Lab+3+Response

Why are new genres created? Why is the definition of genre controversial and not so applicable to the formation of digital genres?
In Dillon and Gushrowski's article "Genres and the Web: Is the personal home page the first uniquely digital genre", the authors attempt to define personal web pages as a new digital genre. Digital genres are controversial when it comes to defining genre because they resemble previous paper mediums, as well as lack definitive elements. Types of genres have "identifiable elements" and "rules of form" that help to define them. Dillon and Gushrowski argue that "digital genres frequently borrow heavily from the paper world even though the media are very different." This means that digital media do not have their own innovative elements that differentiate them completely from other genres. This article also suggests that digital mediums use "paper-based conventions" so that users will use familiarity to properly understand and use the digital media. One could argue that this would classify such websites as the same genre as newspapers, instead of one in its own. Dillon and Gushrowski found that personal web pages often share common elements, such as "user preferences and expectations of type," arguing that the personal web page is a new digital genre. However, genres have been thought to be "slow-forming" and "resistant to change." If this is so, the personal home page or other digital mediums are far from becoming their own genre, as the World Wide Web is developing and changing every day. The definition of genre is therefore controversial and difficult to apply to the formation of digital genres, due to the fact that digital media is still evolving, as it resembles older mediums and genres, and has not yet adopted its own individual characteristics or required elements.