The Medium is the Message: Marshall McLuhan

In Marshall McLuhan’s novel Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, he coined the well-known phrase “the medium is the message”. Albeit this phrase may be well-known, its meaning is not. This problem stems from the interpreted meaning of “medium” and “message”. When one thinks of the word “medium” they think solely of a medium such as radio or TV. In addition, the word “message” brings to mind the intended message being broadcasted through a form of media. McLuhan had a different meaning to these commonly used words. In McLuhan’s phrase “the medium is the message”, “medium” means “any extension of ourselves” and “message” refers to “the change of scale or pace or pattern”. With this knowledge we can strengthen our understanding of the phrase by piecing together the individual meaning of each word to understand the overall meaning of the phrase as “any extension of ourselves is the change of scale or pace or pattern”. Has this shed some light on your understanding of the phrase?

To bring a greater sense of understanding to this theory, I have carefully devised an easily understandable example using recent global events. The social media site Facebook supports over 500 million users worldwide. One of the main values of this site and of its creator, Mark Zuckerberg, is the promotion of freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. Due to this simple, yet salient fact one can come to the conclusion that the more-than 500 million Facebook users value these rights of freedom. In this example, Facebook is the medium and the message is one of freedom. In recent international events, the citizens of countries such as Libya, Tunisia, and Egypt have protested the long history of strife and oppressed freedoms by their own governments. Since Facebook is a symbol of freedom, the sole act of these citizens using Facebook was a greater message than any message of text that could be broadcasted from the use of this site. So in essence, Facebook being the extension of these citizens is the change of pattern of freedoms for them. In conclusion, McLuhan’s message is one that is interpreted in many ways, but to gain an understanding of his intended meaning of the phrase, one must understand what each word alone meant to McLuhan.

Citation:

Federman, Mark. "What Is the Meaning of The Medium Is the Message." Thesis. University of Toronto. Web. <http://individual.utoronto.ca/markfederman/article_mediumisthemessage.htm>.

Magazine Peer/Self Evaluation

Virkam, Michele, and Sergey.
For this project, I took on the role of editor, while Vikram and Michele made up the design team and contributing photographers. Sergey took on the salient position of layout artist.

1. How do you feel about the title you were given and how well you did your job in this project? Give specific examples of your experience.
I feel very confident about both the title that I was given and with the work that I produced for this project. I feel this way for a couple of reasons. One reason is that as a group we collectively decided on our roles, which were determined by personal interest and skill level. Also, I feel that I did a good job with my chosen title due to the fact that I have a good deal of confidence in my writing ability, which I believe, lead to a great product.
Next time I would do everything in exactly the same way. I would choose the same group members, I would choose the same role, and, similarily, I would make sure the project is submitted early. There is nothing that I would change for next time.

2. How did you contribute to this project? Give at least two specific examples.
For this project, I contributed on a personal level and as a group member. For my solo work, I wrote the whole editorial piece at the beginning of the magazine and I also took my group member's writing pieces and wrote the body article based on their work. As for my contribution as a group member, I worked together with my group to decide on such tasks as the choice of roles and the best way for the photo to be taken.
Next time I would do everything in exactly the same way. I say this because I feel, and I'm sure that my group members feel, that I did an equal amount of work.
As for next time, I wouldn't change anything about my contribution to the project.

3. How do you feel about the contributions from other members of your group and the divison of labour for the project. Be specific to each team member.
I feel satisfied about both the contributions and division of labour for the project as each member was very diligent in completing their individual tasks. Each member of the group managed to complete their portion of the work by the deadline which we decided on.
For their roles of design and photography team, Vikram and Michele put together the magazine cover and the team biographies. As layout artist, Sergey had the job of formatting everything from pictures to text in the magazine, as well as sourcing all of the advertisements.

4. When it comes to dealing with differences of opinion within your group:
Next time, I would deal with everything in the same way. This is a common answer for my peer/self evaluation because my group displayed great team dynamics in the sense that if any differences of opinion arose, they were resolved in a sensible and professional fashion.
There is nothing that I would not do for next time.

5. In dealing with group members who were not fulfilling their responsibilities.
This question can be exempt because each group member fulfilled their responsibilities to a more-than satisfactory degree.

Ratings
Overall, I would rate our group's ability to stay on task as:
Excellent
Overall, I would rate our group's ability to be open, respectful, and communicative as:
Excellent
Overall, I would rate our group's ability to use the strengths of all our members as:
Excellent
How successful is your project? Give specific examples for your reasons.
I believe that our project should be rated as a 10/10 in terms of success, not to be cocky, but for a number of specific reasons: 1. Our group not only met, but exceeded the requirements for this project. The amount of detail placed into the cover resembles that of a real magazine. Also, the magazine had a full page editorial which was opinionated and introduced the theme of the article. 2. Our group was so efficicient that we submitted our project early which shows our great time management skills. 3. Each and every member of the group did a great job in taking the initiative to fulfill their individual responsibilities while producing a product of high quality
Next time I would choose the same group because, together, we were comprised of an exceedingly hardworking team.

Magazine Article

Any avid sports fan knows that if they can’t always make it to the live game, TV is their next best option. Over the past couple of decades there have been a number of marked advancements in TV technology that have brought the viewing experience to a whole new level. With the launch of HDTV in the United States in the year 1998, viewers were amazed at the difference that a sharper picture made while watching their favourite sports. Every blade of grass became visible, every tackle more clear, and every moment captured in an unparalleled degree of clarity. In more recent years, 3DTV has exploded onto the market and now offers viewers the best viewing experience ever offered in history. 3DTV has truly brought the viewer off the couch and into the action. With each new advancement in TV technology, humankind thinks that they have seen the greatest, until something new comes along and trumps it. This begs the question for TV enthusiasts of what will come next to trump the creation of 3DTV. With an average TV viewing time of twenty five hours a week, sports fans can be sure that all of their cravings for the best in sports are constantly satisfied.

             If you too, are a fan that never misses your favourite team play on game day you know all too well the negative effects on one’s body after sitting for hours eating the likes of pizza and chicken wings. Your friends at Illustrated Sports have carefully devised a list of how to keep you from looking like a defensive lineman by the season’s end. First, try to cut down on the amount of fatty, greasy food you consume in front of the TV. Try healthier options such as your favourite veggies with a nice dip. If you can’t stay away from eating pizza try ordering a thin crust pizza, it still has all the flavour minus a good number of empty calories. We all know that the beverage of choice on game day is beer. The simple task of replacing that beer with a light beer or even water will immensely cut down on the number of empty calories being consumed in your couch potato state. Molson 67, anyone? This moves us on to our next point, instead of grabbing for a handful of potato chips, try popped chips. Popped chips are cooked in a similar way to popcorn in which the potatoes are literally popped using pressure instead of artery-clogging oils. This option will greatly decrease the amount of saturated fats being consumed in one sitting. As for sports drinks, try to save them for when you’re actually engaging in sports, not just watching them. If you are so inclined to having a sports drink during the game opt for Gatorade’s watered down version known as the G2. This option is a substantial step down in terms of sugar, carbohydrate, and caloric content. We hope this list helps  keep you in shape during your TV sports viewing season.

What kind of impact does TV have on youth?

Now more than ever, TV is an increasingly relevant aspect in the lives of many youth. As a result of this there are negative and positive impacts that can be witnessed on both the personal and societal levels. In a world full of distractions TV plays a major role as the protagonist. Too many hours spent in front of the TV instead of focusing on more productive issues such as school work and getting excercise can lead to poor results and child obesity. However, since the invention of the Personal Video Recorder it is possible to record shows and watch them after tasks that fall higher on the list of priorities are completed. Also, there are some shows that teach young children the basics of everyday life; basics such as sharing and conflict resolution. I can attest to this fact after growing up watching shows like Franklin and Arthur. The societal impact on youth is not looking too good either as more youth spend their days on the couch in front of the TV instead of being active outside. With child obesity rates reaching never before seen levels one cannot argue that TV is a contributing factor. Again, society is spending more time than ever in front of the TV instead of using time efficiently in an effort to better themselves and the society in which they live. All in all, I don't believe that youth are benefiting from watching TV, but I also believe that there are much worse things that they could be doing than wasting their time in front of it.

 In terms of the behaviour and values affected by youth, I believe that "reality" TV -and I put reality in quotations, because as we all know, it is the furthest thing from reality-  is the worst transgressor of all genres on TV. MTV is currently doing a great job of destroying the values and behaviour of youth while at the same time creating an unseen level of stupidity amongst them. Teen Mom is a perfect example of a show that is encouraging bad behaviour and destroying values by glorifying teen pregnancy. In this case there is statistical evidence to show that teen pregnancy rates have spiked and many professionals believe it is a result of the glorification of teen pregnancy by MTV's trashy programming. Why anyone, especially a teenager, would want to become pregnant because of something they saw on TV is beyond me; but unfortunately it is happening. Values continue to be lost to other MTV programs like Jersey Shore which glorifies casual, drunken sex with absolute strangers. Also, the number of youth using tanning beds to achieve that "guido/guidette" look have risen to the point of professionals calling for an outright ban on tanning beds for those under the age of 18.

TV has created a number of social rituals due to the nature of some programming. Have you ever noticed the excited chatter in the halls of school after the finale of a big show or major sporting event? If there is one good thing that TV has done in terms of social rituals it has single-handedly managed to pull the world together on occassions. Every four years the whole world gathers around their TVs with friends and loved ones to cheer for their country as the worlds best atheletes meet to compete in sport. Ten years ago to this day the world stopped to watch as the most terrible event of terrorism directed at the United States of America occured. Across the world people's hearts went out to the ones lost and their loved ones in mourning as a result of that tragic, tragic event that shook the United States to it's core.

What is my Learning Style?

According to a learning style quiz that I completed, my top result showed that I am an interpersonal learner. I was far from surprised after being presented with this result as it is the style that I would use when describing myself. An interpersonal learner is one who is able to learn and work best in a group scenario working with two or more other group members. Interpersonal skills are greatly important in many fields of work, but none moreso than my desired field, business. This past summer I was fortunate enough to work for the Wealth Management Project Delivery department of Scotiabank. In my role I was even more fortunate to work with a number or great people who granted me the responsibility of filling in as a project leader while the regular leader was on vacation. The main skill needed for this field of work is most definitely interpersonal skills because I was constantly working with other members of the team to get updates and resolve problems via meetings, teleconferences, and e-mail. In the future I have a strong desire to improve upon my interpersonal skills using a variety of new media such as blogs, videos, advertisements, etc.

The results also showed that apart from being an interpersonal learner I am also a Bodily/Kinesthetic learner. This result too was no surprise to me as I am an extremely active person and love to engage in almost any type of excercise or sport. To the utter dismay of many teachers, I regularly engage in my sometimes obnoxious tendency of "fidgeting" in class; whether it is by tapping my feet on the floor or clicking a pen I am always moving, especially when stuck in thought. A Bodily/Kinesthetic learner is one who is able to learn and work to the best of their ability while engaging their body in the task at hand. This learning skill is most relateable to me due to my love of being active. When I was younger I played a number of sports, but there is always one that stands out in my mind. A number of years ago I tried out for a football team and much to my great enjoyment I not only made the team but became the starting runningback. This was a dream that was alsmost cut short after experiencing a couple of concussions in my first season. However, I did come out of the season with something other than mild brain injuries; I won offensive MVP. This event only lead me further on in my football career, but in my second season I made a brazen step up to the higher league playing with bigger, faster, older, and stronger players. It was in this year that I got my last concussion which forced me to hang up my pads for good...Looking on the bright side of this experience I found that I am able learn and work well when I am moving. This was especially evident in the case of learning new football plays by actually running them.

One of my goals for this course is to further educate myself on how I can use my Interpersonal and Bodily/Kinesthetic learning skills through a variety of new media such as the internet, video, advertisements, etc to achieve the greatest results possible. Another goal, which is a continual goal of mine, is to further strengthen my Interpersonal skills by working together in groups. This class is perfect for this goal as it was previously stated that the majority of work will be completed in groups. As for a strategy for accomplishing my goals, I will continue to bring my unyielding work ethic and eagerness to learn to all assignments that face me. In order to ensure that I am doing what is required of any of my work I wont't hesitate to seek further clarification or to have work reviewed before the due date. Furthermore, I will always look to place myself in a group that I will be able to work best in; not neccessarily one with my best friends in the class. Although this is an early strategy I believe it is one that will yield strong results. One of my favourite quotes is quite relevant to this topic. Steve Prefontaine who was an Olympic runner once said "To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift". This quote resonates strongly with me in regards to all aspects of my life.