Digital Communication – Exam Summary (Lectures 2–7)

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards based on digital communication theories, scholars, and concepts spanning lectures 2 through 7.

Network Society (Manuel Castells)

Society organized around digital communication networks where information flows through interconnected networks that shape power, culture, economics, and social life.

Networked Public Sphere (Yochai Benkler)

An online public sphere where citizens participate in discussion through digital networks, allowing many people to create, distribute, and discuss information simultaneously.

Network Sociality (Andreas Wittel)

Social relationships maintained through ongoing digital communication rather than stable physical communities where online interaction is central to maintaining relationships.

Networked Individualism (Barry Wellman)

A social pattern where individuals become the center of multiple overlapping networks (family, work, friendship, interest) rather than belonging primarily to one local community.

Weightless Economy (Danny Quah)

An economy increasingly driven by information, knowledge, software, and digital goods which can be replicated and distributed at minimal cost.

Surveillance Capitalism (Shoshana Zuboff)

An economic system in which companies collect and monetize personal data to predict and influence behavior, treating user data as a valuable commercial resource.

Attention Economy (Herbert Simon)

A system in which human attention is scarce while information is abundant, leading organizations to compete for clicks, engagement, views, and time.

Datafication (José van Dijck)

The transformation of activities, interactions, and behaviors into quantifiable digital data that can be stored, analyzed, and monetized.

Participatory Culture (Henry Jenkins)

A culture where users actively create, remix, share, and distribute content instead of simply consuming media, making audiences active participants.

Prosumer (Alvin Toffler)

A person who is simultaneously a producer and consumer of media content, common among social media users.

Networked Journalism (Charlie Beckett)

A form of journalism where professional journalists collaborate with citizens and online communities in gathering and producing news.

Multimedia Journalism

Journalism that combines text, images, video, audio, graphics, and interactive elements within a single story.

Computational Journalism (Adrian Holovaty)

Journalism supported by algorithms, databases, automation, and large-scale data analysis.

Brand Journalism (Larry Light)

The practice where organizations create journalistic-style content to build trust, communicate values, and strengthen brand identity.

Native Advertising

Advertising designed to match the appearance and style of surrounding editorial content.

Strategic Mediatization (Andreas Hepp, Stig Hjarvard)

The process by which organizations adapt communication practices to fit the logic, affordances, and expectations of media platforms.

Multimodality (Gunther Kress & Theo van Leeuwen)

The creation of meaning through multiple modes such as language, images, sound, layout, gesture, and video rather than through words alone.

Social Semiotics (Michael Halliday)

The study of how people create meaning through signs and communication within social contexts.

Ideational Metafunction (Michael Halliday)

A function of communication concerned with what is represented, focusing on content and subject matter.

Interpersonal Metafunction (Michael Halliday)

A function of communication concerned with relationships between communicators and audiences, focusing on emotion, power, and social interaction.

Textual Metafunction (Michael Halliday)

A function of communication concerned with how information is organized and structured to create coherence and guide interpretation.

Icon (Charles Sanders Peirce)

A sign that resembles what it represents.

Index (Charles Sanders Peirce)

A sign that has a direct connection to what it represents.

Symbol (Charles Sanders Peirce)

A sign that relies on learned cultural conventions to convey meaning.

Algorithmic Culture (Ted Striphas)

A culture increasingly shaped by algorithms that determine visibility, relevance, recommendations, and popularity.

Algorithmic Imaginary (Taina Bucher)

The beliefs, assumptions, and mental models people have about how algorithms work, regardless of their actual function.

Anthropomorphism

The act of assigning human characteristics, emotions, or intentions to technologies such as AI systems.

AI Mythology

The mistaken belief that AI systems are objective, neutral, unbiased, or inherently truthful.

Generative AI

Artificial intelligence systems capable of generating new text, images, audio, video, and other content by learning patterns from large datasets.

Technical Affordances (James Gibson; Donald Norman)

The possibilities and limitations for action provided by a technology or platform.

Prompt Engineering

The process of designing effective prompts to guide AI systems toward desired outputs.

Critical AI Literacy

The ability to critically evaluate AI systems, identify limitations, recognize bias, and assess reliability.

Information Disorder (Claire Wardle & Hossein Derakhshan)

A framework describing the broader ecosystem of false, misleading, manipulated, and harmful information.

Misinformation (Wardle & Derakhshan)

False information shared without intent to cause harm.

Disinformation (Wardle & Derakhshan)

False information deliberately created or shared to deceive or cause harm.

Propaganda

Communication intended to influence attitudes, beliefs, or behavior in support of a particular agenda.

Social Engineering

Psychological manipulation designed to influence decisions and behaviors.

Memes (Richard Dawkins)

Units of cultural information that spread and evolve through imitation and sharing.

Imitation Publics (Zizi Papacharissi)

Temporary publics formed when users repeatedly reproduce and circulate similar content online.

Hashtag Publics (Zizi Papacharissi)

Networked communities formed around hashtags that enable collective discussion and visibility.

Filter Bubble (Eli Pariser)

A personalized information environment created by algorithms that selectively expose users to content aligned with prior interests.

Echo Chamber

A social environment where people mostly encounter opinions that reinforce existing beliefs.

Visual Disinformation

Misleading information communicated through images, videos, manipulated visuals, or AI-generated content.