The Discourse of Blogs and Wikis

Blogs and Wikis have not been with us for long, but have made a huge impact on society.  Wikipedia is the best known exemplar of the wiki, a collaborative site that leads to a single text claimed by no-one; blogs, or web-logs, have exploded into the mainstream through novelisations, film adaptations and have gathered huge followings. Blogs and wikis also serve to provide a coherent basis for a discourse analysis of specific web language. 

What makes these forms distinctive as genres, and what ramifications does the technology have on the language?  Myers looks at how blogs and wikis:

*allow for easier than ever publication

*can claim to challenge institutional hierarchies

*provide alternate perspectives on events

*exemplify globalization

*challenge demarcations between the personal and the public

*construct new communities and more

Drawing on a wide range of popular blogs and wikis, the book works alongside an author blog that contains regularly updated links, references and a glossary.  An essential textbook for upper level undergraduates on linguistics and language studies courses, it elucidates, informs and offers insights into a major new type of discourse. This coursebook will include a companion website.