patterns, producing detailed studies of the shifts 
from orality to literacy (Ong 1982; Olson and 
Torrance eds., 1991), and from manuscripts to the 
printing press (Eisenstein 1979). Younger scholars 
inspired by his ideas have probed media revolutions 
in the 20th century (Czitrom 1982). While 
begrudgingly admitting McLuhan’s importance in 
raising questions about media, many of these 
scholars court academic respectability by 
trivializing his contribution, and downplaying his 
role as a founding figure in their field. (eg. Czitrom; 
Heyer 1988).

“A guy who turns in a fire alarm is not necessarily