Publications Come and Go, Change or Disappear
Below are several cover issues from a magazine that is still publishing after so many years.
My eldest Brother inculcated in me a love of interest in world affairs. It all started with reading Newsweek seated in a balcony at home.
There have been other memorable publishing ventures like Readers Digest, Asisweek, Time, Australian Who, Forbes, Fortune, New Yorker and Bloomberg Businessweek. The character and purpose of some of these publications have possibly changed over the years. I note with disdain and amazement how many of the English language news publications specialising on covering Asian affairs have ceased publication.
One reads media output with caution these days especially in an intense age of so called fake news, but all along there have been powerful vested political and financial interests behind the editorials and content of all published output. These days, paper based publications are thinner in content than those in cyberspace and on line. In these transitionary times, is it still more rewarding to hold paper in your hands than read from wifi powered sources?
The increasing integration of diverse media delivery and the blurring of ownership behind what we are told or read points to a further lack of choice in being exposed to a healthy spectrum of views. The utilisation of Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp and news sources alternate to conventional channels like TV and news sites is an illustration of the changing game in the provision of information.
Governments, politicians, businesses and financial players, more than most, understand more effectively the significance and power of controlling the media. Reflect on the use of such controls in various communities, nations and cultures. What unworthy issues keep getting escalated? In contrast, what important matters are deescalated by the media? This has resulted in some individuals I know avoiding reading specific websites and publications. This choice may make these mates more entrenched in their original views.
Technology has enabled more interactivity, spontaneity and feedback in one finger click. This illustration of faster communication scenarios can discourage more thoughtful reckoning of a matter before sounding them out. It can be used negatively in rabble rousing, group speculation and engineered political moves by hidden powers.
There is no time to still hold the paper in your hands,so to speak, and give some wise thoughts to an issue before unnecessarily jumping to quick conclusions - something I could do on the balcony in those good old days.
#yongkevthoughts
My eldest Brother inculcated in me a love of interest in world affairs. It all started with reading Newsweek seated in a balcony at home.
There have been other memorable publishing ventures like Readers Digest, Asisweek, Time, Australian Who, Forbes, Fortune, New Yorker and Bloomberg Businessweek. The character and purpose of some of these publications have possibly changed over the years. I note with disdain and amazement how many of the English language news publications specialising on covering Asian affairs have ceased publication.
One reads media output with caution these days especially in an intense age of so called fake news, but all along there have been powerful vested political and financial interests behind the editorials and content of all published output. These days, paper based publications are thinner in content than those in cyberspace and on line. In these transitionary times, is it still more rewarding to hold paper in your hands than read from wifi powered sources?
The increasing integration of diverse media delivery and the blurring of ownership behind what we are told or read points to a further lack of choice in being exposed to a healthy spectrum of views. The utilisation of Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp and news sources alternate to conventional channels like TV and news sites is an illustration of the changing game in the provision of information.
Governments, politicians, businesses and financial players, more than most, understand more effectively the significance and power of controlling the media. Reflect on the use of such controls in various communities, nations and cultures. What unworthy issues keep getting escalated? In contrast, what important matters are deescalated by the media? This has resulted in some individuals I know avoiding reading specific websites and publications. This choice may make these mates more entrenched in their original views.
Technology has enabled more interactivity, spontaneity and feedback in one finger click. This illustration of faster communication scenarios can discourage more thoughtful reckoning of a matter before sounding them out. It can be used negatively in rabble rousing, group speculation and engineered political moves by hidden powers.
There is no time to still hold the paper in your hands,so to speak, and give some wise thoughts to an issue before unnecessarily jumping to quick conclusions - something I could do on the balcony in those good old days.
#yongkevthoughts
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