Abstract
Rhetorical analyses of image restoration and attack have characteristically centered on public figures because their images are the focal point of news conversation for traditional mass media outlets following events of public shame. Through the development of Web 2.0 technologies and microblogging sites like Twitter, publishing power has shifted the conversation about public figures and their image creation, management and restoration into the hands of the general public. The shift creates new opportunities for research in the field of public discourse, specifically attack and defense rhetoric. This study uses the tweets surrounding Justin Bieber's loss at the 2011 Grammy Awards as a case for examining attack and defense tactics in new media outlets. The analysis revealed both continued utility and theoretical inadequacies within Benoit's Functional Theory in understanding peripheral character attacks.
Journal Title
Iowa Journal of Communication
Volume
43
Issue
1
First Page
52
Last Page
73
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Hardman Taylor, Samuel and Barton, Matthew
(2011)
"When Bieber Fever Strikes: Using Twitter as a New Medium for Attack and Defense Communication,"
Iowa Journal of Communication: Vol. 43:
No.
1, Article 6.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/ijc/vol43/iss1/6
Copyright
©2011 Iowa Communication Association
