1 November 2016, Cardiff University

The interplay between word, image and the digital is one of the most pertinent and topical areas for research and discussion in the humanities. Whilst important work has been done previously theorising word and image (see, for example, W.J.T Mitchell’s Picture Theory), the addition of the digital to this already complex relationship problematises, amplifies and disrupts our understanding of what it means to be human and consequently challenges us to re-think how we understand visual culture. On 1^st November, Cardiff Digital Culture’s Network held its first symposium that interrogated this very subject and in the process acted as kind of prelude for the discussions that the rest of the world would be having a week later when, as result of Donald Trump winning the American Presidential election, concerns were raised over the way the digital allows for the widespread dissemination of words juxtaposed with images in the form of memes to denigrate, abuse and often tell outright lies about political opponents.
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