Walter Benjamin’s Media Theory in the Times of Platform Nihilism

Abstract

This chapter uses Benjamin’s understanding of nihilistic temporal structure of modernity as commodity and his theoretical readings of mass media to assess the ability of two online phenomena, memes and NFT (non-fungible token) art/crypto art, to resist platform nihilism and provide profane illuminations that are able to disrupt the progress of history seen as the eternal return. The chapter follows the understanding of platform nihilism as a contemporary situation of globalized digital social networks presented by Geert Lovink and Nolen Gertz, and the roots of this recognition found in Walter Benjamin’s and Friedrich Nietzsche’s thoughts on nihilism, respectively. The focus on the phenomenon of crypto art and the meme culture demonstrates how these may be expressions as well as subversions of the platform nihilism online. Furthermore, using network culture research and opinions of digital art stakeholders, the chapter reveals that current nihilism is again part of a capitalist commodity structure. Thus Benjamin’s cautiously optimistic view of mass media’s revolutionary abilities and pessimistic views of fascist takeover of mass media of his time lend themselves to an assessment of the current moment in development of memes and NFT art. Again, Benjamin’s questioning of the socio-historical entanglement of media as conditions of possibility of change proves its relevance.