- What were Marshal McLuhan’s key conceptual theories to understanding electronic media? How have they influenced our present thinking about visual media practices and their impact on society today?
Marshall Macluhan (1911-1980) was a Canadian public intellectual, philosopher and communication theorist. McLuhan’s key conceptual theories to understanding electronic media were that the medium which is the message is an extension of the self (Television enables “far-seeing”, telephone enables “far-hearing”) (Gitelman, 25). He states that this changes the human senses to the extent if human beings being unable to tell what have been displaced. His basic concept is that communication technology shapes human perception and cognition. For instance print made possible the western society characterized by democracy, capitalism, individualism and nationalism (Gitelman, 27). McLuhan’s conceptual theories ...
