The Wet History of Media in the Bathroom

https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/the-wet-history-of-media-in-the-bathroom/

12•zdw•7mo ago

Comments

PeterStuer•7mo ago

As the shower has always been the ideal spot for my most profound solution discovery or deep analysis (second only to the sauna), I dread to think how 'bathroom media' will make us dumber as a species. (I'm only mildly joking ;) )

cheschire•7mo ago

That’s kind of the point of media consumption for most people. They're intentionally or subconsciously avoiding letting their brain achieve that higher order thinking or introspective level of consciousness.

It’s similar to how PTSD patients will often turn the volume up on life both figuratively and literally as they try to drown out the thoughts actively. The vast majority of the western population seems to want to drown out their fears and anxieties with bombastic sports and drama shows.

Media in the bathroom is just another enabler for that unhealthy coping mechanism.

mrweasel•7mo ago

I think we've become weary of silence. The shower is sort of the last place where we allow ourselves to just exist. There is noise all around us. We take audio books, podcasts, music, text and videos with us where ever we go, never really just letting the impressions of a place reach us.

It's all distracting from deep thought, which I suspect is also one of the reason why many lay awake at night, overwhelmed by thoughts that had no place to surface during the day.

zeta0134•7mo ago

This is actually one of my favorite reasons to go for a hike! I can put a little music on to keep my mind occupied (but not always; nature is nice) and then, since I really can't read or be distracted, my mind is happy to wander. I must look like a complete fool, having spoken conversations with seemingly no one, as I talk through whatever comes to mind and turn it over from every angle. I've designed several systems in my game engine this way, almost entirely on accident. It's like my brain just needs permission to do its own thing for a while.

mpalmer•7mo ago

Maybe I'm missing context that would be clearer if I read the book, but since it was published as a piece that ought to stand on its own, I am confused at the observations - devoid of explanation - that shower radio ads featured young, fit, white people. I am completely open to the possibility that there's a point to be made there, but none is forthcoming.

What gives?

saagarjha•7mo ago

> Notably, this marketing did not employ any militaristic language to describe the music player’s wet encounters. In fact, Splash Dance’s packaging and TV commercials and Wet Tunes’ print ads hardly dealt with liquidity at all.

Does anyone else feel like the quality of this article is decidedly poor? It reads like a high school student's essay, where they don't really have much to say, but use words they hardly know to sound smart. I'm seriously trying to be charitable here but it has the same structure of people's homework assignments, with odd quoting of random sources to reach requirements and jumps all over the place without a coherent thesis.

drhodes•7mo ago

I for one enjoyed the article and found it coherent from top to bottom. The author is a historian, which means they are likely serious about justifying their claims. That might explain the thorough sourcing you're lamenting.

saagarjha•6mo ago

I didn’t find the justification serious. Adding quotes does not actually make your paper well sourced: this is exactly the reason why I think it reminds me of high school writing.

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