tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566428515788827088.post7086288346699403335..comments2023-10-15T07:20:59.776-05:00Comments on social abacus: media, medium, mekatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09452254310603787822noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566428515788827088.post-53039473301421865792008-10-28T15:12:00.000-05:002008-10-28T15:12:00.000-05:00Sorry I'm getting back to this belatedly, Kate.I l...Sorry I'm getting back to this belatedly, Kate.<BR/><BR/>I like McLuhan's definition of medium, even if it's not the same as the prevailing one used in the field of media history. Physical conversation is a medium. Our choice of clothing can be a medium. Town criers from hundreds of years ago were a type of medium. And then there are also the modern *mass* media -- which, yes, is what we usually mean when we talk about the media in business terms.<BR/><BR/>In my view, the grand challenge of the social media (very much in the plural!) is that they blur the traditionally clear lines between personal media (like conversation or fashion choices) and mass media (like radio or movies). Given the nature of blogs, Twitter, Facebook, et cetera, it requires virtually no effort to shift from one to the other -- and in fact, users often don't even think about the shifts.<BR/><BR/>These are just some musings, not a real thesis. What do you think?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566428515788827088.post-75010403941968410362008-10-23T23:22:00.000-05:002008-10-23T23:22:00.000-05:00Tim, I think medium has taking on a shallow meanin...Tim, I think medium has taking on a shallow meaning as a vehicle for marketing messages. People think of a medium along the lines of paid media. What I liked about what Marcel added is that McLuhan's definition was so broad-- any environment where communications take place. I think that's genius: more about social interactions than broadcast. Given your background, can you comment on the history of the concept?katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09452254310603787822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566428515788827088.post-51741820299757908832008-10-20T08:53:00.000-05:002008-10-20T08:53:00.000-05:00Hiya, Kate.One question: what would disqualify the...Hiya, Kate.<BR/><BR/>One question: what would disqualify the social web from being a medium?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566428515788827088.post-91818177254290086572008-10-19T14:50:00.000-05:002008-10-19T14:50:00.000-05:00Super interesting, Kate... I have such a McLuhan c...Super interesting, Kate... I have such a McLuhan crush.<BR/><BR/>Peter Kim referred me over to you from here - http://www.beingpeterkim.com/2008/09/a-framework-for.html. I'm a first year PhD student stalking the social media experience, and also a marketer by trade. I'm currently working on a paper and looking for any academic references around the usage of factors he speaks of in that post. Do you by any chance have any recommendations?<BR/><BR/>Let me know - jacquelyn@brandinfiltration.com - and thanks so much!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566428515788827088.post-47422718612693275152008-10-18T15:38:00.000-05:002008-10-18T15:38:00.000-05:00Thanks, Marcel-- I like the breadth of that defini...Thanks, Marcel-- I like the breadth of that definition and its relevance to the collaborative space that technology enables today.katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09452254310603787822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566428515788827088.post-66241259961602718332008-10-18T10:40:00.000-05:002008-10-18T10:40:00.000-05:00Hi Kate,It was a pleasure to meet you in Austin. ...Hi Kate,<BR/><BR/>It was a pleasure to meet you in Austin. I'll check out David M's blog as well.<BR/><BR/>McLuhan defined a medium very broadly including anything which extends our senses and enables communications. He even considered a light bulb to be a medium (one without content) because it enables people to create a space or environment at night that would otherwise be nothing but darkness - he said, "a light bulb creates an environment by its mere presence." He equated a medium to an environment where communications takes place. <BR/><BR/>I look forward to chatting with you more in the future.<BR/>Regards,<BR/>MarcelAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com