I was teaching a television production class at the University of Iowa in 1965. While there I discovered Marshall McLuhan’s book Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, and quickly realized how powerful television was about to become. McLuhan’s writing convinced me that television imagery would change how and what people thought about the world, how families functioned, who could win political campaigns, how governments worked, how news was reported, and much more. I wanted these students to understand the potential power of what they were learning to do. So, I started out teaching a “how-to-do it” course… but I soon was teaching an adventure in media ideas course.
“How media revolutions change everything” would heavily influence how I taught radio-TV-film, journalism, and strategic and international communication at TCU; when and how I developed this blog; and the thinking behind the articles and books I would eventually write about communicating and advancing higher education.
Thus, I still believe that a course in “media literacy” should be required in every public and private high school in the country… and that media savvy should influence how every subject area is taught in colleges and universities.
Larry D. Lauer 