chapter 9 carving alternative spaces online communication

Chapter 9

Carving Alternative Spaces

Online Communication

In this chapter, you will learn:

A definition for discursive resistance;

The distinction between place and space;

The strategies of agonistic and utopian rhetoric;

A definition for hate sites; and

The advantages the Internet provides hate groups.



discursive resistance:

a process through which text, oral, nonverbal communication, and other forms of meaning-making are employed to image alternatives to dominant power structures

Place vs. Space

place: a location which formalizes, authorizes, and renders permanent the processes through which dominant interests maintain their influence over individuals or groups

space: a tactical response to a place through individual or group rearticulation of its intended use


Intentional vs. Ad-hoc Communities

intentional communities: planned organizations of individuals to accomplish some goal or maintain some lifestyle

ad-hoc communities: communities of individuals brought together by an unforeseen event


Resisting through Agonistic Rhetoric

agonistic rhetoric: discourse that produces or invokes ritualized conflict with an established order

Example: A shadow page such as “K-Mart Sucks,” which attempts to invoke feelings of guilt and ultimately achieve redemption


Resisting through Utopian Rhetoric

utopian rhetoric: discourse that imagines an ideal world that is distant from the real world in time and/or place in order to critique the contemporary social order

Example: A parody site such as “GWBush.com,” which seeks to reveal the imperfections of the dominant order through ridicule


Utopian Rhetoric

Absurdity

Community

Social Order



social realism:

the use of empirical data to examine computerization as it is actually practiced and experienced


<http://www.tolerance.org>

Hate Sites

A hate site “advocates violence against or unreasonable hostility toward those persons or organizations identified by their race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, or disability.”

Internet Advantages for Hate Groups

Community

Anonymity

Outreach

Commerce

Information


Anti-Defamation League. (1999). Poisoning the web: Hatred online. <http://www.adl.org/frames/front_poisoning.html>.

A Brief Review

1. What is the function of discursive resistance?

2. What is the distinction between place and space?

3. How does agonistic rhetoric seek to persuade?

4. What three features are common in utopian rhetoric?

5. What five advantages do hate groups see to using

the Internet?


chapter 9 carving alternative spaces online communication

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