Mediology - Revision history

Caseorganic at 10:29, 25 August 2026

2026-08-25T10:29:34Z

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-'''Mediology''' is a term coined by Regis Debray to denote the study of how abstract ideas lead to concrete practices, laws, and customs. Regis Debray fought alongside Ernesto "Che" Guavera in the late 60's and was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a Bolivian war tribunal, but was released after three years and came back to France to found the discipline of Mediology. In his words Mediology is the study of "the black-box problem. If the input is sounds, words, letters, even photons, and the output is legislation, institutions, police forces, and so on, then inside the black box must be what I call 'the act of transmission,' the whole set of technologies."<ref>Joscelyne, Andrew. Revolution in Revolution. January 1995. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.01/debray.html</ref> In this sense, Mediology studies the history of ideas with a  focus on what mediating technologies allowed those ideas become the cultural institutions we see today. Marx's original ideas required the printing press, a networked international intellectual elite, and living intermediaries such as Lenin and Mao to become the Communism we know today. Debray tends to downplay the role of technological determinism by looking for cultural factors that influenced the creation of the specific technology. To explain this he uses the example of the modern mechanical clock. We could look at the effects of the invention of the clock and talk about how it influenced history, yet the clock was invented because monks needed a way to keep accurate time measurement to implement their strict theological code. Thus in this case it was an abstract theological need that manifested in a technology that then spread across Europe to have profound changes on how everyone organized their life, making the notion of strong technological determinism a bit more complicated. Mediology is a natural compliment to the project of Cyborg Anthropology, although there are some differences worth noting. Cyborg Anthropology is more concerned with how information technologies have affected our notions of what it means to be human, while Mediology tends to examine how ideas work work with and through technologies to create persuasive cultural institutions.
+=== Definition ===
 <references />
-Debray, Regis. Transmitting Culture
+[[Category:Concepts]]
+[[Category:Methods]]

Caseorganic at 00:52, 9 April 2012

2012-04-09T00:52:21Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:52, 9 April 2012
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	'''Mediology''' is a term coined by Regis Debray to denote the study of how abstract ideas lead to concrete practices, laws, and customs. Regis Debray fought alongside Ernesto "Che" Guavera in the late 60's and was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a Bolivian war tribunal, but was released after three years and came back to France to found the discipline of Mediology. In his words Mediology is the study of "the black-box problem. If the input is sounds, words, letters, even photons, and the output is legislation, institutions, police forces, and so on, then inside the black box must be what I call 'the act of transmission,' the whole set of technologies."<ref>Joscelyne, Andrew. Revolution in Revolution. January 1995. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.01/debray.html<ref> In this sense, Mediology studies the history of ideas with a focus on what mediating technologies allowed those ideas become the cultural institutions we see today. Marx's original ideas required the printing press, a networked international intellectual elite, and living intermediaries such as Lenin and Mao to become the Communism we know today. Debray tends to downplay the role of technological determinism by looking for cultural factors that influenced the creation of the specific technology. To explain this he uses the example of the modern mechanical clock. We could look at the effects of the invention of the clock and talk about how it influenced history, yet the clock was invented because monks needed a way to keep accurate time measurement to implement their strict theological code. Thus in this case it was an abstract theological need that manifested in a technology that then spread across Europe to have profound changes on how everyone organized their life, making the notion of strong technological determinism a bit more complicated. Mediology is a natural compliment to the project of Cyborg Anthropology, although there are some differences worth noting. Cyborg Anthropology is more concerned with how information technologies have affected our notions of what it means to be human, while Mediology tends to examine how ideas work work with and through technologies to create persuasive cultural institutions.		'''Mediology''' is a term coined by Regis Debray to denote the study of how abstract ideas lead to concrete practices, laws, and customs. Regis Debray fought alongside Ernesto "Che" Guavera in the late 60's and was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a Bolivian war tribunal, but was released after three years and came back to France to found the discipline of Mediology. In his words Mediology is the study of "the black-box problem. If the input is sounds, words, letters, even photons, and the output is legislation, institutions, police forces, and so on, then inside the black box must be what I call 'the act of transmission,' the whole set of technologies."<ref>Joscelyne, Andrew. Revolution in Revolution. January 1995. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.01/debray.html</ref> In this sense, Mediology studies the history of ideas with a focus on what mediating technologies allowed those ideas become the cultural institutions we see today. Marx's original ideas required the printing press, a networked international intellectual elite, and living intermediaries such as Lenin and Mao to become the Communism we know today. Debray tends to downplay the role of technological determinism by looking for cultural factors that influenced the creation of the specific technology. To explain this he uses the example of the modern mechanical clock. We could look at the effects of the invention of the clock and talk about how it influenced history, yet the clock was invented because monks needed a way to keep accurate time measurement to implement their strict theological code. Thus in this case it was an abstract theological need that manifested in a technology that then spread across Europe to have profound changes on how everyone organized their life, making the notion of strong technological determinism a bit more complicated. Mediology is a natural compliment to the project of Cyborg Anthropology, although there are some differences worth noting. Cyborg Anthropology is more concerned with how information technologies have affected our notions of what it means to be human, while Mediology tends to examine how ideas work work with and through technologies to create persuasive cultural institutions.

	==References==		==References==

Caseorganic at 00:52, 9 April 2012

2012-04-09T00:52:10Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:52, 9 April 2012
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	A term coined by Regis Debray to denote the study of how abstract ideas lead to concrete practices, laws, and customs. Regis Debray fought alongside Ernesto "Che" Guavera in the late 60's and was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a Bolivian war tribunal, but was released after three years and came back to France to found the discipline of Mediology. In his words Mediology is the study of "the black-box problem. If the input is sounds, words, letters, even photons, and the output is legislation, institutions, police forces, and so on, then inside the black box must be what I call 'the act of transmission,' the whole set of technologies." In this sense, Mediology studies the history of ideas with a focus on what mediating technologies allowed those ideas become the cultural institutions we see today. Marx's original ideas required the printing press, a networked international intellectual elite, and living intermediaries such as Lenin and Mao to become the Communism we know today. Debray tends to downplay the role of technological determinism by looking for cultural factors that influenced the creation of the specific technology. To explain this he uses the example of the modern mechanical clock. We could look at the effects of the invention of the clock and talk about how it influenced history, yet the clock was invented because monks needed a way to keep accurate time measurement to implement their strict theological code. Thus in this case it was an abstract theological need that manifested in a technology that then spread across Europe to have profound changes on how everyone organized their life, making the notion of strong technological determinism a bit more complicated. Mediology is a natural compliment to the project of Cyborg Anthropology, although there are some differences worth noting. Cyborg Anthropology is more concerned with how information technologies have affected our notions of what it means to be human, while Mediology tends to examine how ideas work work with and through technologies to create persuasive cultural institutions.		'''Mediology''' is a term coined by Regis Debray to denote the study of how abstract ideas lead to concrete practices, laws, and customs. Regis Debray fought alongside Ernesto "Che" Guavera in the late 60's and was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a Bolivian war tribunal, but was released after three years and came back to France to found the discipline of Mediology. In his words Mediology is the study of "the black-box problem. If the input is sounds, words, letters, even photons, and the output is legislation, institutions, police forces, and so on, then inside the black box must be what I call 'the act of transmission,' the whole set of technologies."<ref>Joscelyne, Andrew. Revolution in Revolution. January 1995. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.01/debray.html<ref> In this sense, Mediology studies the history of ideas with a focus on what mediating technologies allowed those ideas become the cultural institutions we see today. Marx's original ideas required the printing press, a networked international intellectual elite, and living intermediaries such as Lenin and Mao to become the Communism we know today. Debray tends to downplay the role of technological determinism by looking for cultural factors that influenced the creation of the specific technology. To explain this he uses the example of the modern mechanical clock. We could look at the effects of the invention of the clock and talk about how it influenced history, yet the clock was invented because monks needed a way to keep accurate time measurement to implement their strict theological code. Thus in this case it was an abstract theological need that manifested in a technology that then spread across Europe to have profound changes on how everyone organized their life, making the notion of strong technological determinism a bit more complicated. Mediology is a natural compliment to the project of Cyborg Anthropology, although there are some differences worth noting. Cyborg Anthropology is more concerned with how information technologies have affected our notions of what it means to be human, while Mediology tends to examine how ideas work work with and through technologies to create persuasive cultural institutions.

	===References===		==References==
			<references />
	~~Joscelyne, Andrew. Revolution in Revolution. January 1995. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.01~~/~~debray.html~~

	Debray, Regis. Transmitting Culture		Debray, Regis. Transmitting Culture

	[[Category:Book Pages]]		[[Category:Book Pages]]
	[[Category:Marked ~~For~~ Editing]]		[[Category:Marked for Editing]]

And.awarner at 21:00, 16 June 2011

2011-06-16T21:00:54Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:00, 16 June 2011
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	~~===Definition===~~		A term coined by Regis Debray to denote the study of how abstract ideas lead to concrete practices, laws, and customs. Regis Debray fought alongside Ernesto "Che" Guavera in the late 60's and was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a Bolivian war tribunal, but was released after three years and came back to France to found the discipline of Mediology. In his words Mediology is the study of "the black-box problem. If the input is sounds, words, letters, even photons, and the output is legislation, institutions, police forces, and so on, then inside the black box must be what I call 'the act of transmission,' the whole set of technologies." In this sense, Mediology studies the history of ideas with a focus on what mediating technologies allowed those ideas become the cultural institutions we see today. Marx's original ideas required the printing press, a networked international intellectual elite, and living intermediaries such as Lenin and Mao to become the Communism we know today. Debray tends to downplay the role of technological determinism by looking for cultural factors that influenced the creation of the specific technology. To explain this he uses the example of the modern mechanical clock. We could look at the effects of the invention of the clock and talk about how it influenced history, yet the clock was invented because monks needed a way to keep accurate time measurement to implement their strict theological code. Thus in this case it was an abstract theological need that manifested in a technology that then spread across Europe to have profound changes on how everyone organized their life, making the notion of strong technological determinism a bit more complicated. Mediology is a natural compliment to the project of Cyborg Anthropology, although there are some differences worth noting. Cyborg Anthropology is more concerned with how information technologies have affected our notions of what it means to be human, while Mediology tends to examine how ideas work work with and through technologies to create persuasive cultural institutions.
	"Mediology ~~(alternate spelling~~, '~~[[Medialogy]]~~'), ~~broadly indicates~~ a ~~wide-ranging method for~~ the ~~analysis of~~ cultural ~~transmission in society and across societies~~, a ~~method which challenges~~ the ~~conventional idea~~ that 'technology ~~is not culture'~~. ~~The mediological method pays specific attention to~~ the ~~role~~ of ~~organisations~~ and ~~technical innovations~~, ~~and~~ the ~~ways~~ in ~~which these can ensure~~ the ~~potency~~ of ~~cultural transmission - and thus~~ the ~~transformation~~ of ~~ideas into a civilisational worldview capable~~ of ~~sustained action" [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/~~Mediology].

			===References===

			Joscelyne, Andrew. Revolution in Revolution. January 1995. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.01/debray.html

			Debray, Regis. Transmitting Culture

	[[Category:Book Pages]]		[[Category:Book Pages]]
	[[Category:~~Unfinished~~]]		[[Category:Marked For Editing]]

Caseorganic at 04:30, 26 January 2011

2011-01-26T04:30:37Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:30, 26 January 2011
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	===Definition===		===Definition===
	"Mediology (alternate spelling, '[[Medialogy]]'), broadly indicates a wide-ranging method for the analysis of cultural transmission in society and across societies, a method which challenges the conventional idea that 'technology is not culture'. The mediological method pays specific attention to the role of organisations and technical innovations, and the ways in which these can ensure the potency of cultural transmission - and thus the transformation of ideas into a civilisational worldview capable of sustained action" [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediology].		"Mediology (alternate spelling, '[[Medialogy]]'), broadly indicates a wide-ranging method for the analysis of cultural transmission in society and across societies, a method which challenges the conventional idea that 'technology is not culture'. The mediological method pays specific attention to the role of organisations and technical innovations, and the ways in which these can ensure the potency of cultural transmission - and thus the transformation of ideas into a civilisational worldview capable of sustained action" [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediology].


			[[Category:Book Pages]]
			[[Category:Unfinished]]

Caseorganic: Created page with '===Definition=== "Mediology (alternate spelling, 'Medialogy'), broadly indicates a wide-ranging method for the analysis of cultural transmission in society and across societi…'

2010-11-27T08:17:50Z

Created page with '===Definition=== "Mediology (alternate spelling, 'Medialogy'), broadly indicates a wide-ranging method for the analysis of cultural transmission in society and across societi…'

New page

===Definition===
"Mediology (alternate spelling, '[[Medialogy]]'), broadly indicates a wide-ranging method for the analysis of cultural transmission in society and across societies, a method which challenges the conventional idea that 'technology is not culture'. The mediological method pays specific attention to the role of organisations and technical innovations, and the ways in which these can ensure the potency of cultural transmission - and thus the transformation of ideas into a civilisational worldview capable of sustained action" [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediology].