ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the historical treatment of the rhetorical canon of delivery, arguing that people need an expanded theory of rhetorical delivery. It explains why they think actor-network theory (ANT) provides a useful basis for the construction of a network rhetoric theory. In digital rhetoric, there are various kinds of systemic and circulatory metaphors in play describing the larger social scene, including system; activity system; ecology; hypertext; rhizome; datacloud; assemblage and network. The chapter explores how ANT can be transformed into an operational model useful for understanding and analyzing networked professional communication. As the mechanical clock example shows, networks or assemblages are not simply human communities but also include objects working as actants—a point particularly important for understanding digital media ethics where often communication technology (CT) exerts an effect beyond what any individual human agent in the assemblage intends or anticipates.
