Celia Andreu-Sánchez

The increasing use of accelerated playback in digital media consumption has raised questions regarding its effects on viewers’ perception. This study examined whether playback speed in TV news videos (1× vs. 2×) affects viewers’ subjective responses, memory performance, and eye-tracking behavior. We presented news videos under either normal or accelerated playback conditions to a total of N = 146 participants. Our results showed that accelerated playback was associated with lower valence, reduced perceived comprehension, lower credibility evaluations, poorer memory performance, and lower recommendation-intention ratings. In contrast, arousal ratings were higher under accelerated playback conditions. Eye-tracking measures revealed differences in visual attention patterns between conditions, including fixation behavior and attention allocated to lower-third captions. However, the fixation-rate difference should be interpreted cautiously, as increased stimulus velocity may have influenced fixation classification. These findings suggest that accelerated playback was associated with differences in audience evaluation and viewing behavior during news consumption.

This Research Topic aimed to expand our knowledge of neurocinematics, an interdisciplinary approach to understanding audiovisual perception through the brain activity of spectators (Hasson et al., 2004;Hasson et al., 2008). The primary objectives included exploring how the brain processes audiovisuals, identifying neural patterns associated with diHerent types of media content, and understanding the cognitive and physiological responses elicited by audiovisual stimuli.The articles contributing to this Research Topic address this critical goal by leveraging advanced neuroscientific and psychophysiological methodologies to explore the complexities of media perception, spanning fundamental film grammar, emotional processing in ecologically valid settings, and the emergence of immersive media formats.A key area of investigation focuses on how the brain processes the most fundamental element of film structure: the editing cut. Sanz-Aznar explores whether the cinematographic cut functions as an articulation axis between adjacent shots. Through frequency domain analysis (Event-Related Desynchronization/Synchronization, ERD/ERS) of electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings, the study confirmed that continuity cuts elicit neural response patterns in theta-band synchronization and delta-band desynchronization, which are associated with memory encoding, narrative segmentation, and meaning construction. These results support the hypothesis that the shot change is neurally processed as an articulatory mechanism within film structure.Complementing this, research presented by Cancer et al. investigates the mechanisms underlying the eHect of editing density (master shot, slow-paced, fastpaced) on the viewer's perception of time. The study found that neuromodulation of the supplementary motor area (SMA) aHected duration estimates and action speed judgments, highlighting the importance of the SMA in modulating the perception of filmic time during viewing.To better characterize the overall integration of complex stimuli, Xi et al. present a novel EEG microstate-based method to calculate time-frequency features of multistage audiovisual (AV) neural processing. This study's approach segments AV processing into multiple distinct sub-stages: six under attended conditions and four under unattended conditions. The resulting time-frequency domain features achieved high classification accuracy (up to 97.8%) in distinguishing attended versus unattended AV processing, demonstrating the method's eHectiveness in providing a high-resolution temporal window into the brain's information processing stages.This Topic also approaches the influence of specific visual and aesthetic elements on emotional processing. Huttunen investigated the eHects of lighting direction on the early emotional processing of faces. Measuring the Early Posterior Negativity (EPN), the study found that lighting styles that obscure or distort facial information (silhouette light, underlight, and toplight) elicited a statistically more negative EPN compared to neutral 45-degree light. This suggests that lighting design impacts the film experience at the subliminal level of emotional processing.Extending to real-world media analysis, Martín-Pascual and Andreu-Sánchez used eye-tracking to examine the visual perception of war images in multi-window Spanish television news. They found that viewers dedicated the longest gaze duration and highest fixation count to the war imagery itself, compared to the journalist or explanatory texts. Notably, images depicting deceased individuals drew more time and fixations, potentially indicating the selective engagement of memory processes. Moreover, patterns of visual attention varied across political leaders, with Vladimir Putin attracting greater focus than Volodymyr Zelensky, a diHerence that was linked to stronger negative emotions.Theoretically framing these aesthetic and narrative processes, Coëgnarts proposes integrating the Predictive Processing (PP) framework with cinematic aesthetics. PP posits that the mind acts as a predictive machine that minimizes error by anticipating sensory input. This theoretical application highlights how films deliberately engage the brain's inferential processes, proposing that image schemas function as mechanisms structuring sensory input in alignment with the brain's predictive logic, thereby enhancing comprehension and aesthetic pleasure.The complexities of translating traditional cinematic grammar to new formats, particularly Virtual Reality (VR), are explored by Zou et al. This study investigated how diHerent editing techniques (unedited, hard cuts, dissolve transitions) in VR films aHect narrative cognition. Findings show that unedited VR films promote superior emotional coherence and immersion, likely driven by sustained amygdala activation. However, this format also imposes a higher cognitive load. Conversely, edited films reduced cognitive load but resulted in fragmented attention and diminished emotional engagement. Dissolve transitions were found to be especially detrimental to viewer enjoyment. These results show that VR editing places specific neurocognitive demands, emphasizing the need for flexible strategies that prioritize smooth transitions to maintain emotional engagement.Beyond the viewer's experience, Primett et al. explore the cinematographer's embodied experience during creation. Utilizing a neurophenomenological methodology combining physiological data (electrodermal activity, EDA, electrocardiogram, ECG), motion data, and micro-phenomenological interviews, the research investigates kinaesthetic empathy, highlighting how the cinematographer's embodied decision-making shapes and modulates emotional understanding throughout the filming process.From another perspective, Kolesnikov et al. study how drone movements, human presence, and playback speed aHect viewers' sense of movement, involvement, emotion, and time. Ascending trajectories...

AI-generated content has grown significantly in recent years. Today, AI-generated and human-made images coexist across various settings, including news media, social platforms, and beyond. However, we still know relatively little about how audiences interpret and evaluate these different types of images. The goal of this study was to examine whether image interpretation is influenced by the origin of the image (AI-generated vs. human-made). Additionally, we aimed to explore whether visual professionalization influences how images are interpreted. To this end, we presented 24 AI-generated images (produced using Midjourney, DALL·E, and Firefly) and 8 human-made images to 161 participants—71 visual professionals and 90 non-professionals. Participants were asked to evaluate each image based on the following: (1) the source they believed the image originated from, (2) the level of realism, and (3) the level of credibility they attributed to it. A total of 5152 responses were collected for each question. Our results reveal that human-made images are more readily recognized as such, whereas AI-generated images are frequently misclassified as human-made. We also find that human-made images are perceived as both more realistic and more credible than AI-generated ones. We conclude that individuals are generally unable to accurately determine the source of an image, which in turn affects their assessment of its credibility.

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has evolved rapidly, sparking debates about its impact on the visual and sonic arts. Despite its growing integration into creative industries, public opinion remains sceptical, viewing creativity as uniquely human. In music production, AI tools are advancing, yet emotional expression remains largely overlooked in development and research. This study examined whether AI-powered music creation can evoke the same emotional impact as human-created music in audiovisual contexts. Participants (N = 88) watched videos accompanied by different audio tracks across three conditions: human-created music (HCM), AI-generated music using more sophisticated and detailed keyword prompts (AI-KP) and AI-generated music using simpler and less detailed prompts based on discrete and dimensional emotional values (AI-DP). Biometric data and personal affective responses were registered during this process. The results show that both AI soundtracks led to wider pupil dilation compared with human-created music but did not differ significantly from each other. AI-generated music with sophisticated prompts (AI-KP) resulted in a higher blink rate and skin impedance level as markers of attention and cognitive load, while emotional valence remained consistent across conditions. Participants found AI-generated music more arousing that HCM, while HCM was perceived as more familiar than both AI conditions.

A inicios del año 2023, la cantante Shakira lanzó junto con el músico Bizarrap una canción llamada “Sesión 53”, que obtuvo un gran impacto internacional desde su lanzamiento con un elevado número de reproducciones en los medios digitales en sus primeras 24 horas. La obra también tuvo impacto social porque Shakira habló de su vida privada y la de su expareja mientras hacía alusión directa a cuatro marcas comerciales: Casio, Twingo, Ferrari y Rolex. A través de una metáfora, menosprecia las dos primeras y valora positivamente las dos últimas. En esta investigación, nos proponemos estudiar el impacto métrico social que la canción tuvo en las marcas menospreciadas. Para ello, usando una metodología estadística de análisis de redes sociales, analizamos las cuentas de la red social X (antes Twitter), de Casio y Twingo durante el lanzamiento del tema en torno a la métrica de cuatro variables: likes, comentarios, retweets y visualizaciones. Obtenemos que los días del lanzamiento del sencillo se produjo un incremento significativo de todos los elementos estudiados en las cuentas oficiales de X de estas marcas. Pasados unos días, encontramos una disminución de todas las variables estudiadas. Se discute cómo las marcas carecen del control propio de su narrativa.

The way audiovisuals are perceived is not completely understood. Previous works have shown that attention increases when watching audiovisuals compared with looking at real events, but depending on the editing style, and the interpreter, the understanding of the content may be different. The study of brain asymmetries in this context aims to identify potential lateralizations in audiovisual perception. Previous studies have proven that seeing others grasp objects has a contralateral impact on somatosensory areas (C3 and C4) in the alpha band (8–12 Hz). In this work, we investigated whether brain activity could be asymmetrical in that band when looking at real grasping compared with watching grasping on a screen, and whether media expertise would be a determinant in this regard and presented the same narrative content both through live performance and as a movie to 40 participants (half of them media professionals) while recording their electroencephalography (EEG) activity. We conclude that the asymmetry in the alpha band in the somatosensory cortex is not affected by the medium through which the grasping actions are presented, that is, in reality or on screen. We also conclude that media expertise does not impact this asymmetry.

Mu rhythm (∼8–12 Hz) in the somatosensory cortex has traditionally been linked with doing and seeing motor activities. Here, we aimed to learn how the medium (physical or screened) in which motor actions are seen could impact on that specific brain rhythm. To do so, we presented to 40 participants the very same narrative content both in a one-shot movie with no cuts and in a real theatrical performance. We recorded subjects’ brain activities with electroencephalographic (EEG) procedures, and analyzed Mu rhythm present in left (C3) and right (C4) somatosensory areas in relation to the 24 motor activities included in each visual stimulus (screen vs. reality) (24 motor and grasping actions x 40 participants x 2 conditions = 1920 trials). We found lower Mu spectral power in the somatosensory area after the onset of the motor actions in real performance than on-screened content, more pronounced in the left hemisphere. In our results, the sensorimotor Mu-ERD (event-related desynchronization) was stronger during the real-world observation compared to screen observation. This could be relevant in research areas where the somatosensory cortex is important, such as online learning, virtual reality, or brain-computer interfaces.

GO/noGO tasks enable assessing decision-making processes and the ability to suppress a specific action according to the context. Here, rats had to discriminate between two visual stimuli (GO or noGO) shown on an iPad screen. The execution (for GO) or non-execution (for noGO) of the selected action (to touch or not the visual display) were reinforced with food. The main goal was to record and to analyze local field potentials (LFPs) collected from cortical and subcortical structures when the visual stimuli were shown on the touch screen and during the subsequent activities. Rats were implanted with recording electrodes in the prelimbic cortex, primary motor cortex, nucleus accumbens septi, basolateral amygdala, dorsolateral and dorsomedial striatum, hippocampal CA1, and mediodorsal thalamic nucleus. Spectral analyses of the collected data demonstrate that the prelimbic cortex was selectively involved in the cognitive and motivational processing of the learning task but not in the execution of reward-directed behaviors. In addition, the other recorded structures presented specific tendencies to be involved in these two types of brain activity in response to the presentation of GO or noGO stimuli. Spectral analyses, spectrograms, and coherence between the recorded brain areas indicate their specific involvement in GO vs. noGO tasks.

Editorial: Neuroscience and the media