A 21st Century Century Affliction: Media Obesity

"...whatever the root causes, I'm feeling media obese. And obesity, in any form, is Not A Good Thing. I'm realizing I have to treat media with far higher discrimination than I do currently -- and that this will mean ignoring that which is only good and relevant, and focusing only on the very good and very relevant. As a media junky, this restraint will be difficult. We'll see how it goes." [PeterMe]

Wow, is this ever me these days. My favorite part of this post, though, is the first comment by Fred Sampson:

"Reminds me of Schopenhauer's statement that 'Buying books would be a good thing if one could also buy the time to read them in: but as a rule the purchase of books is mistaken for the appropriation of their contents.' Which Warren Zevon misquoted as 'We buy books because we believe we're buying the time to read them.' I say that I'm being more selective about what I read, and watch, and listen to; but the fact is I keep buying books thinking I'll make time to read them, when in reality I'm thinking that just having them on the shelf will transmit their contents to me by osmosis. I buy DVD's so I can watch them whenever I want to; then I watched 'Lawrence of Arabia' on TCM last night when the DVD's sitting on the shelf behind me. Not to mention all the new podcasts I've downloaded but will never listen to because I never get away from the computer and stereo and television and work for long enough. Media obesity? You betcha."

Amen, although I have to admit that I feel like I know more now than I ever have before, even if I feel like I'm not retaining all of it.

A Library and Cinema in Your Pocket

"The increasing power of cellphones is fast shaping innovative forms of compact culture: micro-lit, phone soap operas and made-for-mobile dramas that can be absorbed in less time than it takes to flick through a book introduction....

One pioneer is Media Republic, an Amsterdam company that is successfully reaching young women with the mobile equivalent of the French "roman photo,' a sentimental genre of romantic still photos and text that dates to the postwar period.

Dutch users register their mobile phones to follow the adventures of the hormone-driven characters of 'Jong Zuid,' or 'Young South,' which is now in production for its fourth season. Customers receive two episodes daily, each with six photographs of well-known Dutch actors and text describing the travails of glamorous young people seeking their fortune in the big city....

In Japan, major publishers like Shinchosha and Kadokawa Shoten have created Web sites to offer telephone reading material. Japan is also home to probably the most successful telephone venture. Earlier this year a mobile novel jumped from phone screens to the silver screen, evolving into a feature film, 'Deep Love.'

In the book industry in the United States, the initial reaction to mobile-lit is: 'Are you kidding?' as one veteran put it.

Still, some major New York publishing houses are pondering the future. 'We are paying attention, but we haven't entered the market yet,' said Kate Tentler, vice president and publisher for Simon & Schuster Online. 'It would be crazy not to look at this. Smart phones are everywhere and it's the fastest-growing device.' " [New York Times]

Rephrased for librarians: "Still, some major libraries are pondering the future. 'We are paying attention, but we haven't entered the market yet,' said Famous Library Director. 'It would be crazy not to look at this. Smart phones are everywhere and it's the fastest-growing device.' "

The whole article is interesting (I could have excerpted a lot more), so be sure to read the whole thing.