There are some interesting conversations happen around the world about the role of social media and how human behavior is changing alongside the emergence of the newest ways of communication.
Recently on the Colbert Report, Sherry Turkle talked about her recent book "Alone Together". The thesis of her book is summed up by a recent by Paul Harris in an article in The Guardian: "technology is threatening to dominate our lives and make us less human. Under the illusion of allowing us to communicate better, it is actually isolating us from real human interactions in a cyber-reality that is a poor imitation of the real world."
I think this is a fascinating hypothesis, worth conversation and further exploration. I seem to, by default, love the ease of communication and accessibility I have to friends around the world. When you have friends from Canada to England, Germany to Cambodia, and France to Honduras, it seems somewhat miraculous to be able to email, call (with video), text, and instant message all of them for either free or very reasonable prices. Fifty years ago - heck, twenty five years ago - this kind of communication would have racked up a bill a mile long. But I take it for granted that I can instantly write an email to the child I sponsor in Honduras, then have a free video Skype call with my friend in Cambodia, and follow it up with sending a text for just a few cents to another friend in England.
Yet this access does make it difficult to keep up with everyone. I rarely sign into Skype these days, often because I find it more distracting that I can afford with work and school, or simply because I forget to. Emails that are easy to send sometimes take weeks for me to get around to finishing, and loiter in my drafts box for a while. There are so many ways to communicate these days, but I still have many days where I feel the lack of communication in my life. I still write hand-written letters every once in a while, simply because there is something incredibly special about sending and receiving "snail-mail".
But I'm not sure that we're being isolated because of this technology. I think it is a possible repercussion for some people, but I'm not sure it is a societal epidemic. The key point, though, that I take away from this book and the idea of "cyber-skepticism" is that it is good to be skeptical. Just because social patterns are forming does not mean those are necessarily positive steps forward. There is the cited story about the woman who left a Facebook suicide note, and her 1,048 "friends" on Facebook failed to take action to do something, or take it seriously. I think this is a tragic story where there was a disconnect between cyber-life and "real"-life, and should serve as a catalyst for self-examination as an internet society. At the end of the day, I think it isn't the technology we have to worry about - social media is only the tool, neutral without the people and actions behind it.
I agree. "Online" social networking seems to satisfy a need for community, but in the end it turns out to be a junk food (or dessert). It is unhealthy to have it as most of your diet . It's claim to fulfill our need for friends is largely fruitless and even deceptive.
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