In
this essay I aim to question the idea of whether print media still
has a place in the digital culture we find ourselves living in today.
Social media remains a huge factor in the change of how images and
messages can be spread through society internationally. Technological
advances, such as the invention of the internet, have provided a
speed and readiness of an image that would not have been possible in
the past. Until recently, physical print copies were the fundamental
way of visually conveying an idea to the majority. But is this still
a relevant means of communication?
Historically, print media has been a
useful tool in the expression of working class culture in a society
predominantly run by the upper classes, creating more of a democratic
way of media influence to the masses, leading to an elimination of
the way social hierarchy was perceived. This notion was started with
the production of the 'Penny Dreadful', which links to the
distribution of newspapers like the 'Glastonbury Free Press' today.
Judith
Flanders explores the ways in which 'Penny Dreadfuls' contributed to
making print available to the masses. In her article for the British
Library (Flanders 2012), 'discovering literature: Romantics and Victorians', she
describes the '19th century publishing phenomenon' as 'cheap fiction'
which was incredibly popular with the Victorian public. The stories
contained in these books were suitable for the readership of all
classes of people and became a part of popular culture at that time.
The affordability and accessibility of the 'Penny-blood', as they
were originally titled, ensured that the reach of an audience was
much wider than it had been with previous literature, which was very
much directed at the upper classes. Improving
technology
contributed to a demand in the production of cheap fiction for the
working classes, which was surprisingly successful and created a
broad new readership.
Following
the theme of producing material for the working classes, penny
dreadfuls didn't bother too much about intellectual content, it was
very much orientated around the idea of story telling without too
much worry for continuity or historical accuracy. This made the books
even more appealing to some audiences who were not interested in the
academic sources of the subject matter, but in the representation of
a relatable narrative. Illustrations contained in the books and on
the cover were a huge part of intriguing the reader to discover more
about the story, Flanders describes illustration as 'an essential
element, as much an advertising tool as art' (Flanders 2012).
Certain
stories were extremely popular due to the content being an expression
of a working class life in 'the dreadful world of the slums' and the
challenges they faced in contrast to the 'decadent life of the
careless rich'. In 1844 this was displayed when GWM Reynolds produced
the 'Mysteries of London' (Koyle 2008). This became the most successful of
penny-blood and demonstrated this idea of social hierarchy between
the classes. Including true events made the stories more relatable to
an audience and even more success was found when including true
crimes in the content of the plot line. The most successful of this
type of penny-blood was the story of 'Sweeney Todd', the demon barber
of Fleet Street. The story was swiftly adapted for stage production
that widened the reach to an audience yet again, including the upper
classes.
The influences of these stories can still be seen around the world today. For example, Penny Dreadful is now an American-British television drama. Similarly, the story of Sweeney Todd has since been successfully told and greatly received through theatre productions and film all over the world. Hence, a cheap short story made initially for the working classes in the 19th century has become celebrated and acknowledged by a much wider audience of all classes.
In
the context of war, print was a very important part of influencing a
greater number of people, especially in regards to propaganda.
'British
Prints from the Machine Age, Rhythms of Modern Life' (Ackley 2009:11), edited by
Clifford S. Ackley, explores the ways in which print can highlight
certain experiences to provoke a reaction from an audience in
society, relating to warfare in particular.
Firstly, Ackley points out that a traditional, handmade and expressive approach to print can be very successful in engaging with an audience. The way in which 'these artists' responses to radical modernism' are recorded can be informative to a viewer. For example C.R.W Nevinson illustrates the bleakness of the first world war in his prints. 'When exposed first-hand to the brutality', you can see from his 'aggressive attack on the printing surface' that a genuine human reaction was provoked by what he saw. The 'grim reality' of war was reflected into Nevinson's images by the way he scratched and scraped directly into the copper printing plate. Ackley described this as a 'modified application' which embraced 'futurist and cubist design principles' and was very well accepted. It was 'surprisingly successful with a public that grasped the relevance of a modern style' in relation to promoting a 'less heroic' way to represent war in art.
Both
Nevinson and Paul Nash were sponsored by the government to become
official war artists. Similarly to Nevinson, Nash's art was
transformed by what he experienced on the battlefield. He presented
people with 'startling war lithographs' that demonstrated a 'haunted
terrain' and 'new technological violence' that had not been seen
before by the public. There was an honesty about the way the prints
depicted the harshness of war and abolished the glamorisation of what
consequentially became a brutal event in history. Ackley suggests
that from 1914 to 1939 Nevinson and Nash represented 'a unique and
vibrant moment in British modernism'. Their 'personal transformations
of futurism and cubism' meant that they were able to notify a greater
audience of the modern world in comparison to the 'desolate
no-man's-land of the Great War' effectively. Using print to share and
express a personal sense of concern for a society can spark
discussions. It can make people begin to think about the world we
live in, the problems we face and how this affects humanity on a mass
scale. The notion of this is universally acknowledged, especially
when it comes to the topic of warfare.
There are many images throughout history that have been successful in affecting the public's perception of an event. The German propaganda poster from World War II reads, 'The enemy sees your light, Blackout!' (Rhodes 1993). Somewhat disturbing imagery of a menacing skeleton flying a spitfire throwing a bomb down on civilian housing is the focal point of the poster, aiming at one house in particular that has left a light on. Distributing physical copies of this kind of imagery was successful in instilling a sense of fear into the public and manipulating their views on what the intentions of Britain 'the enemy' were, as well as warning them of the dangers of ignoring protocol during the blackout. Similarly, the poster reading 'Children, what do you know of the leader?' (MiE-Editor 2012) features Hitler as a fatherly figure to the children of Germany. Projecting a false impression of the kindness of the 'leader' suggested to the people of Germany that it was necessary for their children to look up to Hitler and learn more about him, as they would their own family members. The use of this kind of imagery would have been an easy way to influence people to believe that Hitler was a benevolent person and one to be trusted, even with their own children, masking the brutality of what the reality of the situation was. Along with the use of threatening imagery to portray Britain, this type of mass production was very effective in persuading a population to believe in this false representation of Hitler, in their eyes they would have had no choice but to follow what was seen as acceptable to the majority.
In contrast to use of printed imagery to influence the masses is the notion of viewing imagery using technology. An example of this can be seen in Jean Jullien's 'Peace for Paris' symbol (Vincent 2015). This simply designed representation of support for a country was spread much more quickly than any printed media could have done during the war, mostly through social media where it was shared over 64,000 times. Within 24 hours of the Paris terrorist attacks, people were printing the symbol onto t shirts and other items as an expression of global solidarity. Therefore, this demonstrates that print media does still have a place in the digital age to an extent, though perhaps not initially.
'Propaganda
as a weapon? Influencing International Opinion' (Cooke 2013) is an article written
by Ian Cooke for the British Library, which examines the ways in
which Propaganda print was used to manipulate global viewpoints
during World War I.
Cooke
looks at how it was in the interest of conflicting countries to try
and gain the support of those who were independent. By using
'newspapers, books and cartoons' as a form of printed propaganda,
Britain and Germany were able to effectively gain the attention of
'both neutral and enemy countries'. Copies of newspapers printed in
many different languages were sent out to try and 'justify their
actions' on the battlefield and 'build international support'. This
meant that many cultures could have an informed opinion on the
conflict of World War I, however biased the source of their
information may be. Just how effective this method of distribution
could be was demonstrated by Wellington House, Britain's war
propaganda bureau, in 1914. Illustrated newspapers containing
drawings and photographs were printed 'for circulation around the
world' and by December 1916, 11 different languages were covered.
There was 'such a powerful effect upon the masses' that the
repercussions following this had a significant impact on the rest of
the war.
Propaganda
of 'pamphlets, cartoons and longer books' were used as a means of
persuasion to try and influence countries against the motives and
interests of their economy. However, it became evident that
tactfulness is very important when appealing to the public. Cooke
suggests that German propaganda 'tended to lack subtlety' and was
less effective when utilised in an obvious way. Britain approached
distribution much differently, using knowledge of Public Relations,
by appealing to certain areas/people who were targeted for their
influence on a greater number of people. Pressure to support Britain
was enforced when pamphlets and book were produced 'independently of
state direction' and issued to people who were 'identified as opinion
makers' to influence external countries.
The government used propaganda within their own country to try and gain acceptance for their actions from the masses. Cooke describes this as 'an attempt by the government to set out its justification for war'. Warfare was not just evident on the battlefield, but also within the media and the way mistakes of the enemy were presented to the public. Neutral countries were the target for British propaganda to highlight the 'misfortunes or misjudgements' of German action in war. The sinking of the Lusitania, which claimed 1198 lives, was fuel for Britain's Wellington House, which was 'circulated to highlight the 'barbarity' of the enemy'. Publicising the failures of opposing countries was successful in influencing public opinion.
'Aeroplanes and balloons were used by all side to drop leaflets and posters over fighting forces and civilians', reaching the support of the masses universally and influencing people outside of the direct reach of the conflict using printed media was very important in establishing the victory of the war. Germany tried to appeal to people's emotional investments and what mattered to them in their personal lives to get them on side. This was evident when leaflets and posters written in Urdu were issued, displaying the endorsements of the 'resentments of British rule in India'. The production of printed propaganda was a useful way of getting information seen by a majority, so it was adopted by all sides of the conflict. It was so effective that people were willing to risk their lives to ensure they were distributed accordingly. German people had been influenced so heavily by foreign propaganda, which was 'circulated in vast numbers by all sides', that it was thought the war had been lost, prematurely, due to the lack of public support.
Making
images universally available using print media was a big step in
Print culture and the way people saw art as a whole. Although the
reproducibility of an image had a great many advantages, there were
also disadvantages. In
regards to authorship, there was argument as to whether replication
was to bypass the original intention of expression by the artist and
endorse a loss of value.
'The
Designer as Author' article in Eye Magazine (Rock 1996) discusses
authorship, the different ways in which it can interpreted, and
whether it is relevant at all in regards to design. Firstly,
Michael Rock explores the idea of authorship being a difficult notion
to pinpoint. The question of 'how designers become authors is a
difficult one', often it is a subjective idea based on an audience's
opinion and 'exactly who qualifies and what authored design might
look like' is ambiguous. These ideas on how authorship is viewed as a
whole have changed with the times, factors include; historical
events, circumstance and the social hierarchy. In Paris 1968, this
was evident when 'students joined workers on the barricades in a
general strike', this type of social revolution spread throughout the
western world and 'the call for the overthrow of authority in the
form of the author in favour of the reader - i.e. the masses'
changed the way in which people viewed authorship in society.
Rock describes artist's book in particular as having the 'purest form of graphic authorship' however 'many skilled designers have avoided it' with the use of a 'sub-standard graphic quality' in their work. This lack of authorship is due to the 'low technical quality and the absence of a practical application'. Technologically speaking, the use of computers and mechanical medium and processes rather than a more traditional method tend to achieve certain outcomes. These can be very similar to each other visually, therefore confusing an aesthetic author. However, some would argue whether the notion of claiming authorship matters at all when it comes to a great piece of design, 'what difference does it make who designed it?'. Rock examines that the 'longing for graphic authorship may be the longing for legitimacy or power' which suggests that in this case the reason to design may be for praise and a feeling of superiority over others, taking away from what actually makes a piece of design work.
On the other hand, to gain graphic authorship is to 'elaborate our historical frame'. Therefore can be seen as progressive and a contribution to the improvement of progressing design in the future. Rock describes authorship as 'the development and definition of artistic style' which is 'at the heart of an outmoded Modernist criticism'. Looking around the creative industries today, it is evident that authorship is an important part of design and how we as an audience relate to it. However, there remains dispute as to whether this should be the case. Is the knowledge of a designer relevant to the way we view a piece of art?
Walter
Benjamin's essay on 'The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical
Reproduction' explores ways in which the reproduction of art has
caused changes in the expression of the masses in society and how
this differs in relation to original, authentic art.
Firstly,
Benjamin explains that 'In principle a work of art has always been
reproducible', (Benjamin 2005:2) indicating that, historically, print has been
available for a long time. Starting with the use of woodcut graphic
art, then progressing towards etchings and lithography which made it
generally easier for people to access. The masses in society have a
great influence to bring things closer to contemporary life,
encouraging reproduction of imagery. Benjamin states that this has
been demonstrated in the mass production of magazines and newsreels.
On
the one hand, the idea that reproduced art lacks ownership and
authenticity is seemingly a valid point. The original piece '..may
have suffered in physical condition over the years' (Benjamin 2005:3) where as in print
the notion of physicality is removed. This may affect the story of
the image and eliminate an element of humanity. On the other hand,
authentic print isn't always relevant to the function, such as
propaganda posters, which are designed to be reproduced and
distributed to the masses. In this case, authenticity is not relevant
to the context. The relation of reproduction and the development of
the distribution of print is largely to do with the changes in the
divisions of the social hierarchy. Benjamin states that 'Communism
responds by politicising art' (Benjamin 2005:19), the power and expression of the
working class people to influence society through imagery became
available, this changed the way people viewed art in general.
Benjamin expresses that 'Mechanical reproduction of art changes the
reaction of the masses towards art' (Benjamin 2005:13).
Ailsa
Barry's text in 'Fractal Dreams - New Media in Social Context' on
'Who gets to Play? Art, Access and Margin' investigates distribution,
technology and communication in society. Firstly, Barry suggests that
computers can help people to publicise and gain recognition or their
work. In 'The Magic Box - A future Fairy Tale' it is said that art
can be shared by '...travelling along cables and networks to every
home in the country' (Barry 1996), therefore promoting and enabling otherwise
unknown art to be 'beamed by satellite across the world'. The notion
of even amateur art becoming universally available means that anyone
has the opportunity to be a part of an on-line creative community
where they can learn, participate and receive opinions on their work
freely.
These technological advances in regards to computers and networking can contribute to an important part of a democratic society by giving everyone equal access to information. Barry expresses that 'For groups that have traditionally been disenfranchised... there is a promise of a new digital voice'. In other words, a digital culture gives everyone an equal opportunity to gain an understanding of the world we live in, eliminating a hierarchy and someone to determine who should or should not be allowed to express their ideas.
Following
the idea of making art available to all through technology, Barry
discusses that 'The emergence of computers and networks make work
easily reproducible and transportable' which implies that in the
digital age art is easily shared and critiqued on a vast scale by the
public. This reproduction is the way in which art has become 'easily
accessible to a wider public, bypassing the moribund channels of
galleries and museums'. Art galleries are, even now, largely
associated with the upper class. Therefore, there is the question of
whether the traditional ways of displaying art are appropriate for a
mass audience. The use of social media and being able to discover a
creative collective just a click away has generated a vast
interactive world where an audience can freely participate.
In
conclusion, it is evident throughout history that print media has
played an important role in society, influencing and providing an
expression for the masses. In the digital age we live in today, the
development of technology means that a readiness of imagery has been
created, therefore the role of print media has changed. Social media
has had predominantly the biggest influence on the adaptation of how
we view imagery and the speed at which we do so. Although we still
utilise print for protest imagery, it is no longer an essential part
of distribution to the majority.
