I received a couple of requests to say something 
about ‘new media’.

There is of course a lot to say about this,

but for now I want to limit myself to a quick 
discussion on new media theory.

Before we continue, could you think about some 
old media?

Just note the first ones that pop up in your mind.

And now, some new media. I asked this 
question in many classrooms

usually my students mention mobile phones, 
the internet, tablets or blu-ray discs

as new media. Old media that are mentioned 
are the newspaper, books, television and radio.

Take a few seconds to think about why you 
consider this medium old and the other new.

What is the definition of a new medium?

While you are thinking about this, I want to 
share with you the following,

typical quote, from a scholar:

“[The new medium] will create forgetfulness in 
the learners' souls,

because they will not use their memories (…).

[Learners] will be hearers of many things and 
will have learned nothing;

they will appear to be omniscient and will 
generally know nothing;

they will be tiresome company, having the show 
of wisdom without the reality.”

What medium do you think this critical scholar 
had in mind? The internet?

You often hear people say things like this about 
the internet.

But this quote is actually about the written word 
by the famous philosopher Plato.

Plato wrote these critical notions on the written 
word around 360 Before Christ.

There are many historical quotes very similar to 
this one referring to other media

that were new at one time in history,

like the first printed books in the Late Middle 
Ages,

the new phenomenon of the popular newspaper 
press in the nineteenth century,

radio in the early and television in the late 
twentieth century.

The point I’m trying to make is this:

It’s important to realize that all media were new 
at one time or another.

Because it’s easy to fall into the trap of only 
seeing our current new media,

internet, mobile media and such, as new.

This trap has led some scholars to come up 
with very specific definitions of new media,

claiming that new media are always interactive, 
promote user participation, et cetera.

But is this useful?

Basically what we are seeing here is new media 
theory built around specific

and only current examples,

like the internet or mobile media. These types of 
theories explain what’s happening right now,

but you can’t really use them to explain the 
phenomenon of new media in general.

These theories, built around the new media of 
today,

hardly fit the situation where the written word 
was introduced

or the book printing revolution changed the face 
of Europe.

Also, in designing theories to fit current 
examples lies another danger,

because it’s very probable that these theories 
become outdated as soon

as a new new medium arises.

Therefore, many scholars argue against the 
practice of creating new media theories

to fit current examples.

The influential Marshall McLuhan gave a great 
example when he proposed his own theories on 
new media,

not by dwelling on modern-day examples, but 
by skipping back and forth through time,

showing in fact that his theories apply in all of 
these historical and modern situations.

One of his main observations was in fact that all 
of these media revolutions throughout history

were always caused by a new technology.

This perspective is called technology 
determinism,

because important shifts in human development 
are, in the end,

attributed to innovations in technology. The 
printing revolution was made possible by

Gutenberg’s innovation of the printing press.

The internet was made possible because 
computer networks were developed. Et cetera.

Another important conclusion of McLuhan was 
that all of these shifts in the media landscapes

had huge effects in society:

The printing revolution led to the Renaissance 
and Enlightenment.

The rise of the internet has heralded a modern 
digital information age.

Other scholars have followed in the footsteps of 
McLuhan,

even though they don’t always agree with his 
views,

they too strive to formulate theories and 
definitions on New Media

that capture the entirety of the new media 
phenomenon, and not only current examples.