ABSTRACT
This chapter explores some key aspects of the relationship between new media and the use of English in a global context. It focuses on how various aspects of new media have changed the kind of English used, changed how people do things with texts in English and facilitated new ways of analysing English texts. New technologies are key resources for globalisation and they seem to have assured a dominant position for English. Many more people use English as a second, third or even fourth language, which means that the use of English may continue to grow, even as other languages are also increasing their presence on the internet. The chapter explains new practices involving the use of technology applied to the production, mediation and provision of English language texts. It considers some aspects of the relationship between computer technology and English in the context of more conventional approaches to reading.
