The Origin of Slow Media : Early Diffusion of a Cultural Innovation through Popular and Press Discourse, 2002-2010

Abstract

In recent years, a new subculture has begun to form whose members constrain their use of fast, digital media in favor of slow, analog activities. The emergent concept of “Slow Media” marks a cultural innovation, a new way of thinking about and engaging with communication technologies. Slow Media is both a philosophy (an appreciation of print and analog media that challenges mainstream assumptions about technological progress), and a practice (re-directing media production and consumption toward “slower” mediated or unmediated activities, often by reducing use of digital networks and devices). I create a snapshot here of Slow Media’s origins by looking at its early diffusion through popular and press discourse. My analysis focuses on three periods of development: precursors who envisioned such a cultural movement; the de facto emergence of Slow Media in 2009; and the idea’s diffusion during the first year. I discuss chronological, geographic and institutional patterns that show when and where people began talking about Slow Media, how it entered the public agenda, and which discourses have been influential in its wider dissemination. By constructing this preliminary history, I aim to help scholars interested in Slow Media, or other aspects of the media-avoidance and –resistance subcultures, to locate avenues for future research.