January 14, 2005
Goodbye, Media Lab Europe
Outside looking in and inside looking out.
Posted by diamante at January 14, 2005 01:23 PM | TrackBackComments
wow, the comments from that blog are pretty ruthless in a way that makes the authors sound bitter about the place for some reason. I was only exposed to a small handful of MLE work, but the stuff I saw was just like the parent media lab, and just like this field of research: hit or miss. What are your thoughts, Michael?
Posted by: will ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://interactive.usc.edu/nav-commenters.gif)
at January 14, 2005 04:01 PM
Two related tensions are at work here. One is that the "traditional" Media Lab sponsor model no longer matches sponsor expectations. Reasons include the economy, the US corporate culture shift, and the fact the MIT Media Lab is no longer alone on the playing field. No one, including MIT, has yet found a successful new paradigm.
The other reason is cultural. Media Lab Europe, Media Lab Asia, and the almost-born Media Lab Korea all experienced “who’s on top?” struggles between the host cultures and MIT. Calling MIT “colonial” may be as true as calling the host cultures naïve. There are no easy solutions here.
As you probably know, I have my own take on these issues (www.artslab.net). Michael L?
Posted by: Michael Naimark at January 14, 2005 05:42 PM
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