explain what Marshall McLuhan means by the medium is the message.

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Meaning of “The Medium is the Message”
McLuhan (4) pointed out in his phrase “the medium is the message” that “the personal and social consequences of any medium – that is, of any extension of ourselves – result from the new scale that is introduced into our affairs by each extension of ourselves, or by any new technology.” According to Sandywell (1410), technology has altered the dynamics of life. In his phrase, McLuhan implies that people have the mandate to control the meaning of the content they relay to other people by whichever media they use (4). Of course, not all people who use a media may possess the required mental capacity to send the accurate information. Instead, the people receiving the message are highly encouraged to reason beyond their thinking. Moreover, McLuhan (4) states that people should approach their environment with an open mind and take note of the developments resulting from technological innovations. As a result, he warns about the tendency of one being distracted and blinded by the content of a media.
McLuhan’s ideas are relevant especially in the current digital world where technology has been integrated into most areas of the society. The film is an excellent example of a media where the theory of McLuhan is applicable. While watching a movie, viewers follow through keenly as the plot unfolds and the characters develop. Towards the end, viewers are expected to draw a conclusion based on their understanding of the plot and characters actions.

Often, the film is interpreted in almost the same way by a majority of viewers as a linear experience (Esslin 112). Relatively, technology has led to the introduction of web translation platform where films can be easily translated into a language that the viewers can understand. However, Lodhia (6) argues that during translation, the message is sometimes altered conveying a different meaning to the viewer. The difference is caused by lack of linear experience of web translation as depicted in the film. In other words, the way a message is being conveyed can alter the meaning of the original message.

Works Cited
Esslin, Martin. The Age of Television: With a New Introduction by the Author. 1st ed., vol. 138, Routledge, 2017.
Lodhia, Sumit. “Is the Medium the Message?” Meditari Accountancy Research, vol. 26, no. 1, Sept. 2018, pp. 2–12.
McLuhan, Marshall. “The medium is the message: An inventory of effects with Quentin Fiore.” New York (1967). 4.
Robbins, Susan P., and Jonathan B. Singer. “From the Editor—The Medium Is the Message: Integrating Social Media and Social Work Education.” Journal of Social Work Education, vol. 50, no. 3, Mar. 2014, pp. 387–390.
Sandywell, Barry. “The Medium Is the Massage.” Information, Communication & Society, vol. 18, no. 12, 2013, pp. 1408–1412.