Our Digital Society Needs One Thing

We live in a society dominated and powered by digital communication. Indeed, we are part of a Digital Society, one composed of powerful voices, each proselyting diametric views. There are many ignored voices that deserve and need to be heard.

These voices can only be heard if change happens. Our Digital Society has the potential to spur change or inhibit change, based on the way each of us decides to act. We need to be aware of the way we use digital media so that we can understand where we might better society through our use of technology.

Here are three ignored voices that you need to hear: 

1. Change in the integration of technology in the learning process;
2. Change in the toleration of radicalism online; and 
3. Change in the media's perception of women.

Securing Our Identities

More than ever before, our civilization uses digital technology for our most basic communicating needs. We are now creating WHO WE ARE online. While these wonderful ways of communicating online give us new means of creation, expression and individuality, we are being subjects for new dangers.


I believe that we have the right to have our online identities protected from unauthorized viewers.

Resisting Technological Change Hurts Students and Children

"Screen time is dangerous. Social networking needs to be limited. Kids' self-image is being destroyed. Only bad role models are portrayed in the media......" 

My two-year-old niece at the local library in WA where they have embraced the use of technology for learning. 

Do you complain about how much technology is embedded in our lives? Do you often prefer the "old way" of doing things? If you answered yes to either of these questions, let me show you why your resistance to change may be hindering the education and development of the younger generations.

Can 21st Century media be used to combat sexism?

I was raised primarily by women - my mom and two sisters. My dad constantly worked outside of our home, so most of the instruction I received in my formative years came from these three women. Now that I'm married, my wife is incredibly influential and important to me. Needless to say, the women I love in my life have helped me become the man I am today. They deserve respect, equality, and love, just as everyone does.

My mother and two sisters with my wife and I on our wedding day.

But I'm concerned that this respect is getting lost and deformed through the 21st digital society we live in. Facebook, Twitter, television, movies, video games, and the internet as a whole have made pornography and illicit sexual themes more accessible than ever before. Although some might think these forms of media will clean themselves up over time, I'm not so optimistic. 

What we need is a change. 

A change in the way we consume media.

A change to begin to fill the world with good and uplifting forms of media.

A change to create a powerful and respectful image of women across the globe. 

Resistance to Change is Hindering the Development of Younger Generations

"Screen time is dangerous. Social networking needs to be limited. Kids' self-image is being destroyed. Only bad role models are portrayed in the media......" 

My two-year-old niece at the local library in WA where they have embraced the use of technology for learning. 

Do you complain about how much technology is embedded in our lives? Do you often prefer the "old way" of doing things? If you answered yes to either of these questions, let me show you why your resistance to change may be hindering the education and development of the younger generations.

Respecting Women in the 21st Century

My mother and two sisters with my wife and I on our wedding day. Women are incredible and deserve respect.

I was raised primarily by women - my mom and two sisters. My dad was constantly working outside of the home, so most of the instruction I received in my formative years came from these three women. Now that I'm married, my wife is incredibly influential and important to me. Needless to say, the women I love in my life have helped me become the man I am today. They deserve respect, equality, and love, just as anyone should. 

I'm concerned that this respect is getting lost and deformed through the 21st digital society we live in. Facebook, Twitter, television, movies, video games, and the internet as a whole have made pornography and illicit sexual themes more accessible than ever before. Although some might think these forms of media could become cleaned up, I'm not so optimistic. 

What we need is a change. 

A change in the way we use media.

A change to begin to fill the world with good and uplifting forms of media.

A change to create a powerful and respectful image of women across the globe. 

Changing to Fit Our Digital Society

The Digital Society in which we live in has the potential to spur change or inhibit change. Change can happen, but currently, it is not. 

Michael feels passionately that we need to use technology to change the way women are viewed globally.

Chloe is advocating for older generations to educate themselves in order to teach their students and children to maturely use the technology available to them.

Alec believes there is a fine line between tolerance and radicalism that we must reach in order to effectively inspire change.

How do you feel about the rate of change in our Digital Society today?

Digital Society E/Affects: Womanhood, Education, and Tolerance

Our digital society is made up of many parts, similar to a pie. Technology doesn’t just include social networking and funny YouTube videos, that is just the cherry on top. The real meat of it includes politics, education, co-collaboration, and overall social progress. We have chosen three parts of this pie that we feel passionate about and want to share with you in our short group video.

Changing Ways of Thinking Thanks to Technology

My name is Jonah Hainsworth. I've been interested in studying whether technology is really advancing society. Today, I'm focusing on how we've changed our way of thinking. How we've switched from thinking concretely to hypothetically.

Digital Media, Disintegrating Relationships

Alli, a young girl sits at the dinner table sneaking a peek at her phone as she sits next to her brother at the dinner table.

 “Allison, put your phone down and be with us right new” her parents say in a warning tone.

“But I am texting my friend Laycee”, Alli says, “It’s very important”.  

Meanwhile a girl sits in class completely distracted by the social media on her computer. Although building social relations she is missing out on the socialization she could get at school.

 Is digitalization tearing down social society or is it enhancing social relations? Both sides to this question could be emphasized by Alli’s situation. She is building relationships digitally but she is missing out on the other interpersonal relationship building opportunities that are available. So which is more important and is it possible to strike a balance. Sure, digital dialogue is building relationships but in the same it is tearing them down. This situation has numerous forms. You have seen this all around you, on the bus, in your classes, and even at a local dance people can be found occupied with their phones and devices. Even Christmas can be taken over by children obsessively playing with their new personal media devices while ignoring the festivities that surround them. The effects are numerous.

 

Not only is this effecting society on a personal social level but also on a larger scale. I am personally concerned with the effects of social media on religious attendance. In my World Religions class we talked about the effects of giant churches with a wide spread media outreach. People are missing out on necessary personal social relations because they church is being taken to the home rather than a meeting house. These large scale conferences loose the small, personal relationships that could develop. Thus making it easier for people to decide to just quit watching. These conferences are becoming more and more popular. These digital churches are making it hard for people to us church as a social outlet. Thus it is causing others to have to reach out in society in other ways. Church is a very important social situation in society and it is very important that we preserve these societies. Without this society may soon disintegrate to digital churches and eventually to no church at all.

Enhancing Personal Relationships = Enhancing Society

Digital media is getting in the way of personal relationships. Pictured here is my boyfriend AJ and I "segregated" by all this technology that has come out, and me being distracted by it. Do your digital devices do this to a loved one like a family member, spouse, boy/girlfriend, or a friend? If so, change it! (click on the picture to read)

Digital media is hurting civilization, the world me and you live in. Our world is so absorbed in the media and technology that it is almost impossible to find a place on earth that has not been impacted by media. I think it is a good idea to not put put away technology completely, but put aside this digital media because it is hurting social relationships. Social relationships are the foundation of what makes a civilization. Karl Marx said that society is basically a sum of interpersonal relationships, so we need to enhance our personal relationships to enhance society.