for Fandango’s Flashback Friday – from July 25, 2023
Some cultures view disease not as a disorder of the body caused by viruses or microorganisms. They view it as an illness in the community. An objective of healing is to bring the communal body back to health. Rites and rituals are used to bring about a reconciliation of the fabric of society as well as to heal the individual.
Recently I’ve begun to think of this in reverse. Popular trends, technologies, and media are causing dis-ease, confusion, and turmoil in the communal body. The hook that brings people in is the promise to inform, communicate, and channel the community in specific ways.
More and more, these technologies, media, and trends are becoming disruptive. It’s a phenomenon as old as the Industrial Revolution. We invent new technologies and revel in the potential good of their application, but fail to invest in any study of the unintended consequences.
Instead of taking responsibility for the Franenstein’s Monsters they have created, the innovators shrug their shoulders, walk off, and live in wealth. They are not responsible for the fracas that was created. People simply abuse great tools for petty ends.
That argument makes some sense, as much as I dislike it. The old advisement that we are responsible for our actions comes to mind. And after all, if we can’t control our addictive habits for junk food, alcohol, tobacco, and drugs, how can we be expected to curb our motor mouths on social media?
Guess what I’d change in our society? And banning social media is not it because it is not the problem.
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I agree: you can’t blame the tools. So many useful tools have a downside, if misused — but that’s on the owner, not the tool. There’s much potential for good, or for evil, on social media, but we are still responsible for our own actions and addictions.
On the other hand, when we hear of twisted souls reaching out via social media, trying to twist others, like vulnerable teens, folks start to question. Should we collectively pull the plug? Few people seem strong enough to resist peer pressure. If all our friends are blabbing on social media, how can we not be part of it? And there’s the anonymity. I’ve seen some pretty nasty comments people make when they’re just SpaceMan5 or RosyOK. And then there’s Spyware, hacks, and thieving viruses. No wonder people question the value of this tool.
Part of that is why I am just me on the internet. I may get a bit wild sometimes, but I am not hinding behind a”handle” – Spidey 425-22.
Writers can never hide behind a handle or people won’t know what brilliant writers we are and buy our books. 😉
Here Hear!!!!
I’m curious Lou, what *would* you change? I’ve thought so much about this, and I agree that I would not want to ban social media. It reminds me of past popular technology, that humans wanted to blame for the ills of society until we learned how to live with it. Social media seems especially pernicious, but not as much as its younger newer technology generation: machine learning (AI). Still though, the problem is with the humans, not the technology. A lot of us are easily boondoggled and technology makes it easier to fall for things.
I’ve thought about this a bit, and I am reminded of the book ( Train Time) by Stilgoe. In it he explores the huge rash of accidents that occurred as people tired to outrace trains at grade crossings at the beginning of the era of steam trains. Eventually overpasses, underpasses, guarded crossing and other technology was invented to prevent the deaths that happened. Among his points was this: people do not rapidly or sensibly adapt to new technology. social media is the same way. Look, we aren’t allowed to get up in a theater and shout Fire!!! I know censorship may be a dirty word, but I do think that some impositions are needed.
Have you noticed that many papers have done away with the comments sections they created as soon as digital editions were available thing. Almost all the comment sections at papers are now moderated. Those institutions have place limits on the free speech allowed.
Now that you mention it, Lou, I realized I had noticed that about comments, but hadn’t placed any weight on it. But you are right. I have seen bloggers do this also: shutting down comments on certain pieces. When a news source does not want to deal with the repercussions, they simply shut us out.
It gets shut down sometimes to prevent the platform from being used as a spap box for rants, also.
I read an article this morning on people becoming emotionally dependent on AI’s because they get something from AI they aren’t getting from other people — validation, information, patience, attention, support. The article implied that AI was the problem. No. That’s not the problem. People need validation, information, patience, attention, and support. The message there SHOULD be that, say, ChatGPT’s ability to use words — as a language model that’s its shtick — makes it helpful to people in ways we are not helpful to each other (anymore?). That’s just sad, but it’s not the fault of AI.
I thought about my recent experiences with my neighbors/friends of 11 years. Our interaction has deteriorated and when we meet, they have their phones in front of them all the time. One of them sets a timer on her watch so she doesn’t stay more than an hour. It’s a pretty clear message to me.
Yep! phone out = opportunity to disengage.
The most surreal was on a walk out by the river and one of them pulled out her phone to show us photos of Lake Michigan. I was “OK, you don’t want to be here.” 🤣