Metamedia
Encyclopedia
As coined in the writings of Marshall McLuhan
, metamedia referred to new relationships between form and content
in the development of new technologies and new media. McLuhan's concept described the totalizing effect of media.
In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the term was taken up by writers such as Douglas Rushkoff
and Lev Manovich
. Contemporary metamedia, such as at Stanford, has been expanded to describe, "a short circuit between the academy
, the art studio and information science
exploring media and their archaeological materiality." Metamedia utilizes new media
and focuses on collaboration across traditional fields of study, melding everything from improvisational theatre and performance art, to agile, adaptive software development
and smart mobs
.
was coined a year later in 1965 by a programmer to refer to file system
s of multimedia
, the term metamedia was coined in 1964, referring to the theoretical effects of mass media. McLuhan, like his teacher Harold Innis
, an earlier theorist of communication theory
, saw communication as central to social systems.
More recent distinctions between old and new media
have meant that metamedia becomes used to describe modernity and art more than systems.
Humanities Lab and MIT currently run research labs investigating metamedia. The MIT lab's mission is to provide a flexible online environment for creating and sharing rich media documents for learning on core humanities subjects. It is led by Kurt Fendt (co-Principal Investigator and Manager of the Metamedia project) and Henry Jenkins
.
Stanford's lab is principally facilitated by Michael Shanks
with other collaborators, including Howard Rheingold
and Fred Turner (academic)
. In its mission statement, it describes itself as a "creative studio and laboratory space for experimenting and taking risks...a democratic and collaborative assembly of archaeologists, anthropologists, classicists, communications experts, new media practitioners, performance artists, sociologists, software engineers, technoscientists, and anyone else who wants to join." A recent project is Life Squared (aka Life to the Second Power), an animated archive of the work of artist Lynn Hershman in the online world Second Life
. Life Squared is one endeavor of The Presence Project, a live metamedia performance art
project within the Metamedia lab.
Marshall McLuhan
Herbert Marshall McLuhan, CC was a Canadian educator, philosopher, and scholar—a professor of English literature, a literary critic, a rhetorician, and a communication theorist...
, metamedia referred to new relationships between form and content
Form and content
In art and art criticism, form and content are considered distinct aspects of a work of art. The term form refers to the work's style, techniques and media used, and how the elements of design are implemented. Content, on the other hand, refers to a work's essence, or what is being depicted....
in the development of new technologies and new media. McLuhan's concept described the totalizing effect of media.
In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the term was taken up by writers such as Douglas Rushkoff
Douglas Rushkoff
Douglas Rushkoff is an American media theorist, writer, columnist, lecturer, graphic novelist and documentarian. He is best known for his association with the early cyberpunk culture, and his advocacy of open source solutions to social problems.Rushkoff is most frequently regarded as a media...
and Lev Manovich
Lev Manovich
Lev Manovich is an author of new media books, professor of Visual Arts, University of California, San Diego, U.S. and European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, where he teaches new media art and theory, software studies, and digital humanities...
. Contemporary metamedia, such as at Stanford, has been expanded to describe, "a short circuit between the academy
Academy
An academy is an institution of higher learning, research, or honorary membership.The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 385 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and skill, north of Athens, Greece. In the western world academia is the...
, the art studio and information science
Information science
-Introduction:Information science is an interdisciplinary science primarily concerned with the analysis, collection, classification, manipulation, storage, retrieval and dissemination of information...
exploring media and their archaeological materiality." Metamedia utilizes new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
and focuses on collaboration across traditional fields of study, melding everything from improvisational theatre and performance art, to agile, adaptive software development
Agile software development
Agile software development is a group of software development methodologies based on iterative and incremental development, where requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration between self-organizing, cross-functional teams...
and smart mobs
Smart Mobs
Smart Mobs: The Next Social Revolution is a book by Howard Rheingold dealing with the social, economic and political changes implicated by developing technology. The book covers subjects from text-messaging culture to wireless internet developments to the impact of the web on the marketplace...
.
Development
While hypermediaHypermedia
Hypermedia is a computer-based information retrieval system that enables a user to gain or provide access to texts, audio and video recordings, photographs and computer graphics related to a particular subject.Hypermedia is a term created by Ted Nelson....
was coined a year later in 1965 by a programmer to refer to file system
File system
A file system is a means to organize data expected to be retained after a program terminates by providing procedures to store, retrieve and update data, as well as manage the available space on the device which contain it. A file system organizes data in an efficient manner and is tuned to the...
s of multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
, the term metamedia was coined in 1964, referring to the theoretical effects of mass media. McLuhan, like his teacher Harold Innis
Harold Innis
Harold Adams Innis was a Canadian professor of political economy at the University of Toronto and the author of seminal works on media, communication theory and Canadian economic history. The affiliated Innis College at the University of Toronto is named for him...
, an earlier theorist of communication theory
Communication theory
Communication theory is a field of information and mathematics that studies the technical process of information and the human process of human communication.- History :- Origins :...
, saw communication as central to social systems.
More recent distinctions between old and new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
have meant that metamedia becomes used to describe modernity and art more than systems.
Metamedia as an academic field of study
Stanford UniversityStanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
Humanities Lab and MIT currently run research labs investigating metamedia. The MIT lab's mission is to provide a flexible online environment for creating and sharing rich media documents for learning on core humanities subjects. It is led by Kurt Fendt (co-Principal Investigator and Manager of the Metamedia project) and Henry Jenkins
Henry Jenkins
Henry Jenkins III is an American media scholar and currently a Provost Professor of Communication, Journalism, and Cinematic Arts, a joint professorship at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and the USC School of Cinematic Arts...
.
Stanford's lab is principally facilitated by Michael Shanks
Michael Shanks
Michael Garrett Shanks is a Canadian actor who achieved fame for his role as Dr. Daniel Jackson in the long-running Canadian-American military science fiction television series Stargate SG-1.-Early life:...
with other collaborators, including Howard Rheingold
Howard Rheingold
-See also:* Collective intelligence* Information society* The WELL* Virtual community-External links:***** at TED conference** a 48MB Quicktime movie, hosted by the Internet Archive...
and Fred Turner (academic)
Fred Turner (academic)
Fred Turner is an Assistant Professor at Stanford University in the Department of Communication and the acclaimed author of two books:* From Counterculture to Cyberculture: Stewart Brand, the Whole Earth Network and the Rise of Digital Utopianism...
. In its mission statement, it describes itself as a "creative studio and laboratory space for experimenting and taking risks...a democratic and collaborative assembly of archaeologists, anthropologists, classicists, communications experts, new media practitioners, performance artists, sociologists, software engineers, technoscientists, and anyone else who wants to join." A recent project is Life Squared (aka Life to the Second Power), an animated archive of the work of artist Lynn Hershman in the online world Second Life
Second Life
Second Life is an online virtual world developed by Linden Lab. It was launched on June 23, 2003. A number of free client programs, or Viewers, enable Second Life users, called Residents, to interact with each other through avatars...
. Life Squared is one endeavor of The Presence Project, a live metamedia performance art
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
project within the Metamedia lab.