The structure of callers’ contributions in talkback radio

Abstract

AbstractThis paper examines the ways in which callers structure the message phase of their contributions in which they express a point of view and how expressing a POV in a talkback radio is realized through the interaction of caller and host, and in some cases between the caller, the host and an invited guest. Expressing one’s point of view in a talkback radio segment is an extended turn found in a particular type of institutional talk and has it’s own identifiable structures and features. This particular extended turn contains within it a number of moves, of which only the POV itself is obligatory. Other moves within the extended turn have various functions, some of which are designed to integrate the particular contribution into a sequence of talk while others are designed as convincing strategies in support of the expressed POV.