Thesis Defense: Aminata Oedrago becomes a Doctor of Information and Communication Sciences from the University of Bordeaux Montaigne

“The process of opinion formation in the Burkinabé digital public space: the Facebook agora”, is the title of a thesis defended by Aminata Oedraogo at the University of Bordeaux Montagne in France on December 3, 2021. This is Prof. He was considered worthy of a doctorate in information and communication science from the University of Bordeaux Montaigne by a jury headed by Alain Kiindou.

Facebook is an agora, a digital public space where new types of civic engagement are played out; The title of the thesis points to the first hypothesis of research that explores the conditions for opinion formation in the Burkinabe digital public space. It analyzes Internet users’ use of online discussion, promotion and engagement practices in the context of current mobilization. All this reflection is based on an in-depth empirical observation of two discussion communities on Facebook (“Crossfire” and “Victory to Burkina Faso (Defense and Security Forces)”), which led to the examination of 1021 publications, 11 personal interviews conducted. August 2020 and March 2021 with mainly Internet users and with 264 responses to an online questionnaire.

Under the supervision of Dr. (HDR) tienne Demom (U Bordeaux) and co-supervision of Dr. Syriac Pare (CNRST Burkina) Aminta Oedraogo’s thesis is in the wake of changes in public space and questions the impact of ICT on speaking practices . In a public place that leads to the formation of public opinion. How do current forms of discussion in Burkinabe online communities reflect the creation of democratic public opinion? Who is engaged online and what are the representations that underlie individuals’ motivations? These are all questions that have been addressed. Emphasizing the alternative nature of the discussion, the research will examine more deeply how Internet users represent, perceive and interpret their presence, co-presence, presence and participation in the formation of opinion in the digital public space.

Face-to-face and flamboyant in front of a remote jury

The results obtained by Aminata Oedraogo’s thesis suggest the existence of a new culture of deliberation based essentially on Internet users coming up to and establishing a relationship with their fellow human beings in which they consider themselves entities, without the admixture of anonymity of name. the collective.

At the intersection of the many modes of participation and the modes of interaction that characterize the digital social universe with some political implications, the research proposes a new theoretical hypothesis and an ideological metaphor, the “octorial person”, to represent the way of thinking. Presence practices of being present for oneself and in front of others, of publicizing social problems, of relaying, experienced by Internet users, are linked in a network with others to generate “constructive infringers”. : Significant changes in methods of conception and implementation of political projects and programmes. Far from withdrawing from politics, deciphered and empirical observations from accounts collected in interviews and answers to questions suggest a re-engagement in politics, part of which aims to establish a new social agreement, To define new. horizon together.

University of Bordeaux Prof. A six-member jury, chaired by Alain Kiindou and who sat face to face and in the distance between Bordeaux, Lille, Montpellier, Nancy, greatly appreciated the density of the applicant’s work. He underscored the cleverness of his analysis and his great ability to work on a complex subject, which enabled him to complete his doctoral research in three years flat, in parallel with his teaching-research work. They deemed him worthy of a doctorate in information and communication science from the University of Bordeaux Montaigne.

The jury particularly praised a dense, synthetic document without redundancy, or unnecessary “padding”; With a clear subject, sometimes rough but clean rendering on the whole. The jury also praised a compelling analysis that draws on Goffman’s “participatory framework” and recent work by Coutant and Stanger on identity and interaction on social digital networks. The light that the author sheds on the conversational codes and methods of interaction for each group analyzed is considered fine and instructive.

The new doctor with his thesis directors, Dr. tienne Damom and Dr. Syriac Paré

The jury commended the in-depth work clearly written in the field of information and communication science in relation to the sociology and linguistics of social movements, without forgetting the classic theories of public space and ‘influence’. He also appreciated the methodological reflection on “netnography”, which other authors call digital ethnography.

As for perspective, the jury eventually invited the author to deepen the trajectory of the analysis, which deals in particular with certain elements, such as the continuum between the virtual and real associations. This continuity can undoubtedly be explained in the light of the current political and social context of Burkina Faso.

Aminata Oedraogo, a teacher-researcher at the Higher Institute of Communication and Multimedia (ISCOM), defends her master’s thesis on the practice of web writing in online media in Burkina Faso in July 2018.

c. Pare

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