A Replay of "Culture Surrendering to Technology"? A Media Cultural Critical Analysis of the Risks of Artificial Intelligence

Abstract

This paper uses Neil Postman's theory of "technological monopoly" as its theoretical framework to examine the new form of "culture surrendering to technology" in the age of artificial intelligence from the perspective of media cultural critique. The study reveals a triple
alienation: the human subjectivity has evolved from the "container person" of the television era to the "algorithmic person" calculated and
guided by algorithms; deep thinking ability faces systematic "de-skilling" under the assistance of generative artificial intelligence; and the
stratification effect of algorithmic recommendations creates a more hidden "digital iron cage." Based on this, the paper analyzes the loss of
cultural "spirit" and the crisis of subjectivity caused by the intervention of generative artificial intelligence in cultural production. This paper
argues that Postman's theoretical insights from over thirty years ago have received more complex real-world repercussions in the algorithmic
eratechnological monopoly has transformed from "external control" to "internal colonization."