Digital Crutch

Throughout the majority of my childhood, I was not granted access to advanced gadgetry and technology. The bulk of my time was spent outside, away from digital media and all of the issues it brings. In addition to insufficient funds, my parents believed they were more responsible if they didn’t allow me to participate in the frivolous distractions of digital media. I was not provided a smartphone until I was 17 years of age. Until this time, I simply communicated with my peers through texting and calling. All of the social attributes of a smartphone were placed upon me once my parents bought me Apple’s iPhone 6. Due to my mature age at the time I received my gadget, I was able to understand how media changes all aspects of your life. Specifically, in my generation, the internet is a powerful force that allows us to share our lives publically. According to Nicholas John in The Age of Sharing, “this a mode of participating in the capitalist order or resisting it.”

One of the biggest mistakes I made with my iPhone 6 was how I used it for school. Earlier in my high school career, one of my teachers stated a compelling argument that “smartphones make people dumb.” At the time, I didn’t understand the grievance, but since using my smartphone I completely agree. Students typically use their smartphones as an academic crutch, assisting them from class to class. To receive information is not a challenge anymore. The concept of a dictionary is foreign to me when all I have to do is ask Siri the definition of a word. My sense of spelling is horrendous. There are words that I could spell in my 7th-grade spelling B that I have trouble spelling now. The texting culture among my generation has made us lazy. Constantly using emoji’s as a replacement for literal expressions affects how we write and verbally communicate. I have even noticed that in my writing I repeatedly have to go through my text to make sure I don’t have any “&”’s, “rn”’s, “Ima”’s, or other texting jargon. Mathematics also became jeopardized. With a scientific calculator on my phone, simple formulas and arithmetic that I could do mentally are now done through my device. Our generation abuses the power of our smartphones for our own academic achievement.

Receiving my iPhone also impacted me socially. A smartphone caused me to have both positive and negative interactions with people. I spent the first 14 years of my life without any social media. In the 8th grade I made a Facebook account, however, I used my parent’s computer. It wasn’t until I got my iPhone when I realized all of the possibilities social media provides. As soon as I could I made Instagram, twitter, and Snapchat accounts, not knowing how people interacted with them. There is a certain type of “code” on these social networks. Internet culture comes with its own rules and regulations that affect how we communicate with each other. If someone likes four or more of your pictures at once that means that they are interested. Hashtags are used to spread political movements. Following more people than you have followers questions your popularity in your community. I didn’t understand any of these trends when I first immersed myself into social media. Communicating with my peers online was difficult, yet offline I felt comfortable. As Zadie Smith stated in her “generation Why article”, this discomfort I had was due to the fear of not knowing or understanding the way my generation communicates.

Without the internet, I believe the social interaction amongst the youth as we know it will crumble. We are in an age where children are having smartphones and other advanced gadgetry by the time they are able to hold one in their hand. The internet is the basis for social interaction amongst our generation. Other forms of media (newspapers, magazines, radio) are dying if they are not already dead. People will be forced to wander outside and communicate face to face. Young adults will have to approach someone they like in person rather than “sliding in dm’s”. Society as we know it would not function correctly without social media. We live in a “microwave era” where people want their entertainment quick and short-lived. People receive their comedy through Instagram stories and YouTube compilations rather than going to a nightclub. Music is now streamed as opposed to purchasing copies from a record store. The internet has allowed us to move through life at a fast pace and I don’t believe we could function at a slower one. As Zadie Smith stated in her Generation Why article, the internet is, “too big to change.”

The internet is a powerful force in today’s culture. Any information, product, or form of entertainment is a click away. Modern culture is sustained through digital media and the technology will only get more advanced. My reflection on my personal experience with these new forms of media has helped me realize how dependent I am on the internet.