The MEDIA IMPACT PROJECT is the research and evaluation arm of The Norman Lear Center at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. We are a hub for collecting, developing and sharing approaches for measuring the impact of media in order to better understand the role that media plays in changing knowledge, attitudes and behavior among individuals and communities. 

We study stories -- in film, TV, documentaries, games, art and news -- and their impact on audiences. And we help media makers, cultural change organizations and foundations understand audiences and how to engage them.  

Our Latest News

Jews on Screen

Amid rising antisemitism, the need for nuanced and humanizing portrayals of American Jews in entertainment is critical. Our study, with funding from the Jewish Institute for Television & Cinema Hollywood Bureau, suggests there is a lot of room to more fully depict the diversity of the Jewish community.

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PRESS: Variety

Latinos in Entertainment

We recently launched our ¡Pa’lante! Latino Representation Initiative, centered on exploring Latino representation in entertainment. The effort will begin with a quantitative and qualitative study to explore what it means to be Latino on screen.

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PRESS: The Wrap

Abortion on TV

A new study conducted with ANSIRH finds that accurate portrayals of abortion in storylines on A Million Little Things (ABC), Better Things (FX), and Station 19 (ABC) fostered greater understanding of abortion access, prevalence, and safety, even inspiring some to take actions in support of reproductive rights.

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Native Visibility on Screen

This study conducted in collaboration with IllumiNative found improvements in on-screen portrayals, but also highlights a need for better representation of Native talent behind the scenes.

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PRESS: Variety | NPR

Climate Unscripted

By examining sustainability-related keywords over a six-month period spanning 200,000 hours of unscripted programming, we found more than 28,000 keyword mentions across all unscripted TV genres — with home shows, docuseries, and food shows leading the way.

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PRESS: LA Times

Mental Health
on Television

We worked with SHOWTIME/MTV Entertainment Studios to understand the impact of mental health depictions in entertainment. We found that quality and nuanced TV storylines can destigmatize mental health treatment and promote help seeking.

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Our Blog

December 7, 2023
How Do We Know If We Have Transformed Narrative Oceans
By Tracy Van Slyke and Erica Watson-Currie
Here’s how we’re starting to answer the persistent question about narrative change evaluation
November 30, 2023
Navigating Nuance: A New Frontier of Representation Research
By Dana W., Soraya Giaccardi, and Kristin Eunjung Jung
To understand how race centrality plays out in contemporary content, the USC Norman Lear Center and Gold House joined forces on a study examining the most prominent Asian characters in popular scripted streaming titles of 2022.
April 27, 2022
The Rise of Sopranos Criminology
By Shawn Van Valkenburgh
The Sopranos is enjoying a renaissance as it is discovered by younger audiences. Why this series, compared to others like Mad Men?
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The Norman Lear Center's Media Impact Project researches how entertainment and news influence our thoughts, attitudes, beliefs, knowledge and actions. We work with researchers, the film and TV industry, nonprofits, and news organizations, and share our research with the public. We are part of the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.