Vietnam: Portraits and perspectives

Suiwah Leung (ed.), Vietnam Assessment: Creating a Sound Investment Climate. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 1996. 122pp. ISBN 981–3055–54–5 (pbk).

Murray Hiebert, Chasing the Tigers: A Portrait of the New Vietnam. New York: Kodansha, 1996. 258pp. £19.99 ISBN 1–56836–139–4 (hbk).

James W. Morley and Masashi Nishihara (eds), Vietnam Joins the World. London: M. E. Sharpe, 1997. 244pp. US$23.95 ISBN 1–56324–975–9 (pbk). US$58.95 (hbk).     

The Media, the Politics of Truth, and the Coverage of Corporate Violence: The Westray Disaster and the Public Inquiry

This paper studies the relationship between news sources, knowledge claims and the social construction of truth surrounding the public inquiry into the Westray mine disaster from 1995 to 1998. We draw on Michel Foucault’s concept of the “politics of truth” and Stanley Cohen’s ideas about “states of denial” to demonstrate how formal media processes constituted “regimes of truth” about Westray. We argue that news discourse about the public inquiry was framed differently from news coverage in the immediate aftermath of the explosion (1992–1993). Later press reporting constructed a new “regime of truth” around political scandal but corporate crime was written out of existence in the truth-telling exercises of the press.     

The Romanticization of Charismatic Leadership in the Arts

ABSTRACT

This inter-disciplinary article focuses on the role, significance, and impact of charisma in cultural leadership. It brings together fresh empirical data with a critical review of the literature to investigate the role of charisma in the operation, reputation, and strategic success of arts organizations. For the first time, this article synthesizes a diverse range of literature from sociology, psychology, political science, management, and leadership studies and applies it critically to the context of the arts. This comprehensive review is compared against interviews with key stakeholders in the arts, which challenge the neo-charismatic literature on leadership and support a return to aspects of the original formulation of charisma, as envisaged by Max Weber. The article finds that charismatic leaders are seen as extraordinary individuals and are excessively romanticized by arts managers, policymakers, and audiences. It questions this normative bias and concludes that charismatic leaders should be treated with a degree of skepticism, even caution, to temper any negative impacts on "followers" and organizations.     

American Police Unions: A Hindrance or Help to Innovation?

In response to the crises of the 1960s, police departments in the United States embarked upon great change in their policies, operations, and programs. This literature, however, has largely neglected the duality of the role of police unions in the adoption of new programs and practices. Learning about the key actors in the innovations process, however, is crucial to understanding how organizational change emerges. This article builds upon previous research to understand the effects of police unions on the adoption of innovation. Findings indicate that police unions may actually promote rather than hinder the implementation of new innovation.     

How Does the Business of News Influence Terrorism Coverage? Evidence From The Washington Post and USA Today

Observers argue that the business of news is responsible for worsening the coverage of terrorism, but exactly how economic considerations influence coverage is controversial. Based on an analysis of over 1600 articles from The Washington Post and USA Today, we find that concerns about the effects of economic pressures on terrorism reporting are exaggerated. The business climate affects coverage, but the long-term impact of market pressures on coverage is modest. Articles about terrorist violence are increasingly prominent, but coverage of counterterrorism remains robust. Efforts to inoculate the press against the worst excesses of the market are unnecessary.     

Infant death scene investigation and the assessment of potential risk factors for asphyxia: a review of 209 sudden unexpected infant deaths

At the Wayne County Medical Examiner Office (WCMEO) in Detroit, Michigan, from 2001 to 2004, thorough scene investigations were performed on 209 sudden and unexpected infant deaths, ages 3 days to 12 months. The 209 cases were reviewed to assess the position of the infant at the time of discovery and identify potential risk factors for asphyxia including bed sharing, witnessed overlay, wedging, strangulation, prone position, obstruction of the nose and mouth, coverage of the head by bedding and sleeping on a couch. Overall, one or more potential risk factors were identified in 178 of 209 cases (85.2%). The increasing awareness of infant positions at death has led to a dramatic reduction in the diagnosis of sudden infant death syndrome at the WCMEO. This study suggests that asphyxia plays a greater role in many sudden infant deaths than has been historically attributed to it.     

Genetic variation at six STR loci (HUMTH01, HUMTPOX, HUMCSF1PO, HUMF13A01, HUMFES/FPS, HUMVWFA31) in Aragon (north Spain).

The STR loci HUMTH01, HUMPTPOX, HUMCSF1PO, HUMF13A01, HUMFES/FPS and HUMVWFA31 are widely used in forensic casework analyses and population data are necessary to estimate the frequency of a DNA profile. This paper presents the results of a survey aimed to investigate the allele frequency distribution of these loci in an important Spanish population (Aragon, North Spain). Statistical analysis to determine whether allele frequencies were in Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium was carried out and also to obtain some parameters of medico-legal interest. There was no evidence of association between the alleles of the loci. The Aragonese sample does not differ substantially from other Caucasian populations.     

New Technology Meets an Old Teaching Challenge: Using Digital Video Recordings, Annotation Software, and Deliberate Practice Techniques to Improve Student Negotiation Skills

There is a world of difference between teaching negotiation theory, which pertains to conceptual understanding, and teaching negotiation skills, which pertain to actual behavior in real‐world situations. The principle of reflective practice is widely used for theoretical instruction. Deliberate practice, however, is a more powerful model for skills training. Cognitive scientists have discovered that subjects will learn skills best when they perform well‐defined tasks at appropriate levels of difficulty, and when they are given immediate feedback, an opportunity to correct their errors, and an opportunity to practice until the tasks become routine. To satisfy the deliberate practice conditions for large graduate‐level negotiation courses (some as large as seventy students), students were assigned to use webcams with their laptop computers to video record their negotiation exercises. Before each exercise, students were assigned to prepare for and to concentrate on performing two or three well‐defined tasks. Students reviewed these recordings and commented on their performances in a journal before uploading the videos and journals to an assigned network folder. The instructor and teaching assistants then reviewed the journals and specified portions of the videos and provided individual written feedback to the students. The instructors found that student negotiating skills have improved significantly using this new system. In comparison with earlier semesters, students also felt they were involved in a more intense and personal learning experience. A majority of students reported they intend to apply the principles of deliberate practice in their professional lives after graduation. The authors have found this method continues to challenge their ability to identify and describe the skills used by expert negotiators. As an addition to this new methodology, two of the authors have spearheaded the development of video annotation software, known as “MediaNotes,” to help students and instructors review, comment upon, and learn from video recordings of negotiations. Based on their experiences using the software to support deliberate practice, the authors expect this tool to initiate a significant advance in our ability to recognize and describe expert negotiation behavior and in students’ ability to improve their negotiating skills.