Technology Autobiography

            Communicative technology has revolutionized how people receive and transfer information. Like most new communicative technology, it begins with a democratization effect and slowly becomes privatized and monopolized by a handful of large companies. For example, when the radio was first popularized in the 1920s, nearly anyone with a basic knowledge of electronic engineering could build their own radio and broadcasting station. Stations were free and there was not any form of regulation of the radio waves. There were radio stations for labor news, dozens of different ethnic music and news stations, comedy shows and the list goes on. This of course is multiplied by every major city in the United States. By the beginning of the 1930s radio stations began to be privatized and monopolized by media corporations such as CBS and ABC. This pattern of democratization to privatization has happened time and again, first with the radio, then television, and now with the internet. One of the most important things that will be expanded upon later about this pattern is exactly what is being communicated and how that has changed as the technology becomes privatized.

            The three most important communicative technologies in my life have been the television, the computer (the internet), and the cellphone. While these are not listed in order of influence, they are listed in chronological order. Unlike the students and young people in the video, I do not create anything with the communicative technology that I use. I do not have a blog, a facebook, twitter, or website. I do use communicative technology to receive information in one form or another.

            First, the television. I have been watching television since I can remember. While this is a one-way communicative line, the television did take up a large part of my childhood. My favorite shows were cartoons and mediocre sitcoms. From four-years-old until my mid-teens how was I supposed to know any better? These television shows taught me everything that school, personal experience, family culture, and did not. Unconsciously I was taking in all of the messages of these shows and they were creating my outlook of the world. As a passive audience member of television I learned many of society’s norms.

            In middle school, grades 6-8, the computer was integrated into my daily life. At first mostly for videogames but I was also using AOL Instant Messenger to talk with friends. As I got older I used the computer for more and more information. Anywhere from communicating with friends, to reading news (I try to read the news everyday now, usually I go from a left-wing slant to a right-wing slant to get the full political spectrum of news), to learning about anything else that is interesting to me, and to download music and movies. The internet has actually entirely replaced the television in my life. Like it or not, in the twenty-first century, you no longer have to pay for media. Any television show, movie, album, or any other type of media can be found somewhere on the internet and in my personal opinion, it is only a matter of time until copyright law is erased for electronic copies of media. In my utopia, the internet has all of the social media that everyone loves but also functions as an archive for every book, song, movie, television show, news article and more that anybody can access from anywhere for free. In essence, all information will be 100 percent accessible. Of course, this is probably just a pipe-dream.

            Lastly, the cellphone has all the aspects of the computer and the internet but now everything can fit in your pocket (and also on your wrist). The cellphone has mobilized the internet and has made information transfers for instantaneous. Before, you had to literally sit at your computer to be an active (or passive) member of the internet community. As I said before, I do not really take part in the Web 2.0 aspects of the internet, meaning that I do not create my own media on the internet. But I do have my favorite news outlets as apps on my phone. They are always publishing articles so I get my news instantaneously throughout the day and anywhere I go.

            Before communicative technology becomes privatized there are a large variety of opinions and sources of entertainment. Educational stations and channels were education. Once it is privatized the message completely changes. Why would the History Channel broadcast the reality television show Ice Road Truckers? Privatization always is followed by a narrowing of views and a poorer quality of product because there is no competition for anything worthy.