Section 4: Conceptual Connection & Quote-Based Reasoning Flashcards
How does Peters’ idea of miscommunication connect to Carey’s Ritual Model?
Both challenge the idea that communication is about perfect transmission. Peters sees miscommunication as a central, human condition, while Carey emphasizes shared meaning over accuracy. Together, they highlight communication as a relational and cultural process, not a technical one.
How can Interpellation and Constitutive Rhetoric be connected?
Both show how language creates subjects. Interpellation is the ideological “hailing” of individuals, while constitutive rhetoric calls collective identities into being (e.g., “We the People”). Both demonstrate how power operates through discourse.
What quote from Peters explains his critique of technical communication?
“The mistake is to think that communications will solve the problems of communication, that better wiring will eliminate the ghosts.” This highlights that more technology can’t resolve the fundamental challenges of human connection.
How does Foucault’s view of surveillance relate to Simone Browne’s work?
Foucault sees surveillance as a form of discipline that produces subjects. Browne extends this by showing that surveillance is racialized—Black bodies are hypervisible and disproportionately policed. Both highlight how power shapes subjectivity.
How does the Culture Industry relate to Postfeminism?
The culture industry packages empowerment as a product, often reinforcing traditional norms under the guise of choice. Postfeminist media appears progressive but often upholds the same old beauty standards or gender roles.
How do Media Rituals and the Myth of the Mediated Centre reinforce media power?
Repetitive media practices (rituals) convince audiences that media is central to public life. The “myth” convinces us that media is our best access to what matters—reinforcing media’s authority.
What does hybridity complicate in globalization discourse?
Hybridity complicates the idea of cultural exchange as equal or empowering. While it can foster creativity, scholars like Kraidy and Shim show it can also involve appropriation or reinforce existing power structures.
How do ISAs and the Public Sphere relate?
While the public sphere is idealized as a free space for democratic debate, ISAs like media and education shape who gets to speak and what counts as legitimate discourse—meaning the public sphere is not neutral.
How can Appadurai’s -scapes help explain the global spread of K-Pop?
K-Pop spreads via mediascapes (videos, social media), technoscapes (production tech), and ideoscapes (messages of modernity or gender norms). Shim calls Korea a sub-empire to show how regional power plays a role in this flow.
What does the quote “Communication is a registry of modern longings” mean? (Peters)
It suggests that communication is tied to a fantasy of perfect understanding—something we deeply desire but never fully achieve. It reveals how media often promises emotional closeness while masking the impossibility of total connection.
