Digital Media and the Ordinary

Digital media is a perfect way to observe the ordinary because of convenience, mobility, and expediency. The convenience of cell phone cameras, twitter, text, and other hand held communication devices allows for easy ways to observe and share our observations. Amazing events recorded by journalists is no longer they only observations that we can see because of the convenience of observations tools. The mobility of these tools allows for acces to the ordinary, but sometimes obscured, hidden, or personal, parts of our lives. The access of high speed cellular internet means that these tools can have short time periods between desiring to observe and sharing observations. The ordinary things of the past become extraordinary, hind sight adds clarity and understanding but can also increase the extraordinary qualities of the mundane. Another aspect of digital media is the universality of internet viewership. Because of the global widespread access of digital media the "lowest common denominator" is very large. A person being hit in the pants with a wiffle ball bat is funny in all languages and to people of varied cultures, ages, and gender. This allows ordinary things to spread wide if they are enjoyable to watch. The following clip is an observation of the normal. The normal thing is eating Gushers. The video is popular because it is funny. The person was able to tell this story because of the convenience, mobility, and expediency of digital media.

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My Ode is a proem: "93%, what have I missed? what have I lost?" Initiate protocols. Phone? Check. Sweatpants? Check. Water filled? Check. Lights off? Check. Remote? Check. I slump down. Sinking deep and being sucked forward and in. Like a moth to the flame, I bath in the white glow and I am contented. I journey through time. Life is a spaceship. TV is my escape pod.