Book review: Globalization and Media in the Digital Platform Age

Erving Goffman, Roland Barthes and Edward Hall. The writing and discussion of this book reminds me of many other theoretical works on sound, voice and listening not mentioned in the book itself, including Canetti’s (1984) Crowd and Power, Erlmann’s (2014) Reason and Resonance, Ingold’s (2000) The Perception of the Environment, and various discussions of sound and affect in recent sounds studies scholarship. Overall, it is an easy, pleasant and intellectually stimulating book. It is, as stated in the Preface, intended for non-academic readership. If one is eager to find out how the author tackles the brilliant question of why people sing, one may feel a bit disappointed to find the question being squarely addressed only in the last chapter. As the author notes, the previous three chapters can be read as footnotes for Chapter 4. In a sense, Chapters 2 and 3 are still important; they provide a personal context (with engaging research stories and details) of the philosophical speculation on talk, singing and communication. If this book had been written 13 years ago and if I had read it then, I would have had more confidence to remain in communication studies with a more articulated defence for my proposed dissertation research on new music/sound culture as communication. After years of research in sound studies, reading this book gives me a feeling of déjà vu. All is meant to be.