Greene 1

Deneriya Greene

ENC 1101

Professor McGriff

March 9, 2018

Electronic Communication Advancing or Declining Nation?

Studies continue to reveal different information in regards to the positive as well as

negative effects of social media use and texting in relation to their effects on us cognitively. This

ongoing debate among commentators has been susceptible to several different opinions and

research that have been set in place to either provide reasoning as to how we are being damaged

by these particular forms of technology, or how we stand to benefit from them. Despite the fact

that critics retort that the use of texting and social media has seemingly provoked a decline in

communication skills, these advancements have in fact promoted social interaction, broadened

methods of communication, and has benefitted the use of the English language and vocabulary.

Several people have rooted their argument that social interaction has declined due to

texting and social media on the basis that these advancements have provoked a rise in the use of

phones. Along with the excessive use of phones, critics might add to their case that this

generation in particular, is prone to be reliant on their phones because of these new

advancements, thus lowering social interaction. These critics are valid in their point about

increased usage, however they fail to acknowledge the benefits of it. According to Gerald Graff

and Cathy Birkenstein in their article “Is Digital Communication Good or Bad -- or Both” it is

stated that “some praise the web for its ability to bring people together”(169). In other words, the

internet is known for initiating relationships and bonds among people who are less likely to

jumpstart a conversation with one another in person. In addition to recreation interaction being
 Greene 2

sparked through text and social media, academic conversations are also more likely to take place.

As Graff and Birkenstein acknowledges, “the internet allows us to post something and the get

quick, even instantaneous responses … more easily to access multiple perspectives on any

topic”(169). Basically, this highlights the idea that we can create as well as find posts that touch

basis on almost every topic. There are various ways to get different outlooks as well as express

your own outlook on anything researched.

Due to the convenience of the tools made readily available through the evolution of

electronic communication, opponents may feel as though social media and texting has limited the

ways we communicate. As we become more reliant on features such as spell check to correct our

errors, and emojis to convey our messages, we lose the ability to communicate effectively

because we’re so use to texting. Despite critics’ approach, they still failed to shed light on the

fact that we have shaped and converted our language, thus permitting the evolution of it. One

must have some sort of understanding and skill in order to summarize a language in a manner

that it can be used to portray an idea or feeling within the matter of a few characters. We must

also consider that as users, we have to be aware of the tone, attitude, and message we would like

to convey before symbolically representing it through emojis. The ability to compress a concept

into a few text terms and symbols demonstrates cognitive flourishment along with technological

awareness. Advancements in electronic communication is not the only aspect misunderstood

and attacked by critics, but as Steven Pinker, author of “Mind Over Mass Media”, acknowledged

“The decades of television, transistor radios, and rock videos were also decades in which I.Q.

scores rose continuously”(1029). Despite the fact that advancements were met with opposition

and misconceptions, they still showed positive effects on the individuals cognitively.
 Greene 3

Furthermore, the idea the social media and texting has plummeted the English language

due to the need to conform to text language, made by opponents was highlighted in David

Crystal’s article “2b or Not 2b” when he referred to the widely believed story that “ a teenager

had written an so full of textspeak that her teacher was unable to understand it”(901). Crystal

later acknowledged the possibility that the paper and contents was probably a joke. This goes to

show the depth opponents will go to reduce the popularity of texting and communication. Their

argument is usually as a one-way mirror, they didn’t acknowledge the fact that people who text

and use social media seemingly execute different aspects of the English language as they use

tone, attitude, and set the mood; they are also able to alter these things to fit their audience.

Along with those concepts, it also increases the literacy and creativity of society. Crystal

recognizes how bizarre a 160-character poem may appear when introduced but “such a discipline

into the hands of a master, and the result is poetic magic”(904). Poetic texting has one the

support widely of multiple people due to the severity, creativity, and disciplinary action

associated with the art. This is one of many examples of the unacknowledged prestige associated

with texting and social media.

The addition of texting as well as social media has had several beneficial effects on

society. Not only have these advancements in language made life easier as a whole from an

academic and recreational perspective, but it has seemingly paved way for relations, added

knowledge, and several discoveries. Despite the bad picture that critics endlessly aim to create;

we must remember that without these aspects of life we wouldn’t be able to contact those friends

and family members across the country, or have quick and easy access to information online; we

might also find that it we don’t have the convenience of sending quick texts in the case of an
 Greene 4

emergency or time restriction—these are matters not readily discussed by opponents, but they

must be considered when deciding the effectiveness of texting and social media use.
 Greene 5

Works Cited

Crystal, David. “2b or Not 2b.” Everyone’s An Author, edited by Marilyn Moller, W.W.

Norton & Company, 2017, 901-904.

Pinker, Steven. “Mind Over Mass Media.” Everyone’s An Author, edited by Marilyn

Moller, W.W. Norton & Company, 2017, 1029-1030.

Graff, Gerald; Birkenstein Cathy. “Is Digital Communication Good or Bad -- or Both?”

They Say I say The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing, edited by Gerald

Graff and Cathy Birkenstein, W.W. Norton & Company, 2014, 169-170.