Digital Media and New Aural Cultures

In the movie Pontypool the vector of infection of language is an example of space bias. This is because Harold Innis states that all media have either a time or space bias. He states that time bias is media that lasts a long time and can be classified as durable, heavy, and not easily transported. He describes space biased media to be light and can travel over vast distances. The virus is an example of a space bias since it was spread through speech which can travel at vast distances and is not physical. Throughout the film, we can see that the virus can spread through a variety of mediums such as radio, telephone and electric amplification. These mediums were able to spread the virus as well as attract people through the form of orality who were already affected through great distances which makes it space biased. 

  Harold Innis’ discusses the time and space biases of communication. He defines a time bias as something that is not transportable, something that is very durable and heavy. In turn, he describes space bias as something which is light and easily transportable. When looking at the plague of Pontypool , the vector of infection of the language would be an example of space bias. This is due to the fact that the virus did not occupy any physical space but instead was transportable through speech, covering a large area with no physical space being occupied. Mediums such as the Radio, telephone, and other electronic amplifications played a major role in the sustainment of the virus. All of these mediums are contemporary forms of orality, this is due to the amplification of sound that is being transmitted to all of these media, they allow for the voice of  Grant Mazzy to be amplified all over leading to the immediate spread of the virus. For example, in the film, the radio was the me...

Thinking about the plague of Pontypool in terms of Harold Innis’ analysis of ancient empires and media forms, I found that it was an example of space bias. As discussed by Innis time bias is something that has been solidified and durable but is not easily transported. As discussed in class a good example of this would be the pyramids because although they are incredibly strong you can’t easily move them from one place to another. However, space bias is something that is light and very easily transported across far distances. In the case of the Pontypool virus, I found that it was a good example of space bias as it was spread through the spoken word that can easily travel from person to person. Within the film we can see the virus spread through multiple forms of communication, the radio being a big one. The sender of the message or in this case the infected word did not have to physically be there to share the message which made it easy to spread and led me to believe that this is an ...

The movie Pontypool tells the story of a virus that is spread through language – more specifically, the virus is transmitted when one says English words that have been contaminated. The importance of this movie to CS400 is its depiction of language as a virus. Once someone gets infected by the virus, they repeat the (infected) word many times. Think about it, have you ever said a word so many times that the word lost its meaning? In Pontypool, that is what happens to people once infected – words lose their meanings and people start repeating these words over and over again, damaging their meaning more each time.    Harold Innis argues about mediums of communication, particularly, time bias versus space bias of media forms. Here, one may say that the vector of infection of the language virus in Pontypool is an example of space bias. That is because language/communication can be easily transported through time and space. In this movie, the main characters interact with people th...

According to Innis’ analysis of ancient empires and media forms, and from the definitions of time bias and space bias media, I would consider the spreading of the Pontypool virus to be an example of space bias. As we learned, space-bias media favours/affords a more rapid and widespread mode of dissemination. This is similar to the vector of the Pontypool virus, as it is seen quickly spreading throughout the town. That said, there could be an argument made in favour of the virus being, at its core, an example of the concept of time bias, as it has now permeated the English language, thus potentially becoming a long-lasting, time-bias virus in that language or oral culture.  In addition, radio, telephone, and electronic amplification as media could be considered, in the case of Pontypool , contemporary forms of orality. This is because they act as the transmitters of culture and its messages. The knowledge of the virus and situation is being orally reported via these mediums in ord...

  Second question/issue: think about the plague of  Pontypool  in terms of Harold Innis' analysis of ancient empires and media forms. Is the vector of infection of the language virus in  Pontypool  an example of time bias or space bias? Radio, telephone, and electronic amplification play an important part in sustaining the virus. How are these media forms and their sociotechnical affordances contemporary forms of orality?     Through the first few weeks of this course, sound and the way we experience and absorb it have been some of the main focuses. Harold Innis provided us with descriptions of Time Bias which is described as things that are durable but also not easily transported or are not transported at all. He also provided descriptions of Space Bias which is described as things that are light and easily transported over distances at a quicker pace. In terms of the vector of infection of the language virus in Pontypool, it would be an example...

The virus in Pontypool is transmitted in unique way as opposed to other movies about zombie outbreaks. This disease is transmitted through language. In this movie, there are certain words that when said and understood, transmit the disease and ultimately turns the speaker into a type of zombie.  When comparing this film to Harold Innis’ concept of time and space bias, it is easy to see how this is mainly a space bias medium. Innis explains that time bias forms of communication are steady, and hard to move or break. They are usually immobile, and hard to transport. Therefore it is difficult for time bias forms of communication to be used over large distances. In contrast, space bias media opposes time bias because it is light, easy to move and utilize over distances, and usually not as permanent as time bias is.  Within the movie Pontypool, almost the entirety of the movie is filmed within a radio station. While the virus is spread using speech (a media that Innis argues is a t...

According to Innis, “space bias” is the bias of communication to spread geographically and “time bias” is the bias of communication to last over time that creates a sense of permanence and continuity. Innis argued that different forms of communication have different biases, with oral communication and writing having a space bias, and printed media having a time bias, and these biases have caused societies to develop in different ways. He argued that oral communication favoured small communities and decentralized power while writing and printing favoured larger, centralized societies. He also argued that these biases have caused different cultures to develop different values and beliefs. Innis believed that this space-and-time communication bias significantly impacted the development of societies and cultures. In the film, Pontypool, a mysterious virus starts to spread around a small town in Ontario. The video on YouTube provides a radio version of the film by narrating the situation. L...

According to Innis, time bias is a form of communication that is both steady and immobile. While space bias is a less reliable but still incredibly portable communication channel. The “language virus” in Pontypool is an example of space bias because of its wide transmission over vast distances to contaminate others. The vector of infection relies on communication mediums such as radio, telephone, and electronic amplification to disseminate the virus to more and more people. These contemporary forms of orality function as a technology for speech. Similar to how we spoke about tele-technologies in class that help simplify human tasks from a distance.   This made me think of how social media platforms like TikTok are able to disseminate dance and song trends to such a fast distance of consumers. TikTok too has a space bias because it shares content portably using the aid of the internet and using algorithms. Once a song or dance is trending, users can recite the songs and dances from...

   Question 1:      Innis argues that orality is more flexible and humanistic whereas writing is rigid and impersonal. As well, creativity stems from orality as language is complex and more difficult to express through written form. Innis views speech as a tool to be human. And to be human according to Innis is to speak, listen and interact with others. Through this social connection wisdom and thought are gained.      We can apply Innis’ argument of orality and speech to the two DJs as they use their voices to add new meanings to words and experiences using universal sounds. Both Grant Massy and Dj Dave Mickie take their time rather than getting straight to the point. They also add a performance aspect that allows the audience to make a judgment on feelings, experiences, and opinions to create a visual outcome.      McLuhan discusses these oral qualities as he states that audience participation is created through spoken word. As we...

Using McLuhan's medium theory of the human sensorium as a framework, argue that there is something about speech as a medium and orality as communicative practice that creates the possibility of the 'language virus" that afflicts the anglophones in Pontypool. According to Marshall McLuhan’s theory of human sensorium, the term medium describes any form of extension of a sense or faculty. Contemporary tele-technologies, such as telegraphy, telephony, radio, and television, are thereby extensions of hearing and sight. The author also mentions that throughout history, these views may become distorted especially because of the globalization of communication and culture and biases of capitalistic hegemonic institutions. In correlation with the film Pontypool, the medium of orality creates the possibility of a “language virus” to become widespread by using tele-technologies. I argue that throughout history, words become tainted by ideologies and associations with certain people, g...

The language virus in Pontypool is an example of space-biased media because the virus could spread quickly and over vast distances through the use of radio, speakers, and the telephone. Space-biased media is defined as being light and portable and conquering space and distance in its transmission. These characteristics pertained to the virus as there was nothing tangible about the virus but rather an invisible entity that was capable of travelling through space and over distance to infect others. Radio, telephone, and electronic amplification are contemporary forms of orality because they rely on oral communication in order to transmit a message. In Pontypool, the main characters experienced the virus spread when speaking on the phone with one of their radio listeners and used the speakers in the studio to draw away the infected individuals. Furthermore, each media form was dependent on speech and using speech to disseminate a message quickly and from a distance.

 Second question/issue: think about the plague of Pontypool in terms of Harold Innis' analysis of ancient empires and media forms. Is the vector of infection of the language virus in Pontypool an example of time bias or space bias? Radio, telephone, and electronic amplification play an important part in sustaining the virus. How are these media forms and their sociotechnical affordances contemporary forms of orality?      When thinking about the plague of Pontypool and whether the language virus is an example of time bias or space bias, I personally think it exemplifies and has characteristics of both sides. Firstly, the language virus in Pontypool is contracted when an individual hears the mumbling of an infected person, and then understands the meaning of the infected word. This infected word can be different depending on the host. This virus only affects the English language.       In the beginning of the film, from my understanding, individual...

   After watching the film Pontypool , and seeing how the language virus spreads and infects the other characters, I would say it is an example of Harold Innis’s space bias. Innis defines time bias as a medium of communication that is both stable, but not mobile. Whereas space bias is a medium of communication that is less stable, but very mobile. I think the plague of Pontypool is an example of space bias communication as the virus is spread through the words we use. The virus can easily be passed along from person to person, and radically affects their minds with no certainty on how to save them.  Radio, telephone, and electronic amplification all play an important role in sustaining the virus because the infected are attracted to sound. These media forms are considered contemporary forms of orality simply because we are able to communicate with one another through spoken word. Even though you cannot see the radio host, you are still able to listen to the words he/she ...

 

 

   McLuhan’s medium theory of the human sensorium centres around the idea that a medium is any extension of our human sense or faculty. From this theories perspective, a wheel of a car is an extension of the foot, similarly clothing is an extension of the skin. If we are to follow this thinking, then the tele-technologies of our time period of electronic media ecology are then extensions of our sight and hearing.      From this theory a key aspect to remember is that the introduction and development of such media or in this case technology, will alter what McLuhan terms the “ratios” between the senses. In class we noted that these shifts in ratios could lead to distortion. In connection to the anglophone ‘language virus’ from Pontypool, I do believe that it is possible for a language to get distorted in some way, I think of slang or informal phrases younger generations use. These are terms like Fam, Stan, Salty,  Finna, Cap , all of which have no real conne...