[Semiapies]

This is entirely voluntary.

For instance, I know that Bieber exists, and I can probably count on my fingers how many times I've seen pictures of him. I found the one or two songs of his I've heard innocuous and utterly forgettable - I probably couldn't identify him if I heard those very same songs again. I'm not even aware precisely why he's the go-to example of annoying celebrity, lately.

I'm not utterly isolated from the world or media, though. I just actually choose what media I consume.

[lionhearted]

> This is entirely voluntary.

Indeed, and I've pretty much done it. But it takes effort. You need credible replacements for the mindless time, and then you need to actively push yourself towards the new stuff as opposed to the old stuff.

The credible replacements is everything. If you commute by car, you need either:

-Some audiotapes/audiobooks/podcasts

-Someone to carpool with

-Some way of not driving any more (car service if you're wealthy enough, taking the train or bus otherwise)

...otherwise you're going to listen to the radio. What else is there to do while driving?

So it takes some effort. Totally doable though. I just calculated out how much time I spent on pop culture this year - Only one movie (Robin Hood, meh - I would've seen Inception except I was in the back provinces of China when it was released, and then it was gone from theaters when I was back in civilization), less than ten hours of TV (mostly tennis), no pop music except what was on when I was wandering through stores playing music or at a bar, no newspapers, and a few hours of trashy magazines while sitting in an aeronautical engineer friend's bathroom (why he reads them is beyond me, but it wasn't a terrible use of time while in his bathroom).

But this is only possible because I've got a list of stuff to do - a Kindle loaded with good books, an mp3 player loaded with audiobooks/podcasts, Hacker News/LessWrong/Google Reader loaded with good blogs, Lichess.org for when I want to play a game of Chess, and a list of temples/mosques/ruins/parks/beaches to go to.

It's not enough to just "opt out" - you need to "opt in" to some comparable activity to fill your time.

[duck]

What else is there to do while driving?

How about just drive? I hardly turn on the radio when I am driving by myself and find it a great time to think about things I am working on.

[Psyonic]

You're also in a different country, where you don't understand the pop culture around you, and you're far removed from yours. When I spent a month in Thailand I didn't even have to try, but back in the states it's not quite so easy.

[loewenskind]

I spend a fair amount on ITunes every month and I only recently found out that Bieber is a singer (I thought he was some internet guy). I don't know if I've heard a song of his or not.

[bobf]

And how many times would you care to have seen pictures of him, or heard anything about him? Probably zero. So it isn't exactly entirely voluntary, right?

[jerf]

I can't know that I wouldn't care if I haven't heard anything. I do not desire that level of disconnection from culture, merely the ability to control my participation. Which is actually rather easy, I'm finding. Perhaps when my kids get to be teenagers I'll find it a bit more of a challenge, but then, I doubt that's exactly what you mean. (I certainly don't desire that level of disconnection from my family!)

[Semiapies]

I chose to learn what I did about the guy because I encountered an friend's histrionic dislike of the singer and was curious.

So yes, entirely voluntary.

Now, if you'd like to argue that I was "forced" to encounter information by talking to someone I know, then you're going beyond even trying to make victimization out of exposure to media and just showing yourself to long for a hermitage. :)

[bobf]

Of course. It is important and useful to be a part of society, be conversant with the issues of the day, etc. The author's point seemed to simply be that constantly being conversant with popular culture is capable of becoming a timesink.

[roel_v]

How many times would I care to read about yet another 'Facebook is evil!' 'Down with The Man!' 'We're sheep who are being lived by Big Corp' idiotic 'privacy' drivel? None, and yet they show up quite regularly here. I just accept that that's the price to pay to, you know, participating in a broader community where not everybodies ideas and interests are going to 100% overlap with mine, and I skip those articles. Or are you suggesting that any time you run across something that you do not want or are not interested in is somehow a symptom of a general decline in control of our lives, caused by technology?

[gjm11]

I have, to the best of my knowledge, never either seen or heard Justin Bieber. I have not made a conscious effort to avoid his face or his music; I just don't consume a lot of mass media.

So it seems voluntary enough.

[arethuza]

The only reason I know Bieber exists is the South Park episode where Cartman gets Cthulhu to kill him.