We the Movable Gods

       

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    I remember the first day of my Mass Media Communications class over a decade ago. It was a required core course for my degree, and I thought it would be trifling at best. A small and animated instructor started speaking of Marconi, Farnsworth, and how far we've come with communication in such a short time. It was a foundation that rose to an arena of messaging to great masses. It was vast and intriguing. When I walked in the door, I would have never imagined how fascinating it would be, especially since it was metaphorically a funeral.  For what I didn't know then was that I stood at the precipice of a new age, scattered about that university in the form of inconceivable devices; one that would inevitable be the demise of mass communications. 

              It’s been labeled, “the end of mass communication” (Chaffee & Metzger, 2001; Maisel, 1973).  Even back then the idealists could see it coming. We’ve all come to realize that the one-to-many classic mode of communication has been rendered theoretically inferior. Fifty years of conventional media coverage smothered by the inherent need for connected presence. Mobile technology has made us omniscient; able to reach anyone or anything anywhere at any time. We are the creators now. Whether it is news, entertainment, images, art, or knowledge, we now carry the means of its distribution; through mobile devices.

           So with all the capabilities, what are we doing with our power? Well, we are accessing information, and at a tremendous rate. Half of all Americans now receive their daily information through the internet. The average American spends 162 minutes a day on their mobile device, and 86% of that time using apps. According to Zickuhr, “The rising popularity of both e-books and mobile devices is transforming Americans’ reading habits.” Three times as many users read e-books over print. Beyond childhood, most prefer the ability to travel while reading. These statistics would be promising for any writer.

            There are those that would say that aside from a digital form, media communication is not all that different. However, like the invention of the automobile or rocket, what has changed is not simply the speed in which we travel, but the many reasons for which we travel. We yearn to be connected, to never wonder for more than a moment, to be able to equally express ourselves in whatever we are doing at the moment. With nearly half of humanity now sleeping with their cell phones, I wonder if we could ever look back. I feel that it would be unbearable, if not impossible at this point for anyone to yield the worldly powers bestowed upon them.

Chaffee, S., & Metzger, M. (2001). The end of mass communication? Mass Communication & Society, 4(4), 365–379.

Wei, Ran. “Mobile media: Coming of age with a big splash.” Mobile and Media Communications. Sage Journals. Jan 2013. Vol. 1 No. 1 pg. 50-56. 7 April 2014.

Zichuhr, Kathryn. " Reading, writing, and research in the digital age." Pew Research Internet Project. Pew Research Center. 4 Nov. 2013. Web. 25 April. 2014.