Media Chatter

In the 1960’s the abuse of drugs and alcohol in music was like learning to ride your bike as a kid.  It was something that you just were suppose to do and the performers did and they still do now, but not to near the degree.  Why was this such a big problem then and it’s still now?  First, in those  years the perfomers believed that it would help their perfomance if they used the drugs and alcohol.  They also did this to cope with the recent difficulties of racism and the wars going on overseas.  It was a way for them to drop out of the conventional society and some would ultimately drop out by killing themselves over drugs and alcohol.  As long as these artist produced the hits and made the producers money, it did not matter what the artist did to themselves.  The performers in the current music still have a problem with drugs and alcohol and I know that the performers in the currect music idustry have a better understanding of why not to use drugs and alcohol because they have seen and some have experienced first hand on what the consequences of drugs and alcohol can do to people if you let them. Eventhough drugs and alcohol are still present in performers lives and their music, it’s not near as bad as it was in the 1960’s.  In retrospect the performers are cleaner now then they were some forty years ago because we still as people hear about theses things, but it’s not as a shock to all of us now because we all know the consequences.

The information highway is very exciting to me. I can make appointments, cancel appointments and call if I’m going to be late to an appointment all while I’m driving here and there doing errands. I don’t have to stop and look up a number or even remember the number. I can multi-task to the extreme.

Anything that can make life simpler and make my day to day chores and necessary activities a little less painless is good to me. With everyone being so busy these days and having so many responsibilities it is necessary to have the tools to be the most efficient we can be. Efficiency equals achievement equals happiness equals peace for me.

The information highway is beneficial for everyone because it allows access to information that otherwise would be less than easy to obtain. If you can click a few buttons and get a new and easy recipe you are more likely to have dinner at home. If you can pull up information for a class project with little to no effort you’re more likly to do your homework and maybe even enjoy it.

On a bit of a different note, there are of course concerns. Parents need to monitor their kids carefully. The scary thing for a parent is knowing that by that same touch of a button convenience their children could easily pull up harmful information. You can not watch your kids all the time, especially as they get older and have more access to computers without your supervision. You simple have to be informed and educate your children on the dangers of the Internet. With everything there is to be precautions. Embrace the new technology and hold on as we are given more and more.

The new age of computers is quickly emerging and evolving, replacing the old age of printed material.  Just as computers have replaced the card catalogue system in the libraries, so will the technological versions of books replace the original, good old fashioned page and print.  Instead of getting up  to travel  physical distance to the nearest library, one can now attain needed information instantly with one tool without moving from the same room. Convenient, but is anything lost due to this new process?

There is a certain classic integrity within books and the printed page that cannot be merely translated through a monotonous glowing screen. There is more of a sense of ownership and personal communication that comes attached to a book. A book is able to be held and flipped through with hands that feel the texture of the fibers of the page while one takes in the old scent of the yellowed leafs from years of sitting on a shelf at the library, waiting to be picked up again. The book is yours now, and the only copy in the world, for all you know. It is not some cheap text that your eyes skim through on a moniter. The information you hold within the physical text is not readily distributed to millions within seconds. It is yours.

The internet had made research and printed materials readily available in vast amounts within a short span of time requiring very little effort from the one who wants it. But within this convenience, a bit of the old fashioned personal contact is lost between the writer and the reader, and the reader and the book itself.

As if complacency isn’t already running rampant through our society, technological advances come to our “rescue.” Throughout this nation, digitally based Information is absolutely impossible to miss. I believe that individuals, communities, and even the nation as a whole will not be able to avoid the inevitable negative effect that technology will bring.

As a college student, I am completely for the advances that come with digitally based Information. I love the fact that I can click Firefox and have a plethora of information right at my fingertips. The Internet makes my life so much easier from an educational standpoint, but it also hinders my time. I enjoy spending my time e-mailing friends and family and also logging onto Facebook to check/stalk friends’ profiles. These new “inventions” and additions to the Internet cause me to procrastinate and waste time. This is my fault, of course, but I believe that the more additions the Internet has, the more difficult it will be for those as easily influenced as I to ’stumble’ when it comes to actually getting things done.

I believe this general theory will prove to be true not only for individuals, but for communities and nations as well. The Internet provides easy-to-reach answers, and allows for no real knowledge of a subject. It provides instant gratification, and the general public loves it. Soon there will be no need for real skill or talent in a field. The Internet will provide step-by-step instructions on any job or profession. No one will need to know how to do anything. That statement is, of course, a complete assumption, but I believe that eventually it will become a reality. Complacency is a disease that will affect everyone. The Internet just makes that “disease” much more of a actuality.

I believe wholeheartedly that the Internet and other digitally based technology is a huge step for the world, in the form of optimism. I also believe that if it is left to continue growing as it has over the past ten years, laziness and complacency will only get that much easier and more difficult to control.

It seems that with the introduction of the electronic – digital highway every facet of our lives and culture is made easier and more accessible. The Internet has changed the way the world operates. For example, the electronic – digital highway allows for classes to be taken and completed online, bills can be paid over the Internet, business decisions can be made and communications as a whole is magnified ten fold.

Lifestyles are changing because of the convergence of technology which is making all things convenient. Mothers can now buy everything for their homes online, kids can do research papers without even picking up one book in the process. The Internet provides a freedom for anyone to join in which case many different products and services can be reached. Television can be watched from computer screens and music can be made and listened to at the same time.

The advantages of an electronic – digital highway is that it makes everything more convenient. Being able to make calls, listen to music, take classes, watch television and make business decisions all from the same medium is amazing but it’s only the tip of the iceberg. Imagine what electronic – digital highway will be like in 10 years. Technology will continue to evolve and soon everything will be done from behind a computer screen.

I can’t remember the exact time I first encountered the internet. I’ve grown up in a time where the internet has not always been a part of my life. I can still remember when my household did not own a computer and the first computer we did have did not even have the internet on it. It was around 5th grade when my dad first subscribed to America Online. I was allowed to have one of those “kids only” accounts where everything was based on color and games. I was so excited that I got to come up with a nickname for myself, yet I could never think of one. I wasn’t on that much and I never got emails. My primary use for AOL was to instant message the few people I knew who also had an account. The internet was so slow. There was only dial-up, so I could never be on too long in case people were trying to call our house.

Since then the internet has developed greatly. It is no longer slow. We can access it without even tying up the phone lines. Everyone has email, facebook, myspace, or IM. I was my sister’s age when I first encountered the internet, but she has had the internet since she knew how to use a computer. It has become a way of life for people. The more it evolves, the more people have to learn. I still have to help my parents figure things out on our computer. It is amazing how much the internet has changed and how much apart of people’s lives it has become.

I have recently started using a Mac instead of a PC for my computer. That has been a change. I’ve had to learn everything again. I feel like I’m first encountering the internet all over again. There are so many differences and there will always be something new to learn. For now, my usage of the internet has improved a lot since the days of “kids only” America Online,  but there will always be something new to figure out.

I first really became acquainted with the internet when I was in about fifth grade. At first I used it just to research things for school. Being home schooled what else would it be used for? Then as I moved into middle school, I discovered email, a way to stay in touch with friends (even the ones who lived next door) without having to pick up the phone! Though, that wasn’t half as exciting as Instant Messaging.  Now this, I was truly fascinated with, it blew my 12 year old mind. I was able to carry on a conversation with my grand-parents in
Arkansas or my friends in St. Pete without having to wait on them to check their email and reply. 

      By the time I reached high school, I could not have imagined life without the internet. It was pretty much the only way to communicate with friends, besides seeing them in person. Don’t even get me started on online gaming.  Not to mention the endless procrastination opportunities. Of course now, I have almost become dependant on the internet. It has virtually replaced television in my world. It is also the first source I go to when researching anything.

     What made my introduction to the internet so different from other media sources, such as television and print, was that it was something new and innovative. Not to say the other sources weren’t innovative when they came out. They were just as big to their generation as the internet is to mine. But, TV and Newspapers had been around for a long time by the time I came around. They were nothing new to me.  The internet, however, opened up a whole new world of opportunity, not to mention the hype made it even more appealing. Now of course it’s simply a part of my everyday life, just as whatever the next advancement will be to the next generation.

True community is a bond that is shared between multiple people. Since the beginning of time people have been living in communities and organizing themselves into communities. Community can be defined by where you live or by interests and characteristics. This community of interests is a lot deeper than the community that defines where you live. When you align yourself into a community like this you make bonds with people. When communities are taken to the internet they lose their human touch. It is possible to make a bond, but it just can’t be the same. You don’t have to really be a friend to be in community with someone online. You just have to share the same interests. Many people in online communities don’t have any idea who their online peers are. That isn’t what true community is really about. True community is really about a human bond between people, but virtual communities keep these bonds on the other side of the computer screen.

I remember the first day that my family got the internet. I was so excited because now I could talk to all of my friends online and meet new people in chatrooms. Those were the days that chatrooms were not so dangerous. I was the oldest so I thought it was great to be the first one on the computer. I remember making up my my screename and meeting so many new people from all around the world on the chatrooms. I had discovered a whole new world. I could not believe that someone could type something in to a little box and it would show up on someone else’s computer. Being from a small town, I was very sheltered. It did not take me long to realize that not everyone had the same beliefs as I had and that not everyone was very nice. I decided very quickly that those chatrooms were not the places that I wanted to be. 

Even though chatrooms were not good when I was younger, they are much more dnagerous now than they were then. These days, my younger sister, who is ten, would never be allowed in a chatroom. The internet is a much more dangerous place now. As time goes by it will only get more dangerous. All other media has done the same thing. We say things on the radio and show things on television that would never had been allowed twenty years ago. We have to take the good with the bad. As time goes on we will just have to be more careful who we let in to our computers.

The world wide web is made up of many virtual communities. When one logs onto the internet, communities are found left and right, from Myspace to Yahoo! Messenger. In our generation, you are almost looked down upon if you are not a “member” of one of these popular communities.

The question that arises when examining these communities, is whether or not they are genuine communities. When a part of one of these communities, you usually over time adopt many “friends”. One of the goals for some, on the student based population of Facebook, is to see how many friends one can have even if one does not normally associate with some of these “friends” on a normal basis. This makes one wonder how genuine are some of these communites?

I believe there are two ways to look at these commmunities. To make a community genuine it should be made up of real people who care about one another, and  who want to interact and partake in anothers life. With the many online communities that are available, it is easy for you to keep in contact with your friends on a daily basis. Therefore, within your virtual community that you partake in, you can contact those friends to keep in touch. I perceive this type of interaction as a genuine community.

On the other hand, with some of these communities you tend to see a trend of people being fake, becuase of the contest to see how many friends one can have. This is where the communities drift away from being genuine. People post things on their sight that is untue to make people believe they are something that they are not. This gives others false impressions which ultimately ends up in lying and deception and it tints the glass of which we see one another. To me this type of virtual community is not genuine.

There are many ways to use the virtual communites. In my eyes, whether one uses it to keep in touch with their real friends, or one uses it to try to trick people into liking them is what determines whether it is genuine virtual community or not.

With the increasing popularity of online communication, an obvious decrease in the original and more personal forms of communication can be clearly noticed.  Although by definition, a community can be described simply as a group of people who inhabit a specific region or share a common interest or set of ideas, the sense of “community” that is essential to a true community’s existence is noticeably lacking in these virtual “communities.”

When considering whether or not an online network of users can possess a sense of community, it is necessary to examine what this “sense of community” involves.  In physical communities such as neighborhoods, churches, or schools, its members not only share a common interest, but they also maintain a mutual interest for the well-being of one another.  For example, when an individual makes the decision to become a member of an established neighborhood, he or she typically makes a commitment to care for their property in a way that will represent their neighborhood in a positive way.  He or she also typically becomes involved with the surrounding neighbors and looks out for the neighborhood as a whole, committing to activities such as the “Neighborhood Watch.”  This commitment is made because it is established that the community is composed of its individual members, and when a single member fails to maintain his or her individual responsibility, it can affect the entire community, including its individual members.  Similar concepts exist in other communities as well.  Within communities, relationships are inevitably formed between its members because of their frequent interaction and overall effect on one another.

When applying this concept of community to virtual communities, one must question whether these networks can rightfully be given this title.  Do the members share a common interest?  Most likely.  Do the actions of a single member affect the other members? Perhaps.  But do the members genuinely care about their fellow members?  Probably not.  When a person becomes a member of an online community, he or she joins to pursue the advancement of their own interests.  For example, the online music source “Limewire” is considered to be a virtual community.  Although its users are linked, and have somewhat of an effect on the membership of others, the individuals do not care for or have personal relationships with other members.  As is the case with other virtual communities, there is no existing sense of community.  Without this sense, they are simply people with a common purpose or goal, as unrelated to one another as if there was no common interest at all.

Virtual communties are increasing at an enormous rate.  Not only are people making new friends on the web, they’re also creating these communities daily.  Virtual, or “online” communities, are a easy way for people to talk others and build friendships, without ever seeing these people face to face. 

Are these virtual communities genuine communities?  Do these people actually have friendships, although they’ve never seen one another?  These and similar questions can generate some interesting conversations.   I believe that these virtual communities are indeed genuine communities.

Often, people act very differently online than they do in person.  For example, someone who is very shy or has trouble meeting people might become very popular online.  These virtual communities are full of people who are reaching out to make new friends.  Many feel there is less pressure online, because they are not being judged on their physical appearance, speech, or social status. 

Although many may see these communities as insincere, the fact that these people are finding support through there groups makes them genuine.  The fact that most of them have never met is underminded by the fact that these people are there to support each other through thick and thin.  Their bond may actually be strengthened through the fact that they’ve never seen one another.  As people, we all judge others.  Because these virtual communities are often formed on words alone, no pictures, friendships are made through similar interests, tastes, and points of view.  A housewife from North Dakota may bond with a biker from Florida, all because they didn’t meet face to face.

In conclusion, virtual communities are a great idea.  Some may find life long friends through these websites, some may even find spouses!  However, all will find support, which is what a community is really about.  For that fact, virtual communities are genuine communities.

When someone hears the word community, they think of socializing and togetherness. It is hard to say if a virtual community is in fact a genuine community. In some ways I think that it can be however, there are some characteristics of a regular community that are not found in a virtual community.

There are many ways that a virtual community can provide these same characteristics. People are able to interact with one another through Instant Messenger, Email, Chat rooms and now even through video chats in an “online” community. All of these things keep people in touch with other people the same way that they would in a regular community. Some people might even argue that it is easier to get to know someone on the Internet because there is not that pressure of having to put on a show and try to impress other. At the same time, there are other people who would argue the opposite and say that it is easier for someone to be someone that they are not in a virtual community. Even though through all of these different features people can communicate, there is not the option of interacting with one another face to face. In a regular community you can see the person and be in the presence of each other. When it is just a virtual relationship, there is not that option. I think that in some ways it is hard to form a relationship with someone when you can not talk to them and physically see them. Some people would say that it works for the online dating services all of the time. In my opinion a virtual community is a community but at the same time can not give a person the close, personal feeling with another person like a regular community can.

Ch 2: Internet, August 28th

Do you think virtual communities are genuine communities? Why or why not?

I think that virtual communities could be genuine if people allowed them to be, however most people have so many issues or a past that they hide behind in reality that something virtual makes it to easy to fabricate details about themselves or feelings about life or other people. Brad Paisley has a song called “Online” that I feel is a great representation of what could happen with an online community such as myspace or facebook. There is a pretty amusing music video HERE on youtube if you want to check it out. The chorus says “I’m so much cooler online.” The fact is that when you are online you really can be anyone and anything you want to be. Just like this old comic from the New Yorker,

Another issue that causes problems is that you cannot see people face to face. This creates a problem in most online instances because things like sarcasm and body language cannot be taken into account. It causes misunderstandings and arguments that would not happen in real face to face situations. So in conclusion, no, I don’t think online communities are very genuine – at least not all the time.

As we look into the past everything was based on print. The news would be printed and people would read it but it would take days to complete everything just to put it out there for the public. If the town or city that a person lived in was not near any print-oriented associations then they would be lost to the news traveling around the world. As time progressed things started to change and the ways to get information improved. Computers started to take a huge part of the society and people began to rely on them to get information. Computers can have information put out by one person and people all over the world can recieve it. With this new improvement journalist and news repoters began to fade away from the printed-oriented way of gathering and then printing information. Now they can get onto the computer, find the newest imformation they need, and then even post it on websites or blogs and people all over the world read it. Without this technical advance alot of people would be lost to what is happening around them. People can now with a click of a mouse bring up anykind of information they want whether it be old or new in matter of seconds. If a person was to think about getting information days after it happened they would be shocked, now its almost minutes after an event that people find out about it no matter where they are.

Many wonder what will happen to the world, when we completely become an information age based on digital communication. What will happen to the average person, better yet what will the world be like? When most of the world reaches the twenty- first century by purchasing a personal computer and an internet plan, they will have more freedom and variety in media outlets to obtain news resources. They will not have to wait for the ten o’clock news, but will be able to have anything and everything at their fingertips waiting to be read.  People will also have a chance to interact with the media “middle men”, telling them what they want to read and know about. So what does this means for the world in general? It means as whole we are all connected to each other whether we read other people blogs, news or juicy gossip. However this new digitally operated information age is not good for everyone, printed news whether it be  newspapers or  magazines, the popularity will soon start to dwindle, many people  will not buy a piece of news when they can get it for free off the internet. For the world, in general the internet broadcastings of news are good way for people to get quick and easy news for free and they get to interact with the news creators.  But for these primitive sources of news (newspapers and magazines) then numbers will begin to decrease, because of sheer lack of advancement.

I honesetly do not remember a time in my life when a computer was not in my household. Someone was always playing a silly game or actually doing something productive. Overall, this everyday device was nothing more in my head as something else “to do”. My very first encounter of the internet was when my brother was bragging about how he was able talk to his friends…all at once. My brother being four years older than me, obviously took the pedastool of being cooler than I, so immediately I was interested. I believe what caught my true attention was being able to come up with a creative “name” that would represent me in the “internet world”. So for anyone at my age of eleven, this became a new “activity” that would allow me to get on as much as I wished and become closer to my friends at that age.

When I think about this form of media now, I am still as used to it as much as before, but amazed at how much everyone has explored the possiblities of what the internet can offer and do.

I was brought up not understanding why people read the newspaper or sent letters. Why do those things if you can just watch or instantly send the same information? At this age I did not realize I was not brought up in a time to understand I was lucky to have grown to learn a new technology that has and still will change our lifestyle. I was actually able to choose when I wanted to do something, rather than waiting to see my favorite show at five. In our generation because more is available and more possibilities are achieved, more is expected.

During the time of my first internet encounter, my immediate family was computer illiterate. However, my grandfather knew a lot about computers and had a feeling that the internet was going to change the way the world worked. He was right.

I was in the 5th grade at the age of 12. Knowing very little about computers at this point, my grandparents had us over for dinner to show us what they have recently purchased. My grandfather told my Dad that he purchased a service called, “WebTV”. Not knowing anything about the internet at this point, I thought WebTV was a satellite service for extra channels. After dinner, I was introduced to something that was about to change my life.

This experience was nothing like television or radio. It was beyond anything a 12 year old boy could ever dream of. So much information was given over this, “WebTV” device that I didn’t know what to do. Anything I could even think of, I could access. From the weather in California to Carolina Panthers football scores. I had it and loved it.

That night, I ended staying up all night at my grandparents house surfing the internet (at that time I referred to it as the “World Wide Web”). It was a life changing event for me and I still use the internet daily.

I was immediately attracted to the lyrics of Avril Lavigne’s first single, “Complicated” when I was in the 8th grade. I remember the first time that I heard it on the radio after a particularly emotional day I had in a time of my life that I was desperate to find some sort of guidance in “finding myself”. It was as if the song was screaming to me, “Chill out- it’s all gonna be okay. People have felt what you’re feeling now and there’s no need to complicate things. Just be yourself and don’t pretend to be like someone else.” As cheesy as that sounds, that seemed to mark a beginning in that part of middle school in which I really started to search and evaluate who I was compared to everyone else that I just seemed to follow. I had always felt different in the way that I did not care about what everyone else liked or did, I only pretended to for awhile. I did not care about N’Sync or the Backstreet Boys. I did not care about “who-broke-up-with-who” or all the “he-said, she-said” gossip. It made me feel fake to pretend that I did. I still wanted to fit in and everything, but not at the cost of acting like anyone but myself. Finally I had found something that was telling me that it was okay to “let go” and just be genuine.

Of course “Complicated” became my favorite song. It became woven into my identity, in a sense. I bought Avril’s first album, then I began to look her up in magazines that I usually passed by in the store. I wanted to learn more about the artist that gave me this new courage and wisdom. I began to adopt the “punk” genre and it’s style slowly integrated into mine- from the music to the clothes. Avril was my role model for a year or so.

Then my tastes progressed. As I listened to Avril, I started also listening to some of the heavier punk. This was when I realized that this kind of punk music was different from Avril’s proclaimed “punk sound”. Avril’s style began to sound like more of the light pop-punk sound, and I began to shun this and gravitate toward the heavier rhythms. These new bands I discovered still relatively had the same message to me, and I learned from all of it that it’s okay to be different. If someone does not like that, you are not obligated to change who you truly are to please them. It taught me how important a true sense of identity is, and that one should not compromise their values just because it goes against what is popular or maybe even offend some.

I’ll admit the song “Wannabe” still brings a smile to my face.  I more than likely could sing along with the chorus.  Actually, I take that back.  I could sing every word, maybe even with no music.  I believe I could tell you the lyrics of several Spice Girls songs with no problem.  And as fanatic as it might sound, I could probably tell you interesting facts about each member of the group. 

Basically, my later elementary years were dominated by the Spice Girls.  For about 2 years, I listened to their CD’s, watched their music videos, danced to their songs, and rented their movies.  My girlfriends and I even had a Spice Girls club.  We each acted as one of the band members, dressing up and performing the songs.

Eventually, my love affair with the singing Brits died off.  As I became more mature, my musical interests changed.  Instead of the Spice Girls, I was listening to NSYNC, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera.  Looking back, I realize how ridiculous the lyrics “I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna really really really wanna zigazig ha” seem.   I also realize just why these girls were such a big part of my life.

I cannot totally blame the media for my obsession, but now that I have grown older I can see how the media affected my view of the band.  In the late 1990s, Spice Girls shook the nation.  They were everywhere- from the TV screen to the radio, from lunchboxes to billboards.  Fans of all ages, myself included, literally became obsessed with the band.  Every young girl, and probably a few boys, loved the band.

The Spice Girls were pushed on Americans as being the newest and coolest thing.  The fact that the media made such a big deal over these girls greatly increased their popularity.  I liked their music, and the fact that they were so accessible through several different types of media made it easier for me to enjoy it.  All I had to do was turn on the TV or Radio and there they were!

While these girls provided some great entertainment, they didn’t have an impact on forming my identity.  At the time, I enjoyed dressing up like my favorite, Scary Spice, but now that I have matured I realize how comical the band actually was.  My interests from 10 years ago do not affect the way that I act today, thankfully.  I don’t think anyone would like to see me in a British flag baby-doll dress.

The media fills children with the image that cigarettes and alcohol are cool and exciting when in reality it only causes serious problems. T.V. programs will show teenagers at parties, games, and social events smoking and drinking. The youth today will try anything and stick with it just as long as they fit in wth a certain crowd. The biggest thing that is left out of these programs and even commercials are the risk that they are taking. Smoking comes with the chance of cancer and drinking can come with the risk of having a wreck while driving drunk and possibly killling someone else in the process.

If the use of cigarettes and alcohol are going to be promoted in a media broadcast then the serious effects of it should be shown as a result. If the media hides what really can happen then  they could be put to blame for the results that some may encounter. To help get the risk known before every promotion a warning could be put out just to let people know the risk they are taking.

The use of these products on T.V. programs should be banned unless they show the deadly side effects. With youth thinking that its cool to smoke or drink alcohol they are going to keep doing it. I would take cigarettes and alcohol out of T.V. programs or even commercials all together to stop the promotion of it. With the media being the biggest part in helping people make up their minds on what to do, it would be smart to start with that. Even if youth continue to smoke and drink the ones to come have a better chance to avoid it if they don’t get influenced by the media.

An overdose of anything is too much. I would be the first to say I love email. I love TV and all the other forms of media. When a child spends all afternoon on the computer playing games or all afternoon watching TV there is a problem. I don’t believe the problem is the sources of this information or the information itself. The modern world would not be so modern if we did not make use of these items.

In traditional or native cultures where often times the beliefs and way of life focus on family and doing for others the modern media and technology could be of conflict for these individuals. If taken in moderate doses, like medication, it could be helpful. The postmodern forms of communication could be used to expand their way of life. New information and resources are certainly there. Productivity of daily chores and responsibilities could greatly improve. The conflict comes with the abuse of these helpful sources of communication. We hear about it all the time. Someone took advantage of the information they were exposed to and misused it. Kids becoming lazy and non-compliant due to video games and computers.

Information availability has been thrown on modern society so abundantly and so quickly that we have not come to control it completly yet. For traditional and native cultures this lack of control is scary to their way of life. This information overload threatens their family values. Their families are being exposed to things they haven’t been in the past. This new communication era discredits the very structure of their families. The normal family talks and family dinners are becoming a thing of the past in lew of computer or TV time.

Careful consideration and moderation should be used in allowing exposure to all of this new information. Progress is always good when all aspects are considered and evaluated. We can not blindly trust in the media to use good judgement based on our own personal beliefs and values. We must take the responsibility to educate ourselves and our families so we all can take advantage of this new age of technology.

In the past seven years our communication technology has really progressed, from high –speed internet to the super advanced iphone. Our communication connections are more centered around electronic devices than one on one confrontation. In 2006 there were almost 2.4 billion cell phone users worldwide and every minute 1,000 people bought a plan. What happened to spending time with someone and actually talking to them in the flesh? Cell phones, email and the internet happened. And yes, to a certain extent these means of communications can help someone in an emergency, or be a quick way to reach some one and even help developing countries receive some method of communications. But in other ways, having all these means of communications decreases the amount of human contact. It also cheapens conversations; no one can really get to know someone over the phone or through a brief conversation on the internet. This not only effects human connections, but what about the way we speak? I have actually heard someone use text language in front of me: the “words” idk, omg, and ttyl have all been said at one point or another. This can only cause a decrease in language efficiency, if someone talked like this all the time are they not conditioning themselves to sound ignorant? Forgetting the English language is not the only problem that society is facing with cell phones; schools are having an increase in the amount of students who use their cell phones in class, mostly to text. This is not only distracting the texter from the teachers lecture, but what about all the bystanders that are earnestly trying to learn, how can they pay attention when they keep hearing monotonous taps of the keys being pressed. What can be done about the electronic rage? Should the government limit the amount of electronic devices of communication we can buy or own? Or should we as individuals have some type of self control to know when enough is enough? Hopefully, most would pick the latter of two, so that human connection will not be like an endangered species.