‘What is New Media‘, is a discussion over defining new media art, and what distinguishes it as being ‘new’. Manovich argues that the majority of the elements in new media art are not new at all, but are redefined elements found in cinema and photography, as well as other forms of media from the 19th and 20th centuries. Examples such as multimedia, which is very general and dates back to Medieval times, as well as the ability to use sampling, another element associated with new media, and which has been introduced in the early 19th century through film.  However, it is the advantages of new media, such as the ability to replicate data infinity without degradation that make new media stand apart.

Manovich settles on the redefinition of ‘interactivity’ as the defining characteristic of New Media Art, and how the interface has expanded beyond the purely informational, and now approaches a psychological level. This allows users to merge seamlessly with the media on a psychological level, ever closing the gap between man and machine.

I agree with the author, that while the elements that comprise New Media Art are not new, the use of these elements is. This is common with lots of new technology. Cell phones for example;  one could argue that they are not a new idea because communication has been around since prehistoric times. What cell phones are is the most recent step in an evolutionary process. In fact, you could say that the evolutionary process is no longer linear, but has branched off into thousands of technologies and possibilities. Cell phones are just one aspect of communication technology, alongside the internet, email, instant messaging, and the rising popularity of internet communities. Now theres a community called Twitter that connects the cell phone community with the instant messaging and forum communities, where a user can make one update either on their phone, on a forum or on instant messenger and all users ‘following’ that user, recieve that update on their own phones, instant messengers, forums etc. Developments like this, paired with the rising integration of wireless internet bring society closer to becoming an idealized global meeting place.