Blackout

At 9:30 last night we lost power.

Media Watch was rudely interrupted, as the howling winds were victorious over South Yarra’s electrical supply. My first response was one of annoyance.

Then came the realisation that my iPhone only had 12% battery life and the responsible thing to do was to conserve it for impending heroic activities (like calling the electricity company) rather than scrolling through my Instagram feed or watching YouTube clips.

After a clumsy raid of the downstairs cupboards, a torch was located only to have a dead battery. Great. Ice cream was consumed for fear of melting and partly because there wasn’t much else to do.

Panic started to set in. How the hell am I meant to download Game of Thrones? Like, seriously. Alas, we received a text message that predicted the power would be reinstated by 11:30pm.

Now a little calmer, I found myself thinking about ye olden days…well a time in which people weren’t constantly connected to and absorbing online media. Were people happier living their lives more simply? Does the immediacy and interactivity of the web enrich our lives so much that it warrants our dependence or has the progression of the internet and the modern media landscape confused matters further?

Although through my anxiety it might sound like I’m a bit of an Internet devotee, I would categorize myself more as an online consumer rather than a contributor. Something this subject is beginning to change. I don’t update my Facebook often and I post infrequently to my Instagram account. But I do spend a majority of my day engaging with different networks on both my laptop and iPhone. I get my news and current affairs online, watch films and TV shows, and I’m an avid online shopper.

Our connection to online networks is becoming more and more pervasive in society. I find myself wondering how we’ll be engaging with media in the future. I can’t help but envision a stereotypical sci-fi movie set with an oversaturation of flat screens, but I guess this weeks reading pointed out that sometimes these design fiction technologies can become reality. I think a tirade against the way in which technology is taking over is hyperbolic, but we should always remain cautious.

Anyway, what this subject is helping me come to terms with is that it’s important to ride the wave of the media because it will roll on without you if you approach it tentatively. We must continue speculating about not only what is, but also what could be, and in doing so I find it helps to look back on what was.