The Art of Scriptwriting: From Screenplay to Social Control

This article theorises 'the new paradigm of mass communication[1]' and ‘the media scenario[2]' by treating scriptwriting as the hidden architecture of modern mass communication rather than a specialised craft confined to cinema. It argues that the screenplay, historically shaped by the tension between improvisation and control, has become a general cultural form: an organising logic that structures attention, emotion, and role-performance across television, news, platforms, and interactive media. Beginning with the scenario traditions of commedia dell’arte and the industrial rationalisation of Hollywood, the article traces how screenwriting standardisation migrated from production management into social management, turning dramaturgical rhythm into a governing principle of contemporary visibility. Within this framework, narrative form no longer primarily serves truth, catharsis, or artistic completion; it increasingly functions as an instrument for sustaining engagement and directing perception through hooks, escalation, and delayed resolution. The article further examines the ethical dilemma of the writer in a media environment where dramatization routinely substitutes for explanation, and where documentary codes can simulate authenticity while remaining deeply constructed. By bringing journalism, documentary practice, role-playing interactivity, and screenplay theory into a single account, the text proposes that the ‘new paradigm of mass communication’ is not merely about new technologies but about the universalisation of scripting as a social technique. The central claim is that scriptwriting has become a civic force: it shapes public reality by organising what can be felt, believed, and enacted. The question is therefore no longer only how to write a script, but how to write responsibly in a culture where reality itself is increasingly produced in script-like form. [1] Ayolov, P. (2026). The New Paradigm of Mass Communication. [online] doi:https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5998697. [2] Ayolov, Peter (2026) The Media Scenario: Scriptwriting for Journalists eBook: Kindle Store. Amazon.com: [online]