Postcards Versus Catalogues
An ever-present aspect of modern life is the advent of digital technology. Not only are we able to stay connected with friends and family, but we are also able to reach huge portions of the world extremely easily and at a very low cost. However, as helpful as this technology has been, there exists one downside: it is cheapening our relationships with those around us.
Take postcards for example: they were once a popular form of commemorating events such as weddings or birthdays by sending them out to friends and family throughout the country or across the world. The association of these postcards with a person's loved one and being able to remember the everyday events that occurred in their lives showed these families that the sender actually cared about them.
What is ironic about this is that, due to digital technology and its ability to communicate at an incredibly high rate, people are no longer using postcards. In fact, many Americans do not even own a postal service–they just go on their computer and send email or text messages instead. In some countries, it's no longer even legal to mail a letter in an envelope–it has been replaced with "snail mail".
In addition to the demise of postcards, we also see the death of catalogs. These paper pamphlets were once regarded as the best way to communicate with customers, especially because companies could charge more for their products and services. Nowadays, everything has been digitized and websites are replacing catalogues by companies such as New York & Co. or Banana Republic. Due to this shift, there is a lot less loyalty towards brands or stores as well as a loss in revenue for them as well.
This is not necessarily a bad thing–after all, technology keeps coming up with ways to make our lives easier–but it is important to note that although it makes things easier, it can also make them colder and less personal.
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Posted by David at 6:18 PM
"I often wonder what my replies would have been if I did a little more research on the matter." - Andrew Jackson Tolles Reply Delete
As it's pointed out, there is a problem with 'desensitization' and using email as a substitute for real-world human contact. It's much harder to feel connected when we're just sending messages back and forth. Reply Delete
Interesting, especially since people here act like they are sending postcards or letters out instead of just typing away on their keyboards. Reply Delete
I'd say that the problem is that people feel a need to constantly be connected, and that's a problem. People feel so insanoly connected to everyone else all the time nowadays, with 'always-online' technology and Facebook etc. People are just so mentally tied down it seems. When you feel like someone's always monitoring your every move (you call them because you feel lonely on-line, but they don't answer), you can't develop any real relationships with people anymore without them feeling like they are being monitored... Or something like that. Reply Delete
I completely disagree with your post, and I believe the opposite to be true. People feel more connected to the world in general then they have ever been because of social media, and I think that is a good thing. Before when you had a birthday party or threw a big event for someone you only invited about 20 people and maybe 10 would come. Now you can update your status on Facebook and everyone who follows will know what is going on at all times, whether it is your birthday or just a random update about something funny that happened to you at work. You can always be in contact with your friends with all the instant messaging programs, and you can just send a quick text if you need to talk to someone or if you are just bored. Reply Delete
I don't know about other people, but I always tried to get my friends to send out cards because at least then I got some kind of coverage from them. The problem with this is that people would inevitably forget and then I'd either be left out or not feel in touch with them (depending on how bad it was). It's much easier for me to bypass all this nonsense by texting them now. Reply Delete
I'm not one to take the stance that technology is a bad thing and I do agree that it has made communication easier in some ways, but I do think it has also created a sort of "fakeness" in terms of relationships. If I text someone many times and they don't respond right away, I'll immediately assume they're mad at me. They might be having a bad day, or something else is going on...but sometimes you just have to wait for an answer. Reply Delete
We actually have to be more connected because of the world we live in today and the nonstop news cycle that needs to be maintained by all kinds of media outlets, including newspapers and other forms of digital media. If we did not have the type of media and technology that is currently widespread, we would be living in a much different world where information was hard to come by. It doesn't really matter if you don't have time to respond or care about a person because of the fast pace world that we live in. Reply Delete
~Ashley~ I think it's probably because of the increase in communication tools available to us today and I can see your point. I do think that people have become to use technology more than they have actually communicated and as a result it has created disconnection between people. While I agree that technology has made communicating easier I also agree that technology and social media has caused us to become more disconnected with one another today than we were just 10, 20 years ago. Technology is not always bad but in the wrong hands can create more problems then solutions. Reply Delete
This may be true, but I do believe that because of the increase in communication tools and tools for connectedness, we are becoming less connected with each other. We aren't talking about somebody we know; we're talking about some stranger who thinks they know you online. I think what we do and how we communicate is changing. People think they know you because they see your updates on Facebook and they talk to you over the phone, but it's not the same as being there in person with that person. I think this finds its way into our lives offline as well. I'm less likely to reach out to somebody than I was a few years ago because of this disconnection. Reply Delete
The problem with email is more about the time delay involved in receiving a response than anything else. If somebody writes back in a couple minutes, fine... if not, then either there is no response or one delayed by hours or days.
Conclusion: I prefer IM for most casual conversations, and email for more serious discussions Reply Delete
I just did a major survey of this. The article is called "Does Technology Disconnect Us?". My hypothesis was that we are becoming more connected and less isolated than ever before. My conclusion: We're just as lonely now as we have ever been. Read the article here: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/does-technology-disconnect-us/ Reply Delete
I find it interesting that you would even ask if our lack of "real world" interaction is making us more connected or disconnected because obviously, the answer is both at once.