We need more imposters!

Whose voice(s) can be heard today let alone confront technopoly? How can or should the sensitive, balanced, integral and perceptually equipped individual (aka the would-be critic and/or media activist) contend with the stresses resulting from the psychological effects of alienation from an irrational, decaying and vicious society and simultaneous impulse to merge with the media? This retrospective offers an exploration of how and why the early-McLuhan grappled with these concerns immediately prior to undertaking his public campaign to ‘kick (media) in the guts’. This article seeks to show that self-management – the role and personae McLuhan adopted, the voice(s) with which he spoke, his survival strategies in the face of the maelstrom, and how he positioned himself in relation to his audiences – was an integral feature of his methodology, and how McLuhan’s preparation for his public campaign, conducted in and through an extensive study of other artists, may serve as a viable model of necessary preparation for intelligent action.