Synthetic personality
Encyclopedia
A synthetic personality is a constructed, friendly, approachable persona
, often used in broadcast media
. The term was initiated by Andrew Tolson, and is related to face
and politeness
theory.
Tolson focuses upon how the speech genre of chat
is found across many broadcasts, including interviews. He identifies three features:
He describes an interview between Robin Day
and Margaret Thatcher
in which the discourse about the General Election shifts to the personal.
Persona
A persona, in the word's everyday usage, is a social role or a character played by an actor. The word is derived from Latin, where it originally referred to a theatrical mask. The Latin word probably derived from the Etruscan word "phersu", with the same meaning, and that from the Greek πρόσωπον...
, often used in broadcast media
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
. The term was initiated by Andrew Tolson, and is related to face
Face (self image)
Face, idiomatically meaning dignity/prestige, is a fundamental concept in the fields of sociology, sociolinguistics, semantics, politeness theory, psychology, political science, communication, and Face Negotiation Theory.-Definitions:...
and politeness
Politeness
Politeness is best expressed as the practical application of good manners or etiquette. It is a culturally-defined phenomenon, and therefore what is considered polite in one culture can sometimes be quite rude or simply eccentric in another cultural context....
theory.
Tolson focuses upon how the speech genre of chat
Online chat
Online chat may refer to any kind of communication over the Internet, that offers an instantaneous transmission of text-based messages from sender to receiver, hence the delay for visual access to the sent message shall not hamper the flow of communications in any of the directions...
is found across many broadcasts, including interviews. He identifies three features:
- topical shift towards the 'personal'
- the shift may be accompanied by displays of wit
- opens up the possibility of transgression (the interviewee asking the interviewer questions)
He describes an interview between Robin Day
Robin Day
Sir Robin Day, OBE was a British political broadcaster and commentator. His obituary in the Guardian stated that "he was the most outstanding television journalist of his generation...
and Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
in which the discourse about the General Election shifts to the personal.