Conflicting Wavelengths - Visual Semiotic Analysis of Corporate and User-Generated Imagery on 5G technology

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the spread of conspiracy theories linking the virus to 5G technology sparked a global phenomenon of telecom tower vandalism and protests. Content posted on social media can heavily influence and shape societal beliefs and actions. Given the constant stream of new material posted online, this research aims to contribute towards two different fields of knowledge. Once, towards the visual semiotic aspects in the online debate about 5G technology, focusing on the representation of meaning in corporate produced images and user-generated images on Tumblr. Twice, towards the methodological exploration that aims to find a suitable framework and fitting computational methods for a data-scientific approach to visual semiotics. By applying and expanding the ‘Unity of Semiotics’ framework by Charles Morris, which encompasses syntax, semantics, and pragmatics, this study analyses differences in how 5G technology is visually encoded by corporate entities and decoded by media audiences on Tumblr. Results reveal that corporate imagery is encoded to instill calmness and low dominance through a brighter and more uniform color palette that focuses on human elements. In contrast, Tumblr content is more diverse, vibrant, and technologically oriented, reflecting engagement in communication. Accordingly, it contributes to understanding the role of visual semiotics in shaping public discourse and perceptions of 5G technology.