I'd like all my followers and subscribers to please welcome Bob Dobbs into the Substack arena! Every word he says is true, or true enough in some frame of reference. I've got lots to say about him–my daring on that front will be exhibited soon enough in email inboxes near you!
After searching extensively, the exact phrase appears in a 2000 interview with J.R. “Bob” Dobbs—he “claims” to be a poet, media lecturer, and enigmatic figure closely associated with McLuhan, James Joyce, and the Church of the SubGenius—where he uses “gerk gawk” to describe McLuhan personally.
In the interview (titled “The Plaza of the Mind Interview with Bob Dobbs”), Dobbs responds to a question about what kind of person McLuhan was: “He was a ‘gerk gawk’ - a guy who gives jerks a bad name. But very kind and generous, full of energy. He often changed in different circumstances so you couldn’t predict what he’d do or say next. With him, the medium was the message and the user was the content.”
Background and Context
• Origin of the Term: It seems to be a playful or idiosyncratic coinage by Dobbs, possibly a portmanteau or slang invention blending “jerk” (as in an annoying or unpredictable person) with “gawk” (to stare awkwardly or be a spectator). There’s no broader usage or etymology I could trace beyond this interview—it doesn’t appear in standard dictionaries, McLuhan’s works, or other media theory texts. It might be intended humorously or critically, highlighting McLuhan’s eccentric, shape-shifting personality that could frustrate or outshine “ordinary jerks.”
• Who is Bob Dobbs?: Dobbs (“claims” he was born 1922, actually born in Nova Scotia in 1950) “claims” he was a friend and collaborator of McLuhan starting in the early 1960s, introduced through Buckminster Fuller. He “claims” he lectured extensively on McLuhan’s ideas, co-hosted radio series about him, and incorporated McLuhan’s concepts into his own theories (like the “Android Meme”). Dobbs had a “colorful background” including alleged intelligence work post-WWII and “claims” to be the inspiration of TheChurch of the SubGenius (a satirical “religion” that uses his image as its mascot). He was known for whistleblowing on media and cultural topics via Toronto radio in the 1980s-90s.
• Connection to McLuhan:
Dobbs “claims” he knew McLuhan and often analyzed his work, but they had a complex relationship—Dobbs positioned himself as a “McLuhanite” while noting disagreements among scholars. McLuhan (1911-1980) was a Canadian philosopher famous for predicting how media shapes society, and Dobbs’ description ties into that by referencing McLuhan’s core idea (“the medium is the message”). The term paints McLuhan as brilliantly unpredictable, perhaps so much so that he elevated (or worsened) the concept of being a “jerk” through his intellectual intensity.
bob has played out the 'look i'm a jerk, isn't that edgy?' meme. i'd suggest a rebrand where he actually embraces his Canadian roots more and simply is polite. i know, radical idea
I’ve been putting off reading Dostoevsky for too long… now I will have read him to in order to figure out whether that comparison is a good thing or not! Thanks!
I provide the "system" you require.
And you know THAT!
And you also know that I overcame the "snob' problem 60 years ago... or never had it to begin with.
You know that I'm known as that rare person who "will talk to anybody".
AND I've talked with the most sophisticated minds of the 20th Century... and even became the chief archivists of a few of them.
And I do it on every weekly podcast I've made for decades.
But you are learning from me - and I congratulate you for getting this far.
Now, if you dare, tell them about me like you said you would on this substack about 2 years ago... or don't.
I'd like all my followers and subscribers to please welcome Bob Dobbs into the Substack arena! Every word he says is true, or true enough in some frame of reference. I've got lots to say about him–my daring on that front will be exhibited soon enough in email inboxes near you!
PRAISE BOB
damn. reduced to bullying clinton on substack.
🤣
Prompt : What is a “Gerk Gawk”?
After searching extensively, the exact phrase appears in a 2000 interview with J.R. “Bob” Dobbs—he “claims” to be a poet, media lecturer, and enigmatic figure closely associated with McLuhan, James Joyce, and the Church of the SubGenius—where he uses “gerk gawk” to describe McLuhan personally.
In the interview (titled “The Plaza of the Mind Interview with Bob Dobbs”), Dobbs responds to a question about what kind of person McLuhan was: “He was a ‘gerk gawk’ - a guy who gives jerks a bad name. But very kind and generous, full of energy. He often changed in different circumstances so you couldn’t predict what he’d do or say next. With him, the medium was the message and the user was the content.”
Background and Context
• Origin of the Term: It seems to be a playful or idiosyncratic coinage by Dobbs, possibly a portmanteau or slang invention blending “jerk” (as in an annoying or unpredictable person) with “gawk” (to stare awkwardly or be a spectator). There’s no broader usage or etymology I could trace beyond this interview—it doesn’t appear in standard dictionaries, McLuhan’s works, or other media theory texts. It might be intended humorously or critically, highlighting McLuhan’s eccentric, shape-shifting personality that could frustrate or outshine “ordinary jerks.”
• Who is Bob Dobbs?: Dobbs (“claims” he was born 1922, actually born in Nova Scotia in 1950) “claims” he was a friend and collaborator of McLuhan starting in the early 1960s, introduced through Buckminster Fuller. He “claims” he lectured extensively on McLuhan’s ideas, co-hosted radio series about him, and incorporated McLuhan’s concepts into his own theories (like the “Android Meme”). Dobbs had a “colorful background” including alleged intelligence work post-WWII and “claims” to be the inspiration of TheChurch of the SubGenius (a satirical “religion” that uses his image as its mascot). He was known for whistleblowing on media and cultural topics via Toronto radio in the 1980s-90s.
• Connection to McLuhan:
Dobbs “claims” he knew McLuhan and often analyzed his work, but they had a complex relationship—Dobbs positioned himself as a “McLuhanite” while noting disagreements among scholars. McLuhan (1911-1980) was a Canadian philosopher famous for predicting how media shapes society, and Dobbs’ description ties into that by referencing McLuhan’s core idea (“the medium is the message”). The term paints McLuhan as brilliantly unpredictable, perhaps so much so that he elevated (or worsened) the concept of being a “jerk” through his intellectual intensity.
bob has played out the 'look i'm a jerk, isn't that edgy?' meme. i'd suggest a rebrand where he actually embraces his Canadian roots more and simply is polite. i know, radical idea
Notes from the Undergound
I’ve been putting off reading Dostoevsky for too long… now I will have read him to in order to figure out whether that comparison is a good thing or not! Thanks!