Digital Rhetoric and Digital Vs. Analog

As digital communication has reshaped our world, it is important to examine digital rhetoric to examine these new dynamics. In “Defining and Locating Digital Rhetoric“, Douglas Eyman defines this by dissecting the word “digital” and explaining how it is unlike traditional rhetoric which focuses on spoken and written words.

Digital Vs. Analog

Eyman begins by dissecting the word “digital” and explaining its opposite, analog. Analog is about smooth continuous symbols, whereas digital is about distinct and separate values. The best example I heard that allowed me to understand the difference between the two was an example about clocks. Digital clocks show us the hour and the minute, whereas analog clocks show us the hour, the minute, and the second. While digital clocks are more convenient, directly to the point, and compressed. Analog clocks are actually more precise.

Eyman goes on to talk about how “digital information streams (encoded as bits) have several distinct advantages over analog signals.” As I mentioned before, digital can be compressed which improves efficiency.

Digital Rhetoric

An interesting part of this reading was learning that digital also refers to our digits or fingers therefore all writing is digital. Even historical forms of communication such as Mesopotamian cuneiform or Egyptian hieroglyphs constitute technological developments. I had never thought of these types of communication as technology. I have always been under the impression that technology is a new thing when in reality, various forms of technology have existed for a long time, it has just evolved as it hopefully always will.

Now that we know everything about digital, what is digital rhetoric? This refers to how we communicate using digital platforms and tools. Rhetoric is persuasive language but in digital form. As digital communication has evolved, Eyman stresses the importance of creating new theories and methods to understand these forms better.

To sum it up, digital rhetoric is something new that is being studied. The studies aim to show how people communicate online. We need new theories to address this while also acknowledging that it has been a part of human communication for a long time.