Dr. Carl Whithaus Explores Writing Technologies, Digital Culture, and So Much More on the Minds Over Matters Podcast

Minds Over Matters and Exploring Digital Frontiers 

What will the future of writing look like with the rise of AI? How does social media shape digital communication? Minds Over Matters is a podcast dedicated to sharing research and expert insights by tackling important questions like these. On the most recent episode, Words 2.0, they invited UC Davis UWP Faculty Dr. Carl Whithaus to talk about how communication is changing in the 2020s and the impact of modern technologies. Dr. Whithaus is an expert in this field from his years of research and his newest book, Swarms, Viral Writing, and the Local: Rhetorical Dynamics across Networked Publics, where he explores digital communication across online spaces. He is also a core researcher with the Wayfinding Project, and he is a principal investigator for Peer and AI Review + Reflection (PAIRR), a multi-institutional initiative examining the integration of AI-supported peer review in writing instruction. With host Ed Kiggins, Dr. Whithaus examines the danger of cognitive offloading, how new technology impacts literacy, the role of social media on communication, and what the future of writing technology and digital culture could look like. 

Explaining Cognitive Offloading and How it Impacts Higher Education 

Picture this: a writing assignment is due at 11:59 pm, and it is currently 9 pm. Here lies a choice, use AI to have a draft in a few minutes, or take the time to go through the writing process to make the draft. AI is seen as a tool for efficacy, but this convenience has led to an overemphasis on quickly producing a final product rather than learning from the process of creating something. On Minds Over Matters, Dr. Whithaus explores AI and the writing process in a thoughtful manner. He explains that cognitive offloading with AI is when modern technology is used to reduce mental effort by creating the final product for the user. He argues that overreliance on AI undermines the importance of writing drafts and learning from feedback. This prevents students from developing essential writing skills. Dr. Whithaus is not against AI, but rather he challenges the notion that the final product of the writing process is the only thing that matters. He believes educators should integrate AI into higher education, but in a way that facilitates the writing process, accompanies feedback, and increases AI literacy. These ideas reflect the current research he co-authored in the Peer and AI Review + Reflection (PAIRR) article. The PAIRR strategy combines AI and peer feedback to help students with critical thinking skills and increase their AI literacy. As Dr. Whithaus explained, “we're at an early stage with AI where we could make decisions about the technology and how to humanize it.” His perspective is an important reminder that the future of AI is a collaborative global discussion and that users have the power to shape technology for the better.

How Literacy is Changing

Modern technology has created endless opportunities for communication, but because using multiple channels has become the norm, people may not realize how it has impacted writing and literacy practices. During his interview, Dr. Whithaus talks about multimodality, where communication can happen across channels such as texting, livestreams, apps, social media, and even images. Although some people believe new channels have diminished the value of traditional communication, Dr. Whithaus thinks that the multimodal nature of modern communication is creating a secondary literacy revolution. He argues that traditional communication is not going away, but rather it has been transformed by new digital modalities. Unlike books or newspapers, multimodal communication can change in real time and blends traditional writing practices with current trends. Imagine a Twitch livestream, the chat changes rapidly and is shaped by the audience, the content creator, and the context of the livestream. When replying in the chat, audiences often combine alphabetic text with emojis, slang, or even memes. By discussing this on the Minds Over Matters podcast, Dr. Whithaus is shining a light on commonly overlooked experiences and helps to clarify how and why writing and literacy are evolving. 

Social Media’s Role in Modern Communication 

The discussion about social media’s impact is always changing, but Dr. Whithaus’s perspective helps explain the good and bad aspects of it. He discusses iFixit, which shows how social media empowers users to share resources and explore their passions. iFixit is an online global repair community where users provide step-by-step guides on how to fix different electronics. Thanks to community efforts, hundreds of thousands of repair guides are available for free and have helped users all over the world. This shows how online communities across social media are creating new forms of writing and are collaborating with each other. However, Dr. Whithaus argues that social media algorithms and the ability to spread misinformation are negatively impacting users and digital culture. In his book Swarms, Viral Writing, and the Local: Rhetorical Dynamics across Networked Publics, Dr. Whithaus uses the metaphor of a swarm to compare how misinformation spreads online. He explains that a common problem of social media is that information rapidly gains momentum and excludes alternative explanations. On Minds Over Matters, Dr. Whithaus explores the nuances of the debates around social media and encourages users to carefully consider where information on social media comes from. 

Words 2.0 and the Looking Ahead

“It does feel like we're at an exciting spot in time and that decisions we make now in the 2020s will influence how education and society are shaped going forward, long term,” was what Dr. Whithaus had to say when talking about how higher education and society are being shaped by modern technology. Through research, interesting anecdotes, and honest conversations, Dr. Whithaus is helping to share important information on the future of communication and digital culture. Through his interview, he advocates for AI and social media literacy and hopes for a future where people across higher education, government, and society work together to shape technology in positive and productive ways. It is clear that Dr. Whihaus's input and episode, Words 2.0, is a powerful addition to Minds Over Matters.  

BIO

Shayna Schreiber is a third-year undergraduate, majoring in communication and minoring in professional writing. She is a Communications Specialist Intern for the Professional Writing Minor, helping students learn about writing-based internships through social media and articles she has written. In her free time, she enjoys playing the electric guitar and embroidery. To see her other work, visit or her LinkedIn profile.