Det medialiserede museum: digitale teknologiers transformation af museernes formidling [The mediatized museum: digital technologies' transformation of museum communication]

Abstract

Over the past two decades, digital technologies have gained a greater and more important role in communication and dissemination of knowledge by museums. This article argues that the digitization of museum communication can be viewed as a result of a mediatization process that is connected to a cultural-political and museological focus on digital dissemination, in which user experience, interactivity, and participation are central concepts. The article argues that the different forms of communication, representation, and reception offered by digital media, together with the interactive and social possibilities for action they facilitate for their users, contribute to a transformation of the museum as an institution. It is concluded that the relationship between museum, collection, and users has undergone a number of changes caused by the intervention of the media and that the traditional social act of museum visiting has been transformed and somewhat adapted to new media-created forms of communication and action. From a more general perspective, the article may be regarded as a contribution to a continuous discussion of the role museums must play in a mediatized society.