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.
And 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, for instance.
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.