In Ancient Rome, there were five key canons of classical rhetoric. One of these key canons, delivery, needs to be re-theorized for the digital age. When writing was written to be spoken, delivery obviously held rhetorical importance. Verbal and non-verbal cues played a major part in presentation, almost just as important as the words themselves. As writing is transformed to fit the internet age, delivery–with the absence of both verbal and nonverbal cues–needs to be reimagined. Porter argues that “digital delivery” should be viewed as rhetorical knowledge. Instead of giving up due to the lack of delivery, the concept should be adapted to fit the new way that audiences consume language. He presents a theoretical framework for digital delivery consisting of five key topics—Body/Identity, Distribution/Circulation, Access/Accessibility, Interaction, and Economics—and shows how each of these topics can function strategically and heuristically to guide digital writing.
Interaction/interactivity, refers to how users engage interfaces and each other in digital environments. While body/identity is a key topic routed in traditional Roman delivery, interaction/interactivity is routed in the modern digital age. According to Porter, the term “interaction” as a rhetorical topic pertains to how humans engage with computer interfaces in order to perform various actions and how humans engage other humans through digital spaces. There are endless possible ways that a user can engage with a digital space and that audiences can decide to consume. Because of this, writers in the digital age need to consider what kinds of designs will enable and encourage the kinds of audience interactions desired. This is what transforms the idea of interaction/interactivity into a rhetorical idea. Writers can choose to have more emphasis on the highly interactive forms of design that critically engage the audience and that even invite them to add to the information. This “critical engagement” can be done by commenting on a published post or co-producing content themselves. Digital information designed in ways that interest and engage audiences and encourage them to actively participate seem to be more effective than designs that position the audience as passive consumers of information.
Do you find yourself critically engaging with content like how Porter writes? Or do you prefer to be a passive consumer of content, liking and retweeting for example but never posting your own stuff?
Intro to Digital Texts and Media 