Who do I think I am?

As far as media consumption goes, I'd say I'm typical for my generation. I consume a ton of media via the usual places: Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, as well as various video and audio streaming services. I don't personally critique much unless I'm asked to (which isn't often despite being part of a group of artists), but I draw and produce music and tend to post my favorite works onto the Internet. Granted, I could benefit from being more active in that regard.

A self-portrait, drawn without a reference.

I would say that a fairly large amount of what I consume is shared art, but I'm not really sure what makes something a "media event." Still, I'd wager that I view plenty of those, even if I'm unaware. As far as the media's place in my identity and life, it takes up a huge part. I don't think I could function if I was to completely disconnect for longer than like a day, I'd be bored out of my mind. What is there to do if I'm not even allowed to read, let alone watch or listen to something? Hell, a lot of my identity now is what I consume-- especially the music, art, and what I watch (mostly NBA basketball).

I'm not sure what I'd even talk to people about, like if at the beginning of the conversation I said, "Oh, uh, I've been avoiding all forms of media for a long time, so could we just stick to topics outside of the news, the Internet, music, television, movies, and anything else interesting?" That level of disconnectedness is damn near being Amish in 2019. The culture demands that you stay connected to some degree, and if you aren't, you'll find day-to-day social experiences pretty confusing. Either way, I'm an artist, so I can't exactly stop using social media or viewing other forms of media. That'd be shooting myself in the foot.

For that reason, I think all artists have to include media in their own image. It's nearly impossible to stop it from manifesting in your work in some way, and just as hard (harder, really) to gain exposure while being truly averse to the media. You don't have to like it, but it can't be ignored in this era. It's better to embrace the fact that everything is at our fingertips.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qpT2WAPXWI