Discursive structures in the network society. A theoretical case study on the role of immaterial structures in media organisations

The article takes the debates on structure and agency
as a starting point to emphasise the importance of fi nding
a balanced approach towards the discursive and the
material in these debates. Through a critical reading of
Giddens' structuration theory and Castells' network society
theory, the tendencies in sociological (and communication
and media studies) theory to render agency too present,
to privilege the material over the discursive, and to fi xate
and permanently sediment all four concepts, is highlighted.
The article then reverts to the notion of "discursive
structure" as elaborated in Laclau and Mouff e's discourse
theory to further unravel the complexities of the relationships
between these four categories, while at the same
time guaranteeing that the cultural-discursive dimensions
of structure gain more visibility. The workings of this more
fl uid and immaterial model of discursive structures is illustrated
by focussing on the media organisation, as one
of the points where the discursive and the material, and
structure and agency meet. Through the lens of the media
organisation we can see how agency and structure are
both located at the level of the material and the discursive,
and how the material and the discursive both have
structure and agency.