Okay so, Boom. Let’s talk rhetorics! When I first heard the term digital rhetoric, I was thinking, okay, that just means talking/communicating online. I was absolutely wrong. After reading Justin Hodgson and Scot Barnett’s article, “Introduction: What Is Rhetorical about Digital Rhetoric?”, it showed me that the idea is much broader than I thought. Digital rhetoric includes the ways people use technology, images, sounds, social media, websites, algorithms, and other digital tools to communicate with and influence an audience.
What really stood out to me out of the whole article was that even biggg scholars who actually know their stuff have difficulty agreeing on one definition. I found this to be extremely interesting. The reason why is because normally that might seem like a weakness. But, in actuality Hodgson and Barnett explain that the lack of one fixed definition can actually be useful. Since digital technology is always changing around, researchers always need room to study new behaviors, platforms, and means of communication. If the definition was narrow there’s a chance it can quickly become outdated.
Digital Rhetoric in Everyday Life
Another thing about Digital rhetoric is that it is not just limited to academic writing. We experience it whenever we scroll through tiktok, read the news, or just receive a personalized recommendation. The article helped me to understand and see that technology isn’t always neutral. It can be weird, fun, boring, interesting, nostalgic, etc. Overall, I think that digital rhetoric is rhetorical because it includes audience, purpose, persuasion, and delivery.
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