Week 5 Entry

The dynamic media environment in which modern consumers exist allows for changes in the not only the way that we use media as a communication tool but also in the way that we interact with it on both a behavioural and intellectual level. Deuze (2011) proposes that media and communications studies be conducted with a consideration to the viewpoint that reality exists in media, as opposed to with it. This idea comes with the suggestion that media has become so inherent in our social interactions that it effectively becomes “invisible,” shaping our respective lives without us noticing.

I would agree with this concept to some extent, media has always played an essential role in shaping social practices, as do all products of mass production. That said, consumers in western society at least hold a certain degree of control over the ways they use media, as different individuals and cultures consume it in different ways. This is reflected in a Bell’s (2006) paper on the incorporation and appropriation of mobile phones into culture as items that impact on their owner’s social capital. Also noted in this paper was the avoidant approach that some user’s had towards adopting the apparent culture of mobile phone use – further supporting my view that consumers do have a choice on how they consume media and content and technology.

References:

Bell, G. (2006). The Age of the Thumb: a Cultural Reading of Mobile Technologies from Asia. In Knowledge, Technology & Policy. 19 (2), 41-57.

Deuze, M. (2011) Media life. In Media, Culture & Society. 33 (1), 137-148.