The Transformation of Carey on McLuhan: Admiration, Rejection and Redemption

Abstract

During his 40 years of writing about Marshall McLuhan, James Carey’s critical engagement was transformed from initial admiration, to rejection, and then to acceptance. Carey’s dismissal of McLuhan as a technological determinist whose work was inferior to Harold Innis was particularly influential. By the late 1990s, however, Carey called this position an unproductive argument that prevented appreciation of McLuhan’s contributions. This reappraisal of McLuhan was omitted from the two anthologies of Carey’s work and appeared in an array of publications that diluted its impact. This article traces contours of Carey’s transformation on McLuhan to argue that Carey’s recognition of his legacy should replace the view that Carey still dismissed him as a technological determinist.

Ecological perspectives and children’s use of the Internet: exploring micro to macro level analysis

“…Indeed, McLuhan's popular appeal influenced an entire generation of educators both to engage with critical media study and to introduce technologies into classrooms as tools to foster creativity, agency and critical thinking (Bates, 1984;Moody, 1999). The critical communications scholar, James Carey, was one who re-evaluated the approach to McLuhan and media ecology thinking, shifting from an initial appraisal of its influence as reactionary technological determinism to a more nuanced and appreciative evaluation of its potential to contribute to a better understanding of the different ways in which social actors adopt and use media technologies in the course of their daily lives (Carey, 1981;Grosswiler, 2006). However, the criticism of its fundamentally abstract approach and lack of attention to empirical detail remains, preventing many educationalists from following its implications or recommendations for progressive media-based education.…”

Ecological perspectives and children’s use of the Internet: exploring micro to macro level analysis

“…Kuigi Postman (2000) (Bates, 1984;Moody, 1999). Kriitilise kommunikatsiooni teadlane James Carey muutis suhtumist McLuhanisse ja meediaökoloogilisse mõtlemisse, hinnates ümber sellele omistatud reaktsioonilise tehnoloogilise determinismi ning väärtustades meediaökoloogia võimet aidata paremini mõista viise, kuidas ühiskonna osalised võtavad meediatehnoloogia omaks ja kasutavad seda oma igapäevaelus (Carey, 1981;Grosswiler, 2006). Samas säilis kriitiline suhtumine sellesse abstraktsesse käsitlusviisi ja empiiriliste üksikasjade eiramisse, mis ei lasknud paljudel metoodikutel meediale tuginevate edumeelsete õppekavade puhul juhinduda sellel teoorial põhinevatest järeldustest ja soovitustest.…”