Traditional vs. New Age: History

"A person ignorant of their history and origin is a tree without roots."

One cannot successfully move forward if they do not know how to look back from where they came from. You cannot progress if you do not know where you started. You cannot improve if you don't know what to improve on. Such is the importance of studying history. We can use the past as a guideline on the dos and don'ts to live towards a better future. We have to know how concepts flourished and came into what they are today, so that we have a blueprint of what could we improve to our current materials.

The same also applies to media and information. According to this article in NCCA, information and news during the prehistoric times in the Philippines are being transferred through oral communication rather than written archives. Documentations have been more or less implicit on this matter; one has to identify the surroundings to make predictions on what may have happened during a range of time. Polished rocks and wood suggest early human tools, and sketches on caverns have hinted on our past.

Information about our prehistoric times is rather cloudy and muddling. It's basically venturing into the deep unknown without much idea of what's beyond us. We blindly search for evidences, and make up stories and events that can be linked from the evidences found. It's a matter of trial and error. Archaeologists and anthropologists have been attempting to bridge different clues and evidences together, though mankind is far from reaching a definite conclusion.

However, things became easier when dated history came into play. Historians can easily rummage through old texts to find documented events. This time, connecting events becomes easier. A different article in NCCA has enlisted the history of the Philippine press, ever since its early years during the Spanish regime. The events are flawlessly seamed together, transitioning smoothly for every era. Information was easier to obtain and were more reliable than implicit clues from evidences.

We were all tasked to make our own presentations regarding these two articles, with the reporters randomly chosen at the date of presentation. I was one of the students that were drawn from lots. I attempted to bridge these two articles together, often making comparisons that will help my fellow classmates to understand. We were encouraged to ask questions, to which we did on a certain extent.

I learned about the importance of learning media's history. It helped me realize its deep connections to modern media. I grasped the concept that what we have today were derivatives of the past, and are improved to suit the needs of the society better. While there's a huge jump between prehistory and history, it illuminated the concept of connecting events together.

I'm excited to know how events will unfold. What improvements will humanity create in the distant future?