CCT300 – Critical Analysis of MediaSeptember 24, 2009

CCT300 – Labs

New media genres

Week 3

What is a genre?• The word genre comes from the French (and originally

Latin) word for 'kind' or 'class'. The term is widely used in rhetoric, literary theory, media theory, and more recently linguistics, to refer to a distinctive type of 'text'*.

• Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or settings) and/or form (including structure and style) which are shared by the texts which are regarded as belonging to them. (Chandler)

What is a genre? Genres are groups of texts that have specific features, specific purposes, and inspire (or create) certain types of action. Genres often have particular sets of “rules” or expectations for form, presentation, or content attached to them. It’s difficult to define genre exactly or to be able to rigidly assign texts as “belonging” to a particular genre, although plenty of people have tried.

Genres and systemsGenres can be seen as systems; different genres interact with and influence each other.Sometimes one genre incorporates another, or multiple genres can be seen at work in one text.

Genres and mediaGenres relate to the media in which they are presented.

“The interaction between genres and media can be seen as one of the forces which contributes to changing genres. Some genres are more powerful than others: they differ in the status which is attributed to them by those who produce texts within them and by their audiences.” (Chandler)

Genres and the texts within them

One way that we understand genres is by looking at different texts within a genre and comparing and contrasting their features.

Genres and audience“Every genre positions those who participate in a text of that kind: as interviewer or interviewee, as listener or storyteller, as a reader or a writer, as a person interested in political matters, as someone to be instructed or as someone who instructs; each of these positionings implies different possibilities for response and for action. Each written text provides a 'reading position' for readers, a position constructed by the writer for the 'ideal reader' of the text.” (Kress 107)

Genres are dynamicGenres change over time; they are dynamic, adapting to different groups, media, and purposes. Genres can be re-purposed as the needs of people and groups change, or as society changes the way in which it uses information technologies.

Genres inspire social action

Genres come from and inspire social action and are intertwined with the needs and values of cultures and social groups.

Classifying genres can be difficult, but generic analysis can be useful in helping us understand how texts work and what kinds of actions they inspire.

A summary of ideas about genreCarolyn Miller’s 1984 essay on "genre as social

action” identifies five specific features of genre common to writing. Genre is: 1.comprised of categories of discourse resulting from social

action;2.rule-governed to some degree;3.distinguishable from form;4.constitutive of culture;5.a mediating force between the individual and society. (36-

37)

What are important aspects of genre that we can consider?

PurposeContent/subject matterTextual features and conventionsFormat and design conventionsMediumAudience (real and constructed) and their expectationsCultural and social background

How can genre analysis help us understand communication?

Identifying textual featuresUnderstanding audience needs and expectationsUnderstanding conventions for design and contentKnowing appropriate style and toneHaving a pre-made structureExpecting actions and changeAnalyzing and understanding how to make writing effective

Ways of Classifying GenresWe can classify texts as belong to a genre in different ways:

By subject matter (management books, self-help books)By type of text (letters, memos, speeches)By medium (written, oral, mixed communication)

Digital Genres?New genres speed up changeDigital genres differ for their nature on morphing or having no endCompare what rap was 5 years ago and what is now

Web sitesThe design process involves knowing conventions as to how the design should beginModes are important and more widespread with new mediaGenre hybridity occurs due to blending of media

The iPhone as a GenreThis device not is a good example of genre formation but it also explains how modality and hybridity in actionhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smRIKw23FWA&feature=player_embedded

Networks of Design IssuesAudiences

(Students, Executives, Fans)

Purposes(Enjoyment,

Sales, education)

Context(School,

Corporate Culture, Travel)

ModesVisual/Audio Media

HTML/FlashGenreGallery/Portfolio

ReferencesKress, G., & Van Leeuwen, T. (1996). Multimodal discourse. London: Routledge.

Manovich, L. (2001). The language of new media. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Schirato, T & Yell, S 1996, Communication and cultural literacy: an introduction, Allen & Unwin, St Leonards. Shiels, M 2008, 'Obama uses iPhone to win support', BBC News, 3 October, viewed 16 June 2009.URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7649753.stmWalsh, M 2006, 'The textual shift: examining the reading process with print, visual, and multimodal texts', Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, vol. 29. no. 1, pp. 24-37.

Q&AWhy are new genres created? Why is the definition of genre controversial and not so applicable to the formation of digital genres?