I remember the first day of media life when we took the survey that asked us if we thought media life was reality or not. I immediately answered yes and thought nothing more about it assuming that of course everything we do is real including things that involve our media. After experiencing this entire course I now have a completely different view on how media makes us perceive our world. We now look at everything around us through the eye of media, using our phone for directions, or wikipedia to gain information about where we are going. Everything we do is now shaped by how our media tells us to look at it, not how we see it with our naked eye. Media has quickly taken control of our lives to the point that people cry over losing or misplacing their cell phone or laptop because that brief lapse in connectivity drives them crazy. I now do not see my media as just a device, I know that it is a part of me whether I like it or not. I recently tried going a few days without my phone and after the 4th day when I turned my phone back on I had missed 15 calls and 37 text messages. I felt that I had missed out on so much that I had to catch up on when really it had only been a few days and nothing important had occurred. This just showed me how much I too rely on being connected through my media and how I will never let this fact go unnoticed again. This class opened my eyes to the importance and role of media in society today and if I had to pinpoint one thing that t101 helps to teach its students that would be it.
Jason Warren
warrenja@indiana.edu
Why I Heart My Media 