From one Paradigm to Another

The journal Réseaux appeared at a significant point in the evolution of the social sciences in the French-speaking world. This stage was characterized by the gradual shift from a “domination paradigm” emphasizing the weight of institutional “interpellation”, the alienated nature of ordinary knowledge and the need for the scientific approach to underpin critique, to an “activity paradigm” stressing the centrality of activity, ordinary knowledge and the critical potential inherent to social practices. Having contributed to shaping this paradigm, Réseaux was one of its channels of dissemination in the sociology of communication, without however removing all the features of the “domination paradigm”. Looking back on Réseaux’s 30-year journey is an opportunity both to highlight these theoretical shifts and to challenge the current theoretical situation and ongoing changes, in which the journal may have to reposition itself.