Making Pittsburghese: Communication technology, expertise, and the discursive construction of a regional dialect

This paper explores how changing technologies for broadcast communication shape the expertise that comes into play in the discursive construction of a regional dialect, in public interaction that includes both institutionally-sanctioned experts like linguists and laypeople with other sources of expertise. Based on an analysis of discourse about Pittsburgh speech, or “Pittsburghese,” in print newspapers, a website, an online discussion board, and a Wikipedia entry, it is argued that both scholars interested in the historical process of language-making and those interested in interaction with the public on the topic of non-standard varieties can benefit from thinking about the role of technology in determining whose voices are heard when.