Blog Post #3: Phone Wall Ad


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I came across this graphic that I thought was quite clever and relevant to what we've been discussing in class. The "phone wall" represents our addiction to social media. It's hard to not notice how often people are on their phones - in lines, in doctor's offices, during dinner, etc. This advertisement depicts the irony of how when we are more we connected, the less we truly connect. It aims to make us question whether we are neglecting real-life interactions and relationships.  It reminds me of Kyla's relationship with her dad. She uses her phone as a way to signify she doesn't want to talk to him.


However, if we play devil's advocate, can we challenge this ad? Are we truly more disconnected to reality because of social media? Or can social media be a means of enhancing our everyday life. For example, in class, we talked about how communication is innate in human beings. Social media can also be a means to strengthen our bonds with one another.

Vivian

Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 17, 2018 at 5:30 PM

    Hi Vivian! This image is a very strong depiction of how social media has affected our world, including basic activities such as going to bed. While I agree that social media can definitely strengthen bonds, it can also destroy them as we saw in Noah. He jumped to conclusions and invaded his girlfriend's Facebook on a hunch. This implies that he believed his girlfriend's social media account would be more truthful than his girlfriend herself. He trusted activity and conversations that took place over social media more than his own girlfriend. While social media is integrated into our daily functioning, it is imperative to create a balance between your online world and reality to moderate its impact on your life.

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  2. Olivia HeinsOctober 20, 2018 at 3:51 PM

    Hi Vivian, I find this ad really interesting so I'm glad you shared it. I can definitely relate to your comment about us constantly being on our phones when waiting in line and other situations, however I personally try and make an effort to put down my phone when I am around friends or family. I definitely agree that this ad relates well to Kayla's relationship with her dad as her phone essentially puts a barrier between their communication. I think that this ad can be challenged to an extent is it is of course a dramatization and ignores the fact that many positive things can come from a phone such as staying in contact with loved ones who live far away or meeting new people via online dating for example. I think that this ad is very thought provoking and it emphasizes the importance of being conscious of how much time we spend on our phones.

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