The Long History of New Media: Technology, Historiography, and Contextualizing Newness (Digital Formations)

This volume examines the role of history in the study of new media and of newness itself discussing how the 'new' in new media must be understood to be historically constructed. Furthermore the new is constructed with an eye on the future or more correctly an eye on what we think the future will be. Chapters by eminent scholars address the connection between historical consideration and new media. Some assess the historical descriptions of the development of new media others hinge on the issue of newness as it relates to existing practices in media history. Remaining essays address the sh ifting patterns of storage at work in media inscription as they relate to the practice of history and to the past and contemporary cultural formations. Together they offer a ground-breaking assessment of the long history of new media clearly recognizing that the new media of today will be the traditional media of tomorrow and that an emphasis on the history of the future sheds light on what this newness can be said to represent.