What is "Digital Media and Culture" (#dmcult)?
This class at Emory University investigates the ways computers and digital technologies have changed how we think, communicate, express ourselves, learn, and interact with the world. The hypothesis of this course comes from the title of one of the books from which we will be reading a selection: You are not a Gadget. As the author Jaron Lanier writes, “I want to say something: You have to be somebody before you can share yourself.” Over the course of our readings, screenings, and project work, you will have to decide for yourself whether you agree or disagree with these provocative statements in the context of your navigation of digital media and culture. Your final summative statement will consist of your response.
In developing your response to these personal micro-statements, we will discuss broader topics like the relationship between computers and culture in a history of technological change, the way the Internet expands the dissemination of knowledge, the role search engines play in the organization and archiving of information, the rise of media convergence and conglomeration, the cultural impact of social networking on individual and collective identity formation, navigating digital affects in developing a digital ethic, and contemporary changes in digital entertainment industries, such as television, movies, and music.
