Endangered languages, social subjects and mediatization:
The case of Wikitongues
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31686/ijier.vol7.iss8.1671Keywords:
mediatization, digital ethnography, digital landscape, subjects, discourse, agencyAbstract
This paper discusses possible roles of midia/midiatization in the face of processes of linguistic changes and/in endagered languages in contemporary society. It is grounded on a social and historical approach to language and it finds support in Bakhtinian propositions about discourse, subjects and chronotopes. It assumes a sociolinguistic perspective to the interface between linguistic landscape, digital media and discursive agency. The study adopts the digital ethnography as a methodological procedure that grants the investigation of human actions and interactions in digital contexts. In order to explore the target theme, it presents a brief analysis of the case of Wikitongues – a non-profit organization that offers several digital platforms/media for individuals to share, divulge and comment on endangered language and cultural diversity. The analysis suggests that, by resorting to free online digital spaces and their affordances, spontaneous and activist video communities were created, showing that mediatization processes supported by the internet might help promote language diversity, discursive agency and cultural awareness.
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References
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