Writing in the Flow: Assembling Tactical Rhetorics in an Age of Viral Circulation

MIAMI UNIVERSITY The Graduate School Certificate for Approving the Dissertation We hereby approve the Dissertation of Dustin Wayne Edwards Candidate for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy ______________________________________ James Porter, Director ______________________________________ Heidi McKee, Reader ______________________________________ Jason Palmeri, Reader ______________________________________ Michele Simmons, Reader ______________________________________ James Coyle, Graduate School Representative ABSTRACT WRITING IN THE FLOW: ASSEMBLING TACTICAL RHETORICS IN AN AGE OF VIRAL CIRCULATION by Dustin W. Edwards From prompts to share, update, and retweet, social media platforms increasingly insist that creating widespread circulation is the operative goal for networked writing. In response, researchers from multiple disciplines have investigated digital circulation through a number of lenses (e.g., affect theory, transnational feminism, political economy, public sphere theory, and more). In rhetoric and writing studies, scholars have argued that writing for circulation—i.e., envisioning how one’s writing may gain speed, distance, and momentum—should be a prime concern for teachers and researchers of writing (e.g., Gries, 2015; Ridolfo & DeVoss, 2009; Porter, 2009; Sheridan, Ridolfo, & Michel, 2012). Such work has suggested that circulation is a consequence of rhetorical delivery and, as such, is distinctly about futurity. While a focus on writing for circulation has been productive, I argue that that writing in circulation can be equally productive. Challenging the tendency to position circulation as an exclusive concern for delivery, this project argues that circulation is not just as an end goal for rhetorical activity but also as a viable inventional resource for writers with diverse rhetorical goals. To make this case, I construct a methodology of assemblage to retell stories of tactical rhetorics. Grounded in the cultural notion of mêtis (an adaptable, embodied, and wily intelligence), the framework of tactical rhetorics seeks to describe embodied practices that pull materials out of circulation, reconfigure them, and redeploy them for new, often political effects. Blending historical inquiry with case-based methods, I assemble an array of stories that include practices of critical imitation, collage, tactical media, remix, digital hijacks, and protest bots. In retelling these stories, I show how tactical approaches are inventive in their attempts to solve problems, effect change, or call out injustice. In the process, my project pushes toward a critical circulation studies, where scholars investigate how circulation gatekeepers (e.g., YouTube’s Content ID) influence the flows of discourse in networked publics. My project closes by articulating directions for future circulation studies research and pedagogy, including calls to pay attention to ecological understandings of writing, as well as to infrastructures of circulation and ethics of (re)circulation. WRITING IN THE FLOW: ASSEMBLING TACTICAL RHETORICS IN AN AGE OF VIRAL CIRCULATION A DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of Miami University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English by Dustin W. Edwards The Graduate School Miami University Oxford, Ohio 2016 Dissertation Director: James Porter © Dustin W. Edwards 2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables………………………………………………………………………iv List of Figures…………………………………………………………………....…v Dedication………………………………………………………………………….vi Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………..vii Chapter 1: Tactical Encounters………………………………………………......…1 Chapter 2: A Rhetoric of Intervention for Circulation Studies……………...……..26 Chapter 3: Mêtis Stories; or, the Makings of a Tactical Historiography………......44 Chapter 4: The Political Work of Digital Bricoleurs ……………………………...73 Chapter 5: Circulation Gatekeepers: Copyright Regimes, Corporate Authorship, and the Cultural Politics of YouTube’s Content ID………………………………..95 Chapter 6: Toward a Renewed Vision of Circulation in Pedagogy and Research……………………………………………………….......................118 References…………………………………………………………………………135 iii LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1: Models of Circulation……………………………………………………….37 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1: Feminists Read Mean Tweets…………………………………......….2 Figure 3.1: The Yes Men’s GWBush.com……………………………………....57 Figure 3.2: Set Me Free Political Video Remix……..…………………………..61 Figure 4.1: An Initial Call: #MyNYPD……………………………...…………..78 Figure 4.2: The Public Response to #MyNYPD………………………………...79 Figure 4.3: The Irreverance of #MyNYPD……………………………………...80 Figure 4.4: @OxfordAsians Twitter Account…………………………………...83 Figure 4.5: The Real @OxfordAsians…………………………………….……..84 Figure 4.6: Reappopriating Racist Social Media Discourse……………...……...85 Figure 4.7: Horse_ebooks: “Everything Happens So Much”.…………………...90 Figure 4.8: Randi_ebooks: Tactical Bot……………….………………………...91 Figure 5.1: Picking a Wild Salad: YouTube Responds.....……………………..102 Figure 5.2: YouTube’s Copright School………………………………………..107 Figure 5.3: Content ID Process by EFF………………………...…….………..110 v DEDICATION For Clare vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many fortuitous encounters have helped bring this dissertation to life. So many people, ideas, things, and places have influenced the arguments assembled throughout these pages. Though my writing debts are too many to fully acknowledge, I want to offer special thanks to those who have made this work possible. I must first thank my dissertation chair, Jim Porter, who has been a steady source of reassurance and guidance throughout this project. His rapid feedback always sharpened my ideas and often moved me to think about why my research could, and should, matter. Jim’s dedication to my work has made me a better, more thoughtful scholar, and I will always be grateful for his mentorship. I have no doubts that I’ll look back on our discussions—in the classroom, over email, and especially at King Café—as some of the most formative of my scholarly career. Thanks also go to my committee. Michele Simmons always had a way of sending me on the most delightful and rewarding of reading paths, which eventually led to many of the ideas forwarded in this dissertation. She gently nudged me in the direction of circulation studies—and I will always be grateful that she did. More than this, Michele has been a calming presence throughout my time at Miami. I often left her office feeling rejuvenated to tackle the next big thing. Jason Palmeri has been constant in his support, encouragement, and kindness. Jason’s good humor, radical thinking, and commitment to justice have motivated me to do better work. I thank Jason for always remembering and practicing good pedagogy, and for realizing that good and meaningful writing is a life-long project. I thank Heidi McKee not only for her insightful feedback on this project, but also for her time and dedication to shaping my identity as a professional in the field and in the university. Heidi always took care to help me navigate the challenges and opportunities of academic life. I marvel at her fierce support for writing in the university, and I know I will continue to learn from her for years to come. I am grateful for Jim Coyle’s enthusiasm for serving as an outside reader for this project. His presence and expertise have been much appreciated. The time for writing this dissertation would not have been possible without the fellowship support I received during my fourth year. I thank the Miami University Department of English for the gift of time. I am also grateful for the opportunity to teach courses such as “Digital Writing and Rhetoric,” where I had the good fortune of talking through some of the ideas in this dissertation. Many thanks go to the numerous students whom I’ve had the pleasure of working with while at Miami University. A special shout out to my friends and colleagues at Miami who offered praise, humor, and support during all stages of this project. I especially thank Bridget Gelms (a master of GIFs and emoji in times of need), Gretchen Dietz, John Silvestro, Jon Rylander, Kathleen Coffey, Erin Brock, Enrique Paz, and Ryan Ireland. I met a great community when I came to Miami—and I’m hopeful that it will endure for years to come. At Miami, I am also grateful for LuMing Mao and Linh Dich—both of whom influenced my thinking in profound ways. Thanks also go to Leigh Gruwell, Jonathan Bradshaw, and Chanon Adsanatham for showing me how they tackled the oh-so-many occluded genres of grad school. vii I am also appreciative of those I learned from during my time at New Mexico State University. Special thanks go to Heather Lang (a grad comrade from the beginning), Kathryn Valentine, Jen Almjeld, and Jenny Sheppard. Jenny was the first one who approached my ideas as genuine contributions to the field of rhetoric and composition. She saw in me a scholar—an identity I had yet to invent for myself. If not for her confidence and enthusiasm in the early stages of my graduate education, my path would have likely taken a different direction. Thank you. My family has been unwavering in their support. They trusted me when I drove across the country to pursue my degree (and even shipped me green chile on occasion). They celebrated all of my little milestones. They have been routine reminders of the good in life. I thank my mom, Kelly, who taught me to listen; my dad, Ron, who taught me to question; and my sister, Ashley, who taught me to laugh. I am grateful, also, for Hoover and little-boy Sam. I also thank the

Load more