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2018 | OriginalPaper | Chapter

3. Mediagasms, Ironic Nerds, and Mainstream Geeks: A Multimethodological Ideographic Cluster Analysis of <Nerd> and <Geek> on Twitter

Authors : Steven S. Vrooman, Ph.D., Tiffiny Sia, Ph.D., Michael Czuchry, Ph.D., Christopher Bollinger, Ph.D.

Published in: Age of the Geek

Publisher: Springer International Publishing

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Abstract

This chapter uses an innovative mix of qualitative and quantitative methods to explore the rhetorical constructions of <geek> and <nerd> and their uses on Twitter. Utilizing the theoretical construct of the ideograph to analyze the way abstractions are marshalled for politicized identity, the chapter traces the ways that the two terms converge and diverge in meaning as used for self-identification. Although the technical-skill overtones of the <geek> seem cooler and more active, in practical use those connections are fading and the <geek> is returning to its circus-sideshow roots as synonymous with the <freak>. However, the more passive, fan-based <nerd> seems to provide a richer tool for users to tell their story of multiple, struggling, mediated identities in a digital age.

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Metadata
Title
Mediagasms, Ironic Nerds, and Mainstream Geeks: A Multimethodological Ideographic Cluster Analysis of and on Twitter
Authors
Steven S. Vrooman, Ph.D.
Tiffiny Sia, Ph.D.
Michael Czuchry, Ph.D.
Christopher Bollinger, Ph.D.
Copyright Year
2018
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65744-8_3