Repackaging and Repurposing digital objects: A conceptual model to understand the malleability of politics in digital environments

With the transition to digital environments there are new dynamics and practices which need to be understood. In contrast to analogue objects, digital objects and online engagements exist in semi-fixed digital environments which are subject to change, despite time. This makes digital objects different from analogue objects, as they are more malleable, and subject to having their meaning changed, especially with respect to politics. This paper presents Repackaged and Repurposed intention as two new practices which leverage the malleability of digital objects in relation to the scene in which they occur. Together, Repackaged and Repurposed intention provide a scaffold for understanding the way politics, playing out in digital spaces, no longer relies on author intentionality to define the meaning, or purpose, of their engagements. Our paper explores the potential to shift the meaning of digital objects through two illustrative cases, and in doing so, highlights how the potential to change the meaning of digital objects has important political implications.