in the semester (at least in my public speaking classes). The inclusion of the topic of listening in the audience analysis chapter was something I haven’t seen on other public speaking texts, but worked really well! Chapters 5 and 7 seemed a little misplaced - it seems logical that students would benefit from content from Chapter 5 followed immediately by content from Chapter 7 (chapter 6 seems to interrupt the logical flow of research \u003e incorporating evidence).","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"Some additional images might help in the explanation of some concepts. For example, when discussing the models of communication in Chapter 1, images of the models are linked, but might be helpful for students to see directly within the text. The text offers direct links to supplemental websites, which is definitely part of the appeal of e-texts. Navigating to the link an back to the text, however, is a little cumbersome because it brings the reader back to the beginning of the textbook, not to the page from which the reader navigated originally. Questions and case studies provided at the end of each chapter seem like they would be effective in getting students to work with and apply the course content. Explanations for case studies are provided in the appendix. Vocabulary words with definitions are called out using colored boxes in the margins, making them easy to find and reference. On page 248 a YouTube video is linked, but the link does not correspond to the video referenced in the text.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No major concerns about grammatical errors throughout. Check consistency of capitalization in references to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The textbook is inclusive of multiple perspectives. For example, when discussing gender as a demographic, the text includes many examples of communication tendencies of men and women, but then also includes the possibility of non-binary or gender non-conforming perspectives. Appendix A provides a thorough explanation of major cultural differences and how those differences play a role in public speaking. It addition of Appendix A is great content for the goal of creating a safe, inviting classroom environment for students of differing backgrounds.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Will definitely be using in my public speaking courses! What a great resource made so readily available to students!","created_at":"2020-05-07T10:35:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-05-07T10:35:06.000-05:00"},{"id":3853,"first_name":"Jill","last_name":"Arabas","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Middlesex Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is wonderfully comprehensive for an introductory public speaking course. While converting to OER two years ago, I chose this text because it was so close in content to the physical text I had been using. The content in the chapters even aligns, if not the chapters themselves! What I like best about this text is that it covers what a student needs to learn without the tome-like feel of some public speaking texts that are certainly more comprehensive but intimidating financially and psychologically. Suggest elevating Appendix C - public speaking online - to chapter status given the increase in Zoom and Hangout meetings that we are experiencing now and certainly expect post-pandemic.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content in the book seems error-free and unbiased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"The text is fairly standard and therefore timeless in its content. Some texts in the Communications field become obsolete quickly because the the authors face the near-impossible task of addressing technology (i.e., Intro to Mass Media, Audio Production). This text smartly avoids detailed tech talk on presentation aids. Suggest the authors elevate and revise Appendix C (on online speaking) into a full-fledged chapter.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The language is easy to comprehend but sometimes rambles. Points could be made more succinctly without the loss of clarity or comprehension.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent in its approach, language and intent.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Ideas appear to be grouped well generally. I have had to do some skipping around in assigning chapters: 3 before 2, 7 before 6.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The book is well organized, taking a student public speaker through the natural, chronological progression of steps in preparing to deliver a speech. Starting with \"why public speaking\" and anxiety, the text then moves to audience analysis, topic development, research, speech organization, supporting materials, introductions and conclusions, presentation aids, language, and delivery. I would flip Chapters 2 and 3. There are separate chapters for the mainstay informative, persuasive and special occasion speeches. Perhaps some of the material in the appendices could be woven better into the rest of the book(Appendices A and D). Appendix C - online speaking - needs its own chapter. An index at the end would have been helpful.","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"The interface works as well as most OER texts. Unfortunately, the bar for that is very low; i.e., a click on the table of contents jumps to the chapter. There need to be more hyperlinks throughout, not just a \"back to the TOC\" and \"next chapter\" hyperlink on each page, but hyperlinks bringing students to more in-depth breakout material. Not everything needs to be on a main page. Students (and professors!) love to discover hidden content, games, puzzles and more in a text. We need to think more like video game creators - not to distraction, but to enhance the learning environment in a way that entertains, informs, educates and engages our students so they stick with us and - heaven help us - actually do the reading.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"Misspelling on title of Appendix A at the top of each appendix page - Diversity not \"Diveristy\"","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Appendix A is devoted to culture sensitivity; that is, the benefits and challenges of cultural diversity to public speakers. The text covers relational, verbal and nonverbal cultural differences that speakers should be aware of, and delivers advice and context intended to be helpful to students at community colleges with increasingly diverse backgrounds. This is somewhat woven into the main text (e.g. Audience Analysis). Unfortunately, the images in the text are mostly white, which is off-putting in a classroom such as mine where Caucasians are in the minority.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This book was an excellent replacement for the physical public speaking guide that had been costing my students money they could have been applying to tuition or food. As mentioned, the OER is very closely aligned to what I had been using. It is wordier and rambles in places but gets the job done nicely at a time when students would rather look something up online than spend their money on a book they often feel they will never use again. I applaud the authors for their hard work and hope they update with hyperlinks and a fully formed chapter on online speaking.","created_at":"2020-05-28T11:00:08.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-05-28T11:00:08.000-05:00"},{"id":3881,"first_name":"Suzette","last_name":"Ashton","position":"Communication Professor","institution_name":"Valencia College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text lacks information on interpersonal  communication, and culture .","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"No concerns with accuracy or biased information and or diverse images.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"Needs to include that the central idea is also referred to as the preview statement.\r\nSpeech topics could be more relevant for example , Lord Byron .","clarity_rating":3,"clarity_review":"The text lacks clarity when defining the difference between the specific purpose and the central idea . Also, in chapter 8  it refers to the central idea as \"preview your main points\".","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"In the speech examples in chapter chapter 6 , the central idea is omitted.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"No issues with modality","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The heading and topics are organized well, but the content is difficult  to follow . For example, moving from a specific purpose to a central idea.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No issues with interface","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical issues","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"The fact that culture is an appendix could be perceived as insensitive and irrelevant.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"Maybe add:\r\nGibbs Supportive and Defensive behaviors in audience analysis chapter\r\nAdd how to construct audience analysis using questionnaires \r\nInfuse culture throughout the book\r\nIntroduce Monroe's Motivated  Sequence in chapter 6","created_at":"2020-06-01T09:59:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-01T09:59:39.000-05:00"},{"id":3898,"first_name":"Edie","last_name":"Gaythwaite","position":"Professor, Communication","institution_name":"Valencia College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"4th edition review. For a public speaking focused text, the chapters align with most other textbook subject matter. The addition of the case studies is a plus as this can help with teaching in a variety of modalities.","accuracy_rating":4,"accuracy_review":"I didn't see any issues with accuracy as written. The text uses a common method of presenting introductions using a specific purpose and central idea that doesn't align with my philosophy of placement of a specific purpose statement or how a central idea for speech is constructed.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I reviewed the 4th edition which is relevant and up-to-date. It is obvious that the authors of the text consider the text as \"a living document\" with regular revisions which I think makes this text relevant.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"he text is clearly written and learning outcomes and summary or conclusion. It has one voice.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The chapters are consistently presented. I like the \"think about\" section and as mentioned, the case studies.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Sections of the chapters can be easily assigned or combined with external materials.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"I particularly enjoyed having audience analysis and listening together. Each chapter is presented with the same opening elements (learning outcomes, preview, numbering system, etc).","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not encounter any issues with the document as a pdf.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No errors noticed.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I think the photographs presented in the text could be more representative of the world as additional examples be more equitable and inclusive.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Very quick response for the ancillary information. I like that the text is always under review and revision making it more powerful. I look forward to developing an online course using this text. Finally, I agree with others when they discussed the potential for expanding the online information. After this pandemic we will have more experience with this aspect. Thank you!","created_at":"2020-06-02T12:19:58.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-02T12:19:58.000-05:00"},{"id":3973,"first_name":"Bernardita M","last_name":"Yunis","position":"Graduate Student, Teaching Assistant","institution_name":"University of Colorado Boulder","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This public speaking textbook covers the main areas needed for a public speaking course in a comprehensive manner. It both addresses the ethics and theory behind the practice as well as practical skill set for teaching and learning how to be an effective public speaker. Not only does it cover the logistical aspects of public speaking (informative speech, persuasion, logical reasoning), but it adds practical skills for presentation aids, language choices, and a useful multi-section Appendix to aid any first year college student. The Appendix also includes more samples and a glossary of definitions.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content in this textbook, including images, graphs, and supplementary appendices is mostly accurate and error-free. It also provides clear, updated information, relevant to modern technologies, and is unbiased.\r\n \r\nTypos: on page 200 where cliches are defined does include some information that seems contradictory. It says cliches are usually similes; however, none of the cliche examples actually include \"like\" or \"as\" as defined in similes.\r\n \r\nOn page 306, in the second paragraph, \"designed to\" is repeated in the first sentence.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content of this text is relevant and updated to demonstrate its relevance to current technologies and media. It includes important, relevant information on diversity concerns and how to address these in a public speaking course. It's timely and relevant and can be easily and quickly updated given its clear, straightforward organization.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"This text is written in an extremely accessible, clear way. It is easy to understand and read through, not getting lost with jargon, but rather explaining clearly all the terminology. It is an good and accessible read, especially for what are potentially many first year students. Really great textbook!","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent in terminology, framework, organization, and methodology of each chapter. They refer back to other content previously mentioned or that they can expect in future chapters. It was easy to know what to expect in the various chapters given the section breaks and how it was organized.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"In particular, this text is accessible for professors to be able to assign various chapters at different times and create teaching/learning modules with different chapters. While the organization of the text currently makes sense, it is easily rearranged as needed for teaching various versions of Public Speaking. Only in the Appendices are there some sections with a lot of writing and not many subheadings. Otherwise, the text is visually also accessible and easy to read through.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The chapters are organized logically and in a way that makes sense. The flow of this textbook is well planned and allows for growing of knowing as you move through it.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The text for the most part is without many interface issues. The blue definition boxes could be adjusted so that they are all Left Justified. Otherwise, it looks great, clean, clear, and well mapped out.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Besides the 2 notes of typos mentioned above (and again here), the text is without grammatical errors.\r\n \r\nTypos: on page 200 where cliches are defined does include some information that seems contradictory. It says cliches are usually similes; however, none of the cliche examples actually include \"like\" or \"as\" as defined in similes.\r\n \r\nOn page 306, in the second paragraph, \"designed to\" is repeated in the first sentence.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"This text takes seriously considering cultural differences and maintaining its relevance in a world that is constantly changing and spreading diversity. It considers these changes, includes conversations on personal pronouns, cultural differences, judgments, and more, that I found to be critical, relevant, and important to include, especially for a young first year audience. As I read it, I felt like a lot of the labor many of us of marginalized identities do on a regular basis were covered in the text already. It is really wonderfully addressed!","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":null,"created_at":"2020-06-11T16:40:41.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-11T16:40:41.000-05:00"},{"id":4043,"first_name":"Maurisa","last_name":"Charest","position":"Adjunct","institution_name":"Northern Essex Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all the basics of Public Speaking in a way that's easily understandable for first time speakers to absorb and digest.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The text uses straight forward language free of opinion and based purely on intellectual and diverse facts.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text uses updated and not outdated examples, sources and examples. One example is the Seinfeld quote: According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.\" This quote is a popular quote when you Google Public Speaking. I also appreciated the Garber 2018 clarification in the text.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is specific, clear and fluid. Any jargon that is used is clearly defined. I liked the blue text box that appears to the side of the text that gives the reader a quick view of a new vocabulary word.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The text is consistent and fair to both the craft and importance of Public Speaking.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text makes it very easy for readers to absorb and comprehend the material without using overwhelming amounts of long winded paragraphs. Each new thought is broken up by a clear transitional headlines allowing readers to process the old and welcome the new.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"I appreciate the order, however, I do wish explanations of the three types of speeches are approached first. When teaching I usually skip to that section at the start of a course in order for the rest of the material to attach itself more clearly to the core elements that make up the speeches.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Visuals are honest, relatable and credible for each section.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not encounter and grammatical errors as I read through the chapters. The text was very fluid and easy to comprehend.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I thought the chapter \"Cultural Diversity in Public Speaking\" was very important and expressed well. I usually have to incorporate that element in my courses when we talk about Ethics in Public Speaking. It gives the topic more credibility because this text tackles this important issue with clear insight and instruction.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I appreciated the Chapters on: Cultural Diversity, Public Speaking On Line, Succeeding as a College Student. I have yet to see topics incorporated in a Public Speaking text. Having examples for students is also very helpful. Everything a student would need to understand and value the tools needed for Public Speaking in one text.\r\nWhat I wish had been included: A brief section about the history of Public Speaking. We would not be where we are today in oration without the Ancient Greeks.","created_at":"2020-06-23T12:00:30.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-23T12:00:30.000-05:00"},{"id":4072,"first_name":"Julia","last_name":"Greene","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"North Shore Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":4,"comprehensiveness_review":"I like the book.  It is very comprehensive and includes subjects that might be related to public speaking, but which are not usually included in an introductory public speaking textbook like a whole chapter on Logical Reasoning (Chapter 14) or in the Appendices, Cultural Diversity (Appendix A) and  How to Succeed as a Student (Appendix B).  An important component completely missing from the textbook is the subject of narrative or storytelling.  I believe that the best speakers develop personal narratives that they incorporate into their speeches, which gets the attention of the audience, and creates a relationship and gives context to the speech.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I thoroughly read the book and followed some links.  I think it is accurate but using it will help me to assess it in more depth.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"I think it is relevant.  I was happy to see \"Public Speaking Online\" as one of the appendices.  Hopefully it will make it to full chapter status in the future (I am writing this review recent post COVID-19 and everything is going online).  I think the book is heavy on the writing of a speech, Chapters 4-8, and Chapter 12 all go into excruciating detail of writing  more of a term paper for an informative speech, than an informative speech.   Some professors may have this as their goal.  I want my students to learn how to give interesting presentations that engage their audience.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is very well written.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Yes, the terminology and framework are consistent.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The book's modularity is the reason I am adopting this textbook. There are parts of the book I won't go into detail on, and I will change the order of how I use the chapters considerably.  The great thing is I can.  The book is set up for modules.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"I think the first three chapters are in the correct order.  I would flip Chapters 9 - 15 to come next, and save the writing of the speech Chapters 4-8 for later in the semester, to have students end with a final \"big\" informative speech for which they put in a lot of writing time.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I had no problems navigating the book.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I saw no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"I thought they could use more examples of pieces of speeches from other than white men.  They should review their examples.   In the language section they could have used Barbara Jordan's 1976 Democratic Convention Key Note Speech as an example of the use of anaphora, instead of JFK again.  Here is an excerpt: \"We are a people in a quandary about the present. We are a people in search of our future. We are a people in search of a national community. We are a people trying not only to solve the problems of the present, unemployment, inflation, but we are attempting on a larger scale to fulfill the promise of America. We are attempting to fulfill our national purpose, to create and sustain a society in which all of us are equal\".  \r\n\r\nAppendix A is on Cultural Diversity and it's a start but to make the textbook culturally diverse, it needs to be baked right into the textbook with examples of great orators from different cultures, sexes, ethnicities, and time periods.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I haven't gone into \"Ethics\" too deeply with past classes.  I like the chapter on Ethics and plan to couple it with the chapter on Logical Reasoning.  In this day of fake news, it's important to teach students how to use credible sources and identify fallacies.   I will also focus on Appendix C - Public Speaking Online as if it is a chapter.  Both my courses will be online next semester.","created_at":"2020-06-24T14:35:47.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-24T14:35:47.000-05:00"},{"id":4160,"first_name":"John","last_name":"Drischell","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Linn-Benton Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I found the book to be very comprehensive in the different perspectives considered for public speaking. The appendixes were useful and relevant. Both \"Succeeding as a College Student\" and \"Cultural Diversity\" were good considerations and additions to this material.  There were no subjects or areas overlooked that would necessitate amending the books content.  However, I would change the organization of chapters. I think the delivery chapter should be moved early in the table of contents.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"There were a large number of authors and consultants who collaborated on this book. I think this ensures that different perspectives were used to help create a well-rounded textbook for public speaking. I did not notice any errors or overtly biased viewpoints or rationales.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"There is a section in the textbook that explains how to use the Dalton library, which should be removed as it is not relevant to all schools. I found many of the examples to be relevant and relatable to college students. In particular, the use of technology and its advancement in the field of public speaking was included. The references made in regards to recent presidential elections were engaging and timely.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The textbook was easy to read and understand, devoid of jargon that may alienate the reader. The book reads conversationally, which is user-friendly and inviting especially to college students.  The overall level of relatability with good examples also makes material clear and easy to understand. Their use of pop. culture and history makes things feel familiar.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"I thought the terminology was consistent throughout the textbook. Chapters felt balanced and well-formed. More pictures would help complement material to make things flow easier.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Transitions statements are something we teach in public speaking, so it's nice to see when textbooks of public speaking do the same. The book flows seamlessly chapter to chapter. Good signposts are given to break up material in a logical manner. As stated earlier, I think there are a few chapters that would need to be reordered, which can be circumvented on an individual-class basis with a designated reading schedule.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The chapters and topics presented are logical and easy to follow.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"I think the picture choices could be better for this textbook. Powerful and vivid images are what drive the readers mind to make connections to what they are reading. Some pictures accomplish this, while others do not.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"The textbook appears to be proofread without any apparent grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The appendix section on \"Cultural Diversity in Public Speaking\" was a great addition that provides cultural awareness and differences in public speaking. There is an overall feeling of inclusiveness with how material and images are presented in this textbook.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"I think this a strong textbook for public speaking. Many professors and teachers alike could adopt this into their classes for what this book has to offer. There are considerations for how the textbook is organized, which may come down to personal preference. This can be remedied with a reading scheduled provided by the instructor, to dictate the proper read-order for their particular public speaking course. Overall, the book is comprehensive, diverse, and engaging in it's presentation and assertion of core principles in public speaking.","created_at":"2020-06-29T23:49:01.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-06-29T23:49:01.000-05:00"},{"id":4266,"first_name":"Christy","last_name":"Takamure","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Leeward Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This textbook is comprehensive and includes all of the concepts and elements introduced in an introductory public speaking course.  Direct links to some of the sources were helpful if the reader was interested in learning more in-depth about the topic or study.  Although illustrations are interspersed throughout the textbook, there are some graphics or charts that could have been added to better illustrate concepts such as the process of public speaking.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content was error-free and unbiased.  However, in Chapter 3, I would prefer to use different terms to define the different types of plagiarism such as global, patchwork, and incremental plagiarism.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"This textbook provides the reader with the principles of public speaking as does most other public speaking textbooks.  An important aspect lacking is the integration and use of technology in public speaking since the advancements and progress in technology has changed the landscape of presentations including in online public speaking courses.  There are innovative technological modalities and various channels utilized to enhance learning and making speeches.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The text is clear and easy to understand for an introductory speech course.  Key terms were defined in helpful highlighted boxes to signify importance.   There were some elements that could have used examples to help increase clarity.  For example, in Chapter 4, \"Context\" was defined but not clearly explained.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Information is presented consistently from the beginning, each chapter begins with the learning objectives and chapter preview then ending with the conclusion and \"Something to think about\".  However, in Chapter 5 “Something to think about” is missing.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Although the text is easily and readily divisible into smaller reading sections, I would have preferred that every page is aligned to the left.  I found it distracting that the odd-numbered pages were aligned to the left and the even-numbered pages were aligned to the right.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Topics were organized logically and clearly.  Chapters are similar to most other introductory public speaking textbooks.","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"There are many images in this textbook that are confusing to me.  Why is there a picture of a tombstone on page 134 (title page of Chapter 8: Introductions and Conclusions)?  On page 217, postures using lecterns are mentioned to refer to a number of figure illustrations however, the figures are displayed several pages later beginning on page 223.  It should be placed immediately after it is mentioned.  There are numerous illustrations that seem to be irrelevant to the text.  For example, a picture of cookies on page 243 and a picture of President Lincoln on page 245.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not find any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I would prefer to see more culturally diverse illustrations and photos depicting a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"This textbook comes closest in terms of terminology, concepts, principles, elements, and outlining to the textbook that I currently use.  This textbook would be a great option for my students since it is cost-effective and easily accessible for my distance learning courses.","created_at":"2020-07-27T05:13:55.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-07-27T05:13:55.000-05:00"},{"id":4295,"first_name":"Terra","last_name":"Ryan","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Community College of Aurora","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is comprehensive and offers definitions of key terms in blue boxes in the margins. This resource is excellent when a student needs key terms for initial evaluation or review.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Terms and examples are accurate.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The book does a good job offering a history of public speaking but could offer more contemporary examples earlier in the text.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Book is clear and offers clear definitions of public speaking terminology.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Terms and definitions are consistent.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Although terms in the book are clear, the modularity of the book is a little confusing in that it offers terms and then examples and then a bumpy switch back to terms.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The book uses a blend of chronological and topical organization. The text offers a clear history of public speaking and why these skill sets are needed in contemporary settings.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Interface was clear and easy to use, there were even links to other resources.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No errors found.","cultural_rating":3,"cultural_review":"Many pictures though out the text are of  white instructors and students of color. While this may not be seen as cultural insensitive, these pictures do give a micro aggressive feel to the text.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"The book stereotypes People With Disabilities (PWD’s). PWD’s are mentioned as an example of totalizing but not included in audience analysis group examples.","created_at":"2020-08-09T20:57:17.000-05:00","updated_at":"2020-08-09T20:57:17.000-05:00"},{"id":4367,"first_name":"Molly","last_name":"Cummins","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"University of Texas at Arlington","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text is similar to other major textbooks (e.g., Lucas's _The Art of Public Speaking_) and covers similar material.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"There are few errors.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The text does not try to address immediate issues, but takes a more general approach to make it easier to do updates. It seems the authors review the text periodically to make small edits as necessary.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is written well, for the most part. There are a couple of places where I can tell a difference of author (the tone shifts slightly), but that may not matter to students reading the book. There are places where the text could be trimmed or a bit more thoroughly explained, but for the most part, the text adequately covers the material needed.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"It appears consistent throughout.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is easily broken down, as needed. I did not teach the chapters in numerical order and did not have many issues by rearranging the order of chapters. Students were still able to grasp what was necessary in each chapter.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Yes, the organization makes sense, even if I switched up how I taught it.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I worked with one of the authors this summer to make the text more accessible for all students. They worked diligently to create a text usable in a variety of formats (e.g., a screen reader). While it may not yet be perfect, the authors' willingness to work toward accessibility for all matters.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"Again, there are few inaccuracies in the text.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The authors appear to have used photos from their local university. While there are a variety of bodies present, their pictures could push toward more diversity. My major concern with this text is a conflation of the difference between sex and gender. The book, inaccurately, uses them interchangeably. This is detrimental to students' understandings of the crucial differences. However, this is a topic than can be addressed by the instructor to clarify and correct.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"If you're looking for a solid OER to test out in a Public Speaking course, the 4th edition of _Exploring Public Speaking_ is a good choice.","created_at":"2020-11-03T11:37:51.000-06:00","updated_at":"2020-11-03T11:37:51.000-06:00"},{"id":4996,"first_name":"Joseph","last_name":"Nicola","position":"Professor","institution_name":"Century College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text covers all key concepts and key terms associated with an undergrad Public Speaking Course. Examples of a Keyword Outline are lacking.  Found on pages of 416-417 of 4th edition.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate and error-free.  Inconsistencies were not note found.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Covers all key concepts and key terms associated with an undergrad Public Speaking Course. A good text for a Public Speaking Course.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The text is lacking in graphics and color coated headings.  This could be difficult for some reading on a screen.  Otherwise, this text does adequately cover the subject matter content.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"It appears consistent throughout.","modularity_rating":4,"modularity_review":"Some of the later chapters should be covered earlier in the text.  For my students, I would assign readings out of there currently order.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"Some of the later chapters should be covered earlier in the text.  As an Instructor, I would assign readings out of there currently order.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The text Index is hyperlinked to the page the information is on.  * It should be noted the end of text glossary terms are not hyperlinked.  \r\n\r\nInterface is clearly laid out.  However, it is mostly just plain text, more graphics and color layout choices may be helpful some students when studying the text on a screen.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors found.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Not culturally insensitive but the text is very lacking in representing real world student examples, backgrounds, and experiences.  Different student demographics and culture awareness is lacking in this text.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Minimal graphics. Mostly just text, which may be troublesome for some learners reading on a screen.  More graphics and color-coded text headings would be beneficial for screen reading for a future update. \r\n\r\nMore End-of-chapter quizzes, assessments, and worksheets would be helpful to add to a future edition.","created_at":"2021-05-27T12:20:18.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-05-27T12:20:18.000-05:00"},{"id":5188,"first_name":"Deborah","last_name":"Charette","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Bristol Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"Not having used OER materials yet and not knowing what to expect,  I am impressed with the comprehensiveness of this text. Every important aspect of effective public speaking, including cultural diversity and audience awareness, is addressed. Also included is a glossary and plentiful useful appendices such as Succeeding as a College Student, Public Speaking Online, and APA Citation.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This text appears to be accurate and spot-on with necessary information. Plagiarism, ethics in speaking and preparing one's information, and the use of presentation (visual) aids are a few examples of what is knowledgeably explained.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"I think this text is reliably relevant and can readily be updated as well as customized as necessary. In particular, the chapters on special occasion speeches and persuasive speeches.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Exploring Public Speaking is, in my opinion, coherently written with well-organized content. Students won't find the information and explanations overwhelming. Chapters are presented in separate modules that all come together effectively.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"This text is congruous with its terminology and overall framework of subject matter.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Chapters are presented in separate modules that all come together effectively. For example, Chapter 4: Developing Topics for Your Speech is categorized into four sections: Getting Started with Your Topic and Purpose; Formulating a Specific Purpose Statement; Formulating a Central Idea Statement; Problems to Avoid with Specific Purpose and Central Idea Statements.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"The structural flow of this text is sensible.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I did not come across interface issues within this book.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not come across grammatical errors, misspellings, or poor editing.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Exploring Public Speaking addresses the importance of cultural awareness, sensitivity, and respect throughout the book. Also included is an appendix entitled Cultural Diversity in Public Speaking whose subsections are \"Benefits and Challenges\" and \"Implications\".","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I have used Speaking With a Purpose (Koch and Schmitt) for several years because I feel it addresses the needs of the speaker and student well. In reviewing Exploring Public Speaking, I found a close kinship with my go-to text and will not hesitate to incorporate it into my course.","created_at":"2021-06-30T13:51:59.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-06-30T13:51:59.000-05:00"},{"id":34063,"first_name":"Ashley","last_name":"Page","position":"Instructor of Communication","institution_name":"Fort Scott Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"I am currently using this textbook in my public speaking class. It covers everything needed! Gives terrific details and examples and students especially love the outline examples shared.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"This book is very accurate and shares details in a way students will understand and relate to. Error free and flows well.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Content is up to date and covers material well!","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The book follows and order similar to what I cover in class and any jargon/terminology used is explained and given examples.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The terminology is very consistent with the world of public speaking and easy to understand.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Very easily divisible! Flows in a way that is perfect for a 16-week course.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Flows in an easy to follow way and helps students grow in skills as they get further in the book.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"No distorted images or confusion to reader.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"Great examples shared in this book!","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"Excellent textbook! It was easy to follow and gave great examples to students. Students especially loved the example outlines shared in the textbook and examples shared.","created_at":"2022-09-28T14:58:41.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-09-28T14:58:41.000-05:00"},{"id":34220,"first_name":"Sandra","last_name":"Bryant","position":"Assistant Professor","institution_name":"Tidewater Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"The text covers all the aspects of traditional public speaking texts. They offer PowerPoint and teaching materials. What they do address that are not covered in other traditional public speaking texts are cultural diversity and art of funny or funny talk.  Those areas are necessary in the world in which we live and I applaud the authors for including them.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I found no problems within the text in terms of word choice, editorial confusion or lack of consistency.  It was much clearer and more accurate than other texts.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"Text is up to date but remains relevant.  I believe next version planned will address social media. However, this text addresses 'public speaking online' most recent pandemic.  Coverage of material was welcomed and helped students in virtual learning settings.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"Clear, concise language is used throughout.  Limited jargon except when addressing theories.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"Very consistent and understandable in terminology and functional framework.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Text is grouped along chapters that can easily be translated into weekly reading and course modules.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Well organized and easy to follow and understand.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"Multiple formats to secure the material that can be manipulated for all types of learners.  For me, access to read online using cellular device works great. The student must have enough memory to perform this function.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"I found no cultural inconsistency within examples and photos in the book.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"My students love this book.  They download read and use it.  I appreciate this alternative to the high end textbooks most students can't afford.","created_at":"2022-12-02T08:17:59.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-12-02T08:17:59.000-06:00"},{"id":34247,"first_name":"Amy","last_name":"Powell","position":"Adjunct Professor","institution_name":"Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College","comprehensiveness_rating":5,"comprehensiveness_review":"This text includes comprehensive content and theories for any public speaking class. The material includes all areas that are important to an intro public speaking class. The material is presented in a way to will benefit students in ‘real’ life situations; applicable to speaking well beyond undergrad classes.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content is accurate and written in an easy to comprehend manner.","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The content is relevant and the text is written in an articulate way, that will not require major updates or revisions.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The material is presented in a manner that even non-communication students can grasp the material.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The organization is consistent across chapters.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"I assign the chapters in a different order from the text, and it is organized such that it is easy for students to follow and take chapters out of order.","organization_rating":4,"organization_review":"The text is logical. I assign the chapters in a different way, to spread out the presentation of speeches.","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I see no issues with the interface.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"There are minimal, if any grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"There are not any discrimination examples. Teaching at a tribal college, there are minimal examples or mentions of indigenous cultures.","overall_rating":10,"overall_review":"I value this text and the fact that it is available at no cost to students. Public speaking is a skill that all people will eventually use, and my goal is that students will maintain the pdf text for years to come.","created_at":"2022-12-06T21:08:03.000-06:00","updated_at":"2022-12-06T21:08:03.000-06:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/exploring-public-speaking-2nd-revision","updated_at":"2025-12-15T02:30:23.000-06:00"},{"id":455,"title":"A Guide to Technical Communications: Strategies \u0026 Applications","edition_statement":null,"volume":null,"copyright_year":2016,"isbn10":null,"isbn13":null,"license":"Attribution-NonCommercial","language":"eng","accessibility_statement":null,"accessibility_features":["unknown"],"description":"Welcome to the textbook for Engineering Technical Communications courses at The Ohio State University. Our aim in writing this textbook was to create a resource specifically focused on and applicable to the kinds of communication skills most beneficial to the students who take our courses. Therefore, this textbook focuses on developing both technical and professional communication skills and will help readers practice strategies for critically analyzing audiences and contexts, real-world applications of rhetorical principles, and skills for producing documents (reports, proposals, instructions), presentations, videos, and wide variety of other professional communications.","contributors":[{"id":4175,"contribution":"Author","primary":true,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Lynn","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Hall","location":"The Ohio State University","background_text":"Lynn Hall is currently finishing her Ph.D. in English from Miami University (Ohio). In addition to over 15 years of experience in the legal field, she has taught writing in a variety of courses including English composition, literature, women’s studies, business, and technical communication classes."},{"id":4176,"contribution":"Author","primary":false,"corporate":false,"title":null,"first_name":"Leah","middle_name":null,"last_name":"Wahlin","location":"The Ohio State University","background_text":"Leah Wahlin is interested in the intersections of technology and communication. While working on her Master's in Renaissance women's writing, she was a member of the Digital Writing Collaborative at Miami University (Ohio), focusing on teaching writing using digital technologies. After completing her graduate degree, she taught writing and literature, but also built a career as a project manager at a digital marketing agency and then as a content director and researcher for a small company building a gardening app. She is also serving as a writing partner for a book project with Professor R. Brian Stone (OSU Department of Design) that examines the increasing role of motion design in effective visual communications."}],"subjects":[{"id":16,"name":"Journalism, Media Studies \u0026 Communications","parent_subject_id":null,"call_number":"P91.3","visible_textbooks_count":57,"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications"}],"publishers":[{"id":420,"url":"https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/","year":null,"created_at":"2018-09-07T12:22:39.000-05:00","updated_at":"2022-01-03T09:32:18.000-06:00","name":"Ohio State University Libraries"}],"formats":[{"id":724,"type":"Online","url":"https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/engrtechcomm/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":725,"type":"PDF","url":"https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/engrtechcomm/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null},{"id":726,"type":"eBook","url":"https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/engrtechcomm/","price":{"cents":0,"currency_iso":"USD"},"isbn":null}],"rating":"3","textbook_reviews_count":8,"reviews":[{"id":1215,"first_name":"Sumita","last_name":"Roy","position":"Associate Professor","institution_name":"Southern University, Baton Rouge","comprehensiveness_rating":1,"comprehensiveness_review":"The authors present an excellent introduction to technical  communication and discuss the basic concepts such as audience and purpose in detail. A brief discussion of the Aristotelian principles of the rhetorical situation helps students analyze a  specific communication task. This section is followed by a detailed step-by-step  guide to conducting research  for the job market and designing and writing  effective resumes and applications.  Thereafter, the authors discuss the two primary kinds of research.\n However, the book ends abruptly.  Content for the chapter entitled Documenting Sources is missing. Sections on important technical documents such as Proposals, Reports, Abstracts, Summaries,  Visuals and Graphics,  Memos and Letters are missing.\nIndex and Glossary  are also missing.\n The book is incomplete.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"Content is accurate and appears to be error-free.","relevance_rating":1,"relevance_review":"The authors need to complete writing the book and include all relevant chapters in order to ensure relevance and longevity.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The writing style is  clear and effective. The authors adopt a conversational and informal tone to explain technical concepts.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"Consistency is acceptable.","modularity_rating":2,"modularity_review":"Design features can be improved in the text. The authors need to provide sub-headings and visuals to make the content more accessible.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"The authors begin the text well by writing an excellent introduction. However, as indicated before, they do not discuss a comprehensive set of topics.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"There were no distortions.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"The text seems free of grammar and mechanical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"The text is not culturally offensive.","overall_rating":6,"overall_review":"The  book has a lot of potential; however, the authors need to complete writing the book.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1371,"first_name":"Lia","last_name":"Hadley","position":"Adjunct Faculty","institution_name":"Chemeketa Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":1,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is largely incomplete. It looks as though an early draft has been uploaded rather than the finished document. It has no index or glossary. It does not even have complete chapters. There are several chapters that are only a chapter heading with no further text.","accuracy_rating":1,"accuracy_review":"There is not enough content to comment on this area.","relevance_rating":1,"relevance_review":"As stated, the content is largely incomplete. However, with the text that is available, there are relevancy issues. The focus at the start is on basic principles of rhetoric (logos, ethos, pathos) rather than on principles of technical communication. There is also an example (and picture) of the game Candy Land that is quite dated and not cross-culturally (or generationally) relevant.","clarity_rating":1,"clarity_review":"There is rhetorical jargon at the beginning of the book (rhetor, kairos, logos, ethos, pathos) that isn't well-anchored into the \"why\" of technical communication. The prose becomes more accessible after that point. However, because of the incompleteness of the text, these comments are quite limited.","consistency_rating":1,"consistency_review":"The book is too incomplete for me to give much commentary on the consistency. However, the tone to this point is inconsistent. It moves from instructional/explanatory to exclamatory (\"Build a vocabulary!\"). It reads like an early draft where style has not yet been addressed.","modularity_rating":1,"modularity_review":"The text is broken into lots of headings, but the headings (or levels of the headings) sometimes feel haphazard rather than deliberate.","organization_rating":1,"organization_review":"The organization has either a clear progression or nothing.","interface_rating":1,"interface_review":"There are significant interface problems, including where the text in a table is tabbed erratically and difficult to read.","grammatical_rating":1,"grammatical_review":"The text contains a fair degree of error at this point, including missing capitalization, grammar errors, etc. There are also highlighted notes from the authors to the authors saying things like \"For example….some kind of example.\"","cultural_rating":1,"cultural_review":"The text is too incomplete to comment much here, apart from the Candy Land comment under Relevance/Longevity.","overall_rating":2,"overall_review":"**THIS BOOK IS NOT COMPLETE ENOUGH FOR CONSIDERATION OR REVIEW.** It looks like the wrong draft of this book was uploaded. This is an early and fully incomplete draft with only about 30 pages of text (with several of them blank) and entire chapters that are missing any text. This book is not complete enough to merit anything above a 1 rating at this point. A finished version would likely be much better.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1422,"first_name":"Jessica","last_name":"Lee","position":"Composition Instructor","institution_name":"Portland Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The introduction explicitly states that this textbook was written for Engineering Technical Communications courses at The Ohio State University. However, with the exception of one or two references to resources specific to The Ohio State University, the contents of the textbook can be applied to any technical writing course. In some instances, when referencing resources specific to The Ohio State University, the authors mention where students in other colleges and disciplines might find similar services.\n\nThe actual different types of technical communications covered in this textbook are minimal: currently there is only information on job application materials.","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"The content contains a few grammatical errors but otherwise seems accurate and unbiased.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"One of the main things the authors stress about the nature of technical communication in general is the awareness that \"all communication must be designed with audience and purpose in mind\" (2). This emphasis on the importance of understanding the rhetorical situation of a text makes its content relevant to most changes that might naturally occur in standardizations of communication with the passage of time. As the authors themselves state, \"Whatever happens in the future, a nuanced, audience-focused communication strategy will allow you to evolve and thrive\" (3).","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"At no point in this text did I encounter excessively technical terms. Keywords are highlighted and defined.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"What is proclaimed as \"the most important 'strategy'\" emphasized in the textbook--\"all communication must be designed with audience and purpose in mind\"--is returned to throughout (for example, when discussing job application materials: \"it is important to first consider the rhetorical situation for this particular type of communication. What is the intended effect? What are you trying to accomplish? Who is your audience? How will they be accessing and reading your document?\" To further drive home the importance of assessing the rhetorical situation, the text inserts tables describing in detail the audience and purpose of the text being discussed.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text contains several different levels of headings that make it easy to be divided into smaller reading sections that can be assigned at different points within the course. There are also sections like \"key takeaways\" that occur throughout the textbook that provide a nice summary of major sections.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"As a reader outside of The Ohio State University context, the reasoning behind the textbook's organization was unclear to me. The book contains five main sections: the \"Introduction,\" \"Rhetorical Foundations,\" \"Job Search Communications,\" \"Engaging with Research,\" and the \"Appendix.\" I was particularly confused with the placement of section on \"Job Search Communications.\" Why was this followed immediately by \"Engaging with Research\"--what is the reason for jumping from a description of a concrete type of technical document back to more abstract concepts?","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"I did not see any significant interface issues. There are some links contained in the text to outside resources, such as links to Purdue's OWL. This book is currently available as either a PDF, ePub, or eBook (ePub \u0026amp; .mobi), which were all formats that required me to download the text to my computer. For those who prefer to read the text online, this might be an issue.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"There are a few typos throughout.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"One note provided under the section \"Preparing Job Application Materials\" states: \"The practices for this document outline here are focused on business culture and norms in the United States, so keep in mind that you will need to research and follow the appropriate standards if you're applying for jobs internationally.\" I believe there is room for more acknowledgments such as these.","overall_rating":8,"overall_review":"This book appears not to be completely finished.","created_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2017-06-20T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":1615,"first_name":"Heather","last_name":"Jordan","position":"Lecturer","institution_name":"Bowling Green State University","comprehensiveness_rating":1,"comprehensiveness_review":"This book is lacking quite a bit of content for a Technical Writing textbook. It does frame the conversation about technical writing with a rhetorical lens, suggesting knowledge of the field, but it is a very basic understanding that would speak more to a high school student, or first-year undergraduate. The authors do disclose that this text is designed for Engineering Technical Communications courses at Ohio State University, but the introduction is misleading in that it also claims that it \"will help readers practice strategies for critically analyzing audiences and contexts, real-world applications of rhetorical principles, and skills for producing documents (reports, proposals, instructions), presentations, videos, and wide variety of other professional communications,\" but this textbook does NOT adequately do all that it promises. Perhaps this is a draft of the textbook rather than the polished final that is showing here?","accuracy_rating":2,"accuracy_review":"The information that is presented, though very limited, is at least accurate. Except for the introductory claims that are NOT accurate in what the book provides, the elements on basic rhetorical appeals and interviews are useful. I will say that this text often references a banking model of education that knowledge/information goes from source A to receptor B, but much of the current scholarship suggests otherwise, so that is certainly something that I would question in terms of accuracy. ","relevance_rating":2,"relevance_review":"The historical aspects of the book about basic rhetoric are grounded and established, so those references are certainly a propos, but there is so much missing in this text for document design, usability testing (or even user-centered design), and conflict management when doing collaborative work that I worry that it is already obsolete. ","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The content included is clear, and there are links and references where necessary and appropriate. I cannot give full marks here, however, because of the abrupt ending which leaves so much ambiguity for the readers. ","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"This text has an appendix as the ending page that literally says \"This is where you can add appendices or other back matter.\" Again, I fear this is a draft of a final version that was uploaded to the Open Textbook Library. ","modularity_rating":2,"modularity_review":"There is not much content within the text to allow for modular use. One wouldn't jump to an interview module prior to the resume module, for example. \nThe subunits are far less useful in a technical writing course because one is about the research process, which is (to my mind) a first-year writing course more than a technical communication course, and though another is about team projects, it is so brief and limited that I wonder if anyone would assign this module over just doing an in-class outline/template for groups to follow. ","organization_rating":2,"organization_review":"I do like the layout of the html version and the easy of clicking through the text, but the very brief paragraph on workplace communications that then links you out to a slide that reads \"Workplace Communications\" and nothing more is further evidence that this text is incomplete, and is perhaps a draft rather than a finished product. ","interface_rating":2,"interface_review":"As a reader eager to adopt a textbook for an upcoming 3rd year collegiate technical communication course, I was excited about reviewing this textbook, but the links out to other information often do not have additional components, and the work that is included is limited, at best. The two side links of the \"home\" and \"table of contents\" do work, but like I mentioned, many of the embedded links do not actually offer further information. ","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"What is there in content does not appear to have any glaring errors for a academic grammar. ","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"This book does have a section on \"Employment Access, Equity \u0026amp; Opportunity\" which is certainly useful. ","overall_rating":5,"overall_review":"This textbook appears to be an unfinished, draft version, which is disappointing. I hope the authors are able to revisit the text and make the necessary revisions to allow for use in the future. ","created_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-02-01T18:00:00.000-06:00"},{"id":2228,"first_name":"Michele","last_name":"Bildner","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Fontbonne University","comprehensiveness_rating":1,"comprehensiveness_review":"Strategy examples for technical communication was limited to the application and interviewing processes and did not describe the different modes of dissemination, generating a clear purpose, or tailoring to a specific audience (other than a hiring staff).","accuracy_rating":1,"accuracy_review":"References to activities not listed previously in the text were made several times, once referring to a self assessment and links or images of examples were missing (i.e., Example resume with poor formatting text doesn't precede any content).","relevance_rating":1,"relevance_review":"There are references to better sources throughout the text One was made on cover letter structure - OWL at Purdue - and althought the research section says that library databases are the best sources for relevant information, the book is written with an emphasis Google or Google Scholar.","clarity_rating":1,"clarity_review":"Prose is accessible and jargon is limited in this book; there are even author-generated definitions which are very well written. However, the flow does not seem very lucid which makes the intended scope of the text confusing. Is it for a student applying for a job? Or is it for students to consider audiences in order to structure their dissemination methods?","consistency_rating":2,"consistency_review":"Unsure what the framework wants to be. This could be a great supplement to a career services guide-book, since the resume and interview sections are most verbose.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"The modularity of this book is intentional but not complete.","organization_rating":1,"organization_review":"I'm still wondering what next?","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"No issues; lacking content to navigate and interface with.","grammatical_rating":4,"grammatical_review":"No grammatical errors.","cultural_rating":4,"cultural_review":"Culturally relevant to hiring practices and diversity and inclusion in the U.S.","overall_rating":4,"overall_review":"Lots of great potential!","created_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00","updated_at":"2018-06-19T19:00:00.000-05:00"},{"id":2413,"first_name":"James ","last_name":"Ward","position":"Associate Professor- Busienss Communication","institution_name":"Fort Hays State University","comprehensiveness_rating":2,"comprehensiveness_review":"The title of the book is misleading. The book covers three areas- job search, research, and team projects. These areas are in all business communication books, and those books are not calling these areas technical. I had expected topic areas such as writing contracts, understanding rental agreements, for example.\r\nthe Application of Rhetorical Theory to Early Career Success; Job Seach, Creation of Buisness Documents and Digital and Face to Face Presentations","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"Appears to be accurate throughout.","relevance_rating":4,"relevance_review":"One example\r\n\"Résumés and application (or cover) letters are common job documents, but our focus here\r\nis broader—we will ask you to consider the communication situation as a whole, from analyzing job postings to\r\ncreating the documents as a dynamic process.\"\r\nThe view that students are faced with a dynamic process is spot on. The concept of knowing yourself is also a critical piece.","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"The visuals are clear and strong learning aids.  Key takeaways well done.","consistency_rating":5,"consistency_review":"The organization is in the same format.","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"Very well divided up.","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"A clean flow","interface_rating":3,"interface_review":"The bottom of How to Make or Break the Interview was cut off.  But it is a good poster.","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I did not final any errors.","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"No disparaging remarks made.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Just to repeat- the title of the book is very misleading. ","created_at":"2018-11-28T14:26:58.000-06:00","updated_at":"2018-11-28T14:26:58.000-06:00"},{"id":2930,"first_name":"Ruth","last_name":"Perkins","position":"Adjunct Instructor","institution_name":"Chemeketa Community College","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"Comprehensiveness\r\nFrom the introduction information, I expected some discussion and examples of technical documents listed (reports, proposals, introductions) in addition to the job related examples. The chapter on Applications in Technical Communication is a quite brief summary.\r\nThe information on job searches, resumes, cover letters etc is detailed with examples provided. There is no glossary or index which would be helpful especially in the use of rhetorical terminology.\r\n","accuracy_rating":5,"accuracy_review":"I found no errors or bias in the text or linked pages","relevance_rating":5,"relevance_review":"The information is up to date. Because each chapter is relatively short it should be easy to find and edit any information changes.\r\nI am not familiar with analogy of Candy Land but I understood the point.\r\n","clarity_rating":5,"clarity_review":"With the exception of the rhetorical terms, the text is written in everyday language. The rhetorical terms are sufficiently explained.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"I’m not entirely clear on the distinction between professional and technical communication as used in the book. For example, “. . . producing documents (reports, proposals, instruction), presentations, videos, and . . . other professional communications,” and “Rhetoric teaches us that our communications must be shaped with an understanding of our intended audience and desired purpose. This is also true of technical communications.\"","modularity_rating":5,"modularity_review":"The text is divided into quickly read short chapters each with links forward and back so it is easy to jump between chapters.\r\nSeveral sections of the text have links to chapters or articles outside the text. These are also easily navigated although it would be convenient to have the links listed in an index so if I wanted to review the chapter on source credibility I wouldn’t have to page through to the relevant research chapter.\r\n","organization_rating":5,"organization_review":"Organization\r\nThe topics are clearly organized in a step by step approach.\r\n","interface_rating":5,"interface_review":"I downloaded the .pdf version and found it to be incomplete. I had to read it online which is not a problem for this review but could be for students.\r\n\r\nOnline, the book is easily navigated with forward and backward arrows at the end of each chapter.  I tried a number of the links and they were all active. However in the chapter Common Types of Research Reports \u0026 Documents there is a link to Workplace Communications which goes to a blank page.\r\nThere is no distortion of visuals. They are primarily photographs at the beginning of each chapter which get attention but don’t necessarily add content.\r\nColor coding of examples is consistent.\r\n","grammatical_rating":5,"grammatical_review":"I found no grammatical errors","cultural_rating":5,"cultural_review":"The examples and discussion are neutral neither exclusive nor inclusive.","overall_rating":9,"overall_review":"Instead of being a text on technical communication, the book divides into 2 how-to sections, finding and getting a job and doing research.  Neither of these sections pertains to technical communication in the sense many technical writing instructors require. In all fairness, the text is not presented as such.\r\nRather than a core text, the book could be used as a supplement. The brief chapters are clearly written, easily accessed by the url for each.  Students could be directed to information on types of research, say, or how to dress for an interview.  Both of these sections are strong.\r\nI do have questions about the usefulness of the chapter on rhetoric. The authors spend some time on the Aristotelian categories of rhetoric including the term “rhetor” for author. However, beyond 3-4 uses in the chapter, the term does not reappear. Neither does kairos nor logos.\r\nThe chapter on diversity in the workplace also seems unmoored from the rest of the text.\r\nAlthough I expected more information on the actual production of technical documents as suggested in the introduction, the authors provide chapters that could easily be used in conjunction with a writing based text.\r\n","created_at":"2019-05-21T15:05:19.000-05:00","updated_at":"2019-05-21T15:05:19.000-05:00"},{"id":4801,"first_name":"Mary Elizabeth","last_name":"Cicchetti","position":"Instructor of English Composition and Workplace Writing","institution_name":"College of DuPage","comprehensiveness_rating":3,"comprehensiveness_review":"The book is not comprehensive. It features three chapters, which don't appear to go together particularly well--Rhetorical Foundations, Job Search Communications, and Engaging with Research. Because of this structure, it would be difficult to use the book for most college courses. The welcome letter in the introduction indicates that this is the textbook for Engineering Technical Communications courses at The Ohio State University. It may fit that purpose, but it is difficult to understand how it could fulfill the needs of other college courses at most schools. I teach Workplace Writing and was interested in reading the book because our course teaches rhetoric, resume writing, and the basics of writing other types of business documents. As is, this book would be too narrow of a focus for my use, although the title suggests that it might be appropriate.","accuracy_rating":3,"accuracy_review":"The information in the book appears accurate, but the book is outdated, especially on page 30 where it explains how to dress for an interview and only presents male clothing. Aren't women engineers, too? This page should be removed from the book because it is discriminatory. There are also several typos in the book, which always bothers me with OEMs.","relevance_rating":3,"relevance_review":"The book needs updating now and is organized in an odd way that isn't logical for most course plans. I'd put the research section before the resume writing section because to create an effective resume, a job candidate needs to research the company they are applying to, the industry, and their chosen career. In fact, this book makes that exact point. Therefore, the order of the chapters seems to be confusing. If the book were rewritten to include more chapters on technical communications so it could be used for a variety of intro classes on the subject, and the organization was changed so it was more logical, it could be written so that updates would be easy to make. However, it is not currently at that stage in its development.","clarity_rating":4,"clarity_review":"The book has some interesting features. I especially like the chart on page 12  and the \"Think \u0026 Write\" activity that identifies transferable skills and coaches students to think about their own experiences and write about the skills they've demonstrated and developed. I only wish the book had more of these exercises. It also has some clear directives for writing an application letter and poses some good questions for students to ask themselves during the process.","consistency_rating":3,"consistency_review":"The book appear consistent in terminology and framework.","modularity_rating":3,"modularity_review":"The book is easily divisible into reading sections but is too short and narrowly focused for most college courses. One of the challenges of OEM is to find a thorough enough textbook to use and reference throughout a course. This book doesn't have wide-enough content for a technical writing class nor is it as interesting or as expansive as most texts used for English composition courses. It needs to either be expanded and reorganized, or shortened and retitled so it focuses on developing communications for job searches.","organization_rating":3,"organization_review":"As stated early, the content in each of the chapters is organized, but the chapters do not work well together and appear out of order.","interface_rating":4,"interface_review":"The design of the book looks OK and is easy to follow.","grammatical_rating":3,"grammatical_review":"The text contains some typos and repeating words.","cultural_rating":2,"cultural_review":"The text assumes most readers are men, as stated in my earlier comments.","overall_rating":6,"overall_review":"The title of this book was attractive to me because I teach Workplace Writing and am always looking for OEM textbooks and other educational materials to use in my classes. However, I quickly realized that the title was misleading because it isn't a guide to technical communications. The only technical writing included is the chapter on resumes. While the resume chapter is well written and thorough, it didn't include much new material or innovative ideas, and neither did any of the other chapters. In addition, the latest references in the book are from 2016, which suggests that the text is a little dated. This may be the beginning of a book, but as it stands, I don't recommend it and would not consider using it for my classes.","created_at":"2021-04-20T00:58:06.000-05:00","updated_at":"2021-04-20T00:58:06.000-05:00"}],"url":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/a-guide-to-technical-communications-strategies-applications","updated_at":"2025-12-08T02:03:45.000-06:00"}],"links":{"self":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications.json?page=1","total_pages":7,"total_count":69,"next":"https://staging.open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/subjects/journalism-media-studies-communications.json?page=2"}}