Book Bearings
Understanding Media
- 362 pages · about 6 hours
- First published 1964
- 47 editions
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1 About this book
Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man is a 1964 book by Marshall McLuhan, in which the author proposes that the media, not the content that they carry, should be the focus of study. He suggests that the medium affects the society in which it plays a role mainly by the characteristics of the medium rather than the content. The book is considered a pioneering study in media theory.
McLuhan pointed to the light bulb as an example. A light bulb does not have content in the way that a newspaper has articles or a television has programs, yet it is a medium that has a social effect; that is, a light bulb enables people to create spaces during nighttime that would otherwise be enveloped by darkness. He describes the light bulb as a medium without any content. McLuhan states that "a light bulb creates an environment by its mere presence".
Summary adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- Technology and civilization
- Koreans
- 1950-1953 Korean War
- Asian Americans
- Social science
- Technology
- Communication
- Mass media
2 About Marshall McLuhan
Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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