The "literariness" of video games
When much energy is spent on showing that P is a perfectly deserving type of Q, the more fundamental question of what P is will often be neglected. These nonproductive (and non-academic) campaigns in favor of marginal media or aesthetic forms of expression are pathetic signs of a larger problem, however: they illustrate only too well the the partial and conservative state of the human sciences, in which nothing can be studied that is not already a field; in which the type rather than the individual qualities of an object determines its value as an accepted member of some canon or another. (Aarseth 16)
This passage immediately reminded me of the controversy that argues for and against video games as art. But that's just one example. Comic books, for instance, have also suffered from a lack of critical approval as a legitimate form of art and literature.
I think I agree with Aarseth, here. Human beings feel the need to categorize everything, and for some reason feel driven to try to force things to fit into the categories that already exist rather than make up new ones. On the other hand, we can't just make up a new category for everything that comes along that's a little different, or it would defeat the purpose of categorization.
The rise of new media on the Internet--sites like YouTube and Facebook, for example--is creating entirely new modes of communication that mimic traditional media but add new twists and features. It will be interesting to see how many of the new media become accepted as legitimate forms of artistic expression and entertainment. I've seen YouTube video series that put some network TV shows to shame, so it's likely that a conflict between the old and the new at some point as more people start to realize what's out there.
There's a certain amount of snobbery surrounding opinions of sites like, say, Wikipedia, in academic settings that discount them as mere trifles, but in truth they are maintained by individuals and teams of people who treat their work seriously and constantly ensure that it isn't marred by bad information.