Systematic Review of Media Ecology Theory in the Age of Algorithmic Practices

Media Ecology Theory (MET) faces new research challenges because digital communication systems now employ algorithmic operations that were not part of the theory's original development. This article presents a systematic conceptual review of MET, examining contemporary algorithmic practices through 45 academic works, institutional reports, and books published between 2013 and 2026. The review proceeds across three analytical layers. The first layer examines how foundational MET concepts, specifically McLuhan's notion of media as extensions of human faculties, Postman's critique of technology, and Ong's theory of secondary orality, remain relevant but require substantive reformulation to address algorithm-driven environments. The second layer synthesises the literature on algorithmic mediation, platformisation, and surveillance capitalism to argue that algorithms now function as a structural media environment, not merely as technological tools embedded within that environment. The third layer examines how these patterns are distributed differently across the Global South, drawing on recent African scholarship to demonstrate that Western-derived MET frameworks do not apply universally. The paper introduces a Hybrid Ecology Model that integrates algorithmic governance, data justice, and human agency within a unified analytical architecture. The review concludes that MET retains significant explanatory power but must be expanded to account for the opacity, scalability, and geopolitical asymmetries that define the algorithmic age.