The Internet is All-Absorbing

The internet most definitely is a compilation of many different types of old media that were absorbed, adapted, and changed. For example, in the cloud computing podcast, the host, Brooke Gladstone, brings up a great example of one type of old media that was absorbed. She provides the example of video and how it has been adapted to be downloadable online. Not so long ago, video was something physical that could be held and played in only video-playing devices and after its absorption by the net, it has become something that is widely shared and distributed with ease. Another article, "The Rise and Fall of Media", touches upon the subject of the digitalizing of the newspaper. This has also been something that the net has adapted, and now online newspapers are developing a very large amount of regular users. The major change in the adaptation of newspaper is that the user is able to choose the news that they read and filter out stories that they will not read.

As far as old media go, most types of old media have been adapted in some form or another to be compatible with the internet. Books have evolved into the e-book and some libraries are even offering people the chance to read books online. The C.W. Post library, for example, allows students and members the ability to read certain titles online from any computer. Radio is another medium that was absorbed by the internet. The creation of Pandora and other online radio websites now permit users to use their computers to listen to the radio and also to alter the content itself. This ability to control content was an idea that originated with the internet. Even television, a more recent medium, was absorbed into the internet giant. Websites like Hulu allow television show streaming and permit users to access their favorite shows at the click of a button. My opinion of all this is that the internet is a gateway to every other medium and that it is extremely convenient. Rather than having to rely on a television, radio, or book for content, I can simply rely on the internet.

The theory that most closely fits this theme would be Marshall McLuhan's theory that the content of each new medium is the old medium. In the case of the internet, this is most definitely true. Most features that the internet offers are taken from other mediums, and the content does not change. Whether it be internet radio, internet television viewing, or internet e-books, the same information is present, but it has been adapted to be compatible with the internet. The other theory I can use to describe this new trend is Winston's theory regarding the accelerators and brakes of new media. In the case of the internet, there were many accelerators such as easy of access, low cost and high availability, and high popularity and demand. The brakes for the internet are much fewer and less severe and have not halted the internets growth and adaptation of more mediums that much or even at all.