Reassessing Neil Postman’s »Amusing Ourselves to Death« (1985) in the age of Algorithmic Culture and Digital Feudalism

Reassessing Neil Postman’s »Amusing Ourselves to Death« (1985) in the age of Algorithmic Culture and Digital Feudalism

Johanna »Victoria« Mamali Panagiotou; Sarah Köksal

Abstract:

This paper revisits Neil Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business (1985) to evaluate its continued relevance through the interdisciplinary lenses of Communication Studies and Digital Humanities. Postman’s central critique—that the medium through which information is conveyed fundamentally shapes the epistemology of a culture and the nature of public discourse—is re-evaluated in the context of today's digital media environment, characterized by algorithmic curation, and image-saturated interfaces. By analyzing the upsurge of infotainment, the commodification of attention, and the entertainment-centric propinquity, this study interrogates how contemporary media ecosystems privilege brevity, spectacle, and emotional appeal over deliberation, depth, and civic rationality. Drawing on interdisciplinary sources from a wide range of theories from the Humanities, this research article argues that Postman's thesis has not only retained its relevance but has gained urgency in an era of constant digital distraction, »content« economies, and the erosion of shared public narratives. Therefore, it remains strikingly current and vital today—perhaps even more than when it was first written—because it predicted with eerie accuracy how media shapes the way society thinks, communicates, and engages. The findings highlight the need for renewed critical media literacy and a reexamination of digital platforms as not merely neutral carriers of information in terms of transhumanism and digital feudalism. The analysis additionally demonstrates that understanding the epistemological consequences of entertainment-driven media is crucial for addressing current challenges in democracy per se. Finally, a comparative analysis is being conducted—including the correlated works George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley's brave New World. The American and Communication experts will here address the issue that the predicted surveillance is not forced by an authoritarian power but is performed by the consumers' own volition and acquiescence.

Authors:

     - jmamalipanagiotou@gmail.com (Primary)

     - s.koeksal@campus.lmu.de

--- accepted - will be presented on the 8th of December 2025 at the Scientific Conference

EFoC 3: Envisioning the Future of Communication III

“Envisioning the Future of Communication III: Challenges · Trends · Opportunities”,

organized by the Department of Communication and Digital Media, the Laboratory of Social and Migration Studies and the Laboratory of Digital Media and Strategic Communication of the UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN MACEDONIA.