French Literature Reviews - 2026
Y. Citton, Mediarchy
Philosophy, Anthropology and Ideas
Mediarchy
Yves Citton
Le Seuil, coll. "La Couleur des idées"
Publication date 07/09/2017
23.00 € incl. VAT — 416 pages — EAN 9782021349122
We imagine that we live in democracies, whereas we actually live in mediarchies. For rather than peoples or individuals, it is the publics shaped by the media that form the foundations of our political regimes. Even when we denounce the "power of the media," we scarcely grasp the extent to which they condition our perceptions, thoughts, and actions, both individual and collective.
By connecting streams of thought outside our traditional critical and academic frameworks, Yves Citton substantially renews our conceptual toolbox and, screwdriver in hand, sets about reframing our debates. From ecofeminism to network sociology, from deep learning algorithms to infrastructure archaeology, from demonology to engineering design, from mediactivism to mediartivism, the proposed journey broadens our theoretical horizon and political imagination by exploring alternative ways of thinking about the "media."
We cannot escape the conditioning exerted upon us, among us, through us, and within us by our mediarchies. However, this book hopes to help us better perceive this conditioning, better conceive it—and be less subject to it.
Yves Citton is a professor of literature and media at Paris 8 University, having previously taught at Grenoble Alpes University. He co-directs the journal Multitudes and has published, among other works with Éditions Amsterdam, Mythocratie (2010) and Zazirocratie (2011), as well as, with Le Seuil, Renverser l’insoutenable (2012) and Pour une écologie de l’attention (2014).
*
An article on this work can be read on nonfiction.fr:
"Zombification for Better Disenchantment" by F. Duhautoy.
And on laviedesidees.fr:
The study of media influence has long been a central concern within the humanities, particularly as digital environments increasingly mediate social and political life. The work situates the concept of mediarchy within an intellectual landscape that includes infrastructure archaeology and network sociology. These fields examine how technical systems and social structures interact to shape human experience. Readers interested in the intersection of political theory and media studies may find this exploration of how media conditioning operates within contemporary society relevant to their own inquiries into the nature of public discourse.
The work incorporates perspectives from diverse intellectual traditions, ranging from ecofeminism to the study of deep learning algorithms and engineering design. It explores the influence of media on individual and collective actions. The text discusses the conditioning exerted through these systems, aiming to foster a clearer perception of the mechanisms that influence our thoughts and political imagination.