Todays tutorial began with some MA housekeeping stuff but the meat of the session was about the nature of digital.
The discussion began by exploring the question of whether the medium was so fast that any attempts at classification were doomed to fail. I think not. But the session did make me think about the nature of it in different contexts.
It is a communication medium – but.. it is so much more in what it offers
- virtual identities and personas
- transformative abilities like none before
- redundancy of originality
- new communities of interest
- new forms of production, communication and consumption (that raise issues as Rose noted about issues of authorship and multiple versions of productions)
But it only exists as on as the electricity is on!
Of course its transformative for all people with access to the internet, but especially for those facing physical barriers to mobility. In fact I’d go so far as to say I’d give up food before I’d give up access to the Net.
But who controls it? How are they accountable to societies? What are the next stages of development for the digital?
All questions of interest ….
anomiepete 