Marshall McLuhan’s Technological Determinism is also known as “The Medium is the Message”. “The Medium is the Message” basically means, the form of which a message is received is more important than the message itself. His central idea is that throughout the years social organization changes due to the technological communication methods evolving.
His ideas regarding the saying “The Medium is the Message” has a few strong points, as well as some limitations. Firstly, we have seen the shift of society regarding communication. In the earliest form of human organization, which he classified as the tribal paradigm, people were basically playing a large game of telephone. Communication was received orally and only in the moment. Information could also be changed passing from one person to the next, as usually seen when playing the game telephone.
Society then shifted when print text was introduced. We could receive messages later and preserve historical events. We can also see how his ideas align with consuming media in present times. When we consume media through the television we might be passively listening, whereas when reading print, we must be actively using our brain to process information. Regarding media that is visually oriented, the medium could be more important than the message itself. On the flip side, while that is a strong point, with print media you actively utilize your brain to read the message. This means the method is not more important than the message itself, which is one limitation to his ideas.
Another significant strong point to his ideas is the way the media can utilize his ideas to influence their audience. The media can utilize the correct medium and make the content visually appealing. By doing this, the audience will be more focused on the look and then medium, than the actual message themselves. This plays right into his ideas and is how brands specifically tend to market their products.
One limitation to McLuhan’s ideas is his theory about the “Global Village“. This theory is not as relevant in present times, as it was back then. It is true that new technological developments have changed our communication methods. We are not limited by geography as we once were, but his theory also revolved around worldwide social order. The world is vast and consists of many different cultures and ideals. When you travel internationally, you experience something called culture shock. Culture shock exists because there is no worldwide social order. Every country is different and does not conform to the same social organization which contradicts what he theorized. Another limitation to the saying “The Medium is the Message”, is that the message truly is important. While the medium is important, it is not always more important than the message. An additional limitation to his idea is the effect of generational differences. While the method of media communications does shape society, it only shapes certain generations. We see the shape of technology throughout Gen Z, but if we look at the older generations like the Baby Boomers, we don’t see this shift. This also contradicts his idea of the “Global Village”, which would be more accurate if applied to a generational & geographical perspective.
Overall, I find his ideas useful, even if there are some limitations to them. We have seen throughout history the effect of technology on society. We no longer communicate by written letters or verbal conversations, most of us communicate through our phones. This has shaped our social structure just as he predicted.