A Converging Image?

Abstract

Visual imagery, while largely overlooked in mass communication research, is central to how organizations represent themselves, make meaning, create identities, and communicate with the rest of the world. This research explores visual differences between alternative and mainstream news websites along the conceptual categorization of deviance. More deviant groups have historically represented themselves through alternative media with themes of confrontation and challenge, often through violent or sexualized imagery. However, online communication is now largely commercialized and commodified in order to professionalize a consumerist aesthetic that can attract mass audiences and return a profit. This research explores the visual communication of both alternative and mainstream media in an online environment where the whole world is watching.

KEYWORDS:

• alternative media
• commercialism
• deviance
• professional design
• visual communication
• Web design