What Is Media Noise?
“Twenty-four-hour television… Gets so loud that no one listens… Sex and money and politicians talk, talk, talk… But there really ain’t no conversation… Trapped in our phones and we can’t make it stop.”
Country star Kenny Chesney defined “media noise” perfectly in his 2017 hit song, Noise (1). Since the digital revolution, we have traded information scarcity for an overwhelming surge of data. This abundance often leads to paralysis; the challenge is no longer finding facts but developing the filters to prioritize them.
Because credible information is essential for making life choices that align with our values, it is illogical to outsource curation to for-profit platforms that prioritize their bottom line over our interests. Expecting ourselves to process this unfiltered “firehose” of data without mental exhaustion is unrealistic—and that is exactly where the noise takes hold.
“The Medium Is the Message”
Simple, actionable sorting mechanisms empower students and parents to develop permanent critical thinking skills. But why should we learn them?
In his 1964 work, Understanding Media : The Extensions of Man(2), Marshall McLuhan famously stated, “The medium is the message.” While McLuhan didn’t use the modern term “noise,” he defined the background effects of technology as a “new environment” functioning as a continuous, ambient hum shaping human perception.
Like the buzz of a refrigerator that we only notice when it stops, McLuhan believed the “total environment” a technology creates is more influential than the content itself. The medium dictates how our brains absorb and retain information, acting as a “continually sounding tribal drum” that blankets society in constant, inescapable noise.
The Narcotic Effect of Technology
McLuhan argued that media—radio, TV, and now, the internet—acts as a “narcotic.” By functioning as an extension of our nervous system, technology causes us to become numbed or “narcotized.”
Rooted in the myth of Narcissus, this effect leaves users unaware they are simply interacting with an extension of their own image. This leads to a loss of autonomy and a passive response to how technology shapes both the individual and society.
Digital Addiction and the Modern Brain
The Cleveland Clinic defines narcotics as substances that numb the senses and induce sedation(3). They are notoriously dangerous and highly addictive. While it took decades for the scientific community to catch up, psychologists and neuroscientists now agree: our digital devices trigger the same chemical rewards as sugar, drugs, or alcohol.
As a parent of four, I witnessed this media addiction firsthand. Years ago, while seeking help for my children’s mental health, few professionals would acknowledge the addictive nature of devices. However, a forward-thinking psychologist at the Cleveland Clinic(4) offered a breakthrough: “This is temporary,” he told us. He explained that once we name the problem—addiction—we can apply a proven protocol to treat it.
Just as with alcohol, recovery involves a period of abstinence followed by Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). I have come to view Media and Information Literacies (MIL) as “CBT for the masses,” and I have dedicated my life to sharing these tools with families and educators.
Why Media Literacy Matters Today
When technology functions as a narcotic, it becomes an artificial extension of the body, putting the user into a “state of numbness.” This is a psychological defense mechanism designed to protect the nervous system from the shock of a new medium.
This narcosis prevents us from noticing the “message of the medium”—the profound impact it has on our behavior. We stop engaging critically and simply adapt to the flood. We become, as Pink Floyd sang, “Comfortably Numb.” We witness digital vitriol and accept it as the new standard, losing our capacity for empathy in the process.
Decades ago, Sister Elizabeth Thoman predicted this in Beyond Blame(5), arguing that unchallenged media violence creates a cycle of fear and polarization. Today, the 2026 World Happiness Report(6) confirms these fears, documenting how heavy social media use has “narcotized” our youth. However, the report offers a roadmap: the most resilient nations are those that treat media literacy as a core requirement for all students.
Breaking the “Digital Fentanyl” Cycle
McLuhan predicted that computers would eventually blur the line between our identity and our technology. Today, some call this “digital fentanyl.” The speed and volume of information act like a sedative, leaving us in a state of apathetic craving.
As we pour our identities into social media profiles, we aren’t expanding ourselves; we are alienating ourselves. Like Narcissus, we have moved from being active participants in life to being passive, addicted extensions of our own devices.
How to Reduce Information Overload
Humans are resilient. We navigated the upheaval of the printing press and the dawn of commercial broadcasting. But today is different. We are grappling with a digital velocity that our biology was never designed to process.
Just as CBT helps individuals identify irrational thought loops, MIL trains the public to spot “cognitive traps” set by algorithms and misinformation using three pillars:
1. The Classroom (The Lab): A controlled environment to practice deconstructing media without “real-world” pressure.
2. The Home (The Reinforcement): Turning the dinner table into a place for dialogue rather than an echo chamber.
3. The System (The Infrastructure): Journalists and legislators providing “guardrails” through policy and fact-based reporting.
Kenny Chesney was right: “We can’t sleep, we can’t think, can’t escape the noise.” It is time for a media-literacy-fueled revolution to turn that noise back into a real conversation.
Footnotes:
- Kenny Chesney & co-writers (Ross Copperman, Shane McAnally, and Jon Nite): “Noise” (2017) with permission to site lyrics via public domain. Photo courtesy of Jill Trunnell.
- McLuhan, Marshall (1964) Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man https://archive.org/details/ETC0624
- Cleveland Clinic Opioids & Narcotics (7/22/2025): https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/drugs/21127-opioids
- Cleveland Clinic Psychiatry: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/departments/neurological/depts/psychiatry-psychology
- Center for Media Literacy “Beyond Blame”, Thoman, Elizabeth (1995) https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-05-31-ca-7850-story.html 6 World Happiness Report: Happiness Rankings and Trends (2026) https://www.gallup.com/analytics/349487/world-happiness-report.aspx
Originally published in IC4ML Newsletter – April 2026
