Embracing Modernity: Museams and Media

In the contemporary environment that is characterized by the abundance of new media, the Internet, the archetype of them, influences all aspects of human activity. Traditional institutions such as the museums are not an exception as they try to exploit the latest developments in new media in order to become more up to date and more attractive to their audience. In order for the museums to continue serving their important social role and reach the young generations that grow up in a new media environment, they have to exploit the opportunities that the Internet offers. As the Internet poses both important opportunities and challenges for the museum field, museums have to make important decisions about the way they in which they should embrace the possibilities of the Internet. This thesis researches how museums exploit the interactive possibilities of the Internet. More specifically, it aims at examining the presence and the nature of interactive features on the museum websites as well as the possibilities that those features offer to the users. Moreover, the influence of the subject of the museum in the employment of interactive features on the museum websites is also researched along with the relation between the goals of the museum and the museum website. For that purpose, three Dutch museums of different subjects (art, photography and architecture) were selected as the sample of the present research. Interactivity is considered an important attribute of new media and thus the Internet. Thereby, in the present study that focuses on the employment of the Internet possibilities in the museum field, the concept of interactivity is used as the axis of the research design. A seven dimensional model of interactivity was developed for the examination of the three museum websites in terms of presence and nature of interactive features. A qualitative approach was followed in the present research as content analysis was applied on the three museum websites along with interviews with professionals from the three museums in order to supplement the findings in the museum websites with professional perspectives. The three Dutch museum websites were found relatively innovative and interactive. They all presented online collections as well as several different interactive features. The subject of the museum was found as an important factor that influences the employment of interactive features on the museum website. Moreover, the mission statement and the vision of the museum seem to be reflected on the museum website through the provision of specific interactive features to the users. Another important finding is the fact that museums have started realizing the potential of the Internet to offer edutainment which is one of the main advantages of the museum experience as well as the importance of social network websites and blogs that enhance the sense of belonging in a community. Although, the three museum websites were found interactive and innovative, a critical examination of interactivity on the museum websites is necessary as in some cases it reveals that the interactive features present on the museum websites overcome and at the same time reproduce traditional constraints in the museum field. As the importance of the social role of the museum continuously grows in the contemporary environment, the present thesis is an important contribution in a not thoroughly examined field such as that of museums and the Internet.