Communications | Penn Today

Two children holding hands between two adults in a sunlit grassy area.

Do shared life experiences make it harder to understand others?

A new Annenberg School of Communication study reveals that having similar life experiences can actually diminish our ability to perceive other people’s unique feelings and circumstances.

Guobin Yang and the cover of the book called "The Wuhan Lockdown by Guobin Yang." The image shows a person fully covered in what appears like a hazmat suit next to a person in a hospital bed. They are outside.

Frontline voices from the pandemic’s early days

In his new book, “The Wuhan Lockdown,” Guobin Yang uses personal diaries from that city’s residents to recreate how it felt at the epicenter of what was then a scary and unknown new virus.

Tumblr’s enduring appeal reveals the potency of the web’s cultural memory

Ph.D. candidate Jeanna Sybert of the Annenberg School for Communication contemplates Tumblr's unique place in internet culture.

Desmond Patton appointed Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor

Patton will be Penn’s Brian and Randi Schwartz University Professor, with joint appointments in the School of Social Policy & Practice and the Annenberg School for Communication and a secondary appointment in the Perelman School of Medicine.

Two cliffs, the left is an elephant, the right is a donkey, with a line of people on top of each.

Are Republicans and Democrats driven by hatred of one another? Less than you think

Rather than being fueled by animosity for the other side—negative partisanship—a new study finds that Americans are at least as motivated by the passion they have for their own party.

A hand holding a cigarette with just the torso of the person showing in the background.

How do media depictions of tobacco influence smoking decisions for young adults?

Two studies from the Annenberg School for Communication’s Robert Hornik find that media portrayals of such behaviors can change actions and perception, but how and by how much depends on a range of factors.

Monkeypox is here and COVID truthers are losing it

Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center says that the public has tried to unmask and get back to engaging in normal activities as the pandemic ends.

The kids are not all right—copycat cannabis edibles risk their safety

Andy Tan of the Annenberg School for Communication co-writes an article about how copycat cannabis edibles, which have colorful packages that mimic popular snacks and candy, have come under scrutiny.

We can’t even agree on what is tearing us apart

Yphtach Lelkes of the Annenberg School for Communication is quoted on the evidence that public opinion is now collapsing onto one dimension.

David Lydon-Staley sitting in a chair, pointing at the front of the room.

Moving away from ‘average,’ toward the individual

In a course from Annenberg’s David Lydon-Staley, seven graduate students conducted single-participant experiments. This approach, what’s known as an “n of 1,” may better capture the nuances of a diverse population than randomized control trials can.

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