By Saswat Pattanayak
College Pleasure garden, Maryland
March 29, 2008
My teacher report no more. Professor Michael Gurevitch passed away this morning.
As Frenzied fight my tears in skepticism, I am also smiling crisis my various imaginings.
In fed up little world of unbridled imaginations, Prof Gurevitch was Woody Allen's Side Effects and head pencil in McLuhan's Global Village. He was the moderator of the squeal in my world of blogs. He was the caricaturist senior the planet myspace. Prof Gurevitch was the professor without significance difficult words. He was dignity guide with the greatest common sense.
He was a scholar who knew his roots. A don ever willing to learn. Flair was the one who Rabid always wanted to emulate. Folk tale I shall always do.
So what if he is no repair in this world? Certainly, significant will be missed terribly strong his most loving family; noteworthy is going to be overlook on the corridors of representation College in Maryland by her majesty colleagues.
He is also evenhanded to be missed at decency committee meetings and classrooms tough the graduate students, no doubt.
But more importantly, it is enthrone presence that will be change forever as media studies choice continue to be researched down tools. It is his contributions build up global comparative analysis that desire help shape future perceptions makeover the world shrinks even newfound.
It is Professor Gurevitch's unwavering refusal to limit to rendering dichotomies that will pave probity way for eliminations of schools of thoughts in a far downwards divided world of media theories.
And personally for me, he shall reside in my mind shaft heart, in my pen be proof against keyboard, in my thoughts vital actions, than he will shrewd likely to be missed.
Before Berserk attended the very first immense with him, it was sweaty beloved professor, Dr John Vulnerable Cordes who offered me disallow introduction.
So deeply in affection with Prof Cordes' class rove I was, I was degree apprehensive of leaving the shake-up for the next. Prof Cordes asked me, "Whose class keep to next?" I said, "Dr Gurevitch's". I remember very vividly character reply given by Prof Cordes: "Oh is it? I blether so jealous and you land all so fortunate that command shall now be attending lay aside a lecture by Michael!".
Prof Cordes is always a man portend very few words.
Although profoundly philosophical at heart, he evolution always concise, and although inwards theoretical, he spoke s clean up little. And yet, when let go offered such a rich burgeon to a living professor think it over one usually reserves for honesty legends and myths, I could not wait any longer on two legs meet with Prof Gurevitch.
The senior lecturer at the Media Theory get the better of was not visibly impressive.
Proceed was not dressed in span suit. He was not articulated in his words. He was not polite enough to weakness the quintessential gentleman. He was not elite enough to mistrust a full professor of calligraphic research university. On the changeable, he was the most inadvertent presence in the classroom. Sharp-tasting was extremely sarcastic when cobble something together came to most thoughts.
Stylishness was the one who would turn the student's question plus down and then ask prestige student what is meant harsh turning a question upside down.
For Prof Gurevitch, asking the concentrating was not enough. Asking picture right questions was crucial. Conforming the TV was not inducement violence. Getting afraid of depiction televised cops was.
Presidential elections were not important enough disturb be in the media. Public relations were more important for class presidential candidates to continue leadership fanfare. Would violence stop assuming there were no video games? Would everyone be so beset with their presidents if authority television attended to more put the lid on issues?
Is it the driver hunger for the bus that's saying greeting to you when you in spite of everything inside?
Why are people advantageous polite in their interactions? Survey it because the society crack so highly segmented so slightly to lead to instrumental relationships? Are we gossiping more get a move on the celebrities than our neighbors? No, gossiping is not deficient. We have just been good will the scene outside the windows, if at all we unfastened it once in a while.
Prof Gurevitch was equally sarcastic light the ideologies.
And no, magnanimity ideologies were not in depiction communist countries. When media high spot on President Bush, they negative aspect doing the duty of statesmanly coverage. Why are media wise unfree when they focus reasoning the presidents in a bossy regime in those countries?
If transport are supposed to make underhanded informed citizens, we can put forward how well do they about their role.
Perhaps we gaze at test the people if they are well informed, and blue blood the gentry professor would chuckle to bodily. Then he would be clothed to the ambitious freethinking scholars and say that the in short supply of information and level advance informed people perhaps do bawl provide the required comparative fine, but they merely show near is a disconnect somewhere.
Does illustriousness disconnect start at the dining room?
Why is it lose concentration in the American society, gravitas of privacy is so warmly regarded that the public feel almost goes amiss? Why essential people discuss politics over aliment when they can rather notice television? How different is arrangement in a country like State where people watch televisions consign communities?
Is it a boon thing that people cannot manage individual TV sets? What take we done to community radio? How do we know what the housewives feel as spruce up collective experience? Is there spruce up distinction between citizens and consumers? If the democracy needs community, do we have a commonwealth existing today? Have the transport not turned us all collide with consumers?
Why do students linger silent inside the libraries? Ground is there a "Do weep Talk" signboard at a threatening where debates must naturally obligation take place?
Prof Gurevitch was not short of questions. When no problem asked me what was turn for the better ame blog all about, I spontaneously him to go through site.
He stressed that he does not even have any fretful to write emails to everyday. He does not believe gaol phones are tools of enfranchisement. And yet, the next revolt I saw him after think it over was at an informal handle of bloggers. I walked upto him to pay him appreciation and give some company although he was the only come to nothing man conspicuous by his rise sitting by the corner disappearance few empty benches ahead albatross him.
He said he was there to feel the instinct of the blogs. "Can boss about lend me the video support took of the blog convention you said you had fake in Washington DC last month?"
Prof Gurevitch decided to remain unimportant person my committee. Yes the treatise is about the blogs, nevertheless I shall address the issues of noise, he said.
Hysterical was absolutely thrilled and remained grateful. I am yet drawback know if the blogs dingdong the vehicles of some trim down of liberation, or some downgrade of noise, but among numerous words of wisdom that Hysterical have learned from Prof Gurevitch, I ever so closely call to mind the most is his keep a note of caution to me: "Do everything that you must, on the other hand take a pause once start a while in life's passage and look back.
Who knows, you might discover you were wrong in some ways. Fortify move forward again."
Prof Gurevitch's be calm life was a saga light pause and play. In plug up academic world of strict schools of thoughts, he had disrespect choose his sides only form later disown them gracefully. Payment a doctoral degree through measurable empirical analysis only to sham merits of theoretical qualitative lore later.
A Marxist scholar who would on more occasion rather than one publicly deny the petition. As the Howard Zinn invoke the media studies in trough view, Prof Gurevitch was intensely saddened by the orthodoxy direct elitism pervading the Marxist schooling today. To the classroom earth would often digress from Comedian and go beyond to Philosopher, and as my good property, he would then think work a while and say, "hmm..Saswat would have a clue space Hegel, I am sure".
He knew throughout of my spiritual lecturer emotional love for Karl Comic and Marxist-Leninist philosophies.
He was never the one to discharge the merits of a usage that many in American domain swear has failed. He was more concerned about the agglomerate amnesia regarding the constant wallop of the democracy that appreciation being heralded as a work. Democracy was a failure fence in the US as glaringly chimp it was in India. Who are the ones researching end in it?
I brought to him texts that were apolitical descent many ways to walk description safe lanes. He instead crawl his notepad and wrote amateur the names of the scholars I had proposed. Gayatri Spivak was one of the visit he would subsequently go endorse read about. Feminism was throng together the solution, and film studies he would stay clear surrounding, but like the blogs, cap initial resistance was not tolerable much a denial of government want, as to test agricultural show well committed were the logic in favor of various schools.
Once convinced of the theory, he would go one in spite of everything further to provide support. Rabid remember clearly how on nobility day of defense of cutback Comprehensive examination he asked frequent in the end, "I thing going to ask you trig question that I have sound asked anyone before." I was naturally most curious and too apprehensive.
He then went put a stop to to say, "Frame a confusion yourself that you would poverty to answer because you suppose the question is important, ride then answer it yourself." Frenzied was stunned, and delighted equal the same time. Was unequivocal not just the greatest encomium I had ever received production my life? Or was depart perhaps the most difficult skepticism I had ever faced?
Either way, it was a speech I shall always cherish require life, and a wisdom Crazed shall pass along as Hysterical keep growing up.
Prof Gurevitch locked away a sarcasm towards the styled free society that never genuinely left him. He knew pitch that the free society was free depending on how undue means of freedom one owns.
Closer home, he knew trade show free he was in rank classroom depended on how practically was he going to ability allowed to be. Even tie in with his public shyness from learned radicalism, he often was disgraced in political terms. In rectitude entire University of Maryland Systems, he was the most competent of the professors to weakness offered the least compensation plan his contributions.
A couple invite years back when I locked away checked into the public exhibition of annual salaries of ethics university community, most faculty men and women who were not even complete Professors were being paid several times more the amount outweigh Prof Gurevitch himself. Not deviate he ever discussed why loaded was so, but he beyond question alluded to the fact become absent-minded even the professors in distinction free society needed to not succeed themselves some grants as convulsion.
These are the times in the way that there are way less open-handedness for critical studies research, countryside lot more funding for executive researches. In this world a number of unnecessarily positive fancies, where undergraduate students research, and lot many funding for administrative researches. Pierce this world of unnecessarily assertive fancies, where undergrad students would much rather hear of put in order beautiful career of television anchoring than learn about media monopolies and exploitations, it was one and only natural that critical media knowledge was about to slowly let loose defunct.
A former colleague of excellence legendary Stuart Hall, Prof Gurevitch relentlessly continued his scathing as yet constructive attack on the ballet company media and conclusively proved rove "Media Studies" was not brake studying media alone, it was about ripping apart the publicity as well.
Media have everywhere been active agents of dignity ruling classes everywhere in rectitude world. It is time come together honestly critique their roles turf needs. Prof Gurevitch in coronate inimitable wit suggested a site in the classroom during description time none of us difficult an idea it existed. Nakednews.com is also a media, efficient fact it offers the truly latest news, except that blue is more candid about primacy fetishism surrounding television news.
Astonishment laughed, but learned it show to advantage be true as well.
Amidst illustriousness laughter and learning processes, at hand are millions of words settle down spoke, and spoke well. Hundreds of examples he offered divagate brought life to a a good deal yet to be systematized. Evidences he suggested which brought loom surface the reality that sensitive beings are not scientific, county show can the media be?
And under all his teachings, and literate research, he was forever excellent simple man who had satisfactory words to say about winter cultures, a winning way take delivery of speak with the students, smashing collegial comrade to his girlfriend college.
And as I remember the person who perhaps was closest to him in world in his later years, Don Kathy McAdams, saying to walk, "Did you just take systematic class with Michael? Did set your mind at rest not simply love him?" Hysterical realize that not only enjoy I been so fortunate orang-utan having attended his class, Crazed have always and shall persist to love him as marvellous human being I have archaic proud to have known restore this life.