Anti- Bullying, Communication, Cyberspace and Community

During the recent Olympics I caught a story on Channel 9's A Current Affair of great interest. It brought into mind a few interesting articles from Case # 15 Communication, Cyberspace and Community.

Over the past several months several local papers, digital journals and now ACA have reported on the Wollongong Catholic Education Office’s new Anti-Bullying program – and specifically the fantastic You-Tube video produced by a group of their primary and high school students.

The video speaks for itself, as it very clearly articulates the impact of bullying, and will no doubt provide some great talking points as this multimedia production is used as a teaching tool in many schools. The irony being of course, that the internet, which up until now had been criticized as an tool for student bullying, is now been used a weapon to reduce bullying in schools. The video went viral since its first release in March and has been attracting attention in other countries including England, Switzerland, and the United States. It was certainly heartening to see that this more modern mode of communication being utilised in such a vital project.

Case # 15 Communication, Cyberspace and Community, and in particular Mark  Hadley and David   Horne’s article “The Brave New Online World” is an examination into this vast new mode of communication. They observe

Since the launch of the Internet into the public arena in the nineties and the widespread adoption of mobile technology, our society has undergone a radical change in the way we gather information, learn, communicate and ultimately in the way we relate.

The article goes on to investigate now the internet can be a tool for radical change, instant easy global connection, community, and evangelism. The article, while it does identify some pitfalls of the technology it goes on to conclude

We need to think outside the square, be prepared to try anything, be willing to make mistakes and learn from them, much like the Internet industry itself. It is a Brave New Online World out there but, with God’s help, we can utilise it in our task of disciple-making.

While still in Case # 15,  readers might also read “Truth and the Internet”, just as schools and students (mentioned above) have found the internet as useful teaching and learning tool,  Prof Trevor Cairney in his article discusses how

“the Internet has changed the way most people obtain information and communicate with one another”

The article goes on to investigate the

“many questions about where it might take us. In particular, I have been contemplating how the Internet impacts on the knowledge we gain from it and the way we view the nature of truth”

I very much have enjoyed revisiting some discussion on the usefulness of internet and emerging forms of communication and learning, through my re-reading of Case # 15 Communication, Cyberspace and Community. I have provided some links to the relevant articles and invite Case readers to  check these articles out themselves. Remember Case #31 will be published in the next week or so… it might be time to subscribe to our magazine.

Happy reading!

Send CASE an email

The Impact of the Internet on Learning, Truth and Communication

I wanted to remind readers of this blog of the many resources on the CASE website. Many of the articles, MP3s and even videos are available free. While you need to be a CASE Associate to access everything you might want to check the site out. Below is an extract from an article I wrote for Case # 15 (2008) theme 'Communicate, Cyberspace and Community' which is part of the free resources.

It is indisputable that the Internet has changed the way most people obtain information and communicate with one another. But there are many questions about where it might take us. In particular, I have been contemplating how the Internet impacts on the knowledge we gain from it and the way we view the nature of truth. Does it privilege particular views of the world and specific epistemologies? Does it serve the needs of particular interpretive communities more than others?

I don’t raise these questions as one who fears technology, nor do I raise them with any sense that I know the answers with any certainty. I raise these questions as a constant user of the Internet who wants to understand how it is changing our world. I have been using email for more than 20 years as a daily part of my life; I carry a BlackBerry and can browse the Internet while walking in the street; I write three blogs and read many others; I use the Internet as a constant and valuable resource. I know the wonderful benefits of the Internet and the many positive things it offers. But I also have a concern about the impact it has on my life and on the lives of others.

In one sense, the Internet poses no more problems for Christianity than the cinema, television, radio or even the printed word in all its forms. The Internet is just a tool, like the book and the DVD. The Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky argued that tools are the means by which we understand the world. We have access to material tools that help us to accomplish tasks (e.g. a screwdriver, pencil, computer) as well as psychological tools that enable us to understand our world (e.g. words, letters and numerals). Mathematics and language as symbolic systems are broad examples of psychological tools. Hence, the Internet like other tools is simply a means to understand the world. 

Like other tools the Internet (by which I mean the electronic network that allows us to exchange data in varied forms including social networks, communication tools, web-based resources, sound and video archives etc) is used as an extension of cultural groups (e.g. the family, school, church etc) and its use as a psychological and material tool is learnt in these groups. Much of this occurs with no formal instruction. The tools we use reflect the social and cultural groups in which we live and they are applied as we interact with others. Vygotsky argued that tools mediate our thoughts and actions. With Vygotsky’s concept of the ‘tool’ as background it is worth reflecting on the Internet as an example of a tool. Is the use of the Internet as our primary tool for communication and learning different from the use of books, telephones, letters, and face-to-face communication? The answer I think is yes! But does it matter? Well, it might. There are three key differences between the Internet and other tools for learning and communication that I consider in the article:

a) It is used as part of different, more complex and more changeable interpretive communities,

b) It uses many more modalities for communication in much more interactive ways and with little face-to-face human contact.

c) It provides a much richer tapestry of semiotic opportunities and as such offers a less dominant place to the written word.

I conclude my article with these words:

As we confront our postmodern and sceptical world we need to understand that the Internet can be friend and foe, slave or master. We need to use it as a window on our world and engage with cyber communities for the sake of the gospel. Not in silos of common and accepted beliefs, ideology, culture and a uniform worldview, hoping for the lost to stumble in. Rather, we need to seek out communities of common interest based on common human needs and concerns. We need to approach cyber communities like physical communities: we can be in them without necessarily sharing the same worldview. While there is still a place for Christian communities of interest on the Internet, we need to get beyond an ‘echo chamber’ experience. The Internet has many self-referential communities of interest that are simply silos of like-minded people who hardly make contact with others who hold different worldviews.

You can download the article HERE, view other resources HERE, or simply visit the CASE website HERE.  

You can read all my posts on the Internet and communication HERE (most recent to oldest).

Having the 'right' heart for the Internet

The Internet and new communication technology have had a huge impact on our world. Just like any new technology it is easy to see advantages and problems. Any criticism of the Internet will evoke strong defence because of the many wonderful things that it offers; it is easy to love the Internet. But there will be just as many people who will point to the obvious problems we can identify with its use - misuse of social networks to bully and deceive, online gambling addictions, crime and abuse to name just a few. But it also brings many blessings and opportunities: improved communication between isolated loved ones; a means to bring political accountability and action as occurred with the use of Twitter to monitor the 2009 elections in Zimbabwe; use of mobile phones to enable rescues and prevent crimes; access to information and knowledge at the 'click' of a key; new ways to share biblical truth in varied languages and so on.

In recent weeks in Australia we saw a dramatic rescue of two girls in Adelaide aged 10 and 12. While trapped in a stormwater drain they were able to update their Facebook pages using mobile phones, leading to their rescue (here). Once again, this demonstrates that new technology isn't necessarily the problem it's what we do with it that matters and the hearts and minds that drive our use of technology.

Case magazine focussed on technology in 2008 with an issue that had the theme 'Communication, Cyberspace and Community'. In my contribution to the issue, 'Truth and the Internet', I made the comment:

"The Internet like other tools is simply a means to understand the world. Like other tools it is used as an extension of, and as part of, cultural groups (e.g. the family, school, church etc). It is in such groups that we learn how to use psychological and material tools. Much of this occurs with no formal instruction as children from birth learn through interaction with others. The tools we use reflect the culture in which we live and are applied as we interact with others....tools and the cultural groups within which we live mediate our thoughts and actions."

But while the work of great psychologists like Vygotsky remind us that the Internet is just a tool, any tool can be misused. I'd be less than honest if I didn't say that I have serious worries about the way we use the Internet - and I include myself in the 'we'! I love the Internet but I recognise that I need to use it responsibly. John Smuts from Petersham Baptist Church made this point well in a helpful sermon on Sunday on the Christian and culture and motivated this post. The Bible offers knowledge and wisdom that takes us to the next step, providing us with the guidance that we need to use tools like the Internet wisely. Day by day I need to be thinking about the way I use the Internet and the motives that drive my use:

I need to be careful that I don't use email instead of face-to-face communication.
I need to guard my words and my motives online.
I need to avoid presenting a different and false persona to my virtual world than to the one where people observe me face-to-face (Roberta Kwan's article in Case #18 - 'Name Unknown: Anonymity in the City' is relevant here).
I need to make sure that I don't rob my God, my family or even my employer (see previous post on this here) of the time that I owe to them.
I need to ensure that I observe ethical principles in how I use Internet resources, not stealing that which I should purchase.
I need to avoid becoming addicted to social network sites, online shopping, twitter or blogging.
I need to be an example to others of how best to use the Internet.

Paul's letter to the Philippian church are helpful in offering us a starting point for handling the Internet well. He stresses the importance of our minds as drivers of our actions. At a general level he commends the Philippians to be conscious that their relationships in life are driven by their minds: "Let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ" (Phil 1:27). Be "of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind" (Phil 2:2). "Have this mind among yourself, which is yours in Christ Jesus" - a mind centred on Christ that leads to humility, servanthood and sacrifice (Phil 2:5-8). God is concerned about our minds and what we do with them.

Tools like the Internet can be used for good and evil; for their use reflects the state of human minds. Paul underscores this for his readers later in the letter when he commends them to be concerned about their minds, for he knew that it is the focus of one's mind that dictates what Christ's followers do with their lives. Our minds shape our actions, our priorities and our passions.

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you." (Philippians 4:8-9)

Jesus also taught that it was from within us that our actions are shaped. He spoke of the 'heart' as the shaper of actions.

And he said, "What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person." (Mark 7:21-23)

The lesson is simple. The Internet isn't the problem; it's sin that can drive us to use it in ways that are not for our good. Furthermore, our use of it is shaped by our minds (or 'hearts'). Of course, this doesn't mean that we should be blind to the potential challenges of using the Internet. Like anything that can cause harm, not simply be used for the good, we need to be cautious and make wise decisions about how we use it. It may well be that if we cannot use the Internet wisely that we need to build greater accountability into our own lives and also for our children.

Related Posts & Links

'The Soul in Cyberspace: Wisdom from Groothius' (here)
'Is the Internet Dumbing us Down? 2 Rite' (here)
'Truth and the Internet 2' (here)
'Communication, Cyberspace & Community' (here)
'Writing, Communication Technology & Relationships' (here)

The Soul in Cyberspace: Wisdom from Groothius

Some will have read my previous posts on the Internet and its potential impact on our lives: 'Is the Internet dumbing us down? 2 Rite!' (here), 'Are bloggers robbing their employers?' (here) and 'Writing, communication and relationships' (here).

You can read an excellent interview by Tim Challies with Douglas Groothuis (Professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary) who wrote The Soul in Cyberspace (published in 1997). In the interview Challies asked Groothuis to revisit the key arguments of his book. In particular he asked him to revisit his concern expressed way back in 1997, that cyberspace was taking the place of 'real', face-to-face human contact. His book was many years before Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, blogging and many other applications that keep us busy online. The following quote struck me as particularly relevant for our age:

"But overall cyberspace (and hardly anyone calls it this any more) has diminished community if one means by that embodied relationships bound by troth, friendship, citizenship, and physical proximity. People practice an “absent presence” constantly as they talk on cell phones while checking out at the supermarket or at Starbucks, as they send text messages during classes instead of attending to teachers and students, as they play video games instead of getting to know their spouses and children. One could go on."

Ouch! This goes to the very heart of the way electronic communication has changed our world. How many of us could claim that we have never found themselves being absently present due to technology? How many of us have checked emails, Facebook and other online sites while talking on the phone? How many check emails and SMS messages on their phone when they should be in a conversation with friends, family members or workmates? I've even seen people checking messages during church services. It is difficult to assess the level of impact that technology has on our lives, but it seems likely that it is having an impact on relationships within and outside families. It also seems that our level of dependence, which verges on addiction for some, can have very negative impacts. It is easy to dress up the level of our distraction due to technology and call it other things. We can even praise it as multiskilling, and we could point to other distractions in life that affect relationships. But the truth is that our growing obsession with electronic communication is a problem and that technology, particularly the Internet, is having an impact on our relationships.

What to do about it is the question? For anyone who does find that technology has an impact on their relationships there are choices that we can make that will limit the impact. Here are a few rules I apply to myself:

• I try not to read emails at weekends
• I turn my phone off, or put it on silent when in meetings, when out with my wife etc
• I have set times for blogging and try to limit the hours that it takes (choose end times)
  
• I limit the number of blog posts I write and the number of blogs I read
• I limit the use of social networking sites. I'm on Facebook but I use it for very limited purposes
• I try to avoid answering my mobile when playing with my grandchildren
• I don't email someone when a phone call or face-to-face meeting is possible and better

I don't offer these as relevant for anyone other than myself. For each of us I suspect we know which forms of technology have the greatest potential to affect our relationships. We need to be wise in how we identify our weaknesses and then act. I know how easy it is to be absently present when I have things on my mind, let alone when technology is buzzing and blinking at me all day long.

You can read the entire interview here.

Is the Internet dumbing us down? 2 rite!

I'm a 57 year old academic who has always been an early adopter of technology. I bought my first personal computer in 1982, I began using email as a replacement for letters and memos 20 years ago, I currently write three blogs, maintain my own website, and yes, have even been dragged (kicking and screaming!) by the residents of New College Village to join Facebook. So don't dismiss my comments as those of a technological Luddite. I love the Internet and use it many times almost every day.

But like many people I face the daily challenge of making sure that there is balance in my life, that blogging doesn't move from being a useful and stimulating way to learn and communicate ideas, and instead become a new form of addiction that harms my relationships and diverts me from more substantial and important activities. I have concerns that arise from my academic work in language development (here) about the impact of the Internet on people's lives and our ability to learn, think, read and write. But this post isn't arguing against the Internet and its many applications for communication, it is simply sharing my concerns and those of others about its application and misuse.

Concerns about the Internet

There have been a number of people who have questioned the Internet's impact on us in recent times. In an article in The Atlantic (here) Nicholas Carr asks, "Is the Internet making us stupid?" He comments:

....what the Net seems to be doing is chipping away my capacity for concentration and contemplation. My mind now expects to take in information the way the Net distributes it: in a swiftly moving stream of particles. Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski.

We already know that online reading is different (see my post on this topic here), that we scan the screen in different ways and spend much less time reading single texts online than when we read books. In other words, we read quickly and in more shallow ways rather than engaging in close 'deep' reading (I've probably lost some of you already). But beyond simply being a different way to read, could the extent to which we read and write online have a negative impact on us as readers and learners? While the jury is still out, some researchers think so.

For example, Mokoto Rich (Literacy Debate: Online, R U Really Reading?) points to evidence from Neurological studies that show that learning to read changes the brain’s circuitry. As well, there is more recent speculation that reading on the Internet may also affect the brain’s hard wiring in a way that is different from book reading. Dr Guinevere Eden director of the Center for the Study of Learning at Georgetown University, acknowledges that this is probably occurring and suggests that:

The question is, does it change your brain in some beneficial way? The brain is malleable and adapts to its environment. Whatever the pressures are on us to succeed, our brain will try and deal with it.

There are many claims that people are reading less substantial texts and writing less extended texts. Robert Fisk amusingly claims "everyone wants to be an author but no-one is reading books". He is a basic technology user but curses its impact on him and others:

I blame technology. The internet, email – neither of which I use – and the accursed laptop. I curse the laptop for two reasons. Firstly because I use it. Secondly because it encourages hopeless authorship. It's not that everyone with a laptop thinks they can write a book. The problem is that everyone with a laptop does write a book. They arrive by the dozen, in my Beirut mail bag, unsolicited on my Beirut doorstep, in my European mail. A few are brilliant. Most are awful. They are packed with misspellings, bad grammar and often pseudo-anthropological jargon.

I guess I'd add, and if people aren't writing books they're writing blogs, sending constant SMS messages or even sending constant 'tweets' via Twitter. This might in many cases be good, but for some it may well be unhelpful.

I wrote a post on 'Twitter' about a year ago on my 'Literacy, families and learning' blog (here). At the time I was horrified to think that we might be heading towards an even more banal form of social networking. Twitter seems to reduce communication to the sending of short, often poorly written, trivial texts that we expect others to read. For the uninitiated, Twitter is one of a number of microblogging tools that ask users to tell friends what they’re doing in 140 characters or less. It's a social networking service that allows users to send updates (known as ‘tweets’) that are text-based posts to their friends or strangers for that matter.


While I can see why some of my academic colleagues would welcome the prospect of young people writing constantly to one another and the fostering of the ability to write precise texts, it's difficult to see much that is good about Twitter. If you think Carr was tough on the Internet, this is what he says about Twitter:

And what exactly are we broadcasting? The minutiae of our lives. The moment-by-moment answer to what is, in Twitterland, the most important question in the world: What are you doing? Or, to save four characters: What you doing? Twitter is the telegraph of Narcissus. Not only are you the star of the show, but everything that happens to you, no matter how trifling, is a headline, a media event, a stop-the-presses bulletin. Quicksilver turns to amber.

Maybe this is a bit harsh, I’m prepared to accept that Twitter might just be a useful networking tool for some people. It might help some to keep in touch easily while they are doing other things. But I'm confident that it has greater potential to do harm than good for some people.

Three general concerns

Let me preface my concerns by stating once again that the Internet isn't the problem, it's what we do with it that matters. For example, I'd offer the observation that some of the people I know who are very active users of the Internet are also well read and they write extended texts for publication in non-online publications. But while I welcome the Internet and just about every new clever way we are creatively applying it for learning and communication, I have three key concerns:

Is it 'real' communication? Social networking can lead to very selfish forms of communication, indeed, some forms hardly seem communication at all. To send a tweet in the hope that friends might read it is not to communicate. To post the news that you've just been engaged on Facebook is not communication. Communication requires more than the act of sending or posting information in cyberspace in the hope that others might stumble upon it. Social communication should be an extension of our relationships. Hopefully, we send or share information with others with whom we have a relationship; people who we hope will receive the communication and respond. Far too much web-based communication seems to be about telling others about oneself.

Does it waste too much time? The Internet and in particular social networking and blogging, is soaking up so much of our time that it could be at the expense of other relationships and responsibilities. I wrote recently on this blog and asked the question "might bloggers be robbing their employers (here) of time by blogging at work?" I could extend this question. Might we be robbing our family of time? Might we be engaging in social networking at the expense of the development of a small number of significant relationships? Do we spend so much time online that we don't have time to phone or visit friends, family or neighbours? In fact, how might we be robbing God of time?

Could all this online work affect us as readers, writers and learners? Because the Internet requires a different way of 'reading', might it be changing the way we think? At the very least, might it be adversely affecting our literacy habits? Might it be diverting us from 'deep' reading of substantial texts? Could it be making us proficient at writing blog posts that don't exceed 800 words and messages that don't exceed 160 (or 140 for Twitter) at the expense of other forms of writing that have more lasting value? It is not the Internet that is at fault here, but the forms of writing and reading that it might encourage to excess. I can recall how deskilled I felt when I finished a stint as Dean of a University faculty in the 1990s. In the role I dictated and wrote 20+ memos each day and attended countless meetings. When I went on sabbatical leave at the end of my term to write for 6 months, it took the best part of three months to re-train myself in basic scholarship, to be able to read for sustained periods, and to write long and substantial texts. I see blogging, Facebook, Twitter and so on, as having the potential to do the same thing.

They above are my worried thoughts, I'd welcome your responses if you've made it this far.

Related links

'Twitter dot dash', Nicholas Carr (here)

'Writing, communication and technology' (here)

'Online reading is different' (here)

'The impact of new media on children' (here)

Truth & the Internet 2

In the latest edition of Case magazine I explore the topic ‘Truth and the Internet’. Does the Internet change the way we learn and acquire knowledge? Does it pose a threat to truth? What are the implications for how we engage with and use the Internet for God’s purposes?

Above: Could they have had any idea of what was to come? U.S. Army Photo, number 163-12-62

In a previous post on this blog (here) I commented on the challenge of discerning the difference between truth and falsehood and the special problem that children have on the Internet (e.g. the challenge of a tree dwelling octopus!). And in an earlier post (here) I discussed the impact of new communication technology and the benefits and opportunities of the Internet for communication, learning and evangelism.

I’m a keen user of the Internet and appreciate that it is a useful tool that has great benefits for learning and communication. But I also know that it also poses threats to God’s truth and to the very definitions of truth and knowledge that shape our worldviews. In my Case article, I suggested that there are a few things that are critical if Christians are to make the Internet our servant, not our master:

• We need to rely on God’s word and give it first priority as the source of knowledge and truth about our God and his eternal plan for his people.
• We need to understand the interpretive communities (virtual and real) that we negotiate each day. We need to enter and participate in virtual communities with the same respect, purposes, enthusiasm and preparation with which we enter any physical community.
• We need to test the validity, accuracy and truth of anything we find on the Internet.
  

a) Avoiding being shaped by the Internet

There is a danger that in embracing the Internet we may be shaped by it. The postmodern thinker lives in a world of openness, doubt and uncertainty. The Internet as a platform for information exchange is a tool that sits comfortably with relativistic and postmodern thought. Meta-narratives like the Christian gospel can so easily be dismissed as just one telling of humanity’s story, just one possible truth amongst many, or perhaps even just one story amongst many stories.

It seems obvious that a key priority to avoid being shaped into the world’s mould is for the Christian to continually place a priority on God’s word. We should use the Internet both to strengthen our faith and to share it, but we need to do so with a healthy understanding of the varied epistemologies that we will encounter. Don Carson (in The Gagging of God) rightly suggests, that in a world dominated by radical hermeneutics and deconstruction, it will take diligence to fight against the tendency to accept that all interpretations of texts are equally valid.

The Christian needs to rely on God’s word as the ultimate test of what is right and true. Christians are people who “guard [their way]” according to God’s word, “storing up” God’s word in their hearts, “meditating on” and “delighting in” his statutes (Psalm 119:9-16).

b) Take care in, and show respect for, the Cyber communities we enter

Just as we must take care with the networks of people we join in the physical world, we must take care with the cyber communities we enter. The insight that interpretive communities and status hierarchies shape the understandings and beliefs of the individual is not a new one. Jesus himself asked the religious elite of his day, “How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?” (John 5:44).

We need to understand the interpretive communities we visit, and engage in them with full understanding of the foundations on which they share their experiences and insights. Just as Christians share common beliefs based on their reading of God’s word and their understanding of it developed in interpretive communities (e.g. families, churches, Bible study groups etc), so too non-Christian networks and groups share common understandings gained as part of interpretive communities. The atheist, the Rotarian and the sceptic all share common views of the world within their communities. What is different is that Christians claim a shared understanding of the Living God and our confidence in this comes from the truth we see in God’s word. The Bible claims that God is the foundation and author of all truth and that this is focused on the person of Jesus who claimed, “I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life” (John 14:1). This truth stands above and shapes all other ‘truth’.

c) Test the validity, accuracy and truth of anything you find on the Internet

While the Internet can be useful for communicating truth, readers need to be able to assess information to judge if it is true. I continue to be amazed just as much by the inaccuracy of Internet, as I am by its comprehensiveness. Even an Oxford Press published book by a leading international scholar is to be questioned. How much more carefully should we read with discernment the words of an unknown person, representing an unknown organization, with unknown qualifications? As Howard Rheingold has pointed out, "the responsibility for determining the accuracy of texts shifted from the publisher to the reader when the functions of libraries shifted to search engines". This is not inherently bad; in fact, I see much that is good about this shift. Both children and adults need to ask themselves more questions of the content they encounter:

Who wrote this piece? What is the author's claim to expertise and knowledge in this area? From where does the writer derive his or her sources and how well regarded are such sources? What is the purpose of the writing? What are the underlying assumptions, ideology, values and worldview of the writer? How do the claims of this text match the claims of others?

Summing up

The Internet offers new possibilities and also threats. John Stackhouse points out in his excellent book “Humble Apologetics” - “If we are going to defend and commend our faith, we must do it in a new mode: with a different voice and in a different posture. Our apologetics must be humble.” This is a great challenge to me personally; both as a reader or lurker in numerous virtual communities of which I am part, or as I seek to invite others into one of my own virtual communities, such as the readership of this blog.

Above: Just one more connection! US Army photograph

Communication, Cyberspace & Community

Case #15 is out and should be in the mailboxes of subscribers this week. The theme of ‘Communication, Cyberspace and Community’ has been chosen in recognition that we live an age of unprecedented development in communication technology that is having an impact on our lives. Whilst technology has led to rapid improvement in communication throughout the last century, the changes in the last 20 years have been staggering. The impact of new media and communication has arguably changed the way people communicate, relate to one another and form communities of interest and support.

Consider the fact that in the 1st Century AD communication at a distance was achieved with letters and written messages of various kinds. This system remained largely unchanged for almost 2,000 years. While the speed with which the written word was sent increased slowly over the centuries due to technology advances in transport, the Roman system of sealed written documents delivered via a network of mail centres and ‘postmen’ has changed little even up till the present day.

The ability to share knowledge in more complex and extended forms was restricted until Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press in 1440. This eventually permitted the mass production of books and as a result opened up education to the masses. This technology was largely unchanged for over five centuries, but the printing press enabled greater access to information and knowledge.

But the last twenty years have seen changes in communication shaped by technological advances not thought possible in my childhood. The 1970s to 1980s saw the development of the personal computer. The fax machine gained widespread use in the 1980s. The Internet had its genesis in the defence industry in the 1960s and the University of California in the 1970s, but it did not become widely available until the late 1980s. Similarly, the mobile phone did not become available until the late 1980s. Associated with these developments was the growth in the power and reach of the Internet in combination with software developments such as search engines, email programs, and developments in video and audio technology. In the last few years alone we have seen MySpace and Facebook change the way a whole generation communicates, and the electronic book is now a serious competitor for the traditional book that has been largely unchanged for centuries (see a recent post of mine on the Kindle on another blog).

We gave four themed articles:

1. Mark Hadley and David Horne contribute “The Brave New Online World” and suggest that massive changes in communication technology present us with opportunities to develop new types of Cyber communities to share the gospel.
2. Kamal Weerakoon contributes “Gospel, Community and the Cyberchurch of God” and explores just one application of new media of the type that Hadley and Horne encourage us to embrace – the Cyber Church.
3. I contribute “Truth and the Internet” and explore more broadly the impact that the Internet might have on truth, knowledge and learning.
4. Roberta Kwan contributes “From Privacy to Community” and discusses how our desire to protect our identities is related to a biblical understanding of sin and man’s desire to hide from God as part of our rebellion against him.

Case #15 also contains book reviews, a response to Andrew Bain by Ben Myers ("Which Apologetics") and a piece on Natural Theology by Larissa Johnson. If you're not a subscriber to Case could I encourage you to consider joining. This full colour 32 page magazine comes out quarterly. You can become an Associate of CASE for $55 per year which will entitle you to receive all four issues plus other benefits. There is also a student rate of $35 (great for Bible college or university students) and an online version for overseas associates that avoids postage costs and delays. More information is available here.

Writing, communication, technology and relationships

This is my third post about writing. In this post I want to make some comments and pose some questions about the impact of new forms of information communication technology on how we communicate.


The impact of technology

I write this Blog as a 55 year old who can remember as a child our manual exchange home phone being the only one in our street (and everyone using it) and the day our first (black and white) TV arrived (I was 11). I have participated in many subsequent technology advances – colour TV (I bought one just after our kids were born and kept it till they were grown up), personal computers (I bought my first one in 1984), faxes, videos, mobile phones (my first in 1989 and I still have the original phone number), the computer mouse (a big step forward), email (1989), websites, call centres, DVDs, a Blackberry (will I ever escape email again?!), Blogs, Facebook and so on. We've come a long way since Eniac was commissioned in 1946 (photo is a US Army Picture).

With some lived experience of technology I know firsthand that it changes things. I also know that the changes are not always good. When television arrived it reduced family time together (certainly in terms of interaction), it had negative effects for children who watched too much TV, it closed lots of community cinemas etc. I could repeat this for other technology forms – there are always negative impacts, as well as the positive. So as we continue down this path of constant communication technology change it is good to pause (before the next development hits) and question just where each major new wave is taking us.

Language changes

Language is changing all the time (both spoken and written). The most obvious way this occurs is in terms of language use, particularly in relation to words, spelling and grammar. New words are added to the lexicon with each passing year. What was once seen as an established grammatical form slowly disappears (e.g. the split infinitive rule – I know some of you out there are still holding out on this one). Incorrect spellings become optional spellings and in some cases (over time) preferred spellings. Text genres also change and are adapted to changing needs and purposes. The company memorandum (on paper) has largely been replaced by emails. Personal letters have largely been replaced with SMS messages, emails, Blog posts, Facebook entries. Even literary forms such as the novel are less often straight-forward narratives to become more complex and diverse forms. This type of change has always occurred, but seems to have accelerated in the past 30 years. One of the key drivers of such change has been communication technology (and with it globalisation) which has had an impact on language use as well as the way we communicate.

The word and new media - multiliteracies

One of the most significant changes has been the extent to which the spoken or written word has been supplemented, replaced or changed by images, video and film, and even led to new representational forms (gaming is a perfect example). This has led some to suggest that the written word is less relevant than it was once. There is little doubt that the written word is used increasingly with other forms of communication and that in our world we are surrounded by more complex ‘multiliteracies’. By this I mean new forms of communication that are multimodal and require much more interplay between words, images, sound, video, spoken language etc. However, we still have much to learn about this topic. For those interested in reading a more scholarly discussion of some of this as well as a defence of the importance of narrative for children, you will find a recent paper I presented on this on my website.


Anyone who reads a Blog will know that there are communication options available today not dreamed of 20 years ago and this is changing the way (at least) some people communicate. If there are people out there (probably not readers of this Blog) who don’t think new forms of communication are emerging, they need to consider the more recent Web 2.0 developments such as MySpace and Facebook. There is little doubt that these new forms of social networking are having a big impact on the way under 30yr olds communicate. Of course, we’re not sure what impact this might have long term on the way we relate to one another, but members of Gen Y have embraced it with great enthusiasm.

Advantages and disadvantages of ICT

The advantages of modern Internet enabled communication forms are obvious:

• The Internet offers global reach at minimal cost.
• It is very easy for anyone to publish and communicate ideas (including Christian truth) in forms that are visually attractive and effective.
• It is possible to build cyber networks of relationships and to engage with others concerning just about anything, including matters of faith.
• We can have access to written texts, images, audio files, video material from our lounge rooms, including significant historical source material, newspapers, images, videos – the web is an incredible resource.
• Search engines like Google are powerful tools for learning when used well.

But there are disadvantages:

• Web-based communication is less permanent (links quickly disappear, websites close down, Blogs 'mutate' into new untrackable forms etc).
• The reliability and accuracy of any communication is largely untested and unreviewed, hence anyone can present themselves as an expert on anything.
• Individuals are also able to misrepresent themselves more easily to unsuspecting audiences.
• The ease with which anyone can self-publish may well give individuals a misplaced sense of their own expertise and knowledge.
• There is a tendency for the message to be limited in depth.
• There are moral questions for any Christian about the less than helpful content that is available at the click of a mouse for adults and children and at times the negative impacts a technology application might have on us personally. Nicole Starling (my daughter!) has an interesting post that talks about eBay and the impact it can have on us.
• The shear amount of time that the Internet can consume can be excessive – new communication forms can become addictive (Josh Harris has an interesting post on why he left FaceBook after a week).
• The fascination with new communication forms may well lead to the neglect of traditional forms. What is lost when children don’t read (or hear) as much literature? When adults don’t read novels or even their Bibles as much as they once did?
• There is a danger that for some the “medium is the message” to quote the Canadian educator, philosopher and professor of English Marshall McLuhan, who suggested that for many the generic form of media is more important than any "meaning" or "content" that the medium conveys (something I'd contest of course but he'd see new ICT forms as evidence of the validity of his statement).
  

Some random implications

Here are what I think are just some of the implications of the above:

1. When we communicate have a clear purpose and audience in mind and choose the most appropriate form for your message. A Blog is a perfect way to establish and encourage interaction and knowledge sharing amongst a network of people interested in a specific topic and who have similar life experiences. But it isn’t the best way for the Australian Tax Office to fulfil its responsibility to inform citizens of changes to tax laws and interpretations. One reader of this Blog commented in a response to one of my previous posts on writing that he isn't about propose to someone by email, but I've observed some examples that come close.

2. Make the most of new media without reducing the importance of the written word - remember the message is the key, not the medium. By all means use data projectors in churches but don’t discourage the personal use of Bibles by projecting all passages and removing Bibles from pews. Conversely, do use the data projector for showing an alternative translation of a passage or to draw in additional material that might support the teaching of God’s word. And all should know about BibleGateway.com. Some churches might even consider using Blogs, Facebook, and MySpace as part of its community building strategies (hopefully not as a replacement for other things).

3. Encourage young people to evaluate critically the impact of each new form of communication and to be aware of potential problems (e.g. web scams, net predators, the dangers of publishing personal information on the internet for the world to see; how relationships might be affected by the way we communicate etc).

4. Don’t replace personal conversations with your friends, family and neighbours with SMS messages, Facebook, emails and Blog posts. Yes, they can work well when you’re on the other side of the country or the world but there is no substitute for personal communication.

5. Do use new media to point others towards significant wisdom and knowledge. A communication diet based exclusively on YouTube, SMS or Facebook entries has some significant limitations. But all are mediums that could be useful ways to communicate significant messages such as biblical truth and to strengthen relationships and networks of people exploring life’s big topics together.

Readers interested in more posts on literacy, communication and related issues might find my blog Literacy, Families and Learning of interest.