Our Broken Media

Cursor.org:

Chris Matthews fingers "politicians like the Clintons" for the decisions that led to the death of 4,000 in Iraq, CNN is accused of making anti-war protests 'look like a circus,' and "On the Media" reports on how the Bush administration has gone about 'Stagecrafting the War.'

Comments

[matrullo]

These appeals to "fix broken media" and so forth - for all their good intentions - seem to begin more or less at the end of an inquiry into the problem they wish to solve. Is media some gadget that we can take to a repair shop; a catchall for everything involving image; some representation of the social; a screencap of the sentiments of a community that knows not itself, or the world, or its own mind, or something entirely other?

Before calling us to fix things, it could be helpful to articulate how they managed to get broken, when, by whom, for what reason, under what command, for what greater glory, or darker purpose, etc. Mythos. We share little else.

[Phil]

When, how and by whom and or what purpose, were the media undone? Shall we watch tv to find out? Maybe 60 Minutes will tell us?

[matrullo]

Precisely. Perhaps the oracle at twitter.

[Phil]

Over the years we have been blogging, I there has been a trend towards specialization, as here at Gifthub, in a topic area or "beat." Since the media do such a lousy job with niche topics (like philanthropy), specialized blogs have a place. In some ways, though, that specialization is crippling. We end up working within the same Dewey Decimal System categories as we did before blogging, and end up reproducing the familiar social world. Philanthropy, but not media, not war, not capitalism, not literature, not religion, not ethics, not corruption in high places, not drug money, not public relations, not wealth bondage, not plutocracy, not higher education, not prisons, are the topics here at Gifthub. Yet it is only when we cut across the usual categories and begin to see how the elements work together that we have any hope of a) understanding what is going on and b) altering perception and c) doing anything about it. I read you, AKMA, and Gall and Gumption for inspiration about giving, or human flourishing, or social change, even though you never write about those specifically. The roots have to go deep and the deeper they go, the more they fan out, and intertwine.

[Dust your bosom with sparkles]

I know none of you have friends like this but sometimes my friends treat me like television. It is not my preference but it is easy to return the favor and then what have we left? I know none of you would stoop to this. You would ask your mother questions too even though it takes her too long to answer. You would inquire after her ancient memories and keep the pained look off your face as she fails to pump them up, enhance them, or connect them in any way to you. Quick, cut to the black bottom pie. Quick snap the polaroid of it sitting on the table in front of her. Quick, dust your bosoms with sparkles. Quick, think of who you could be listening to if you had brought your invisible headset. Quick, how do those old cameras manage to exclude all the people in a restaurant but the ancient one, the one sitting gratefully in a high-back booth behind free pie. Quick, we gotta get out of this place. Quick, it is the last thing we'll ever do.

I think we're alone now
there doesn't seem to be
anyone around
I think we're alone now
the beating of our hearts
is the only sound

RUN!

[Phil]

Television watching is the model for not listening except in snatches, as the mind roves from what's on, to something else. The light ironies of the immobilized spectator, who thinks he is free, because he is only paying half-attention, are legion.

[JJ Commoner]

We end up working within the same Dewey Decimal System categories as we did before blogging, and end up reproducing the familiar social world. Philanthropy, but not media, not war, not capitalism, not literature, not religion, not ethics, not corruption in high places, not drug money, not public relations, not wealth bondage, not plutocracy, not higher education, not prisons, are the topics here at Gifthub. Yet it is only when we cut across the usual categories and begin to see how the elements work together that we have any hope of a) understanding what is going on and b) altering perception and c) doing anything about it.

Exactly !

And, for example, what Tom has written about the growth of contextualized search (as evidenced by FAST claims) only suggests "we" are weaving ourselves further into an already-written scenario.

[Phil]

Each of us will be able to wander about in a world of our making, within the categories that are right for us, without any friction, as the real world is stolen, debased, and ultimately destroyed. Unless we make cross silo connections, and undermine the categorical framework that atomizes our thinking and our lives, good luck, netizens. I am going back, I think, to blogging across the grain. We shall see whether subscribers come or go, and who remains, when that social filtering runs its course. Perhaps we will make a small quorum for social change, whether thinkers, philanthropists, activists, satirists, or just plain malcontents.