Is The Internet Killing Our Culture?

There is a debate occurring in present days about whether the internet is ruining our culture, as it is having major effects on many media forms.­­­­ Andrew Keen and Emily Bell had a go at this debate themselves, which we then later read and debated ourselves.

Keen compares the modern age of mass media before the internet and what it is like now. He believes that the internet has turned the mass media on its head, because anyone can now post things online. For this reason he believes that ‘the traditional media gatekeepers lose their power, the very idea of cultural authority is undermined, meaning that everybody (ie: nobody) can legitimately determine aesthetic standards or truths.’

I have to say, I did not think of the Internet as a bad place, and do not have that many negative views about it. As I am someone who is living far away from home, the internet is brilliant for me, as it provides a service where I can keep in contact with all my friends and family from home. Websites, for example Facebook, allow me to express myself and see the views of others and forming an online community with people who are important to me, but I can’t see. Without the internet, it would be a lot harder for me to stay in contact, so for that reason I do not believe it is killing my culture…it is helping keep it together.

Keen then goes on to say he believes that the internet is destroying artists, and they will only be able to make a living through performance, as producing new materials would not be affordable. Again, I disagree with Keen. Because he has very negative views about social networking sites and YouTube, he does not even try to think of the positive aspects of the sites, and how they can help an artist to show their work, and actually help them advertise… completely free! The internet gives the local artists a chance at fame, which without the internet, they may not be able to do.

Bell also believes that the internet is helping the consumer as they can access more inspirational material than ever, allowing anyone to have a go. This could lead to a more artistic culture; again not really killing the culture like Keen believes is happening. Bell also sees other aspects of the internet as positive, such as online shopping. With shops available online, it is allowing people to purchase goods in a different way, and as Bell admits herself, she has bought more online than ever before. This is fantastic news for the artists, as it is another way in which their merchandise can be got hold of.

Just from looking at these two points put across from Keen and Bell, you can see that people have extremely opposite views of the internet and what it is doing to our culture. There are positive and negative effects of most things in media, and the internet just adds to the list. For me, however, I do feel like the internet is a very positive medium, and I could not be without it, without damaging my culture!

Keen, A. & Bell, E. (2007) Is today's internet killing our culture? [WWW] Available from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2007/aug/10/andrewkeenvemilybell (Accessed 25/11/09)