Communicative strategies for popularizing medical knowledge in the video blog

The science popularization via video blog is an element of the modern system of formats for science communication, belonging to the category of digital formats and standing out as a unique digital project within the blogosphere. In turn, the low entry threshold for authors into the digital space fosters high user activity in shaping science popularization media discourse, leading to the emergence of various authorial types within this discourse, ensuring a diversity of strategic repertoires of speech influence. The subject of the study is the implementation of communicative strategies in the popularization of scientific knowledge in the field of medicine by journalist and science popularizer A. V. Vodovozov, as an author with experience in professional medical and journalistic activities. The aim of the study is to explore the characteristic features of the strategic repertoire of the language personality of the popularizer in the dynamics of various communicative situations. To achieve this goal, an author's methodology for investigating the strategic repertoire was developed, based on methods of selective monitoring, aspectual discourse analysis, and personal linguistic profiling. Based on the concept of communicative strategies and tactics of Russian speech by O. S. Isseris, a questionnaire for the strategic repertoire was created, according to which the unique specifics of the speech strategies of the popularizing author were identified. The main results showed the dominance in all studied cases of the main cognitive strategy of subordination (ranging from 34.3% to 52.2% of the author’s communicative moves) with a complete absence of discrediting and dramatization strategies, complemented by auxiliary strategies of emotional mood formation, self-presentation, topic control, initiative, and attention grabbing, the frequency of which demonstrates high dynamics. The area of application of these findings can be characterized as research-oriented—the methodology, results, and conclusions of the study can be used in further examination of science popularization media discourse and the communicative strategies employed therein. The novelty of the study lies in the fact that it offers a systematized analysis of communicative strategies for the popularization of medical knowledge within the framework of science popularization media discourse for the first time. As a result of the study, it was concluded that A. V. Vodovozov, possessing a unique strategic repertoire, demonstrates both adherence to general canons of science popularization and different patterns of strategic elaboration depending on the communicative situation of interaction with the audience during the popularization of medical knowledge.

media communication, popular science media discourse, medical media discourse, Internet communication, new media, blogosphere, popular science video blogs, popularization of scientific knowledge, speech impact, communication strategies