How Do We Study Digital Rhetoric?

How Do We Study Digital Rhetoric?

Studying digital rhetoric helps us understand how people communicate and make meaning online. In the article, VanKooten looks at the work of 30 presenters at a digital rhetoric conference. Some researchers study digital texts by connecting what they see to rhetorical theory. Others create digital projects and learn from the process. Some even focus on figuring out what digital rhetoric means. Their work shows that there’s more than one way to study communication online.

Methodology vs. Method

The difference between methodology and method stood out to me most. I understand methodology as the overall approach to a question. A method is the specific thing you do to investigate it.

For example, say I wanted to study how students use TikTok for study advice. I could watch videos and read the comments to see how students respond. I could also interview students about which creators they trust and why. Those would be methods I use to answer my bigger question.

Another thing I would consider is how the platform shapes the message. A short TikTok video might explain study advice differently than a longer YouTube video. Looking at those differences could help me understand how creators adjust their communication depending on where they share their content.

Learning by Making

I also like the idea that researchers can learn by making digital work themselves. If I made a video, I’d have to think about my audience. What would they understand? What music, captions, images, and edits would help get my point across? Making those choices could teach me things I might miss if I only watched someone else’s video.

My main takeaway is that studying digital rhetoric takes curiosity about both the message and the people using it. Communication online keeps changing, so researchers have to stay curious about it in order to know how to study it, too.