This weeks lecture left my brain boggled, I didn’t really grasp the concept, and in all honesty it still might not be fully grasped. Marshall McLuhan‘s idea of the medium being the message is explained as:
“…the personal and social consequences of any medium – that is, of any extension of ourselves – result from the scale of that is introduced into our affairs by each extension of ourselves, or by any new technology.”
Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man
Marshall McLuhan, 1964
The way I interpret this is that medium, the platform or means of which the content is being presented, is in itself conveying a message that can affect how we act and potentially what we think. After further reading, I have realised that the medium can in fact be anything, like a building, or a shoe, or a shovel.
“…it is only too typical that the “content” of any medium blinds us to the character of the medium.”
Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man
Marshall McLuhan, 1964
While the message of the content is all well and good, the message of the medium has a much larger impact on society and has the ability to form new social behaviours, ideas and interactions.
For example, the message of the medium YouTube is that you can access a wide range of content easily with few limits. It changed the way people can connect with information and what types of content can be viewed, the message of the medium it not the message of the content in each video, I think.
In my remediation I wanted to demonstrate the immediate message a medium would send us.
Can’t wait for next week’s information assault on my brain.
Stay tuned.
PAIGE SUTTON 
I think the way you’ve approached the concept of ‘the medium is the message’ is very insightful, the medium is message confused me a lot too this week. Like yourself I don’t fully understand the concept. I think the way in which you explained the concept through the example of YouTube as the medium and the way in which we as the audience interacts with said medium is then turned into the overall message. I really loved your little podcast too, next if you can make it a little longer or go into a bit more depth of explanation as I think you were only just getting started! Overall loved your post this week!
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I do agree with you in the way that you explained that the message itself is not the medium. The way that it affects the consumers is the entire message in of itself. But would you say what is being absorbed by the consumer has an impact on how great the medium will be?
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I really like your Soundcloud post! It really gives a clear example of the medium being the message. The fact that we are listening to your podcast, is in fact the message itself rather than what you are actually saying. Your mention of society and it’s impact on the medium’s that we choose to use is also very true. If you havn’t already have a look at the youtube video, https://youtu.be/Ko6J9v1C9zE its super short and puts how the medium is the message simply. :))
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