Media ecology

The clip above is taken from the film “Manda Bala- Send a Bullet,” a Latin American documentary from filmmaker Jason Kohn. Released in 2007, the film focuses on the harsh realities of class warfare in Brazil, a nation where “the rich steal from the poor, and the poor steal from the rich.” As a harbor for natural resources and undeveloped land, the nation has become a competitor in both the import and export industries; with a centralized market between Europe and the United States, the nation has attracted international commerce. Afflicted cities subsist in the outline of corruption and violence, a poverty-stricken population of millions among the wealthy elite. In Kohn’s documentary, he interviews the undisclosed “Mr. M.” who is a computer specialist in Sao Paolo, a city with the highest kidnapping rate as a result of unbalanced wealth.
Mr. M begins his interview by saying “I have to somehow manage to get home from here. So it’s a risk.” In a society driven by survival alone, shaped by self-gain and monetary value, the people of Sao Paolo are part of the McLuhan’s theory of media ecology. Although Griffin’s text acknowledges that, “there is no easy formula for a cause and effect relationship,” it’s very clear that Sao Paolo’s latest developments in technology are congruent with their symbolic environment.
Mr. M. is one of many in McLuhan’s “global village; “a worldwide electronic community where everyone knows everyone’s business and all are somewhat testy.”
Industrialization and the prosperous electronic technology of the twentieth century has ushered in a new way of living for the wealthy and poor. Mr. M. as well as many others see no end to the advancements of an electronic era. Bullet proof cars, courses in survival, the cosmetic reconstruction of an earlobe severed during a kidnapping- these are all technologies that have embedded the corruption and increased the inequalities within Sao Paolo. The newest communication device created for wealthy is a subcutaneous implant- a personal location device that is injected under the skin. McLuhan’s theory states that social environments are created from the use of different communication technologies. Although no environment is the same, technology has impacted the construction of society on a global scale. In Sao Paolo, kidnapping is a routine; technologies such as the subcutaneous implant will continue to enhance the individual’s value of survival in a society plagued by class warfare and corruption.

Media Ecology: From Tribe to Village.

Marshal Mcluhan did a analysis of human history and was able divide it into four periods. In the beginning there was the tribal age where your sense of touch, taste, smell, and hearing are more important then being able to see. during this time you needed to be aware of your surroundings. With sight you can only see what is in front of you, and if a bear sneaks up from behind how will you see it? You wouldn't but you could hear it or smell it. also during this period there was a lot of spoken word which brought people together the book says "listening to someone speak in a group is a unifying act". you can even see this still in today's culture. A band today could make an album and sell it to people all over the world but they still go on tour to play the same songs live. the reason they do this is because seeing a band live is a totally different experience then just listening to there CD in your car. then came the alphabet and everything got turned around, and the Age of Literacy began.
in this time the eye is the dominant sense organ. in this time words on a page were more trust worthy then someone speaking to you. people became less involved with the tribe and more like separate individuals.it says in the book "A tribe no longer needs to come together to get information". its not all bad though the age of literacy also gave us mathematics, science, and philosophy. The Age of Print, the invention of the printing press made reproducing a book easier. in this age the mass production of books left people more alienated from others.
the final age is The Electronic Age. this age started out with the telegraph and then all the other electronic media devices that we have today. Mcluhan believes that the electronic age has taken us back to what he calls a Global Village. he says that the closed human system no longer exist. with new technology that we have discovered people are finding new mediums to connect with others. through all the different facebooks and myspaces and company's like Cisco we are able to instantly communicate with people all over the world.

i think this commercial is a good example of how is new age of electronics has ended individual communication and connected everyone on a global level.