CMNS 110 Chapter Notes - Chapter 15: The Gutenberg Galaxy, Oligopoly, Bohemia Interactive
3 Aug 2017
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Document Summary
It was alphabet that, in west, provided mental infrastructure for cumulative, knowledge- based cmn. New alphabetic order separated written cmn from audiovisual system of symbols & perceptions\ From gutenberg galaxy to mcluhan galaxy: rise of mass media culture. Diffusion of tv in 3 decades following wwii created new galaxy of cmn. Other media did not disappear but were restructured & reorganized in system whose heart was made of vacuum tubes & whose appealing face was tv screen. Radio lost centrality but won in pervasiveness & flexibility, adapting modes & themes to rhythm of ppl"s everyday lives. Tv-dominated system could be easily characterized as mass media. Thus, content & format of messages tailored to lowest common denominator. Notion of mass culture, arising from mass society, was direct expression of media system resulting from control of new electronic cmn technology by govs & corporate oligopolies.
