The book as a medium of knowledge: analog vs. digital

Abstract

The physical characteristics of paper books are closely related to human cognition, and this is the reason why books have gained a privileged position in academia, literature, and education in the modern era. However, in media studies, following McLuhan’s work, multimedia has been considered more influential due to its sensory attributes compared to the medium of books. In the 21st-century Internet society, all forms of media, including books, have become absorbed into the digital network. In this paper, we have divided the media into two categories: containers, which are the mechanisms for carrying messages, and contents, which are the messages themselves, and have historically examined the transition of media. We then discuss the need to take advantage of the historical characteristics of books in distribution, retrieval, and archiving, and the role of the Digital Collection of the National Diet Library as a model in this regard.