Networks, Society, and Polis: Epistemological Approaches on Mediatization

Debating mediatization 59 The object of communication is aloof and fleeting. It is imperative to educate the eyes to see beyond appearances and focus on the systemic search for the whole to find it, con - sidering the parties without seeing them surprise the wisp of communication. Only in this way the researcher will find his object in the fleeting brightness of the processes. Media pro- cesses, with their relations, interconnections, connections, and interrelationships, demand that one looks, without seeing, transcending the limitation of the particular to perceive the in- terconnection of the universal, going beyond the beings to find the being. Even though particular devices impose themselves with their brilliance in the researcher’s eyes, it is the humility of the process that allows them to unravel the media processes and discover the proper method for dialoguing with them. The object precedes the method. While the object of the research was constituted by the micro-phenomena, that is, the means of communication and their characters, the method did not mean major problems. The advance proposed by qualitative research with focus groups, life stories, ethnography was not enough to go beyond the individualistic perspective and find the system in its entirety. The macrophenomena of media processes remain sovereign, challenging the shrewdness of researchers. The en- vironment formed by media interconnections is refractory to unique methods and approaches. It is present in all media and makes mediatization possible. However, it is aloof and hides behind singular phenomena that, only peripherally, touch the issue of the society in mediatization. The sum and junctions of individual perspectives do not provide an understanding of the environment in its entirety. In addition to sharing methodologies and concepts be- tween the different sciences, the problem of the mediatization of society requires a different approach. The current situation no longer allows an external contemplation, with concepts pur- posely formulated. On the contrary, the researcher who aims to interpret the present moment must allow himself to be touched and challenged in explaining methodologies that emerge from the object itself. The analysis based on fields and technological devices falls short of what is desired and creates problems, when not