<p>Communication between humans and other animals, also known as interspecies communication (IC), is increasingly mediated through new and established technologies. From smart pet collars to automated species monitoring, as more research is conducted on the topic and the technologies draw public attention, there is growing discussion about how they might impact human-animal relationships. In this article, I conduct a critical discourse analysis of academic literature and public reporting on interspecies communication and technology. The analysis reveals two prominent, interconnected narratives emerging with the discourse: (1) IC technology can challenge anthropocentrism and (2) IC technology can foster a more “universal” human sense of responsibility towards other animals. From here, I apply fundamental approaches from political ecology, digital geography, and posthumanist scholarship to consider concepts such as power and knowledge production embedded in such narratives. This draws attention to who is/is not included in the discourse, along with what types of knowledge and experience are either made more visible or obscured by the technologies being discussed. The study contributes to broader understandings of how interspecies communication and technology bring certain human-animal relationships into being while maintaining, imagining, concealing, and dismissing others.</p>

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Talking to Dog: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Research and Public Reporting on Digital Technology for Human-Animal Communication

  • Leah Govia

摘要

Communication between humans and other animals, also known as interspecies communication (IC), is increasingly mediated through new and established technologies. From smart pet collars to automated species monitoring, as more research is conducted on the topic and the technologies draw public attention, there is growing discussion about how they might impact human-animal relationships. In this article, I conduct a critical discourse analysis of academic literature and public reporting on interspecies communication and technology. The analysis reveals two prominent, interconnected narratives emerging with the discourse: (1) IC technology can challenge anthropocentrism and (2) IC technology can foster a more “universal” human sense of responsibility towards other animals. From here, I apply fundamental approaches from political ecology, digital geography, and posthumanist scholarship to consider concepts such as power and knowledge production embedded in such narratives. This draws attention to who is/is not included in the discourse, along with what types of knowledge and experience are either made more visible or obscured by the technologies being discussed. The study contributes to broader understandings of how interspecies communication and technology bring certain human-animal relationships into being while maintaining, imagining, concealing, and dismissing others.