Valuating Words: Semantic Practices in Web Search Advertising

Much like in traditional media contexts, advertising is a key source of revenue digital industries. One popular form web search advertising, which targeted based on words. But there has been little critical empirical research into how achieved practice. Based in-depth interviews with professionals, this article examines these professionals make sense Google’s “linguistic capitalism.” It identifies three salient contextual factors that influence the valuation words (locality, semantic footprints, and governance) four practices mobilize to grapple meaning when (e)valuating them (attaching meaning, ascribing intention, algorithmic association, measuring relevance). also reveals importance for commodification words, depends on, ultimately reaffirms, power. Overall, contributes literature meaning-making media.