Darknet_memes

A dataset consisitng of memes (a group of digital items, images), analyzed using social semiotic content analysis.

The research is published in the paper "<strong>Darknet Imaginaries in Internet Memes: The Discursive Malleability of the Cultural Status of Digital Technologies"</strong> published in <strong>Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication</strong>.
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<strong>Abstract:</strong>
Dominant discourses on the darknet present it either as a dangerous space with flourishing crime or a place for civic action and political activism. However, these depictions have been challenged in online popular culture, particularly in memes. By utilizing the concepts of double articulation of media and cultural imaginaries, this article reveals how memes shape popular definitions of darknet. Our qualitative, social semiotic content analysis of 505 memes reveals an ambiguous and complex vision of the darknet that both supports and demystifies the mainstream imagery. We introduce the concept of <em>discursive malleability of niche technologies</em>, to describe how cultural practices reshape technologies, especially those with small userbases. Additionally, we present a ‘representational map of the darknet’ and indicate how this contributes to social understanding of digital technologies more generally, and, not least, why the analyzed memes may be read as lens exposing contradictory notions and policies regarding digital technologies nowadays.