“No Media, Less Life?”: Online Disconnection and Media Participation

• In Event: ICA Plenary Interactive Paper/Poster Session and Reception
  In Interactive Paper Session: Philosophy, Theory and Critique Interactive Poster Session

Abstract

In times when media are mundane fellows that are disappearing from our consciousness, when media usage is partly habitualised and therefore invisible, looking at disconnections rather than exclusively connection enables us to develop a deeper understanding of what it means to live in mediatised worlds. Media disconnection beyond digital divide and knowledge gap is, however, rarely addressed in current studies of mediatisation. The following presentation is an attempt to investigate specific forms of disconnection in conjunction with connection enabled by media.
By using disruption of the daily stream of online engagement as a method, the presentation discusses how online disconnection can contribute to understanding of media participation and its role in the everyday lives of young adults.In the analysis, we show how conscious disruptions of habitualised media practices can contribute to an understanding of the role the internet-based media participation plays in the everyday life of young adults. Hence, the presentation provides a theoretical and empirical investigation of forms of connection and disconnection that are persistent in mediatised worlds.

Authors

• Christian Schwarzenegger, Augsburg U

• Anne Kaun, Sodertorn U