This is a recovery of a peer-reviewed article published in 1996 in the New Jersey Journal of Communication (now the Atlantic Journal of Communication). Full Citation: Metz, J. M. (1996). Balancing act: The struggle between orality and linearity in computer mediated communication. The New Jersey Journal of Communication, 4, 61-70.000
Yet Another Social Media Misunderstanding
Today I saw an article float by in the Twitter river: “Why do only 7% of managers consider social media skills most important for employees?” Go ahead and read the article, because the attitudes are pretty interesting. The author, however, conflates a couple of things and winds up 180 degrees from the direction he should be facing. First, “social media” …
M-A-M™: Understanding Presentation Media
Recently I went to a technical conference and, as was to be expected, found myself subjected to the classic “Death By Powerpoint.” I found myself getting frustrated and insulted by the lack of respect the presenters – and by extension, their presentations – showed their audience. There are a lot of places on the Intarwebs that can give you directions …
Non-Linear Communication (a.k.a. Being Neil Postman’s Bitch)
Everyone has some brush with fame. In my life I’ve been fortunate (or cursed, depending on how you look at it) to have several moments where I have been exposed to either great, popular, or paradigm-shifting people. When I was a freshly-minted Ph.D in the 1990s, I was a rising star in the field of Media Ecology and found myself …