Technology, Pop Culture and the Blind

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses how technology is capable of enhancing the blind's perception of popular culture and their interaction within it. The paper then shows how the blind will still be unable to experience the Information Age schema of popular culture in the same kind of depth with which a sighted person can. The paper adds that the difficulty the blind have in accessing this information is only likely to get worse as pop culture continues to evolve around the increasingly rapid intake and processing of new, visual information.

From the Paper:

"There is little denying the reality that popular culture is, in contemporary society, largely shaped by new developments in technology. It is an "environment of accelerated change, where the evolution of technology has become the primary force behind pop culture (Rudman, 2006). For the majority of people, the intersection of technology and popular culture can seem so seamless and ubiquitous as to be unnoticeable. Most, especially the younger generation, have fully adapted to a world of YouTube videos, blogging, virtual worlds, and 24-hour cell phone access.However, the fact that popular culture has become mired in technology, like the Internet, which can be a fundamentally visual medium, can present significant challenges for individuals who are blind or sight impaired."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Blair, J. (2006, November). A computer and Internet future: enabling inclusion? Learning Disability Practice, 9(9), pp. 32-37.
• Greenfieldboyce, N. (2008, January 29). Cell phone reads to the blind. NPR. Retrieved July 24, 2008, from http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18504117
• Rudman, G. (2006, April 3). The techno-flux effect. Brandweek, 47(14), pp. 22-23.

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