107 6c Examining Audiovisual Materials, Television, and Radio

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6c
Examining Audiovisual Materials, Television, and Radio
107
 
6c
Examining Audiovisual Materials, 
Television, and Radio
Important data can be found in audiovisual materials: films, filmstrips, 
music, CDs, slides, audio cassettes, video cassettes, and DVDs. You will 
find these sources both on and off campus. Consult such guides as 
Edu-
cators Guide
(film, filmstrips, and tapes), 
Media Review Digest
(nonprint 
materials), 
Video Source Book
(video catalog), 
The Film File,
and 
Inter-
national Index to Recorded Poetry.
Television, with its many educational 
channels, such as The History Channel
,
offers invaluable data. With a 
DVR or VCR, you can record a program for detailed examination. Again, 
write bibliography entries for any materials that contribute to your paper:
Stout, Kristie Lu. “Experiencing a Potential Cyber Attack.” Interview. CNN. 
20 Mar. 2013. Television.
Figure 6.1 “Charters of Freedom” from the National Archives.
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6d
108
Conducting Field Research
 
6d
Conducting a Survey
with a Questionnaire
Questionnaires can produce current, firsthand data you can tabulate 
and analyze. Of course, to achieve meaningful results, you must survey a 
random sample—that is, each one must represent the whole population 
in terms of age, sex, race, education, income, residence, and other fac-
tors. Various degrees of bias can creep into the questionnaire unless you 
remain objective. Thus, use the formal survey only when you are expe-
rienced with tests and measurements as well as with statistical analysis 
or when you have an instructor who will help you with the instrument.
Online surveys have become an essential tool for a variety of research 
fields, including social and official statistics inquiries. Internet surveys 
offer capabilities beyond those available for any other type of self- 
administered questionnaire. Because the entire data collection period is 
significantly shortened, online surveys can collect and process data in 
a timely manner. Moreover, questions with long lists of answer choices 
can be used to provide immediate coding of answers to certain questions 
that are usually asked in an open-ended fashion in paper questionnaires. 
Popular online survey sites include Zoomerang, SurveyMonkey, Kwik-
Surveys, and QuestionPro, among others. Since online surveys can be 
tailored to the situation, ease of use is enhanced for respondents as well 
CHECKLIST
Using Media Sources
• Watch closely the opening and closing credits to capture 
the necessary data for your Works Cited entry. The format is 
explained on pages 300–306.
• Your citations may refer to a performer, director, or narrator, 
depending on the focus of your study.
• As with live interviews, be scrupulously accurate in taking 
notes. Try to write with direct quotations because paraphrases 
of television commentary can unintentionally be distorted and 
colored by bias.
• Consult online documentaries and other resources such as 
those found at PBS.org, the Discovery Channel, or National 
Geographic TV.
• Plan carefully the review of a media presentation, even to the 
point of preparing a list of questions or a set of criteria to help 
with your judgment.
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