Debating in an online world: a comparative analysis of speaking, writing, and online chat

Abstract

Because the world has become increasingly dependent upon CMC (computer-mediated communication) to interact, the very fibers of political discourse have undergone changes. Chatting online using interactive channels has become one mode out of many that interlocutors employ to pore over political issues. In this light, using the influential study of Chafe and Danielewicz (Properties of spoken and written language, Academic Press, 1987) as a model, we examine the linguistic choices made by political adversaries engaged in online chat and compare their choices with those made by opponents using spoken language and written language. The evidence uncovered clearly distinguished political chat from editorial writing and face-to-face debating, and even when frequency counts were similar to either the editorials or the spoken discussion, subtle differences were observed. The basis for these differences is discussed, revealing that political chat is different on many levels.