A tangled web: Public reason, web 2.0 and a new definition of action for participatory technologies.

摘要

As web 2.0 technologies gain popularity, theorists are divided about whether these new communication tools are a social and cultural blessing or a hegemonic curse. Through case studies of four different websites, this thesis looks at the ways people are using specific web 2.0 tools to show that rather than being either a revolutionary or refuedalized technology, web 2.0 is a fluid place, where action and distraction occur on a continuum of commoditization and cultural creation. This tangled web challenges propaganda models of communication because it helps turn the measure of public opinion from a push process to a pull process. Under this new paradigm, public reason is found in the interactions between websites and online and offline life, equally as much as it is found within the dialogue on individual sites. And though these tools provide a voice for the elite to assert their dominance, they also result in a decline of deference to experts, and new ways for citizens to add their voices to public conversation.