To this day, one of the most effective ways to stay connected on a personal level, for me, is to use the phone. I moved across the country when I was 9, leaving friends and half my family behind. Without the use of the phone, I would have never kept connected with any of them. They keep me posted on the news in their lives, and that of that side of the U.S.A. Of course, emailing and other electronic forms of communication help send quick hellos, but it is nothing like physically talking during a conversation to keep connected. Even to this day, I prefer talking to anyone on the phone over than anything else.
As far as the news goes, the Internet and television mainly keep me posted on the world in which we live. Newspapers are a perfect way to get the news as well, and I enjoy having a hard copy of the history we are creating, but honestly, it is just not as easy. It is not as instant as TV or the Internet, and I hate to wrestle with the size and awkward folds of the newspaper (which, for some reason, I can never get back to making it as neat as before).
Over the years, I have also discovered who to go to in my family for news. If it is the weather, I can always discuss it with my Grandma in Michigan. She knows what the weather is doing in Florida more than I do. And if it is local news and gossip from around town, I can talk to my other Grandma. My parents know most of what is going on in my hometown, and my brother, who works in the Capitol, always knows politics and international affairs. I also have a lot of friends who talk with me about all the recent movies, release dates, gossip and anything else that may be relevant to our lives. I will say, however, I am glad to find the gossip is at a minimum in the group. That's not being connected- that's just a useless passage of time.
The desire to remain connected exists in everyone- it's human nature to feel involved and informed. It makes us feel part of the community, part of the world. We (myself included!) would much rather hear of topics that specifically interest us, or what effects us personally, but it is up to us to make the decisions on what to be informed of. It is up to the media to give all that they have and allow us to decide what we want to tune in to...how we keep in touch.
It is interesting that you mention that your grandmother knows more about the local weather than you do. What do you think of surveys that suggest that younger people, despite having so many ways to keep track of the world, tend to do so poorly when quized on current events?
ReplyDeleteIf my grandmother does not know more of local weather, she is defiantly at the same level. She worries about hurricanes more than we do.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to current events, it does not suprise me that younger generations do not keep up with current events, despite all the communication devices. I think part of it is that they feel so much of it does not directly apply to them. Of course, most of it does, but social security and health care is not as immediately connected to them as movie releases or something of that sort.
It could be a conflict of interest, or just laziness, but those survey's results are not surprising.