Using Font

When I first heard McLuhan’s aphorism “the medium is the message,” I was a bit perplexed. As the statement suggests, the medium—not the message—is the central focus of study. While I understand (at least, I think I understand) the issues surrounding the idea that the medium is the message, I remain skeptical. I question whether an unstable medium should be focused on over the message, especially when that medium came break down so easily—the web browser is “not responding;” the power goes out; one of the applications crashes; cyber flu circulates; or a toddler finds the remote and programs the system to speak in Dutch with Swahili subtitles. However, I do fully support the idea that the medium should enhance the message.

Using the digital medium to support the message is almost limitless in its application. Although print has already incorporated charts, diagrams, and images, digital writers can incorporate them as well as video and audio and hyperlinks to allow for multilinear readings. They are also at more liberty to manipulate colors, font, and arrangement of their digital texts to enhance their meanings, to adjust the tone, or simply to appeal to a particular audience.

One aspect that particularly seems appealing is altering font. It seems to me that readers rarely see multiple fonts in print text. In order to make text more readable and unified, most printers probably use only one or two types of fonts in their texts. The only instance when I saw multiple fonts used in a print text was the Harry Potter series. At several points in the series, the author would provide letters that the characters had written to each other, and of course, each character had his or her own individual handwriting. I particularly enjoyed seeing the different styles because it allowed me to know the characters even more intimately. Each font has its own personality and reflected the personality of the character, much like this video shows the personalities of different fonts.



Also, as the current editor of Pulse magazine, I’ve been particularly interested in seeing how the font can be used to emphasis the content. In almost every past issue, the editors stuck with the tired-and-true Times New Roman. Blah! That ubiquitous font, for me, has come to represent mediocrity and a lack of imagination. Although I want the journal to maintain its professional and literary image, I would like to see it manipulate simple elements like font to further its content.