The hypertext of a news item through the prism of media linguistics

Abstract

This paper analyzes the hypermedia text of a news item by means of media linguistic analysis. The heuristic value of an interdisciplinary approach underlying media linguistic analysis consists primarily in the allocation of units suitable for the analysis of media communication. These units are the result of an activity-based delimitation of the speech flow, consisting of professional mass media speech and non-professional one, i.e. online group dialogues. The analysis reveals a smooth transition from professional, i.e. socio-oriented communication, to non-professional, i.e. personalityoriented communication. The latter type of communication is a polylogue, which is engendered in the form of comments in response to published news. The analysis confirms our data obtained earlier, as well as those of other researchers who present the hypermedia news in the form of a wave that includes several periods due to uneven activity in the receipt of messages. In accordance with the dominant modality in the texts, these periods are divided into those of reporting, evaluation and stimulation.