The best way to protect individuals and institutions from libel suits is to verify the truth of what is printed. An institutional editor's guide to do's, don'ts, and definitions is presented. An editor is as responsible for a libelous letter as the author is. (MLW)

Demonstrates that business writers rely far more heavily than expected on classical figures of speech. Uses Aristotle's "Rhetoric" to show that figures of speech offer a powerful tool for the persuasive function of modern business communication. (PD)

Data collected from 944 teachers in 46 elementary schools revealed that principal authenticity was significantly correlated with teachers' trust in principals, colleagues, and organizations. In addition, all these dimensions of trust were moderately and significantly correlated with each other. (MLF)

This experimental examination of the effects of close-up, medium, and long camera shots on jurors' perceptions of "strong" and "weak" witnesses found few effects, none of them direct. (PD)

Compared two measures of perceived counselor expertness, trustworthiness, and attractiveness: the Counselor Rating Form (CRF) and the Counselor Effectiveness Rating Scale (CERS). Results showed expertness, trustworthiness, and attractiveness as measured by both instruments are not independent and are components of a single dimension of perceived…

Reviews positive and potential negative consequences of being high or low in interpersonal trust in social life, particularly in interacting with ordinary people. Research suggests that people who trust are less likely to lie or to be unhappy and more likely to be sought out as a friend. (Author/JLF)

Investigates the relationship between an observer's familiarity with the normal, truthful communicative behavior of an individual, and the observer's ability to detect deception on the part of that individual. Provides an experimental test of the degree of linearity between familiarity and judgmental accuracy in detecting deception. (JMF)

Females had a higher level of belief in the trustworthiness of people. In a multicultural comparison, Indo-Fijians and Europeans both had a higher level of belief in the trustworthiness of people than Fijians. Europeans saw people in general as more complex. (Author)

Specific suggestions are given to help teachers become persuasive communicators. (PBS)

Presents a study of the effectiveness and believability of male and female newscasters among children and shows that newscaster sex does not effect believability ratings. Girls, however, learned more from a male than from a female newscaster. Newscaster sex did not affect retention of the newscast by boys. (JMF)

Examines the use of television in a critically oriented education and emphasizes the importance of codes and subcodes in the transmission of messages from sender to receiver. (JMF)

Finds that a trusted person is one who is highly influential; has an internal locus of control, a low need to control others, and high self-esteem; and is open to being influenced by others. (RL)

Data collected from a survey of 80 Black and 80 White respondents suggest that Blacks consider television the most credible advertising medium while Whites consider magazines most credible. (GT)

Final of a six part series discusses the idea that the reputation and credibility of training and development is much lower outside the training community than within it. Urges organizational trainers and developers to prove cost effective contributions to their organizations. (LAS)