In “Digital Rhetoric: Theory, Method, Practice” by Douglas Eyman, he highlights the concept of old media and new media. He does this by explaining how “text” has evolved during those times. Eyman starts off by stating that the term was a very limited as it only referred to “printed text” (p. 21).
Old Media Text:
In the old media times, text was referred to as anything printed in literary works. Eyman did some discoveries of his own and realized that it can also mean “any object, collection of objects, or context that can be ‘read’” (p. 21). This illustrates how the term text does not have to be so limited and that there is a much broader meaning to it than people think.
New Media Text:
However, now in the new media age, Eyman points how this definition has changed. With the help of other theorists, they discovered that text has six layers. “Textual, contextual, cultural, temporal, intentionality, and intertextuality” (p. 22). These are the six layers that have an important role while writing different pieces. Writers often look at these as well as rhetorical appeals to gain readers attention during texts.
Relating this to communication:
Looking at how this has changed the way people speak, it definitely shows how text has evolved over the course of years. Even now, there are so many more ways to write texts, communicate with others, and spread news globally within seconds. Between news broadcasters, social media, and blogs/articles online, it is effortless to find out new trends and new news. Reflecting back on my previous blog, “Old Media Slang Vs. New Media Slang”, you can find more about how communication has evolved over the course of time.
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