History of the Concepts of «Media Revolutions» and «Information Revolutions» in Anglo- and Francophone Scholarly Traditions

This article provides a historical and conceptual analysis of the development and evolution of the concepts of “information revolution” and “media revolution” in English- and French-language scholarly traditions in the second half of the 20th and early 21st centuries, primarily within the context of the history of books and media communications. A comparative historical and cultural analysis of the development and use of these concepts in the works of M. McLuhan, E. Eisenstein, R. Debray, and others is provided. Similarities and differences in the approaches of the two traditions are revealed: the Anglo- American school, influenced by futurological models of post-industrial society, often uses the metaphor of “revolution” to describe technological shifts (print, electronic, digital), while French-language scholars offer a more critical and mediaological perspective on the dramatic changes in communications. It is shown how differences in scholarly approaches influence the interpretation of media and information transformations. The author demonstrates that by the 2000s, both traditions had moved away from the rhetoric of revolution, preferring the concepts of “digital transformation” and “convergence.” However, these terms retain heuristic value for retrospective comparisons. The research’s novelty lies in its first comparison of English-language and French-language interpretations of the information and media revolutions, with the aim of identifying their historical roots and ideological undertones. Understanding the differences in the use of these terms can facilitate a more precise and critical application of the concept of “revolution” in relation to the processes of media transformation that shape the development of book culture.