Sixteenth International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities

Abstract

This scholarly work explores the forms and effects of the imageboard language system and related emerging forms of online communication. This exploration is of value to anyone seeking to understand the present polarization and politicization of online communication, the dissonance between polls and election results, and the proliferation of “fake news” that has dominated political coverage and conversations for months. My methods involve assembling a lexicon including specific words, images, and punctuation, tracing a developing language more vast and popular than a casual observer might recognize. I then observe how the stealth quality of the language system enabled communicating that language to become a cross-media phenomenon, involving corporate media outlets, anonymous imageboards, and YouTube video production and reception. The implications of this scholarly work include a fuller understanding of how postmodern avenues of adapting and appropriating language, assist political revolutions and populist movements. This understanding will benefit scholars and others interested in participating in, and possibly educating others about, new forms of online communication.