Gadflies biting science communication: engagement, tricksters and ambivalence online

Jonathan Mendel; Huake Riesch

doi:10.1177/1075547017736068

Gadflies biting science communication: engagement, tricksters and ambivalence online

Jonathan Mendel, Huake Riesch

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)

222 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Large-scale online science communication and engagement projects can assume an overly ordered and sterile type of online public space or civil society. Against this, the paper offers a vision of more carnivalesque spaces for online science communication and engagement. Participants in these spaces taking the role of tricksters disrupting the status quo might offer new opportunities for engagement, play and politics online: the online public sphere for discussing science is broken, and we should look for ways to break it better. Acknowledging the limitations of a trickster-like approach, we also consider the ambivalence inherent in carnivalesque play as engagement practice.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	673-684
Number of pages	14
Journal	Science Communication
Volume	39
Issue number	5
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/1075547017736068
Publication status	Published - 13 Oct 2017

Keywords

blogging
Internet
tricksters
trolling
ambivalence
agenda setting

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10.1177/1075547017736068

Author Accepted ManuscriptAccepted author manuscript, 364 KB

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Gadflies biting science communication: engagement, tricksters and ambivalence online

Abstract

Keywords

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