The internet has been around for a few decades now, and it is going to be a huge part of humanity until the day we go extinct. You cannot stop its growth. It connects us to each other across the globe, and even into space. The vastness of its possibilities is only impeded by your imagination.
"Man's reach does not exceed his grasp, it exceeds his nerve!" - Nikola Tesla
If you were to tell someone 20 years ago that they would be able to talk to someone, face to face, on the other side of the world, from a computer in your pocket, people would have thought you were crazy. Well, you're not crazy, the time is now.
More than ever we can stay in touch with each other. We can share ideas. We can argue, or we can get along. The internet is a tool for almost anything. The entire breadth of human knowledge is digitized and stored somewhere on the internet. Now that, is crazy.
As magic continues to be pushed into the digital age with social media, and various video platforms, there are some that want it to remain a secret.
It started with small and secretive clubs, then moved to VHS, which apparently was "killing magic." Yet, it did not die, but continued to grow. VHS became DVDs and streaming, magic was still alive and growing. Not we are past that and into sharing video on Instagram and YouTube. Is magic dead? No, it is alive and well, and bigger than ever before.
We have the chance to guide magic in the right direction by aiding in the growth online. If we try to hide it, and keep it secret, all we are doing is letting it grow sour and be taught and shared poorly.
If you don't like how something is being portrayed online, and are doing nothing to show how it should be portrayed, you are just as much of the problem as those sharing "bad" magic.
There is a right and wrong way of doing it. Sharing old ideas with new twists, and educating the youth as to where things come from, should be the norm. Exposure is going to happen, and the secrets of the old will leak into the public domain. If we continue to promote good magic, and good teaching, then it will rise to the top of the public's view. Sitting back and doing nothing but bitch about it will only allow the shit to float to the top.
So let's be part of the solution. Let us embrace the present state of magic, and help it progress into the future. The internet will always be there, and while we cannot stop it, we can guide it in the right direction.
When politicians have found there were leaked info/pictures etc online, they tried everything to “delete” it and make it “go away” and quickly found out that by doing so brought it even more attention and it spread even quicker. Such is the nature of the internet, once the information is out there it cannot be deleted. What The Old Guard, as some call them :P, now only needs to do is realize that the damage is done, a lot of things they don’t want out there is already out there and should only contribute to making things better. And of course not by complaining and not sharing anymore but by sharing and teaching it properly. Teach a new generation of magicians who are extremely eager to learn how to appreciate the art and protect it in a way that only makes it better. How can you deny a small child’s curiosity to learn something that has already grabbed their attention?
If those that resist the internet are so intent with keeping certain aspects of magic a secret then the only possible way to do that is to come up with new methods/effects and never show anyone. Even without the internet, movies or books you can still pass information by word of mouth. It may take longer and your precious method may not be “exposed” until long after you’re dead, but it will eventually become known to anyone that seeks that information.
I recently read a rant from an elderly magician where he openly states he has almost zero knowledge about operating a computer or anything about the internet, but then goes on to dictate what should be allowed online. Why would this person believe they’re an authority on something they know nothing about?
Thank you for including the quote from Nikola Tesla. You are my hero.