Technical Communication Quarterly Jul 2005

Digital Rhetoric: Toward an Integrated Theory

James P. Zappen

Abstract

This article surveys the literature on digital rhetoric, which encompasses a wide range of issues, including novel strategies of self-expression and collaboration, the characteristics, affordances, and constraints of the new digital media, and the formation of identities and communities in digital spaces. It notes the current disparate nature of the field and calls for an integrated theory of digital rhetoric that charts new directions for rhetorical studies in general and the rhetoric of science and technology in particular.

Journal
Technical Communication Quarterly
Published
2005-07-01
DOI
10.1207/s15427625tcq1403_10
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism collaborative writing digital rhetoric
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (16)

  1. Fahnestock (2025)
    The Controversy behind the Controversies: Scientific Discourse in the Twenty-Fi…
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  2. Wang (2024)
    Post-Rhetoric: A Rhetorical Profile of the Generative Artificial Intelligence Chatbot
    Rhetoric Review
  3. Cheung et al. (2022)
    Power, Freedom, and Privacy on a Discipline-and-Control Facebook, and the Impli…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  4. Selber (2020)
    Historicizing Infrastructural Contexts for Teaching and Learning: A Heuristic f…
    Computers and Composition
  5. Tham et al. (2020)
    Reading Born-Digital Scholarship: A Study of Webtext User Experience
    Computers and Composition
Show all 16 →
  1. Brock et al. (2018)
    Rhetorical Genres in Code
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Boyle et al. (2018)
    The Digital: Rhetoric Behind and Beyond the Screen
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  3. Pflugfelder (2017)
    Reddit’s “Explain Like I’m Five”: Technical Descriptions in the Wild
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  4. Walsh et al. (2016)
    Perspectives on Uncertainty for Technical Communication Scholars
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  5. Reeves (2013)
    Temptation and Its Discontents: Digital Rhetoric, Flow, and the Possible
    Rhetoric Review
  6. Grabill et al. (2012)
    Messy Rhetoric: Identity Performance as Rhetorical Agency in Online Public Forums
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  7. Hoover (2010)
    The Impact of NSF and NIH Websites on Researcher Ethics
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  8. Pickering (2009)
    Student Ethos in the Online Technical Communication Classroom: Diverse Voices
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  9. Spoel (2008)
    Communicating Values, Valuing Community through Health-Care Websites: Midwifery…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  10. Kostelnick (2008)
    The Visual Rhetoric of Data Displays: The Conundrum of Clarity*
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  11. Kostelnick (2007)
    The Visual Rhetoric of Data Displays: The Conundrum of Clarity
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

References (15)

  1. Arnold, Michael, Martin R. Gibbs, and Philippa Wright. "Intranets and Local Community: `Yes, an intranet is a…
     ↗
  2. Blanchard, Anita. "Blogs as Virtual Communities: Identifying a Sense of Community in the Julie/Julia Project.…
  3. Fagerjord Anders (2003)
    Ed. Gunnar Liestol, Andrew Morrison, and Terje Rasmussen. Cambridge: MIT P
  4. Fogg, B. J. Persuasive Technology: Using Computers to Change What We Think and Do. Morgan Kaufmann Series in …
     ↗
  5. Gurak, Laura J. Cyberliteracy: Navigating the Internet with Awareness. New Haven: Yale UP, 2001.
Show all 15 →
  1. Gurak, Laura J. Cyberliteracy. Persuasion and Privacy in Cyberspace: The Online Protests over Lotus MarketPla…
  2. Johnson-Eilola, Johndan. Nostalgic Angels: Rearticulating Hypertext Writing.New Directions in Computers and C…
  3. Manovich, Lev. The Language of New Media. Leonardo. Cambridge: MIT P, 2001.
     ↗
  4. Matei Sorin (2002)
    The Internet in Everyday Life. Ed. Barry Wellman and Caroline Haythornthwaite. Information Age Series. Malden: Blackwell
  5. Miller Carolyn R (2001)
    Ed. Patrick Coppock. Semiotic and Cognitive Studies. Turnhout, Belg.: Brepols
  6. Quan-Haase Anabel (2002)
    The Internet in Everyday Life. Ed. Barry Wellman and Caroline Haythornthwaite. Information Age Series. Malden: Blackwell
  7. Turkle, Sherry. Life on the Screen: Identity in the Age of the Internet. New York: Simon, 1995.
  8. Warnick, Barbara. Critical Literacy in a Digital Era: Technology, Rhetoric, and the Public Interest. Mahwah: …
  9. Welch, Kathleen E. Electric Rhetoric: Classical Rhetoric, Oralism, and a New Literacy. Digital Communication.…
  10. Zappen, James P. The Rebirth of Dialogue: Bakhtin, Socrates, and the Rhetorical Tradition. Albany: State U of…
CrossRef global citation count: 68 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Computers and Composition Jun 2026
    Legacies, commitments, and new challenges: The Sweetland Digital Rhetoric Collaborative interviews three generations of Computers and Composition editors ↗
    Ali Alalem; Alyse Campbell; Thais Rodrigues Cons; Funmilola Fadairo; Nicole Koyuki Golden
    rhetorical criticism collaborative writing digital rhetoric
  2. Pedagogy Oct 2022
    “A Different Kind of Meaning Is Exposed” ↗
    William Stroup
    rhetorical criticism graduate education service learning teacher development argument collaborative writing empirical research qualitative research digital rhetoric race and writing gender and writing editorial matter
  3. Technical Communication Quarterly Jul 2022
    Black Professional Communicators Testifying to Black Technical Joy ↗
    Antonio Byrd
    rhetorical criticism african american rhetorics revision collaborative writing technical communication professional writing qualitative research digital rhetoric multimodality literacy studies race and writing disability studies editorial matter
  4. Pedagogy Apr 2022
    Contributors ↗
    rhetorical criticism writing pedagogy creative writing writing across the curriculum teacher development collaborative writing assessment writing program administration technical communication professional writing digital rhetoric literacy studies gender and writing disability studies literary studies book reviews editorial matter
  5. Pedagogy Jan 2022
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis african american rhetorics decolonial rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy basic writing writing across the curriculum graduate education teacher development argument collaborative writing transfer assessment portfolios writing program administration writing centers peer tutoring technical communication professional writing archival research digital rhetoric social media grammar and mechanics literacy studies race and writing gender and writing disability studies public rhetoric community literacy literary studies editorial matter