Recontextualisation through dialogue: The role(s) of a science show host

Presentation at the InterGedi2026 conference in Zaragoza, 18–20 March 2026, "Digital Recontextualization Practices in Expert Knowledge Communication," https://intergedi.unizar.es/our-conferences/intergedi-2026-conference/

Abstract

Making science relevant, engaging, and credible to the public requires effective communication strategies and opportunities for public engagement. Science festivals offer such opportunities by providing spaces where scientists and the public interact through science events (Davies, 2019; Rose et al., 2017; Wiehe, 2014). These events often take the form of mediated dialogue, where scientists serve as primary sources of information and hosts moderate content delivery. When video-recorded and digitally disseminated as replicated or variant cybergenres (Shepherd & Watters, 1998), such events attract viewers beyond the festival audience, gaining additional opportunities for impact. Given the popularity and flexibility of the hosted science show, a question arises: What role(s) do hosts play in mediating expert knowledge for diverse audiences?

This study explores two questions: How do the host’s turns shape the event to make the content comprehensible, engaging, and relevant to the audience? How do various semiotic modes contribute to this effect? To address these questions, the study analyses transcripts and video recordings of six host-moderated events from the 2023 and 2024 editions of the Silesian Science Festival Katowice, Poland, made available to digital audiences via the Festival’s YouTube channel (Śląski Festiwal Nauki Katowice, n.d.).  These events present expert scientific content through dialogues with specialists across various sciences, humanities, and social sciences disciplines. Hosted by science journalists, they take place in Polish, the assumed first language of the Festival’s primary audience. Selection criteria include format (dialogue-based), host (three science journalists, each moderating two events), disciplinary diversity, time frame (2023-2024), and popularity.

The study combines a pragmatic approach (following Lorés, 2024) and multimodal analysis (following Bernad-Mechó & Valeiras-Jurado, 2023). It starts with a data-driven exploration of pragmatic strategies adopted by the hosts in mediating expert knowledge to broad publics. Next, it focuses on the resources employed to carry out these strategies, such as linguistic choices, paralinguistic features, gestures, and stage movement. The analysis is conducted using ELAN (2024), an open-source annotation tool for audio and video recordings. Preliminary results indicate that hosts play a key role in reformulating the content, maintaining internal cohesion, and engaging the audience.

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