Blog Post #2: The Anxieties of Katherine & Kayla


               


Within Chapter 2 of Baym’s reading, she states that a major aspect that strikes our individual anxieties surrounding new media is the fact that these media are interactive: “Interactivity raises issues about the authenticity and well-being of people, interactions, and relationships that use new media” (Baym, p. 24). Katherine Pommerening is a prime example of our how social relationships and our connectivity with the world can be tainted and filtered through the technological lens that has latched itself onto young generations specifically. As a 13-year-old girl, Katherine is an ideal target for these emerging technologies, where companies have strategically distributed these platforms to attract the right audience. With the use of her mobile phone, containing popular applications such as Instagram and Snapchat, it is evident that she has lost track of space and time off-screen within her real life. 

The theoretical perspective I have chosen to look at is technological determinism, where the introduction to these new senses that come along with new technologies influence the way we adapt to communicative practices in the present day (Baym, p. 27). For example, within Katherine’s story, we discover that her mother enjoyed reading magazines during her free time, where Katherine claims that she is able to get the exact same experience from her Instagram feed. Katherine’s ideas of magazines are based on the belief that their purpose is solely to hold images of ‘perfect’ women rather than providing news coverage on our culture. Why would she need a paper copy if the images are at the palm of her hand via a mobile screen? This is an example of how technology controls and influences the ways in which we communicate today compared to decades ago, where humans did not rely on technology to be entertained or stimulated.

The way Katherine communicates via the materials provided at her reach is happening at a rapid rate that creates uneasiness and anxiety internally, where the truthfulness of her interactions and face-to-face dialogue are called into question. Another example of this technological determinism perspective can be seen within the film screened in class, Eighth Grade, where a young girl is struggling to communicate and have a genuine relationship with her father during simple tasks such as having dinner together, which was once considered to be quality family time. Kayla makes the decision to plug in her headphones and tune out her father, allowing this time to pass without her consciously being aware of it. It is evident within the film that this once ‘very rich’ communication at the dinner table is now taken for granted, taking the shape of ‘irrelevant’ and ‘boring’ interaction in comparison to the activity practiced on her digital device. Kayla’s father must now learn to adapt to his daughter’s behaviours through the introduction of new technologies upon a young generation, similar to Katherine’s story.


Baym, N. K. (2016). Making new Media Make Sense. In Personal Connections in the Digital Age- Digital Media and the Society Series (2nd ed., pp. 24-56).




Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 4, 2018 at 9:09 AM

    Hi Monique,

    I really enjoyed reading your post, as it perfectly outlines Baym’s views and real world examples from Katherine’s life. Your connect between Kayla in the film and Katherine in the article is a strong example of your point of how technology has shaped and determined the way in which we form and perform social relationships and interactions. Your example of Kayla and her fathers rich communicate during dinner being taken for granted really made me reflect on my own childhood and how technology has now changed the childhood experience today. I remember sharing my day with my parents over dinner sometimes when I was younger, however the same experience does not occur today. A lot of the time we’re all on our own devices, even my parents! Even if we’re watching a movie together, we used to talk about it as it was happening, but now we’re simultaneously on our phones. At first, I thought that is was a result of us all getting older, however I now believe that it may be the technology that has shaped our interaction and communicate patterns to become this way. We prioritize the virtual communication, rather than the physical ‘irrelevant/boring’ communication that's in front of us, just as you proved with Kayla and her dad.

    Really interesting connection between the article and the film. Great Job!

    ReplyDelete
  2. adam gallOctober 5, 2018 at 10:47 AM

    Hi Monique,

    Great post. Very informative. I especially agree with your comment about Katherine's age group being a prime target for new and emerging technologies. Teenagers have an unbelievable amount of control when it comes to shaping the landscape of popular music, TV, and even technology for that matter. They are avid consumers by nature, and Katherine is no different. At this point in time there are definite concerns about the ways in which technology is altering our ability to communicate face-to-face, and in Katherine's case, she seems to be spending more time with her friends on her phone than she does with them in-person. My question to you then is this: do you think there will come a point in which communication technology will be rich enough in social cues to quell any fears or anxieties about the lack of authentic, face-to-face interaction? Or will there always be a need to retain that in-person interaction?

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  3. Jenny WilsonOctober 7, 2018 at 2:23 PM

    Hi Monique!

    I really enjoyed reading through your blog post this week. I think you did a great job at outlining what technological determinism is and connecting it to Katherine's story. I liked how you included examples from Kayla's story as well as it added something extra to your post and showed you really understood their two stories and the theory. I liked your example where you contrasted what Katherine's mother did for enjoyment and what Katherine does to show her dependence on technology. Katherine and Kayla both showed the disconnect they have with their family members because of technology. This is something that is definitely very hard for their fathers and family members to adapt and relate to which will ultimately cause anxiety and tension between the relationship.

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