“Moving beyond prevalent technological notions of metadata, this essay conceptualizes metadata as the outcome of diverse social practices from the perspective of communication theory. First, I revisit cybernetics and consider the relevance of the concept of meta-communication for the study of the digital media environment. While the bit trails that users leave behind are not normally conceptualized as communication, they are prime candidates for inclusion in a contemporary theory of communication. Second, I discuss digital media as metamedia – media that potentially reproduce and integrate other types of media, old and new. Metamedia yield new varieties of meta-communication and meta-data. Third, I outline a typology of meta-communication for further research on digital media, integrating insights from cybernetics and semiotics.”

(Klaus Bruhn Jensen ~ First Monday Oct. 2013)