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The Image and the Outbreak: An Epidemiological Approach to Visual, Textual and Content Analysis of a Photomicrograph of the Ebola Virus as Presented to Digital Audiences Across Multiple Genres and Cultures During a Global Health Crisis by Patricia R. Fausset, B.A., M.S. A Dissertation In Technical Communication and Rhetoric Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved Kelli Cargile-Cook, PhD Chair of Committee Sam Dragga, PhD Ken Baake, PhD Mark Sheridan Dean of the Graduate School December, 2018 iiiIII © 2018, Patricia R. Fausset iiiIII Texas Tech University, Patricia R. Fausset, December 2018 Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................................ iv ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER I – THE EBOLA COMMUNICATION EPIDEMIC .......................................................... 1 Communication During the Ebola Outbreak of 2014 ............................................................. 1 An Epidemiological Framework ....................................................................................................... 6 Digital Communication and Ebola Virus Disease ...................................................................... 8 Ebola in the U.S. .......................................................................................................................................10 The Internet and Risk Communication........................................................................................13 Problem Statement ................................................................................................................................14 Chapter Outline .......................................................................................................................................16 CHAPTER II - HISTORY AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE EBOLA VIRUS PHOTOMICROGRAPH ................................................................................................................................18 Scientific Background of the Image ...............................................................................................18 Colorizing and Accessing the Image ..............................................................................................20 Representation Throughout Non-Scientific Genres ..............................................................22 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................28 CHAPTER III - LITERATURE REVIEW ...............................................................................................29 Introduction ..............................................................................................................................................29 Intercultural Public Health and Risk Communication .........................................................29 New Media and Popular Culture .....................................................................................................32 Visual Studies ...........................................................................................................................................35 Rhetorical and Circulation Studies ................................................................................................38 Rhetoric of Science ................................................................................................................................40 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................45 CHAPTER IV - RESEARCH QUESTIONS, FRAMEWORKS and METHODOLOGIES .........47 Situating the Study Timeframe ........................................................................................................47 Research Questions ...............................................................................................................................51 Major Theoretical Framework .........................................................................................................52 ii Texas Tech University, Patricia R. Fausset, December 2018 Digital Research Tools .........................................................................................................................53 Data Collection Instrument ...............................................................................................................56 Data Analysis Methods ........................................................................................................................59 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................63 CHAPTER V - RESULTS AND DATA ANALYSIS..............................................................................65 Introduction ..............................................................................................................................................65 Data Collection.........................................................................................................................................65 Space Allocation for the Ebola Photomicrograph Within the Digital Hosts...............68 Contextualization of the Ebola Photomicrograph Within the Digital Hosts ..............70 Genre Changes Over Time and Circumstance ..........................................................................73 Emergent Keywords in Headline Text .........................................................................................85 Intra-genre Keyword Analysis .........................................................................................................87 Inter-genre Keyword Analysis .........................................................................................................90 Emergent Keywords in Story Text .................................................................................................93 Genre-Theme Relationships .............................................................................................................94 Summarizing the Results ....................................................................................................................97 CHAPTER VI – DISCUSSION................................................................................................................. 100 Summary of Research Findings .................................................................................................... 100 Situating the Findings ....................................................................................................................... 104 Study Limitations ................................................................................................................................ 106 Future Studies ....................................................................................................................................... 108 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................................. 111 REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................................. 117 iii Texas Tech University, Patricia R. Fausset, December 2018 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thank-you Rick for being such an amazing husband in every way possible and for being my biggest fan throughout this entire doctoral journey. Your pride in my work, encouragement, support and love helped me through this process and continue to guide me throughout my life. I would not be where I am or who I am without you. You are my sun, my moon and all my stars. Thank-you Amy and Ricky for lighting up my world and for sharing mine and dad’s excitement as I worked towards my Ph.D. Life is a journey and we never know where the paths will lead. Our past is full of wonderful and cherished memories that remain ours, unchanged forever. We can be grateful for those memories, while still embracing the present and looking forward to hopeful and promising futures. I love you both. Thank-you to my extended family and friends (my “framily”) who have contributed emotional support and encouragement for me to become ‘Dr. Trish’. We are so fortunate to have each other and our shared pasts and treasured memories including those we have yet to make. Thank-you Dr. Sam Dragga for your insightful input, your approachability and your words of wisdom both in-person and online. I will always recall fondly our academic and personal conversations in the hallways and classrooms at Texas Tech. Thank-you Dr. Kelli Cargile-Cook for your thoroughness and thoughtfulness and your entertaining spirit whether interacting in Texas or communicating via phone or email. I greatly value your timely responses and your attention