Each day on my drive in to work, I listen to AM radio. This morning, the crew on the show were talking about Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. and how they are directly contributing to the “dumbing-down” of America.
I have a problem with this. To me, people who have this line of thinking really do not understand social media at all.
There is SO much more going on through social media than the token status updates (eating lunch, going to the bathroom), FarmVille…the list goes on and on.
I use the web so much more than I did four years ago (around the time social media was getting its start), and would even argue that I’ve learned more in the past four years through social media and the internet than in the previous 25 I’ve lived. Every day I’m learning new things, new ideas, new skills – all of which come through social media.
Twitter for news (often breaking faster than traditional news outlets), YouTube for instructional videos, Facebook to keep up with what those close to me have going on. I understand that a lot of information out there is wrong or biased, but don’t forget the same holds true of traditional media outlets (and sometimes schools) as well. Sure, there are plenty of time-wasters out there, but there are WAY more ways to use these services to enrich your life. It’s like they say, don’t knock it till you try it.
The change isn’t coming, it’s already here. We live in the future we could only dream about as kids.
I, for one, am glad to be a part of it.
