A matter of time? Sustainability and digital media use

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to unfold and emphasise the relevance of sustainability and time as research topics in media and communication research and discusses the relation of both phenomena with a focus on processes of media appropriation and media consumption. Design/methodology/approach The submission argues theoretically. Firstly, theories on sustainability and media and media and time are presented. Secondly, previous approaches from research on sustainable media use will be discussed. Finally, the authors call for a stronger accentuation of research on digital media, time, and sustainability. Findings The submission shows that previous research on sustainable media use does sufficiently take individual and social time experience into account. Moreover, research is too much focussed on the individual level. The authors therefore argue for three major conceptual changes in research on digital sustainability: time is a sustainable human resource; a shift of perspective from individual to relations is needed; and consideration of the cultural condition of capitalism is necessary. Practical implications This paper includes implications for the future research on digital media, time and sustainability. Originality/value According to the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first one that connects perspectives on time with digital sustainability.