Welcome to Socio 3390 January 11, 2007
Posted by yabbadabbadoo in Mass Comm.trackback
Hello Everyone. I must admit I was kinda worried when, reading through the course syllabus, I read that we would be doing blogging. However, I don’t think its gonna be that bad. This class seems like its going to be very interesting. When we did our ice breaker exercise I thought it interesting that it was as difficult as it was to discover a common ground between some of the groups and even some of the subgroups. One thing I wonder however for this class is how much we will be talking about cell phones. The cellular advancements taking place are incredible. You can browse the internet from your phone and text message people to save yourself the long distance. It makes me wonder what they will come up with next.
In regards to the readings we had to do for class, I found Marshall McLuhan particularly interesting. The fact that he was able to predict all of this truly shows that he was a man ahead of his time. When he discussed the role of books in one of the audio, I find it interesting that now, it does not necessarily involve someone being alone with their thoughts and imagination. Technology has even taken part in that, though not very advanced, with “books on tape.” Also, there are kids programs now to help them read and they just plug right into the TV. In my personal opinion, it seems to me like even though we may still be alone with our thoughts, the amount of books being read is decreasing and the new technology seems to take away the “challenge” for new readers and for some the entertainment.
Great start!
I think that you are right on about the decline in book reading. It is just so much easier to veg out in front of the television than it is to drag your way through Camus or something (I am reading THE PLAGUE for the first time, and it is already one of my new favourite books).
Thanks, and see you in class next week!
Hey,
Is it the consumer or the enterprise that creates or demands this decrease in “challenge”?
Are we slowly coming into the Egyptian demise of a fast paced, beauty obsessed culture that doesn’t offer room for individual expression and growth into mediums that aren’t controlled….or are we just blundering around uncovering little mysteries, patching them together in different disciplines to create new objects…?
Its just my opinion but I think were wired to be receptive to “easier” ways of doing things, were still a species so much a part of our evolutionary past, one which most of us are keenly unware of, that the very mechanisms that drive us are exploited by some and ignored by others..
Cheers,
see you in class
Wow, I didn’t even think of cell phones until I read this, but absolutely. Cell phones are mass media. You can practically do anything on your cell nowadays. Email, surf the net, download games and movies, take photos and video and talk to your friends globally. What I find especially interesting about the absence of any cell phone talk last class is that I would bet at least 99% of us had one in our bag or pocket.
I agree with you that the amount of “book readers” is on the decline since there is so much other interactive technology to play with. So my question for you is do you think this will impact literacy over time?
Great point about cell phones. As they become more advanced, they become our completely integrated access point to the rest of the world. Phones are now also cameras, web browsers, music players, and instant messagers, and most young people’s best friends.
Re: Kate’s comment above: Indeed, we have a propensity for easier ways of doing things, hence all the modern time-saving devices. But be warned: As David Suzuki said, “even with all our modern time-saving devices, we have less free time than ever before.” This supports your suggestion that our evolutionary mechanisms are open to exploitation. Also, interesting analogy to Egyptian society. I typically see the Roman Empire in the west today. The society described in “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire” by Edward Gibbon is chillingly close to how we live today.
Great post!
I am also in agreement with the reduction of book reading but for different reasons. My belief in creation is that we were designed to choose nobler ways than taking the easiest route or indulging our selfish appetites egged on by a largely uncontrolled media. Together with the above, it is the tendency to live by sound bytes or unconsidered brief opinions that reduces the desire for the great books or serious investigation of thoughts and ideas. Unfortunately, blogging of this style may tend to encourage this if it is little more than a technological coffee klatch. This doesn’t make the technology itself little valued, after all technology itself is neutral. We all have the choice as to how we use it and influence the direction our culture is taking.
Being new to most of this technology I am certainly interested in exploring it and welcome the challenge of working with this new medium, and learning from Paul and all of you.
It is definately a concern for me that book reading is declining and I really did not see it in that way before, but it is so true. As we further delve into the complexities of modern communication, the idea of actually sitting down and reading a book is pretty much obselete. Everything we need is on the web, including books!
I am guilty of using my cell phone for everything, most especially texting so I can apperciate what you are saying there. I enjoyed reading your perspective on McLuhan and look forward to hearing more of what you and everyone else thinks. This class is going to be great!
I do agree that books are on the decline, just like everyone else, but on the other hand, I don’t think that I have ever read so many books in my life since I started Uniersity. You may be reading this and thinking “Duhhh… of course you have to read in University” but I still don’t think that it is something to be overlooked. Sure for entertainment purposes books have been rejected, but when it comes to education, research and anything where you really need honest facts with minimal corruption, where does everyone turn?…books.
Books still have the same entertainment value they always have, it is just that they now have to compete with so many other timewasting activities. There is still a niche market for those who appreciate the level of concentration that this form of entertainment entails. There are also those who physically enjoy books. (That sounds funny now that I read it.) There are those of us that like possesing them, looking at them, arranging them, ect. So though some or most people have lost interest in this form of “hot” media, there will always (or at least until I die) be those who prefer getting lost in a good book.