The invention of the alphabet in Ancient Greece transformed the ways humans interpret, create, and share information. Today, illiteracy is a severe handicap in a society that has built itself around the written word. As our culture begins to retransform—this time around technology—the concept of illiteracy will expand and proliferate. Citizens must understand new media rhetoric in a world where ideas are communicated through digital mediums. Otherwise, they will become disabled in a world where digital literacy structures thought. Through analyses of today’s digital cultures, this portfolio provides my own understandings of digital rhetoric and new media literacy.
My critical responses explore the ways in which new media changes the art of rhetoric and how these changes apply to my own experiences as a digital native. I discuss how technology changes the ways we communicate and receive information, how it shapes our identities, and how it perpetuates the influence of those with money and power.
“The Rhetoric of Self-Harm: An Analysis of Tumblr Subculture” discusses how the rhetorical and cybercultural elements of a popular blogging platform influence certain cybercultures. I argue that Tumblr’s emphasis on anonymity and the forwarding of original content—elements that were originally intended to promote creative expression—have given way to a dangerous cybercultures that encourages eating disorders and other forms of self-harm. This analysis shows how rhetorical elements of a digital space can influence users in ways that are beyond the creator’s control.
“Denny’s is Serving up Social Media: An Analysis of Online Identity” explores how Denny’s Diner uses social media platforms to reach a variety of audiences. This analysis provides a deeper understanding of how audience, purpose, and context shape online identity. Denny’s digital malleability speaks to the ways in which a medium determines a message.
Finally, my Writing Colleagues Nomination layout demonstrates the importance of design in the digital age. I consider white space, type, and visual to create a layout that effectively conveys a message through digital space.
My critical responses explore the ways in which new media changes the art of rhetoric and how these changes apply to my own experiences as a digital native. I discuss how technology changes the ways we communicate and receive information, how it shapes our identities, and how it perpetuates the influence of those with money and power.
“The Rhetoric of Self-Harm: An Analysis of Tumblr Subculture” discusses how the rhetorical and cybercultural elements of a popular blogging platform influence certain cybercultures. I argue that Tumblr’s emphasis on anonymity and the forwarding of original content—elements that were originally intended to promote creative expression—have given way to a dangerous cybercultures that encourages eating disorders and other forms of self-harm. This analysis shows how rhetorical elements of a digital space can influence users in ways that are beyond the creator’s control.
“Denny’s is Serving up Social Media: An Analysis of Online Identity” explores how Denny’s Diner uses social media platforms to reach a variety of audiences. This analysis provides a deeper understanding of how audience, purpose, and context shape online identity. Denny’s digital malleability speaks to the ways in which a medium determines a message.
Finally, my Writing Colleagues Nomination layout demonstrates the importance of design in the digital age. I consider white space, type, and visual to create a layout that effectively conveys a message through digital space.