While reading “The Medium is the Massage” by Marshall McLuhan, there were multiple things that caught my attention. The first one was in the paragraph when he discussed how “societies have always been shaped more by the nature of the media by which men communicate than by the content of the communication.” I found that part really interesting and I stopped to think about it for a moment. It made me think about how the internet uses emojis or internet slang to convey things. You don’t really see this form of communication in the format of talking, but in the format of the internet, it’s abundant. It also has the ability to change the meaning of a word. Like how the word tea could refer to the drink, but on the internet, it’s changed to also refer to gossip. The media was able to morph the content of the communication into something new. This can apply to art since with this new media we can now interact with art pieces, unlike ones you find in museums. Technology has also changed what we consider art because art in the digital realm is different from art in the real world. There are different tools and different ways of experiencing them. The little sections like “you” or “your neighborhood” also stuck out to me in different ways. To start, the “you” section had a great emphasis on how privacy is a thing of the past and how our minds are interconnected to the world of the internet. That seems true for a number of reasons. One of the big formats of communication now is the internet, and posts tend to last a long time, depending on the person. You are able to see how much you have grown and changed based on your posts and likes. If you become an influential person, those old posts get brought up, or people somehow find your location, etc. Also, where it’s said, what’s the buzzzzzzzzzzz? Felt silly. Sounds like how I’d speak or text, except I’d use fewer Zs. The “your family” section and “your neighborhood” section also stuck out to me since they also show how interconnected our communication and connections with others have become. The idea that even your internet friends can be considered your neighbors due to how time and space are warped due to technology bridging those gaps sounds insane, but accurate. The way we connect with people now is much different from the past. It could also apply to the way we connect to the art and artists nowadays. Instead of walking to a museum to look at art, we can sit at home and have a completely different atmosphere. Also, you’d be less likely to get tired from walking around. Instead of talking to the artist face to face, we can message them or interact with their art and socials. The interaction with the art and artist can be immediate, with the idea that technology shortens the time and space we originally needed to do so. Lastly, I question the images he used to associate with the small sections. Like, why a coat hanger for the family section?