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Storytelling and audience reactions in social media

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 August 2016

Anna De Fina*
Affiliation:
Italian Department, ICC 306J Georgetown University, 37&O ST. NW, Washington DC, 20015, USAdefinaa@georgetown.edu

Abstract

Storytelling is among the most common forms of discourse in human communication. The increasing influence of technology in our life is having a significant impact on the types of narrative that are told and on the way they are produced and received. In order to understand such impact we need to approach the discursive study of narrative from a perspective that privileges participant practices rather than texts. This is the approach taken in the present article, which analyzes a specific aspect of storytelling practice: audience participation within a blog open to comments. Using the notions of participation frameworks and frames as starting points, the analysis examines the frame focus of comments, the interactional dynamics established by participants among themselves, the tone of messages, and the media used in messages. Among the most important findings is a significant enhancement of reflexivity in comments as participants engage with the storytelling world much more than with the taleworld. (Narrative, story, storytelling, social media, participation frameworks, computer-mediated communication)*

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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