I heard an obvious observation in a podcast to which I was listening yesterday. Paraphrasing and adding my own perspective here: where before if you saw or heard something with which you disagreed, you might make a call or write a letter. It took time. People didn’t normally sit down and have a letter in the mail within seconds of hearing something they thought was wrong. There was intention and thought involved, and quite likely plenty of reflection in editing and rewriting. The writer perhaps even understood that the only way it’d be given any consideration or see the light of day was if it was well-crafted and thoughtful.
But we live in a new world now, and with the comment sections of the internet, the simpler, more thoughtful times are all in the past. And I guarantee you that we are the worse for it. We’ve not only left thoughtfulness in debate behind, we reward the outrageous while discouraging those who were thoughtful in the first place. We live in a time when any crank can get his views out there, and the quicker they are and the hotter the take, the more it rises above (or, more accurately, sinks below) the fray. In just about any forum, it’s only a matter of time before the bad comments pour forth to bury anything of substance and meaning.
But the platforms we use and the media we read and watch need the buzz. They thrive on it. And if you think about it, they’re pretty adept at herding us into certain hot-button corrals. I want to be careful when I say that, though. I’m not saying it in a spirit of deep mistrust for what they’re saying – although there’s plenty of room for that in some cases. I’m saying it in that the content they’re pushing, even if being truthful, feeds a certain narrative. And while this is not necessarily bad, it does tend to give us an impression that certain of the worst in people are the prevalent condition among all of us; when, looking at the bigger picture, it may not be so. Ironically, we can’t forget that the free press protected by our constitution is in fact not entirely free. It still has to work within a capitalistic system, which means it needs the viewers and readers or it goes out of business. For reputation’s sake, it’s important that they’re reliable; but they also have to give the people what they want…and it seems that what the people want is a fight.
In the end though what I think this is really doing is putting the reality of human nature on full display. We are a self-centered bunch. And while I want to be careful not to condemn everyone for the actions of an extreme and vocal minority, I don’t think we all get off the hook either. It’s not that those who remain silent have well-thought-out positions. It could just be that those who are able to exercise any kind of restraint are still in the majority. But will it last?
I don’t control the TV that’s in my office, and I seldom pay any attention to it as it plays in the background; but I find that, perhaps subconsciously, I’m so much happier when it’s on a channel that’s only playing music. If you haven’t noticed, I’m kind of through with what the media tells me is important. I’ve gotten sick of my news feeds giving me a steady diet of the same thing from multiple sources. Even the New York Times – which I’ve recommended (especially its podcast The Daily) on a few occasions here – has worn thin on me. I feel the push and pull of the herdsmen as they coax me toward those issues that are going to make them money, and I’m tired of it. And of course, I gave up on reading the comments long ago. I’ve been off Facebook – which, if you ask me, is one big comment section for the internet – for nearly a year, and I’m still thrilled by my decision to leave it. I haven’t even followed through on my thoughts to advertise this blog there.
And yet, I’m not entirely discouraged. I don’t think it impossible at all that we may come to a day when enough people decide to dial it back to make a difference. The internet and the likes of Facebook may have been a novelty that the older generation didn’t quite know how to control, but younger generations are not a lost cause by any means. They’re smart enough to know when things are not quite right. It’s just that maybe it’s a bit harder for them to grasp what a simpler life may look like. They’ve never seen it.
But I can assure them all of one thing that will get the future rolling in the right direction right now. Don’t read the comments.