The Responsive Chord

Alisky, Marvin; Schwartz, Tony

doi:10.2307/446422

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…What remains undertheorized, however, are the (affective, embodied, mimetic) mechanisms through which such new interactions with propagandistic content take shape Whereas the classic "transportation theory" of communication holds that the content of a communication is that which it contains, what is called the "resonance theory" studies how media messages activate reservoirs of ideas (Schwartz 1974;Paasonen 2019). On TikTok, such resonance initially occurs on the level of affect, for example through viral videos, which reverberate with and set ideas and ideologies in motion (cf Buchanan 2020: 34).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wartok: Networked Soundscapes of Memetic Warfare

Pilipets,

Geboers,

Divon

et al. 2023

SPIR

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This panel investigates the networked soundscapes of memetic warfare on TikTok, a platform crucial in mediating the ongoing war in Ukraine since February 2022. Introduced to the public as a unique form of war programming during the first week of Russia's full-scale military invasion (Mobilio 2022), WarTok—a portmanteau of ‘TikTok’ and ‘war’—signifies "the war of super-empowered individuals armed only with smartphones" (Friedmann 2022). Producing headlines such as "TikTok's Amazing Russian-Ukraine War Videos," (Figure 1) the term necessitates critical and ethical scrutiny, not only for its sensationalist stance but also for the collapse of contexts it entails. Integrated into a platform that thrives on remixing, WarTok seamlessly intertwines on-the-ground war reporting with war propaganda—an aspect explored across all panel contributions through the lens of music. Networked Soundscapes The choice for sound as the primary step in our exploration not only derives from the platform’s logic of content creation, it also acknowledges music’s affective impact and its historical role in propaganda (Thompson & Biddle 2013). Music on TikTok serves as both an affective mediator and a highly templatable networker. Recent studies highlight the templatability of TikTok sounds, offering insights into content creators' attention-grabbing techniques (Abidin & Kaye 2021), logics of trend dilution (Bainotti et al., 2022), issue-specific remix cultures (Primig et al. 2023), and infrastructural meme collection (Rogers & Giorgi 2023). Aural linkages between templates can intersect with other platform-native modalities of expression, producing networked soundscapes. A soundscape, as we approach it by leaning into TikTok’s logic of indexing “listed” and “original” sounds, foregrounds audio as the main memetic stratifier, opening up different paths for navigating content (Geboers et al., forthcoming). Hashtags and sounds, for example, can turn into a source of mutual amplification or may remain disengaged even when united through technical means (Pilipets 2023). Feeding into contested attentional dynamics of digital media (Boler & Davis 2021), propaganda by means of TikTok sharing takes on a new dimension in a highly contested space, which is said to “raise memes to the level of infrastructure” (Zulli & Zulli 2021). Memetic Warfare Often driven by a cynical hunt for eyeballs, memetic warfare on social media taps into humor and mockery, inviting playful participation (Divon 2022), channeling disinformation (Bösch 2023), and using agitainment to captivate publics beyond the explicitly political (Tuters and Noordenbos forthcoming). In the context of war propaganda, memes become central agents of partisan bonding through recognizable templates and inscribed in-group cues (Arkenbout & Scherz 2022). TikTok music expands the toolbox of crafting memes, opening up new venues of boundary work and populist instrumentalization (Boichak & Hoskins 2022). TikTok is renowned for its ability to implant short video earworms, perceived as stickier than complete songs (Vizcaíno-Verdú & Abidin 2022). Some attribute this phenomenon to the cognitive principle that human memory retains unfinished tasks more effectively than completed ones, generating affective tension (Carson 2022). Walter J. Ong’s “secondary orality”, a concept revived by Venturini (2022), is one way to address this tension in online spaces where written words often become spoken words and where evanescence is ingrained into the logic of engagement. Foregrounding the memetic function of TikTok, the panel sets out to explore how the ultra-nationalist landscape of Russian WarTok and the tactics of pro-Ukrainian hijacking intertwine in a complex ecology of imitation and attention hijacking. THE SOUND OF DISINFORMATION: TIKTOK, COMPUTATIONAL PROPAGANDA AND THE INVASION OF UKRAINE Tom Divon and Marcus Bösch “ДОБРОГО ВЕЧОРА WHERE ARE YOU FROM”: MEMETIC REVERSAL, CULTURAL APPROPRIATION, AND SOUND HIJACKING Daria Delavar-Kasmai AMBIENT PROPAGANDA: THE DARK REFRAIN OF WARTOK Marc Tuters and Boris Noordenbos WHAT IF THEY ATTACK? КАТЮША AND THE COUNTERMOBILIZATION OF SOUND ON WARTOK Elena Pilipets and Marloes Geboers AMBIGUOUS STANCE-TAKING AND OPPOSITIONAL SOUND PUBLICS ON DOUYIN DURING THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR Richard Rogers and Xiaoke Zhang

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wartok: Networked Soundscapes of Memetic Warfare

Pilipets,

Geboers,

Divon

et al. 2023

SPIR

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The "responsive chord theory" focuses on how media reinforce cultures already inscribed in society and tries to create meaning in such a way that existing cultural practices are revived among audiences (Berger, 1995). Schwartz (1972) describes that media transfer meaning or information in such a fashion as to bring back existing societal culture and individual memories. He suggests that the function of media is not always to create new images or culture but to "strike a responsive chord, utilizing the information already stored in the mind of the listener or viewer" (Berger, 1995:55).…”

Section: Promotion and Reinforcement Of Consumer Culture: A Theoretic...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Television advertising can also promote existing consumption in the existing social norms (Schwartz, 1972). Like motivating women to challenge existing gendered ideology by creating new consumption patterns, advertising also reinforces conventional gender stereotypes (i.e., the necessity of appearing beautiful through the 'male gaze').…”

Section: Reinforcing the Existing Gendered Consumer Culture In Bangla...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Advertising, Gender, and Consumer Culture in Bangladesh

Chowdhury

2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Advertising is one of the media that contributes to cultural diffusion. This paper analyzes whether television advertising can diffuse new cultural practices and reinforce existing ones for female consumers in Bangladesh. Grounding on the “cultivation theory” of George Gerbner and the “responsive chord theory” of Tony Schwartz, it analyzes prime-time television advertising of the three most-watched Bangladeshi television channels along with data collected from 60 in-depth interviews. The results reveal that Bangladeshi television advertisements often introduce new cultures for women consumers whereby they can challenge existing stereotypical gendered practices including riding bicycles and going out of home alone. In addition, they reinforce existing gendered cultural practices that inform patriarchal values (particularly in rural areas) in that women's primary goal is to satisfy family members and stay at home, etc. The study also finds that women living in urban areas tend to challenge the existing patriarchal obligations, while rural women follow its principles. The paper enhances our understanding concerning the nexus between advertisements and gendered cultural practices.

show abstract

The Responsive Chord

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

Wartok: Networked Soundscapes of Memetic Warfare

Wartok: Networked Soundscapes of Memetic Warfare

Advertising, Gender, and Consumer Culture in Bangladesh

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About