First impressions of Digital Media

Before coming to Ryerson, digital media used to be a sparingly used term in my life. Whenever the term 'digital media' was brought up, which was a rare occasion, images such as magazines, television, or video games would pop into my head. I had a general idea of the term in the sense that I knew it was a big part of our culture in this day and age. Technological advances have definitely made digital media into a huge part of society, as we know it.

After the first lecture on Tuesday, my impression of digital media was definitely altered. Not only did the ideas of magazines, television, and video games come to mind, but I also realized the huge network that happens behind the scenes for digital media. I realized that the term digital media also encompasses technologies such as cell phones, Internet, and iPods. Devices such as these are used to communicate more efficiently and have advanced our society as a whole.

The lecture made me interested in discovering the different ways that digital media affects everyday life. Although I was a little wary about the course, based off of the description, the lecture made me anxious to begin and better myself in the terms of digital media and everything that it consists of.

I think that it’s important for Radio and Television Arts students to take a course such as digital media in order to have a complete understanding of the industry. It gives students an advantage to be able to know how everything works, especially in such a technologically advanced program such as RTA. With the knowledge that digital media will provide for me, I’m fully confident that I will be able to become an advanced and well-rounded student.

Marshall McLuhan stated that the “medium is the message.” Essentially, he meant the information is less important than how you are sending that information. Based on my limited knowledge of digital media and what it entails, I disagree with McLuhan’s statement. I feel that the message is equally important as how the message is sent. The audience must be able to comprehend the message, but they also must be able to easily access the message via Internet, television, radio, etc. The medium and the message are both crucial to the public. Once learning more about digital media, I may change my opinion depending on the knowledge I gain, but as of now, that’s my conclusion for McLuhan.