Digital Technology and Computer-Mediated Communication

“Fahrenheit…was about the proliferation of giant screens and the bombardment of factoids. All the popular programs on TV, the competition programs, they don’t give you anything but factoids. They tell you when Napoleon was born but not who he was.” -Ray Bradbury

This quote was from an interview with Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451, as he seemed to almost lament the direction that media and society was going. By that, I mean that he was concerned that people seemed to care more for little tidbits of information rather than the whole story itself. This interview took place in 2001, well before the advent of Facebook or Twitter and yet Bradbury seemed almost prophetic in the direction that news media and social media would go. An article from the USC Annenberg School Center for the Digital Future, listed some of the effects of social media and the digital age have had on society. The first of these effects was that the use of social media had exploded and yet most of the content available had no credibility. Opinions seem to be more useful to this society rather than facts but the danger in that is that opinions and ideas should have a basis in facts and trustworthy reporting.

The Center for the Digital Future coined the term “E-Nuff Already” to describe concern among Internet users about the impact of e-mail on their lives and as social media and digital capabilities have expanded this concern has grown. However, there is research from the Journal of Business Communication that suggests that the use of asynchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC), such as e-mail, actually helps long-term group problem solving decisions.  That would indicate to me that digital progress itself is not the issue but. In that same article, it is suggested that CMC such as social media does not improve group decision making. This had to do with the sociability factor of the different types of CMC. With e-mail, you have a sense of anonymity and you are able to respond at your own pace. The article suggested that it was the nature of e-mail that allowed people who normally would not participate in discussion either with face to face or on social media CMC because they had introverted personalities. People with introverted personalities tended to shy away from discussion in social settings and so this led to a limited view of things.

The question is whether social media can be used to increase society’s interest in “good” information not just factoids. The solution would be to slow down the immediacy of social media but seeing as how that will probably not happen perhaps there can be a way to at least give the illusion of slowing down. That way, the news media can get more interest in the deeper story.

http://www.raybradbury.com/at_home_clips.html

http://annenberg.usc.edu/News%20and%20Events/News/111214CDF.aspx

Berry, Gregory. “Can Computer-Mediated Asynchronous Communication Improve Team Processes and Decision Making? Learning From the Management Literature.” Journal of Business Communication, October 2006, Vol 43, No 4, Pg 344-366.