If you haven’t seen it yet–this is one VERY incisive and humorous piece of satire about the way we use smart-phones and social media to fill the void of authentic community in our lives:
[youtube link=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIRBxRlsYR0″ width=”590″ height=”315″]
Of course many people have said as much, and made jokes about it–but this video is pretty powerful in highlighting what we’re doing (using humor so it doesn’t seem heavy-handed).
I won’t say more and will try to let the video speak for itself… but I wonder what your reactions to this video are?
It seems we often talk about the technology takeover and it’s effect on our ability to relate to one another in real ways (and I agree it has had quite an effect). Sometimes, though, I wonder if this is truly a new disease or merely the latest iteration of the symptoms of something else. For instance, in the Church, we long ago mastered the art of shallow (if not altogether non-existant) relationships. We attend worship for years with people who are our “friends” whom we barely know in any meaningful or significant way. While we can’t deny the dehumanizing way that we often use social media, might we say that the sanctuary has long served as a living, breathing Facebook for generations, masking (and at times even promoting?) this ruse of relationship? Who knew we were so cutting edge and ahead of our time….
HA!… perhaps social media is just a megaphone to the lips of our behaviors… amplifying the good and the bad
I think that’s a great way to phrase it David. Case in point, the conversation we’re having here is solely the product of social media- if not for this online world, you and I would not “know” one another; I would not have found this post via your twitter and so on…. I’ve been hesitant in the past to think of online relationships as “real” but I have had to reexamine that perspective in light of the professional connections I have been forging via social media in the past year. That said, they are a pale representation of, and a poor substitute for, flesh and blood community. As with so much in life, perhaps balance is the key.
And more to the direct satire of the video, I still don’t grasp our fascination with tweeting pictures of our food…
You’re right, Jeremiah… good thoughts
And be sure to sign up for my Instagram feed as my food pics rock!
I’m a big fan of examining what’s going on with our use of technology, so I really appreciate this. I think there is something to be said for the ease of sharing pictures quickly with a smart phone (as someone who doesn’t have one!), but it’s a convenience that is quickly turned into some strange practices. I think there is a lot to examine in the ways social media and smart phones are used to create an image of ourselves.
well said, ed!
exaggerated social commentary is always funny. I still think this is the funniest iPhone parody yet http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDZUk67FpB0
Ha! This is funny. I like the subtler approach.
I haven’t eaten in days either, however. 🙂