Media, Culture and Society PDF

Week 1: Introduction: The Paradigms Lecture Media = (plural of medium) means by which content is communicated between the origin and a destination Culture = the way of life of a set of people or a group, their creative expression, identities, values, beliefs, practices, and view of the world Socie...

Week 1: Introduction: The Paradigms Lecture Media = (plural of medium) means by which content is communicated between the origin and a destination Culture = the way of life of a set of people or a group, their creative expression, identities, values, beliefs, practices, and view of the world Society = The set of relationships, expectations, institutions, and structures that people act, live and participate in All media, culture and society can be studied through different paradigms Research Paradigms = Set of beliefs, assumptions, and practices upon which the research is based on Epistemological → The way we know the world Methodological → How can we know the world Ontological → How you see the world, about the thing themselves Week 2: The Reality Paradox Lecture Media = (plural of medium) means by which content is communicated between the origin and a destination Culture = the way of life of a set of people or a group, their creative expression, identities, values, beliefs, practices, and view of the world Society = The set of relationships, expectations, institutions, and structures that people act, live and participate in 3 versions of the Reality Paradox: 1. Quantum Mechanics = The behaviour of matter is unpredictable → Tiny things, like atoms, act in surprising ways that we can’t predict, unlike the things we see every day 2. Multiverse Theories = There are multiple versions of reality, depending on the choices we make → Every time you make a choice, a new version of the world appears where you made a different choice 3. Phiolosphical Interpretation = Perception of reality is subjective → What you see and think is real might be different from what someone else sees, even if you’re looking at the same thing (what we think is real depends on how we see things, not just what they actually are) 4. Conceptual Puzzles = The realisation that our perception of reality is subjective and may not correspond to the objective world → How we see the world is personal and might not match how things really are Reality is a social construct = Our perception of the world is shaped by language, culture, and societal norms, creating multiple realities - truths (fake news, post-truth) Subjective Experience is ‘real’ = The realization that our perception of the world depends on our sensory apparatus, creating the possibility that there are other realities that we cannot access E.g so while what you see and feel is real for you, there could be other things out there that your senses just can't pick up—like secret parts of the world that only someone with different "glasses" can see. This means your experience is real, but it might not show everything that's out there Split between consciousness and physicality = your inner self (how you feel and think) and the outside world (your body and actions) don’t always match perfectly, having 2 sides that are connected but act differently → mind-body dualism → Paradoxical relationship between inner self and outer reality 3 different school of thought about ‘knowledge’  1. Uncertainty principle = The idea that we cannot know both the position and momentum of a particle, leading to inherent → Imagine you’re trying to catch a bouncing ball. You can know where it is or how fast it’s moving, but never both at the same time. This shows that there’s always some uncertainty when we try to measure things. 2. Observer Effect = The realization that the act of observing a system affects its behaviour, challenging our understanding of objectivity and subjectivity → when you try to sneak up on a butterfly to watch it closely. As soon as you get too close, the butterfly notices you and flies away. So, just by trying to watch it, you changed what it was doing. In other words, when you look at or try to measure something, like an experiment or even a person, you might change how it behaves without meaning to. This happens because the act of observing itself can affect the thing you’re watching. It makes it harder to know what it would have done if you weren’t looking. 3. Theories of Knowledge (Epistemology) = The insight that how we go about gaining knowledge - research methods into the physical and social world around us - affects what we find out → This is about how we learn things. Whether we study animals in the wild or do science experiments, the way we choose to learn or study changes what we discover. Different methods might give us different kinds of knowledge Social and Cultural Examples 1. Technological impacts = The rapid pace of technological change challenges accepted understandings of what reality is in terms of what can be seen as truth (e.g. virtual realities, Second Life, holograms) 2. Cultural Diversity = The realization that different cultures have different realities and ways of experiencing the world, creating the possibility for misunderstandings and conflicts. 3. Truth / Propaganda / Fake News vs. Journalism = The use of information and disinformation to shape public perception and create new realities, challenging our understanding of objectivity and subjectivity. Readings What is this thing called science? (chapter 1) Chalmers, A. Positivism → people who believe in it think science is really all about facts Facts → come from things we can see, hear, touch and sense with our body Belief that scientific knowledge is derived from facts → science is based on observable, empirical evidence (things that are real and we can prove by using our senses) 3 key aspects of facts are  1. They are directly observed through senses (E.g we can see the color of sky or feel the warmth of the sun) 2. independent of theory (no req of theoretical framework or explanation) → facts don’t need big complicated ideas to explain them (we dont need to know why the sky is blue to see that it’s blue — it just is) 3. They provide a reliable foundation for science knowledge (gives us a strong knowledge to learn more about the world) Senses → Facts about the external world are directly perceived through sight 1. Direct, unmediated connection between perception and reality 2. Although people might see the same object differently, the perception remains relatively stable, which is important for: effective communication, scientific inquiry, a basis for shared understanding and communication → difference between perceptual experiences and statements of facts is crucial By separating perceptual experience from statement of facts, knowledge that positivists can rely on based in reliable evidence what you see is different from what you say about it → positivist think it’s really important to separate what we see from what we say about what we see, because they want to make sure that science is only based on the solid facts they can rely on, not just on what people think or say Chapter 1: Introduction: The persistence of Vision Haraway, D. She argues that scientific knowledge is often constructed through ways of seeing and observing, which are deeply influenced by social and cultural perspectives. = Science is not always about finding the “truth” in a completely neutral way She critiques the idea of scientific objectivity Science is not always as objective as it tries to be → sometimes scientist might accidentally mix their own ideas and feelings (even if they don’t mean it) She says that fiction can actually help us understand the world better How? even though stories are made up, they can still contain some truths about life, nature, or how things happen → fiction can be like a mirror that shows us part of reality, but it’s not a perfect reflection of the real world. It gives us insights about the world, but it’s not exactly the same as real life Week 3: “Culture as Essential” and “Media as the Devil” Lecture Key assumptions in research: 1. Ontology = what is reality? (is there an ultimate reality about climate change/global warming?) 2. Epistemology = what is knowledge? Why reality understood this way? (why do we study climate change? Can we objectively understand climate change?) 3. Methodology = how do we reach the knowledge? Positivism = the idea that we can study the world around us without letting our feelings or opinions get in the way positivist believe that social science should work the same way as natural science = we should use evidence and experiments to learn about people and how they behave Important leaders of the positivism approach: 1. Auguste Comte 2. Emile Durkheim Cultural essentialism = a system of belief grounded in conception of human beings as ‘cultural’ subjects / people belong to different cultures and these cultures define who they are → under certain conditions territorial and national E.g Each country/nation has its own distinct culture and it is predictable: a positivist statement Huntington’s theory: Clash of Civilizations Huntington divided the world into seven major civilizations based on cultural, religious and historical commonalities: 1. Western civilization 2. Islamic civilization 3. Sinic civilization 4. Hindu civilization 5. Orthodox civilization 6. Latin american civilization 7. African civilization And sometimes 8. Japanese civilization He argued that great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of conflict will be cultural. Yet conflicts can happen for many reasons ex. political situations The West vs The Rest He said that the rest of the world cannot keep up with Western ideologies like liberalism, individualism, constitutionalism, human rights equality, liberty etc. Theories can have implications and consequences: Huntington's understanding of the relationship between culture(s) and society has negative social (media representations) and intellectual implications as demonstrated in Abrahamian's article Technological determinism = the idea that thecnology is the primary driving force behind social change / technology is what makes the world change - Technological advancements influencing how people behave, communicate, and interact with one another - A reductionist is someone who likes to explain really complicated things by making them simpler Theories: - McLuhan theories —> the media will make the world into a village (global village) where people feel more connected and have similarities The medium is the message - an inventory of effects - Media technology itself determines the content - The format determines the content that it will be used for - How TikTok and Instagram as forms determine their contents. They are both very different and emphasize different contents. Thus medium is the message Hot media - print, photographs, radio, movies - high definition because they are rich in sensory data Cool media - speech, cartoons, the telephone and television - low definition because they provide less sensory data and consequently demand more There are still debates about whether McLuhan's theory should be categorized as technological determinism. His theories on the hot and cool media should also be understood in the context of the 1960s, when many of the mentioned media technologies are different from today. - Postman theories —> technological advancements, especially in media, shape and transform society by influencing how people think, communicate, and engage with the world Print media offer rational, serious engagement with local issues. This rationality is undermined by the telegraph and television. Pros & Cons of Positivism ? the positivist approach to research and the world is not necessarily “bad” or “outdated”, nor it is “superior” because it depends on the research goals and research questions. There are also positivist research done in an informative, critical, and meaningful manner, there are also ones done poorly Readings The US media, Huntington and September 11 (Abrahamian, E.) Huntington’s Clash of Civilization: —> an idea that says different cultures and civilizations (like the West, the Islamic world, etc) are the main reason why countries fight Huge impact in the 90s, Long lasting impact Criticism of Huntington’s idea Not everyone agrees, some people say: 1. Countries fight because of their interests (what they want or need) 2. Huntington’s ideas weren’t new; older historians had similar thoughts before 3. His ideas sounded like social Darwinism (19th century idea that some groups or cultures are naturally better than others) which made some group (esp non eu) seem like a threat to the west How this Idea was used when bad things happened like 9/11 attacks, some newspapers in the US used the idea to explain it: The islamic world was angry, because the west stands for freedom and democracy articles were written blaming things like “Muslim rage” for the problems, saying the conflict was because of culture, not because of US policies Why was Huntington’s idea popular? Journalist and reader found it easier to understand than complicated, scientific explanations The US might have used this idea to keep its power over other places. esp Eu Consequences of this idea: people in the US blame the Muslim for 9/11 some important people began criticizing islam publicly funding for middle east studies and universities questioned, due to Anti-America agenda The Informationa Age: A blessing or a curse? (Postman, N) Key Problem: Information Overload Information Gut & Meaninglessness: The flood of information in the 19th Century (due to inventions like telegraph and photography) created chaos and confusion  No coherent narrative: no longer a clear guiding story or purpose that connects everything —> In the past : Religion, family, schools, and political parties helped people figure out what mattered and what didn’t —> Now : Those institutions are in decline, leaves people without a way to filter through the massive amounts of information Cultural AIDS —> the breakdown of information filters means people can’t figure out what’s relevant Now, without it people are overloaded with too much information, leading to confusion The curse of the information age Too much information No guiding narrative Solution : Consulting Creative Thinkers They can create metaphors and tell stories that help give meaning to all this information they help clarify the past, make sense of the present, and provide direction for the future they help us turn random pieces of information into a coherent story that gives life meaning and purposes/