Improving communication in the aspiring stand-up comedy community
| dc.contributor.author | Reis Farina, Katharina | en |
| dc.contributor.committeechair | Tedesco, John C. | en |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Smalls Brown, Charmayne Lavone | en |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | McCrickard, Donald Scott | en |
| dc.contributor.department | Communication | en |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2024-12-04T09:00:20Z | en |
| dc.date.available | 2024-12-04T09:00:20Z | en |
| dc.date.issued | 2024-12-03 | en |
| dc.description.abstract | This thesis aims to fill a gap in academic literature regarding stand-up comedy, particularly research about relationships between comedians in a social media setting. The research analyzes such relationships with the uses and gratifications approach, which ties the use of a particular medium of mass communication with gratifications expected by the audience. The first objective is to understand whether the gratifications that comedians expect from social media when networking and looking for performance opportunities are fulfilled. The second is to propose a design solution that could better provide these gratifications. The research included four different methods: a survey, a series of interviews, a prototype and a focus group. Results from the survey showed that the gratifications sought by comedians are obtained in current social media platforms. The interviews revealed that there were still specific features missing that could benefit the comedians. The information gathered in the first two phases informed the features in the prototype of a mobile application. In the fourth phase, comedians participated in a focus group where they analyzed the prototype, with an overall positive impression. The comedians also gave suggestions for improvements that can inform future research. | en |
| dc.description.abstractgeneral | Stand-up comedy is a business that generates billions of dollars every year in the United States, and social media has become a fundamental aspect of the way comedians communicate. Yet, there is no research on relationships between stand-up comedians, especially in the social media setting. This research aims to fill that gap in the literature using four methods. The first was a survey to understand whether current social media platforms fulfill the expectations that comedians have regarding networking and finding performance opportunities. The second was a series of interviews with comedians to further explore what they expect from social media in those regards. The third was the design of a solution, which took the form of a mobile app, catered to comedians's specific needs. The fourth was a focus group in which comedians evaluated the solution. Results indicated that existing social media do fulfill comedians' expectations, however there were opportunities to improve in the form of specific features. The solution proposed combined the collaborative nature of social media with an automation of processes to optimize time and energy for the comedians. Regarding the app's evaluation, opinions were overall positive, with suggestions on how to improve even further. | en |
| dc.description.degree | MACOM | en |
| dc.format.medium | ETD | en |
| dc.identifier.other | vt_gsexam:42024 | en |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/10919/123731 | en |
| dc.language.iso | en | en |
| dc.publisher | Virginia Tech | en |
| dc.rights | Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International | en |
| dc.rights.uri | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ | en |
| dc.subject | uses and gratifications | en |
| dc.subject | stand-up comedy | en |
| dc.subject | user experience | en |
| dc.subject | social media | en |
| dc.subject | mobile applications | en |
| dc.title | Improving communication in the aspiring stand-up comedy community | en |
| dc.type | Thesis | en |
| thesis.degree.discipline | Communication | en |
| thesis.degree.grantor | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | en |
| thesis.degree.level | masters | en |
| thesis.degree.name | MACOM | en |
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