Heather Harris, assistant professor and director of the Master of Arts in Communication program in the Jandoli School, won a Best Paper award at the Fall Academy of Business Research Conference, held Oct. 28 in San Antonio, Texas.

The paper, titled "Unintended Influence of Disney Media Messaging on the Youngest of Audiences," won Best Paper in the Marketing Track.

The research study provides an alternative look at the influence and authority of Disney media in the lives of the youngest audiences through an extensive examination of the evolution of Disney animated film music. The study utilized a grounded theory approach and extensive content analysis to investigate messaging contained in the top Disney animated film songs from the 1930s through 2020.

This qualitative approach found six categories of messages and clear shifts of messaging prevalence over time. Further research recommendations and discussion on corporate awareness of unintended messaging in content intended for young audiences was offered.