Provocative New Book Offers "Slow" Perspective on Media Use, Linked to Human and Environmental Sustainability

BROOKLYN, N.Y., Jan. 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- People have been pushing for a "Slow Media" movement for more than a decade—in the press, on blogs, even on Facebook. They see Slow Media as an alternative to global, corporate media, which are often unresponsive to the needs of human communities and natural environments. A new book, Slow Media: Why Slow is Satisfying, Sustainable and Smart, written by Jennifer Rauch, an award-winning Long Island University faculty member, explains how this movement coalesced and why it is now poised to change how people use and produce media, just as Slow Food transformed how we grow, buy and eat food.

Slow Media enables readers to understand the complex relationships between their everyday media choices, social well-being and the natural world. Jennifer Rauch, a professor of Journalism and Communication Studies at LIU Brooklyn, explains why our media habits and systems are founded on an unsustainable growth paradigm that depletes human and ecological resources. She aims to propel new conversations about how we can challenge the status quo — as users, consumers, and citizens.

"Slow Media helps people see that 'slow' is about finding the right tempo for making and engaging with media, about the joy of alternating between slower and faster speeds," Rauch said. "I hope the book will help readers to use media in 'slow' ways that are socially and environmentally sustainable, that are good for people and for the planet."

She points to recent crowd-funding successes of "slow news projects" like The Correspondent (U.S.) and Tortoise (U.K.) as evidence that the time is ripe for slow approaches to journalism.

Slow Media: Why Slow is Satisfying, Sustainable and Smart, published by Oxford University Press in October 2018, examines a spectrum of new ideas like mindful media, green media, and Post-Luddism. Mindful media promotes contemplation in and about daily communication, through practices like unplugging and mono-tasking. Green media debunks the myth that digital media are ecologically benign; it seeks to reduce electronic waste and consumption of nonrenewable resources. Post-Luddism challenges the conventional wisdom that people skeptical of new technology are ignorant or afraid; instead, it cultivates an informed, inclusive discussion about media's actual socio-cultural effects.

Reviewers have hailed the new book, calling Slow Media:
—a "spirited, sane, and savvy manifesto" (Carl Honoré, a leader of the international Slow movement and bestselling author of In Praise of Slow),
—a "compelling argument for why less is more" (Douglas Rushkoff, named one of the world's 10 most influential intellectuals by MIT), and
—a "powerful corrective" to current media scholarship and "insightful" critique of speed in daily life (Chris Atton, author of Alternative Media, Alternative Internet, and Alternative Journalism).

In addition to Slow Media, Rauch is author of the Slow Media blog (slow-media.org), three book chapters, and more than a dozen scholarly articles on alternative journalism, news audiences, media activism and political communication. She has talked about Slow Media with press worldwide, including NPR's Marketplace, The Huffington Post, Medium, Radio National (Australia), The Daily Beast, Delayed Gratification (London), and La Presse (Montreal). An award-winning writer, educator and researcher, Rauch is also a judge of the George Polk Awards for excellence in journalism, which have been administered by LIU Brooklyn since 1949.

About Long Island University (LIU)
LIU is one of the nation's largest private universities. Since 1926, LIU has provided high quality academic programs taught by world-class faculty.  LIU offers hundreds of accredited programs to approximately 20,000 students, with a network of over 200,000 alumni, including leaders in industries across the globe. Visit liu.edu for more information.

SOURCE Long Island University

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