. . .
K “Analog affirms the status quo, digital negates it. Challenges it, really, with a goodly number of exceptions.”
J “Yet digital is moving toward and merging with the analog business model which is all about business. Analog is already monopolized. Digital is aggressively monetizing.”
K “The medium mandates the message.”
. . .
K “Some of the digital messengers are not as beholden to the powers that be as the analog members. Digital messengers are more likely to connect two disparate and distant points, to realize that two plus zero is not three, and to accept that two or more persons can work together to reach an end, usually to the public’s detriment.”
J “A few stray digital messengers are acting as the town criers. The best that a commentator of conviction can hope for is to be a prophet with honor and not to be convicted for writing that challenges the established disorder.”
K “But no one is listening.”
J “Makes you want to cry for your town.”
. . .
K “Six corporations monopolize the popular media. Most of the digital sites are in the monetization phase and may be forced to modify or mute the original message to survive.”
J “Yet you cannot thrive if you do not survive. Decades ago, the editor noted to a friend on the first day of his summer newspaper internship that the most important mission of the newspaper is to make payroll. No payroll, no paper. He was not disappointed by the stark insight.”
K “Making payroll is painful. One of the sites challenging inequality has something like seven levels of membership and another sells t-shirts and decoder rings.”
J “No can thrive if no can survive.”
. . .
K “Digital is regressing to the mean, digital is regressing to analog.”
J “No can thrive if no can survive.”
. . .
[With a nod to Marshall McLuhan.]
[See the e-commentary at “First Annual Pushitzer Prize In Commentary For 2016 (April 18, 2016)”, “Boycott (Advertisers On) AM (Anger Mongering) Radio (March 5, 2011)”, “World Trade Center Building 7 And The AIA (May 18, 2015)”, “A ‘Journalist’ Declares War On Journalists . . . And Journalism (November 28, 2016)”, “Dispatches From The War On Journalism: The New ‘Nixon’s Enemies List’ (December 5, 2016)”, “Blogging Bloggingly About Blogs: A Thing In Search Of A Name (November 1, 2016)”, “Debasing The Dialogue (April 14, 2014)” and “On Courage and Truth (March 17, 2008)”.]
Bumper stickers of the week:
“Every great cause begins as a movement, becomes a business, and eventually degenerates into a racket.” Eric Hoffer
“Only the small secrets need to be protected. The big ones are kept secret by public incredulity.” Marshall McLuhan
May 3 – World Press Freedom Day
e-commentary 