Marsili, N. orcid.org/0000-0001-7853-7359 (2021) Retweeting: its linguistic and epistemic value. Synthese, 198 (11). pp. 10457-10483. ISSN 0039-7857
Abstract
This paper analyses the communicative and epistemic value of retweeting (and more generally of reposting content on social media). Against a naïve view, it argues that retweets are not acts of endorsement, motivating this diagnosis with linguistic data. Retweeting is instead modelled as a peculiar form of quotation, in which the reported content is indicated rather than reproduced. A relevance-theoretic account of the communicative import of retweeting is then developed, to spell out the complex mechanisms by which retweets achieve their communicative goals. The last section outlines the epistemic threats posed by the increasing prevalence of retweeting on social media, linking them to the low reputational, cognitive, and practical costs linked to this emerging form of communication.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 Springer Nature B.V. This is an author-produced version of a paper subsequently published in Synthese. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Online communication; Retweeting; Speech act theory; Quotation; Social epistemology |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (Sheffield) > Department of Philosophy (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 11 Jun 2020 07:21 |
Last Modified: | 19 Jan 2022 11:45 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Springer Nature |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1007/s11229-020-02731-y |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:161612 |