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By Root 425 0

book is written in concert with a CD entitled Haunted, composed and performed by the author’s sister, who is a rock singer and performs under the name Poe. Poe’s album is “about” Danielewski’s novel, which is “about” Poe’s album. Adding layer upon layer, Danielewski weaves references to Edgar Allan Poe’s detective fiction throughout his text. In addition to printed words and music, Danielewski designed his work to be integrated with the World Wide Web. He created a sophisticated website where he released fragments of the book and engaged in an extensive online discussion with early readers. When the book eventually was released, it appeared in several versions that were not precisely the same and used different color schemes. Ten years after its publication, www.houseofleaves.com is still a forum for lively debate about the issues this book raises. It is important to stress that this use of the Web was not simply a publicity ploy but forms an important part of the work’s meaning and substance. While Danielewski is clearly the author, his multifaceted work would have been impossible without extensive collaboration. The book extends beyond its covers and keeps developing as texts on the Web proliferate. House of Leaves is, among other things, a haunted house, filled with ghosts, that resembles both a new kind of book and the World Wide Web. By bringing together form and content, Danielewski has created a work that mimics the structure and operation of the networks it explores and through which it is distributed and continues to be produced.

In spite of this book’s originality, it would not be accepted as a thesis in any doctoral program of which I am aware. However, a flourishing industry in publishing doctoral dissertations and scholarly articles has grown up around Danielewski’s work. I believe graduate programs should be willing to accept this kind of multimedia work as a doctoral dissertation in addition to theses written in the traditional way. Permitting students to work in alternative media would not only open new possibilities for creative, analytic and critical work but would also give them experience that will prepare them for careers beyond the academy in fields like entertainment, news and education.

As media expand and diversify, there is a growing need for different kinds of content that can be distributed through a variety of outlets. Major entertainment companies continue to produce low-quality programs for a mass audience. With the emergence of cable television networks, however, more serious programs with carefully targeted audiences are possible. The Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel and especially PBS already televise programs designed to educate as well as entertain. Since digital technology makes it possible to distribute content in different media, the relation between television and the Web has become virtually seamless. Television programs and websites can be coordinated in ways that complement one another. Students with advanced degrees who are technologically savvy would be prepared to work in this industry.

The so-called digital revolution has transformed the news business beyond recognition. With traditional magazines, journals and newspapers fast disappearing, it is very important for people to find new ways to collect, analyze and distribute information. Unfortunately, the increase in the volume of information has been accompanied by a decrease in the quality of the coverage. Thoughtful analysis and interpretation give way to opinion calculated to provoke. To counter this tendency, it is important for people entering news and journalism to have the requisite linguistic and historical background, cultural knowledge and critical ability as well as the experience to express their ideas effectively in media that extend beyond traditional print. If a graduate of the doctoral program in the Study of Religion at Columbia were to get a job with CNN, Fox News or The New York Times, I would count it a major success. But the administration of the university’s graduate school regards such appointments